PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Lionel Weiss (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and David Gauthier (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). David Gauthier has the eye of the tiger tonight.

Weiss
vs
Gauthier

204 cm
19
140 lbs
1 - 6 - 0

170 cm
25
130 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter fighter
Experienced

BJJ Blue Belt
Decent boxing
Very confident

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 1 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Lionel Weiss!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, David Gauthier!
The judges for this bout are Ian Loll, Elvis Blanc and Steve Smith.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Gauthier closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Weiss to the mat! Weiss manages to get full guard.
Gauthier is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.

Weiss escapes his hips to the side and looks to be working for an armbar. Gauthier gives him a little smile and shakes his head. No chance.
Gauthier slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.
Gauthier working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Weiss will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Gauthier controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Let's hope that Gauthier has the urge to step up the pace any second now because for the last 15 or 20 seconds he's just been holding on tight.
Weiss really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.

That's one minute gone in the round.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.

Gauthier closes the distance and clinches.
Gauthier blocks a body shot from Weiss.
Weiss missing with knees to the body.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.

Gauthier is working on a single leg takedown against the cage. Weiss can't fight it off and eventually Gauthier manages to take the fight to the floor. Weiss looks annoyed but at least he's managed to land in guard.
Gauthier is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Weiss wants to sweep but no luck.
Weiss can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Gauthier controls the pace.

Weiss working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Gauthier doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Gauthier manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Gauthier is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
We're seeing a lot of stalling here from Gauthier.
Gauthier's corner are shouting for him to control the position and he seems happy to oblige.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Weiss working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Gauthier.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.

Gauthier moves into the clinch.
Weiss misses with a punch on the inside.
Gauthier is trying to push Weiss away but Weiss has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Gauthier blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Gauthier stalling here - the referee won't stand for too much of that.
Gauthier missing with knees to the body.
Weiss misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Gauthier.

Weiss escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.

Gauthier takes the fight into the clinch.
Gauthier blocks an uppercut.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gauthier keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Weiss's efforts to push away.
Both guys are working to get underhooks.
Weiss is looking to break free of the clinch but Gauthier has double underhooks.

Gauthier has picked Weiss up - he's going for a ride! Gauthier dumps his opponent to the mat with a thud and settles into half guard.
Weiss blocking the ground and pound attempt from Gauthier.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Gauthier content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
Weiss tries to get to full guard but Gauthier has control of the leg.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Gauthier sitting and controlling from the half guard.
Gauthier thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

David Gauthier dominated that round.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

Gauthier gets a double leg takedown into Weiss's guard.
Gauthier slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
Gauthier pushes down on Weiss's leg and manages to get into half guard.
Gauthier works his way into full mount!
Gauthier controlling his opponent.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

That's one minute gone in the round.
David Gauthier has got the better of the ground game so far.
Gauthier misses with a head shot.
Gauthier tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
Weiss is looking to get to half guard.
Gauthier throwing sloppy strikes, which aren't doing any damage.
Gauthier takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
Gauthier throwing sloppy strikes, which aren't doing any damage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Weiss can't escape the position.
Gauthier controlling the pace for now.
Weiss is desperately trying to improve his position but Gauthier has a good base and remains in mount.
Gauthier looking to ground and pound his opponent to a finish here.
Gauthier takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
Gauthier unloading with bombs!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gauthier controlling the pace for now.
Gauthier thowing shots but they're missing.
Gauthier looking to control and managing it successfully.
Gauthier has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Gauthier misses with a head shot.
Weiss looking to escape from mount but he's given up his back!
What can Weiss do to escape this position? He's going to have to figure it out pretty quick if he wants to stay in the fight!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gauthier thows a huge left but connects with the canvas and not his opponent.

Gauthier is looking to finish the fight by rear naked choke. Weiss knows exactly what he's got planned though, so he's defending well. Maybe a few strikes would soften Weiss for a finish.
Gauthier controlling from the back.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
I really don't envy Weiss right now.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Gauthier has the hooks sunk in and you can see the will to fight slowly draining out of Weiss's body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

David Gauthier showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
That's time! Back to the action! Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

Gauthier fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Weiss, pushing him back against the cage.
Gauthier is struggling to control the position.

Gauthier jumps guard and drags Weiss to the mat. He's obviously going to be looking for submissions off his back.
A real slowdown in the pace of the fight for a moment, as Gauthier holds on and takes a little breather.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now Gauthier is on top in guard.

Gauthier has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
Gauthier's corner is telling him to maintain position.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Gauthier stopping the sweep attempt from Weiss.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Gauthier stands and steps away. Weiss gets to his feet too and we're back to the striking game.
Weiss takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.

Gauthier rushes Weiss and pushes him back against the cage in a clinch.
Gauthier wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Weiss has him pressed against the cage.
Weiss swings wildly with an uppercut but Gauthier uses good head movement to avoid it.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Gauthier.
Weiss misses with a punch on the inside.
Weiss is trying to push Gauthier away but Gauthier has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Weiss looking to stall.
Weiss has had enough of the clinch but Gauthier keeps him there for the moment.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Gauthier manages to pull guard. Let's see whether he can land a sub off his back.
Weiss trying to control but Gauthier is working from the bottom.
Gauthier is adopting a defensive guard.

Weiss drops back, looking for a kneebar! Gauthier looks panicked! The fighters roll across the mat, one looking to finish, one looking to escape. Gauthier looks to have wriggled free... Yes, he's got his leg free and he's dived into side control! Good work there from Gauthier!

Gauthier postures up a little and throws a couple of hammerfists but they don't connect properly.

Gauthier tries for an arm triangle. That looks pretty tight to me. Is this one over!?! Possibly, maybe, no Gauthier has let go of the choke. Obviously it wasn't as tight as we thought!
Gauthier in side control, trying to ground and pound but not landing this time.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gauthier is putting a hurting on Weiss here, landing some big shots from side control.

Gauthier tries for a kimura but Weiss is defending well.
Gauthier has knee on belly and moves into mount.
Weiss sneaks a leg under to get to half guard.
Gauthier seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.
Weiss has a hand on Gauthier's thigh, trying to get back to full guard. Gauthier takes advantage of the position though and mounts him!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Weiss is working to get back to half guard.

Gauthier wants to finish this one by submission but Weiss is holding onto his waist, trying to prevent any attacks from Gauthier.
Weiss is trying to reverse the position but instead Gauthier has taken his back - oops!
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
What can Weiss do to escape this position? He's going to have to figure it out pretty quick if he wants to stay in the fight!
Lionel Weiss has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
David Gauthier is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
More stalling from Gauthier.

And that's the end of the fight!
David Gauthier comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Gauthier 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 Ian Loll scores the fight 26:30
Judge Elvis Blanc scores the fight 26:30
Judge Steve Smith scores the fight 26:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... David Gauthier!