PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Gwegowy East (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and MIchael Henley (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). East comes to the cage accompanied by I Can't Think- Whole Wheat Bread. The crowd giving both fighters a great reception on their way into the arena. That's good to see.

East
vs
Henley

190 cm
26
194 lbs
8 - 9 - 0

186 cm
22
199 lbs
4 - 5 - 0

Good wrestling
Brawler
Experienced

BJJ Purple Belt
World class MT
Good gas tank

Voodoo Nutrition

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 8 - 9 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Gwegowy East!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 4 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, MIchael Henley!
The judges for this bout are Paulo Santos, Thiago Cunha and Matheus Silva.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Henley takes the fight into the clinch.
East tries for a takedown. No joy.
Henley's coach down at White Lotus was telling us pre-fight that they have been working on Henley's balance. Obviously they view that as a key factor in the outcome of this fight.

Henley manages to break the clinch.
Henley throws a two punch combo that lands nicely.
East changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Henley tries to avoid it but East manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Henley to the ground. Henley escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
East stooping low to avoid any incoming strikes and then lunges in with an uppercut come cross that lands flush.
East swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Henley counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Henley tries to clinch but East moves out of range.
East appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Henley looks for the body kick but East saw that one coming.
Good work by Henley as he checks the leg kick.
Henley tries to land a leg kick but East saw it coming and moves away.
Henley showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from East.
Henley lands a nice hook to East's body. East takes it in his stride and looks to land his own strikes.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Henley lands a head kick!

Henley clinches up against the cage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
East looking for a takedown.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Gwegowy East. That's going to take a lot out of him.
East tries to break free but Henley pushes him back against the cage.
East misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Henley is stalling here.

Henley pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
East drops his hands momentarily and Henley takes advantage with a crisp shot to the head.
East ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Henley moves away.
Henley stalks East and leaps in with a furious combination of punches. Uppercuts and crosses smash into East's face. East staggers backwards, shaken.

Henley darts in and clinches East up against the cage.
East has Henley pressed up against the cage and is working for takedown. Henley manages to improve position though and keeps the fight standing.
East has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Henley is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
East is trying to break free.
East goes for a takedown attempt but Henley pushes him away and we're back to fighting at a distance.

Henley gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
East fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
A right handed body shot lands from Henley.
East can't get the takedown.

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

Henley takes the fight into the clinch.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Henley has East pressed against the cage.
East is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.
East is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Henley is keeping busy.
Henley content to slow the pace in the clinch.
A left hand lands to the body for Henley.
Henley leaning his opponent against the cage.
East can't get the takedown.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Henley cracks East with a nice body shot.

Henley manages to break the clinch.
A nice leg kick lands there from Henley.
East misses with a head kick.
Thud! ouch! good body kick from Henley - that will leave a mark!

Henley moves into the clinch.
East wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Henley just leaning against East, taking a breather.
Henley tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Henley is stalling here. The referee will be looking to step in if he doesn't pick up the pace.
Henley content to slow the pace in the clinch.
Henley landing knees to the body.
East is breathing heavily.
Henley effectively controlling the action here.
Henley is pushing East up against the cage, for a bit of lean and pray action. Action being used the in the loosest possible sense of the word.
The crowd are getting on Henley's back here. They're not happy about his lack of aggression in the clinch.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The ref breaks the fighters up, due to lack of action by MIchael Henley.
East ducks right into an uppercut from Henley.
East looks to be in better condition than last time we saw him fight. Obviously he's been working hard on his cardio.

Henley moves into the clinch.
East tries a body shot but Henley blocks it.
A head punch on the inside from East fails to land.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Henley slowing the pace effectively.
Henley is defending well against a takedown attempt.
East wants to take the fight to the mat but Henley manages to get underhooks and keep the fight in the clinch.
Some stalling of biblical proportions here from Henley.
East letting Henley take a breather here.
East creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
A frustrated look appears on East's face as he tries to break the clinch.

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

Henley moves into range and clinches up with East.
East wants a takedown but no success here.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

MIchael Henley dominated that round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

A jab lands there for East.
East tries a head kick but it misses.
Henley tries to clinch but East moves out of range.
East gets cracked there but stands up to it.
Henley connects with a leg kick. East looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Henley lands a jab. Then a cross. Then finally a nice hook to the body. Good work there by Henley.
Henley tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
MIchael Henley seems to be getting the better of the standup.
A leg kick checked by Henley.

Henley darts in and clinches East up against the cage.
East misses with some punches.
The referee is keeping an eye on Henley - much more stalling and he will separate the fighters.
A short left from Henley.
MIchael Henley seems to be working more effectively in the clinch in the fight so far.
East has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Henley avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.
Henley just leaning against East, taking a breather.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Henley stalling.
Henley stalling.

That's one minute gone in the round.
East is looking for a takedown.
Henley is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.
East has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Henley is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Gwegowy East. That's going to take a lot out of him.
East changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Henley fights it off and pushes away nicely.
Henley wants to clinch.
East fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Henley avoids it really well and circles away.

Henley fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with East, pushing him back against the cage.
A nice glancing elbow lands by Henley.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The referee is keeping an eye on Henley - much more stalling and he will separate the fighters.

Henley escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Gwegowy East is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
A slapping body kick lands there for Henley.
Henley tries to close the distance and clinch up but East swats him away and circles back towards the center.
East takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
East needs to keep his hands up - Henley had a free shot at his head there.
Henley misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Henley tries to clinch up but East circles away and keeps his distance.
East swats away the attempt to clinch by Henley.
It looked like East wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
East shoots in for a takedown but Henley shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.

East shoots in for a takedown and gets it.

Henley kicks off East and gets to his feet.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A looping hook to the body misses from East. Henley does a little dance to reset his feet.
Henley doesn't manage to clinch there - East circles away.
Henley fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.
East fails with the takedown.

Henley has closed the distance and engaged East in a clinch.
Henley stops a takedown attempt from East.
Henley lands a left hand that snaps the head of East backwards.

Henley drags the fight down to the ground.

Henley is edging up against the cage. He's using the cage to get back to his feet. Nice work there - the fighters are clinched.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
A bit of stalling here from Henley.

Henley breaks the clinch.
East throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Henley tries to close the distance and clinch up but East swats him away and circles back towards the center.
East throws a big shot that misses.
East is on the wrong end of a nice combination from Henley.

Henley drives through and clinches with East against the cage.
Henley stalling against the cage.
East looking for a takedown.
East creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
Henley unloads a knee to the mid-section. East lets out a prehistoric sounding urrrrgh.
Henley scores with a hook to the body.
A nice left hand lands by Henley.
Henley taking a breather.
Henley dictating the pace here, as the fighters clinch against the cage.
Stalling in the clinch from Henley.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

MIchael Henley 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!

Henley throws a head kick but East moves out of range.

Henley gets in close and instigates a clinch.
East is trying to force a seperation but Henley has the dominant position.

Henley pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Henley avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Henley tries to clinch

and East counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
Henley has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
East takes a deep breath and rests his weight momentarily on top of his opponent, to control the position.
East is thwarting Henley's attempts to control the position.
East throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Henley is trying to get back to full guard.
Henley is trying to control but can't.
East lands with a punch from half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
East is thwarting Henley's attempts to control the position.
Henley is looking for a sweep. East is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
East is pressing down on Henley's thigh, looking to free his foot. Henley is holding on for now.
East not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Henley tries to get to full guard but East has control of the leg.
East landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
East throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
MIchael Henley has got the better of the ground game so far.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Henley keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
East throwing shots but Henley is blocking nicely.
East looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Henley with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
East is looking for the mount but instead finds himself back in full guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
East trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
MIchael Henley is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Henley is avoiding any damage by keeping wrist control.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.
Henley wants to stand and escape but East is having none of it.
Henley is doing well to control the posture of his opponent and prevent any damage.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
An inside leg kick lands from Henley.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Henley with a body punch. A glancing blow.
Henley digs a good body shot into East's ribs.
Henley tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. East manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
East takes a body punch but keeps moving.
Henley ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Henley jabs East right on the nose. East blinks but takes it well.
East shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Henley as he jumps to the side.
Gwegowy East has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
East gets cracked there but stands up to it.
East on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.

East gets tackled into the cage by Henley. Henley maintains the clinch.
Henley prevents a takedown attempt there.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Henley lands a body shot.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Henley manages to break the clinch.
A jab lands there for Henley.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.

Henley gets in close and instigates a clinch.
Knees in the clinch landing for Henley.
Come on Henley - let's have some action - none of this stalling nonsense.
Henley effectively controlling the action here.

Henley manages to break the clinch.
East pulls out of a head kick attempt.
East darts in looking for a takedown but Henley gets double underhooks and turns East into the cage.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Gwegowy East. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Henley wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
A solid leg kick lands there for Henley.
A right-left combo lands from Henley.

Henley gets a clinch.

And that's the end of the fight!
MIchael Henley comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Henley 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 Paulo Santos scores the fight 27:30
Judge Thiago Cunha scores the fight 27:30
Judge Matheus Silva scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... MIchael Henley!