PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Kirk George (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Thomas Lawson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). These two fighters really are very evenly matched on the feet - it will be fascinating to see who can assert themselves in that aspect of the fight.

George
vs
Lawson

156 cm
18
140 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

175 cm
18
130 lbs
4 - 1 - 1

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter fighter
Inexperienced

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Solid chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Kirk George!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 4 - 1 - 1, fighting out of St Petersburg, Thomas Lawson!
The judges for this bout are Valeri Chadov, Konstantin Menshow and Viktor Lagutenko.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

George clinches up with Lawson and pushes him back against the cage.
George tries to work over Lawson's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
George wants a takedown but no success here.
Lawson taking a break, stalling in the clinch.
George tries to break the clinch but Lawson is controlling the position.

Lawson breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
George tries to clinch up but Lawson circles away and keeps his distance.

George gets tackled into the cage by Lawson. Lawson maintains the clinch.
Lawson is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.
George drops down looking for an ankle pick but Lawson pulls his leg out and moves away.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

George shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
George perhaps working for something from half guard, or maybe not. It looks like he's just sitting there.
Lawson is trying to stand.
George is trying to control. Lawson wants to improve his position but can't escape this time.
Lawson is a painfully thin specimen of a man. You do wonder whether a good body kick would snap him clean in two.
Lawson wants to get back to his feet.
Well, if George is going to just lie there, perhaps we should talk about what we're having for dinner tonight… I'm having a ham and pineapple pizza… Yum. Can't wait.
Lawson is doing well to control the position and prevent George from advancing to side control.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Lawson can do anything to dispel that myth.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
George seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Lawson does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
A head kick misses from George.

Lawson fakes a strike and closes the distance, dragging George to the ground. Lawson is now in George's guard.

George pushes Lawson off for just long enough to get back to his feet. Very athletic spring there.
George swinging wildly here.
Lawson misses with a jab, cross combination.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Lawson misses with a series of wild punches.
George is trying to close the distance and clinch up, after that failed offence from Lawson.
George fails with an attempt to clinch.

Lawson shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Lawson showed some decent athleticism there.
The referee calls for the fighters to work.
George has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Lawson is working away from the top position though.
Lawson tries to stand but his arm is trapped.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Lawson is controlling the pace.
George is trying to control but Lawson passes into side control!
Lawson wants to stand but George is controlling his arm.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
George prevents Lawson from moving into mount.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Thomas Lawson will probably get the nod.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Lawson fakes a strike and closes the distance, dragging George to the ground. Lawson is now in George's guard.

The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
George pushes Lawson off for just long enough to get back to his feet. Very athletic spring there.
Lawson avoids a punch combination nicely.
George misses with a head kick.
George tries to close the distance and clinch but Lawson swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
George has a takedown stuffed.
Lawson tries to counter by closing the distance.

Lawson fakes an overhand right and shoots for a takedown. George sprawls well initially but Lawson persists and gets the takedown into half guard.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
George is staying active underneath Lawson, who seems content to just control the action from this position.
George is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Lawson looking for a kimura but he'll have to free his other leg if he wants to finish that. Perhaps he's just using it as a distraction technique.
George is refusing to be controlled, as Lawson sits in half guard.
Lawson performing his best blanket impression for a moment.
Kirk George overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.
Lawson throws a strike but George avoids it easily and moves to full guard.
George is looking to stand up but Lawson isn't so interested in that idea.

George is working actively off his back, looking to secure an arm or perhaps work for a triangle.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
George is trying to control the position but Lawson postures up.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.

Lawson forces George back against the cage and clinches.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.
A short right from Lawson.

Lawson gets double underhooks and manages to take the fight to the ground.
Lawson controls the pace of the fight for a moment.

Lawson decides to stand up and beckons his opponent to follow.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Lawson closes the distance and after a bit of a stuggle, scores a takedown into George's guard.
Lawson must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Lawson has decided he wants to stand but the closed guard of George is proving hard to escape from.
Lawson stays in close to George's body and controls the position.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Lawson accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Thomas Lawson showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! This is the final round!

Lawson closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. George quickly recovers to half guard.
Lawson prevents George from standing back up.
Lawson content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
Lawson wants to stand up but George is controlling the position.
Lawson working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Lawson content to control rather than advance.
George has a hand on Lawson's thigh, trying to get back to full guard. Lawson takes advantage of the position though and mounts him!

That's one minute gone in the round.
Lawson controlling the pace for now.
George has given up his back here.
Lawson is throwing strikes from the back here. Oh that last one was to the back of the head. Lawson gets a warning from the referee. He throws another strike to the back of the head straight away though and the referee has seen enough. He breaks up the two fighters and stands them back up. Lawson gets a real talking to here and is lucky not to get a point deducted. Lawson apologises and we restart here on the feet.

A momentary lapse in concentration from George enables Lawson to shoot in and score with a neat double leg. George manages to secure a closed guard as the fighters hit the mat.
George wants to sweep but no luck.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Lawson controlling from the top position.
George is looking to stand back up... there's a bit of a scramble and Lawson dives into side control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
George regains half guard there - taking advantage of Lawson's attempt to lay and pray for a moment.
George could do with losing a few pounds - he looks very soft around the mid section, to put it politely.
George is holding on to half guard well.
Lawson drops an elbow to the side of George's head.
Lawson seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but George does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
My god... these two guys really need to pick up the pace or everyone will leave to go get a beer.
Lawson trying to control the pace.
Lawson tries to pass the half guard into mount. George knows what he's doing though and prevents the attempt.
Lawson is figuring out what he wants to do next.
The referee is pacing around the two fighters - he looks like he's thinking about a standup.
George is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!

Lawson fakes a strike and closes the distance, dragging George to the ground. Lawson is now in George's guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
Thomas Lawson comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Lawson has outworked and out performed his opponent in all aspects of the game today. He was simply too good and the decision should be no more than a formality. Over to the ring announcer for the scorecards.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 3 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Valeri Chadov scores the fight 28:30
Judge Konstantin Menshow scores the fight 27:30
Judge Viktor Lagutenko scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Thomas Lawson!
Thomas Lawson bigged himself up after the win. The crowd seemed to love it.