|
|
PBP Commentary |
Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Rafael Amaral (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Rufus Soderberg (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). This should be fireworks!
 |
|
 |
| 189 cm
35
194 lbs
26 - 12 - 0 |
|
179 cm
40
186 lbs
29 - 23 - 1 |
Good wrestling
Excellent boxer
Insanely flexible |
|
Good wrestler
World class boxer
Powerful |
|
| |
|
Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of
26 - 12 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Rafael Amaral!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of
29 - 23 - 1, fighting out of St Petersburg, Rufus Soderberg!
The judges for this bout are Arvi Lind, Tarja Halkonen and Ben Zyskovitsi.
The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Amaral slips under a jab from Soderberg.
Amaral throws a series of strikes that have Soderberg backpedaling.
Nice defenses there by Amaral.
Soderberg scores with a jab to the head.
Amaral ducks right into an uppercut from Soderberg.
Soderberg misses with a two punch combination.
Amaral dips to his left and cracks Soderberg with an uppercut!
Amaral scores to the head and body with a nice combination!
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Amaral misses with an uppercut. Soderberg saw that one coming.
Soderberg misses with a left hand
and Amaral counters with a straight right hand.
Soderberg shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Amaral counters with a lovely straight right hand!
That's one minute gone in the round.
Amaral uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Soderberg.
Amaral throwing a counter right hand but Soderberg manages to avoid it.
Soderberg looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Soderberg takes one to the chin there.
Amaral throws a head kick that misses.
Amaral wants to clinch up but Soderberg keeps it at a distance.
Soderberg feints the counter takedown.
Amaral is using his height advantage well here, landing a good percentage of his punches.
Soderberg misses with a takedown
and Amaral counters with a nice uppercut.
Soderberg throws a hook to the side of Amaral's head but Amaral sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
Amaral seem to be loading up, looking for a big counter.
Amaral takes a big uppercut there. He seems a bit wobbly but no, he's OK.
Amaral throws a lazy uppercut
and Soderberg counters with a single leg into guard. Amaral didn't expect that.
Amaral wants to stand and escape but Soderberg is having none of it.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Soderberg postures up in Amaral's guard and throws a big left but Amaral blocks it.
Soderberg postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Soderberg is looking to work some ground and pound but Amaral has wrist control.
The fighters are tangled up in the ropes here. We might need a restart if the fighters can't break free themselves.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Soderberg trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Soderberg pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Amaral is keeping the position for now.
Soderberg lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
Soderberg stops Amaral from standing up.
Soderberg missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Soderberg accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Amaral is in a tricky position. We've heard reports from his gym mates at Elite Burn that he's been drilling escapes, so let's see if he can get back to his feet.
Soderberg stops Amaral from standing up.
The referee looks like he's ready to step in and stand the fighters back up.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Soderberg trying to control the position from guard on top but Amaral is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.
A head kick by Amaral misses
and Soderberg counters with a right hand to the body.
Amaral throws the left hand but Soderberg avoids the punch easily.
Soderberg slips a straight right by Amaral.
Amaral connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.
Rafael Amaral is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Amaral tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Soderberg feints the counter takedown.
Soderberg ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Amaral moves away.
Amaral is looking to counter with head kicks.
Amaral is really head hunting here, hardly looking to strike to the body at all.
Soderberg throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Amaral throws a big counter combination but Soderberg scrambles out of danger and avoids any damage.
Amaral throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Soderberg sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Soderberg throws a wild body kick that Amaral sees coming a mile off.
Amaral lifts his leg as if looking to counter with a high kick.
Soderberg lands a nice hook to Amaral's body. Amaral takes it in his stride and looks to land his own strikes.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Soderberg fails with the takedown
and Amaral counters with a straight right hand.
Rafael Amaral has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Rufus Soderberg.
Amaral throws a nice head kick!
Soderberg misses with a takedown attempt
and Amaral counters with a two punch combo.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Soderberg loads up on a big right hand but Amaral slips the punch.
Amaral connects with a leg kick. Soderberg looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Soderberg throws a body shot but no joy.
Amaral misses with a lunging right hand
and Soderberg counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Soderberg.
Soderberg working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Soderberg wants to control from the top but Amaral keeps moving.
Amaral is adopting a defensive guard.
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 Rafael Amaral will probably get the nod.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!
Amaral tries a low kick but Soderberg avoids it.
Soderberg looks to score with a jab to the body but Amaral is just out of range.
Soderberg swings widly with a right hand
letting Amaral counter with a right hand.
Soderberg throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
A looping hook to the body misses from Soderberg. Amaral does a little dance to reset his feet.
Soderberg shoots for a takedown but Amaral saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Soderberg scores with a straight right hand, right through his opponent's guard.
Soderberg shoots in for a takedown but Amaral shows good takedown defense.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Amaral scores with a punch to the head.
Amaral throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Soderberg keeps the fight on the outside.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Amaral throws a head kick that misses.
A head kick misses from Amaral.
Nice jab there from Amaral.
Soderberg is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Amaral.
Amaral misses with the combination.
Soderberg punishes Amaral's body with a nice straight punch.
Amaral connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.
Soderberg throws a left and a right that both miss
and Amaral counters with a stiff right hand.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Amaral stuffs the takedown.
Rafael Amaral has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Rufus Soderberg.
Soderberg swings and misses with a shot to the body
letting Amaral counter with a right hand.
Amaral stuffs the takedown attempt from Soderberg. Soderberg gets slowly back to his feet.
Soderberg lands a slapping body shot.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Amaral throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Rufus Soderberg seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Soderberg throws a sloppy body shot
and Amaral counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Soderberg with a jab.
Soderberg cracks the inside of Amaral's front leg.
Amaral moves into the clinch.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Soderberg jumps guard but Amaral turns him against the ropes and keeps the fight standing.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Amaral.
Amaral working aggressively here.
Amaral goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Amaral misses with the head strike.
Amaral is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Soderberg can do to turn this around?
Amaral tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Soderberg avoids it.
Soderberg lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Amaral lands a right hand that snaps the head of Soderberg backwards.
Amaral misses with a punch to the body.
Amaral misses with the head strike.
Nice body punch from Soderberg.
Amaral missing with knees to the body.
Amaral prevents a body shot from Soderberg.
A shot in the inside from Amaral.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Amaral throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Amaral misses with a punch on the inside.
Soderberg tries to work over Amaral's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Amaral tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
A short right from Amaral on the inside.
Soderberg lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Amaral or not.
Soderberg lands with a right to the head.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
A head punch on the inside from Soderberg fails to land.
Soderberg misses with a hook to the ribs.
Amaral misses with some punches.
Amaral swings wildly with an uppercut but Soderberg uses good head movement to avoid it.
Soderberg throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Soderberg misses with a hook to the ribs.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
Rafael Amaral dominated that second round.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! 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.
Amaral misses with a double jab
and Soderberg counters with a nice uppercut.
Amaral uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Soderberg.
Rafael Amaral is winning the standup battle so far.
Soderberg will need to close the distance a bit before he attacks - that leg kick was thrown from too far away.
Soderberg gets off balance looking for a body kick
and Amaral cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Amaral misses with a wild combination.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Soderberg dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Amaral ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Amaral scores with a punch to the head.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Amaral feints with a shoulder and throws a nice leg kick to Soderberg's calf.
Amaral takes a shot right to the bread basket.
Amaral misses with a head kick.
Amaral missing with a left hand there. Soderberg was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
As Amaral backs off Soderberg throws a huge counter combo but Amaral manages to avoid it all.
Amaral lands a nice shot that snaps Soderberg's head back.
A swing and a miss from Amaral.
Soderberg connects with a hook to the side of his opponent's head.
Amaral throws a head kick that misses
and Soderberg cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Amaral throws a body shot but no joy.
A countering left hand to the body from Soderberg misses.
Soderberg lands with a right hand.
Rufus Soderberg has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Soderberg lands with a cross.
A looping hook to the body misses from Soderberg. Amaral does a little dance to reset his feet.
Amaral lands a head kick!
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Soderberg has his hands up protecting his head but a hook from Amaral finds it's way round the side to connect with Soderberg's head.
Soderberg with a poor takedown
and Amaral counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.
Soderberg uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Amaral.
Amaral misses with a hook.
Amaral gets in close and instigates a clinch.
Amaral trying to land knees to the body.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Soderberg tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Amaral fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Amaral stalls.
Soderberg digs a right hand into Amaral's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Amaral's gas tank.
Soderberg is leaning against Amaral and scores with a nice uppercut to the body.
Amaral throws a punch but it's blocked by Soderberg.
Amaral makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
Soderberg misses with a punch to the body.
Amaral lands a left hand.
Rafael Amaral has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Amaral lands a right hand.
Soderberg managing to block the knees to the body from Amaral.
Soderberg has a couple of punches blocked by Amaral.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Amaral.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Soderberg blocking some punches.
A short body shot lands from Soderberg as the two fighters clinch.
Amaral misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Soderberg lands a nice shot to the body.
Amaral looking to throw knees to the head but Soderberg is blocking nicely.
Soderberg is working for a takedown up against the ropes. He can't get it on this occasion though.
Rafael Amaral has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Rufus Soderberg.
Soderberg tries a body shot but Amaral blocks it.
Amaral fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Soderberg wants to get back to striking at distance but Amaral won't allow it.
Amaral gets double underhooks to prevent a takedown attempt from Soderberg.
Amaral misses with a hook from the clinch.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Soderberg misses with a punch to the body.
Amaral blocks a punch to the side of the head.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Soderberg.
And that's the end of the fight!
Rafael Amaral showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Amaral, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 Arvi Lind scores the fight 30:27
Judge Tarja Halkonen scores the fight 30:27
Judge Ben Zyskovitsi scores the fight 30:27
In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Rafael Amaral!
During a confident post fight interview, Rafael Amaral thanked all his fans. He seemed very genuine when describing how motivated his fans keep him.
Rufus Soderberg spoke after the fight, saying 'I'm not done. I'm not done. '.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| S |
C
A |
G |
S |
C
B |
G |
|
S |
C |
G |
|
energy
A | B |
|
hype
A | B |
|
pop
A | B |
|
mgr
A | B |
|
FIGHT
RATING
54% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
