PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Jack Cherry (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Mighty Manlet (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). The crowd giving both fighters a great reception on their way into the arena. That's good to see.

Cherry
vs
Manlet

160 cm
35
135 lbs
9 - 15 - 0

150 cm
27
130 lbs
3 - 4 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Brawler
Experienced

Good wrestler
Counter fighter
Determined

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 9 - 15 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Jack Cherry!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Mighty Manlet!
The judges for this bout are Timothy Bukovac, and Don Winkell.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Cherry throws a right and a left that both miss.
A cross from Cherry lands.
Cherry with a poor takedown

and Manlet decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Cherry's guard.
Manlet preventing the sweep.

Cherry has his foot on Manlet's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Manlet works his way back into a safe position though.
Cherry trying to control the position.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Cherry looking for subs off his back but Manlet has passed one foot through into half guard.
Cherry keeping control of the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Cherry wants to improve his position but Manlet is controlling well.
Manlet tries to pass to full mount but Cherry defends it.

That's two 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.
Cherry is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Cherry moves his hips nicely and gets into full guard.
Cherry is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Manlet pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Cherry is keeping the position for now.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Manlet preventing the sweep.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Cherry looks to have improved his striking defense since last time we saw him fight.
Cherry throws a right hand that Manlet ducks under and follows up with a left that Manlet also avoids with ease.
Cherry falls off balance throwing a combination

and Manlet counters with a takedown into side control.
Cherry is looking for a sweep.
You can see the frustration on Cherry's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Manlet slows the pace down.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Cherry tries to get back to half guard but can't.
You can see the frustration on Cherry's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Cherry tries to improve position but can't.
Cherry manages to get one leg in to regain half guard.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Cherry has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Manlet is working away from the top position though.
Cherry is looking to improve his position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Jack Cherry will probably get the nod.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

Cherry misses with the combination.
Nice takedown defense from Manlet. No joy for Cherry on that attempt.
Cherry has a takedown stuffed.
And Manlet tries to counter it with a takedown but Cherry pushes his down on his head and steps out.
Cherry tries to bum rush Manlet with a series of wild strikes but Manlet uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Manlet drops down looking to force a counter takedown but Cherry defends it well.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Cherry looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Manlet is fending him off so far but Cherry persists. Nope, Manlet circles away and we're back to standing.
Manlet tries a counter takedown but it's more of a dummy move, and he uses it to push himself away.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Jack Cherry. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Cherry rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Manlet moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Manlet feints the counter takedown.
Cherry fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Manlet manages to avoid it.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Cherry fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
Cherry shoots in looking for a takedown. Manlet tries to sprawl out of it but Cherry keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Manlet manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Manlet with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Cherry to score with a decent uppercut.
No luck with that takedown attempt from Cherry.
Cherry closes this distance looking for a takedown but Manlet circles away.
Cherry shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Manlet but Manlet pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Cherry swings wildly with a couple of big hooks

so Manlet counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
Manlet is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Cherry is trying to control the position from the bottom.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Manlet controls from within his opponent's guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Cherry wants to control but instead he gets his guard passed and Manlet is now in half guard.

Cherry manages to escape and get back to his feet!
Manlet avoids the body shot from Cherry.
Cherry rushes in with a sloppy looking punch

and Manlet counters with a takedown into side control! That could mean trouble for Cherry!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Cherry is trying to improve his position.
Mighty Manlet has got the better of the ground game so far.
Cherry wants to control but Manlet postures up.
Cherry is looking to reverse the position.
Cherry can't do much from the bottom here.
Cherry sneaks back into half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.
Manlet tries to pass the half guard into mount. Cherry knows what he's doing though and prevents the attempt.
Cherry is looking to improve his position.
Cherry is working hard here to advance position.
We've had a lack of effective grappling in the last minute or so, which could well see a referee standup.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Mighty Manlet showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! So, we enter the final round. Let's see if either fighter can bring us a finish, or whether we're going to the judges scorecards.

Cherry throws a right and a left that Manlet avoids nicely.
A left and a right from Cherry both land. Nice combination.
Cherry tries for a takedown but Manlet sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.
And Manlet tries to counter it with a takedown but Cherry pushes his down on his head and steps out.
Cherry misses with a takedown attempt - Manlet sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Manlet slips a jab and a cross from Cherry.
No luck with that takedown attempt from Cherry.
Manlet drops down looking to force a counter takedown but Cherry defends it well.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Jack Cherry. That's going to take a lot out of him.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Cherry swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Jack Cherry seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Cherry shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Manlet as he jumps to the side.
Manlet tries a counter takedown but it's more of a dummy move, and he uses it to push himself away.
Cherry fails with a takedown attempt.
And Manlet tries to counter it with a takedown but Cherry pushes his down on his head and steps out.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Cherry shoots in looking for a takedown but Manlet manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Cherry's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Manlet feints the counter takedown.
Cherry throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped

and Manlet counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Manlet.
Manlet sitting in guard, not really doing much.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Cherry wants to stand and escape but Manlet is having none of it.
Cherry is trying to control the position but Manlet postures up.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

Cherry is active off his back here, looking for submissions.

Cherry looking for submissions off his back, moving his hips, looking for an opening.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Cherry misses with a jab, cross combination.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Cherry throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped

so Manlet counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
Manlet is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Cherry looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Manlet engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.

Cherry looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Cherry has his foot on Manlet's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Manlet works his way back into a safe position though.
Manlet really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Cherry. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Cherry looking to hit a scissor sweep but Manlet is one step ahead there.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Cherry throws a nice looking combination but Manlet bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Cherry is trying hard to land a takedown here. Manlet sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Manlet tries a counter takedown but it's more of a dummy move, and he uses it to push himself away.
Cherry throws a combination that misses

so Manlet counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.

Cherry working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Manlet doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Manlet manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Cherry can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Manlet controls the pace.

And that's the end of the fight!
Mighty Manlet comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Manlet has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 Timothy Bukovac scores the fight 28:29
Judge Percy O'Donnell scores the fight 28:29
Judge Don Winkell scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Mighty Manlet!
Jack Cherry spoke after the fight, saying 'Back to the drawing board to fix what I missed. No more no less. Embrace the grind'.