PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Fist Of Steel (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Rico Conner (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Fist Of Steel has a significant reach advantage - let's see if he can make it count.

Of Steel
vs
Conner

200 cm
19
217 lbs
1 - 3 - 0

181 cm
18
205 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Solid boxing
Big right hand

BJJ White Belt
Good kicks
Solid chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 1 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Hilo, Fist Of Steel!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Hilo, Rico Conner!
The judges for this bout are Ryoma Takatsuka, Chris Saunders and Roger Salmon.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Conner throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Conner misses with a body shot.
Conner throws a leg kick that misses.
Conner throws a head kick but Steel moves out of range.
Conner tries to clinch up but Steel circles away and keeps his distance.
Conner misses the shot to the body.
Conner swings for the body but Steel moves out of range.
Steel half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Conner avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Steel blocks the body kick.

Conner closes the distance and clinches.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Conner misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Steel.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Conner.
Conner looking to throw knees to the head but Steel is blocking nicely.
Conner blocks an uppercut.
Conner creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
Steel blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Steel blocks an uppercut.
Conner misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Steel.
Conner is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Steel is defending well for now.
Conner missing with knees to the body.
Conner tries a knee to the head but Steel blocks it.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Steel.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Steel creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Conner looking to throw knees to the head but Steel is blocking nicely.
Conner with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Steel tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Conner fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.
A head punch on the inside from Conner fails to land.

Conner breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Conner throws a head kick but Steel moves out of range.
Conner wants to clinch.
Steel feinted with a counter takedown.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Steel avoids the body shot from Conner.
Steel changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
Conner pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Steel avoids the body shot from Conner.
Steel tries to clinch but Conner moves out of range.
Conner is throwing a lot of body shots here, looking to wear down Steel rather than just go for the knockout.
Steel fails in his attempt to clinch.
Steel takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.

Steel clinches up with Conner and pushes him back against the cage.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Conner misses with a knee to the head.
Conner throws a knee to the head but misses.
Conner's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Conner tries to land knees in the clinch but Steel avoids the damage to the body.
Conner trying to land knees to the body.
Conner swings wildly with an uppercut but Steel uses good head movement to avoid it.
Conner looking to throw knees to the head but Steel is blocking nicely.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Steel avoiding damage as Conner throws knees to the body.
Steel blocks an uppercut.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Steel.
Conner tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Steel's elbow.
Steel takes a knee to the side of the body.
Conner blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
A short left from Steel.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Conner.
Conner can't find room to land a body shot as Steel controls the action.
Steel avoiding damage as Conner throws knees to the body.
Steel scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Conner misses with a knee to the head.
Steel blocking some punches.
Conner trying to land knees to the body.
Steel misses with a short punch on the inside.
Steel tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Steel misses with some punches.
Conner tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Steel avoids it.
Conner with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Conner tries a knee to the head but Steel blocks it.
Conner tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Steel avoids it.
Conner missing with knees to the body.
Steel softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.

It looks like Rico Conner has been cut.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
A head punch blocked on the inside by Conner.
A head punch on the inside from Conner fails to land.
Conner missing with knees to the body.
Conner swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Conner tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Conner misses with a hook to the ribs.
Conner using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Steel has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Conner is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Steel is defending well for now.
Conner looks winded!
Conner can't find room to land a body shot as Steel controls the action.
Conner tries to land knees in the clinch but Steel avoids the damage to the body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Rico Conner dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Rico Conner's cut.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Conner scores with a sloppy right hand. Steel should have avoided that one.
Conner cracks Steel with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.
Rico Conner seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Conner misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Steel.
Conner misses the shot to the body.
Steel tries to clinch but Conner is having none of it.
Conner misses with a head kick.
Steel drops down looking for a counter takedown but Conner sprawls and moves away.
Conner throws a head kick that misses.
Steel half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Conner swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Steel feinted with a counter takedown.
Steel misses with a wild combination.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Conner looks to score with a jab to the body but Steel is just out of range.
Conner goes for a spinning back kick but it misses.
Conner circles away from the clinch attempt.
Steel avoids the head kick by Conner.
Conner pushing out the jab but it's not landing.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Steel bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Steel appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Steel tries to close the distance and clinch but Conner swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Conner looks for the body kick but Steel saw that one coming.
Conner throws a wild body kick that Steel sees coming a mile off.
Conner looks to score with a jab to the body but Steel is just out of range.
Steel wants to clinch up but Conner keeps it at a distance.
Conner throws a body shot but no joy.
Conner has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Conner attempts a leg kick but it's missed by a good margin.
Conner throws an overhand right that lands on Steel's shoulder, as Steel tries to avoid the shot.
Conner connects with a solid leg kick.
Steel fails with an attempt to clinch.
We are yet to see a takedown attempt from Conner in the fight. On paper you would think he is the more dominant ground fighter so let's see if these unusual tactics pay off.
Steel is looking to clinch but Conner is avoiding it.
Steel moves out of range of the strikes.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Conner swings for the body but Steel moves out of range.
An inside leg kick from Conner misses.
Conner misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Steel appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
The fighters are starting to get sweaty, which will make takedowns a bit more tricky.
Steel wants to clinch.
Steel tries to clinch but Conner is having none of it.
Conner avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Conner swings for the body but Steel moves out of range.
Conner throws a chopping leg kick but Steel manages to avoid taking any serious damage.
Conner looking to throw a kick but he's pulled out of it.
Steel feinted with a counter takedown.
Steel moves out of range of the body kick from Conner.
Steel changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
Steel moves out of range of the leg kick from Conner.
Conner keeps the fight on the outside.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Conner tries to land a front kick but Steel steps back. That was a bit too telegraphed.
Steel feinted with a counter takedown.
Well, he's not going to score with shots like that. A lazy body kick attempt from Conner.
Steel tries to close the distance and clinch up but Conner swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Steel tries to close the distance and clinch but Conner swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Steel doesn't manage to clinch there - Conner circles away.
Steel swats away the attempt to clinch by Conner.
Conner ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Steel moves away.
Conner takes a swing at Steel's ribcage but misses.
Steel keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
Conner tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Conner throws the kick towards the body but Steel avoids it.
Steel drops down looking for a counter takedown but Conner sprawls and moves away.
Conner looks to score with a jab to the body but Steel is just out of range.
Conner is breathing heavily.
Steel has his front leg slapped to the side - a nice low kick landing there from Conner.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Steel gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
Conner misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Steel.
Conner trying to land knees to the body.
Steel lands a shoulder strike.
Conner can't find room to land a body shot as Steel controls the action.
Steel avoiding damage as Conner throws knees to the body.
Conner tries to throw a body punch but Steel avoids it by throwing Conner back against the cage.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Steel creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Conner misses with a hook from the clinch.
Steel lands a left hand.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Conner pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
Steel tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Conner throws a knee to the head but misses.
Steel on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Steel lands a right hand that snaps the head of Conner backwards.

Conner breaks from the clinch.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Rico Conner showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Rico Conner's cut.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business. 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.

The sound of bone on bone echoes around the arena as Steel checks a leg kick.
Conner takes a swing at Steel's ribcage but misses.
Conner lands with a thumping leg kick.
Conner tries to land a front kick but Steel steps back. That was a bit too telegraphed.
Steel tries to clinch up but Conner circles away and keeps his distance.
Conner is clearly trying to counter these attacks from Steel with a body shot.
Steel tries to clinch but Conner is having none of it.
Conner throws a half hearted mid kick.
Conner throws a decent looking leg kick but it doesn't land clean.
Conner has his head slapped from side to side by a 3 punch combination. That must have hurt him.
The fight stays on the outside here - Steel looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Conner misses with an attempted mid kick.
Steel half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Ooooh, nice body kick lands from Conner. Steel shrugs it off though.
Steel moves in looking to clinch but Conner pushes him off.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Conner misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Steel attempts a counter takedown but Conner avoids it well and moves away.
Conner takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Conner takes a swing at Steel's ribcage but misses.
Steel fails in his attempt to clinch.
Steel tries to clinch but Conner is having none of it.
Conner throws a body kick that misses.
Steel avoids a kick to the body.
Conner throws a half hearted mid kick.
Steel changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
Conner moves in looking to clinch but Steel pushes him off.
Steel feinted with a counter takedown.
Conner throws a solid leg kick but Steel takes the impact on his shin and smiles at Conner.
Steel checks the leg kick.
Steel avoids a kick to the body.
Steel tries to counter with a takedown but Conner is quick to defend against it.
Conner keeps the fight on the outside.
Some bone on bone action there as Steel checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Steel appears to be looking for a counter takedown.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Steel tries to clinch up.
Steel tries to clinch up.
Conner tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Conner fakes a jab and throws a low kick but Steel checks it well.
Conner fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Steel manages to avoid it.
Conner looks to land a right hand but Steel moved out of range.
Steel appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Steel checks the leg kick nicely there.
Steel avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Conner takes a swing at Steel's ribcage but misses.
Steel tries to counter with a takedown but Conner is quick to defend against it.
Conner keeps the fight on the outside.
Steel is looking to clinch.
Steel circles away from the clinch attempt.
Steel appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Steel displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Conner throws out the jab.
Steel wants to clinch up but Conner keeps it at a distance.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Conner looks to land a body kick but Steel moved away.
Steel wants to clinch.
Steel uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Conner.
Steel tries to counter with a takedown but Conner is quick to defend against it.
Conner swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Steel is looking to counter the offense by Conner and move into the clinch.
Fist Of Steel is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Conner swings for the body but Steel moves out of range.
Rico Conner seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Steel wants to clinch.
Conner fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Steel manages to avoid it.
Steel tries to close the distance and clinch up but Conner swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Conner missing with a left hand there. Steel was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Conner swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Steel tries to clinch there but Conner circles away.
Conner throws a sloppy head kick and Steel moves out of range easily.
Conner misses the shot to the body.
Conner walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Steel checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Steel feinted with a counter takedown.
Steel avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Conner tries to score with a low kick but Steel moves his leg out of the way.
Conner misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Steel.
Steel keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Steel is trying to close the distance and clinch up, after that failed offence from Conner.
Steel slips a jab from Conner.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Some bone on bone action there as Steel checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Steel appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Steel tries to close the distance and clinch but Conner swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Fist Of Steel has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Rico Conner is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Steel tries to close the distance and clinch up but Conner swats him away and circles back towards the center.

And that's the end of the fight!
Rico Conner comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Conner 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 Ryoma Takatsuka scores the fight 27:30
Judge Chris Saunders scores the fight 27:30
Judge Roger Salmon scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Rico Conner!