PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Matt Cooke (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Basten Sodergren (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). These two fighters really are very evenly matched on the feet - it will be fascinating to see who can assert themselves in that aspect of the fight.

Cooke
vs
Sodergren

185 cm
23
203 lbs
11 - 4 - 0

180 cm
26
192 lbs
11 - 3 - 0

Good wrestling
World class boxer
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
World class boxer
Good gas tank

Hellbent
MayheM sportswear

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the middleweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 11 - 4 - 0, fighting out of New York, Matt Cooke!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 11 - 3 - 0, fighting out of New York, Basten Sodergren!
The judges for this bout are Dean Styles, Russell Pearce and Alyssa Summers.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Cooke throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Cooke walks into a left hand.
Cooke lets loose with a powerful body kick. Sodergren will feel that in the morning.
Sodergren throws a jab but it's blocked by Cooke.
Sodergren scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Cooke misses with a body shot.
Cooke connects with a slap. Keep your fist closed son.
Sodergren lands with a nice body kick.
Sodergren has been spending a lot of time sparring his boxing in the run up to the fight, trying to sharpen up those hands and look for a knockout.
Sodergren throws a couple of head shots and lands with the final one - a decent hook, which struck Cooke on the side of the head.
Cooke throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Sodergren counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Cooke looks shocked there as he takes a right hand to the temple.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Cooke attempts a low kick but it misses it's target.
Cooke misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
A slow jab from Cooke misses its intended target.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sodergren takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
Cooke bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
It appears Cooke was looking to counter with a kick there.
Sodergren throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Basten Sodergren seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Sodergren walks forward, straight into a front kick from Cooke.
Sodergren looking to land some kicks to the body here.
Sodergren connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.
Cooke lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Cooke jabs at Sodergren's body.
Sodergren moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Sodergren lands with a shot to the body.
Sodergren will need to close the distance a bit before he attacks - that leg kick was thrown from too far away.
Cooke on the wrong end of a decent looking cross there.
Cooke ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
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!
Cooke staying out of range there.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Sodergren walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Cooke checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Sodergren scores with a spinning back kick!
Sodergren connects with a leg kick. He turned his hip over nicely there.
Cooke takes a shot to the nose. Hopefully that hasn't broken it.
Sodergren misses with a wild body shot.
Sodergren swings for the body but Cooke moves out of range.
Sodergren misses with a wild body shot.
Cooke swung with a counter right hand that didn't connect.
Cooke misses with a low kick.
Sodergren was about to counter that last move with a leg kick but changes his mind.
Cooke misses with a kick to the body
and Sodergren counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Cooke chopping away at his opponent's legs.
Cooke cracks a nice hook into Sodergren's ribs.
Sodergren scores with a jab to the body.
Cooke pushing out the jab but it's not landing.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sodergren throws a nice looking combination but Cooke bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Sodergren lands a nice shot that snaps Cooke's head back.
Sodergren swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Cooke.
Sodergren misses the body punch
letting Cooke counter with a right hand.
Sodergren on the wrong end of a nice low kick. He's acting like it's no big deal but he doesn't want to take many more of those.
Cooke throws a body kick but he was well out of range there.
Sodergren ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Cooke moves away.
Sodergren throws a wild body kick that Cooke sees coming a mile off.
Cooke looked to counter that last move with a leg kick but didn't pull the trigger.
Cooke tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Sodergren was well out of range. Poor timing from Cooke.
Sodergren pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Nice jab there from Sodergren.
Sodergren is landing a lot of head punches in this opening round! Cooke had better start moving his head a bit unless he wants his face to turn into pâté.
Cooke fakes with the hands and throws a leg kick but Sodergren is out of range.
Sodergren ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sodergren cracks Cooke with a right hand to the side of the head.
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!
Sodergren throws a looping overhand right but Cooke ducks down to avoid it.
Sodergren scores with a jab. Cooke acknowledges it with a nod of the head.
Sodergren works his jab well there, keeping his opponent at a distance.
Cooke is looking to chop away at Sodergren's legs.
Sodergren fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Cooke manages to avoid it.
Sodergren scores with a head kick. Cooke tried to block it but didn't get his arm up in time.
Sodergren misses with a straight left.
It looked like Cooke wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Sodergren comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.
Sodergren dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Cooke. That did some damage!
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Sodergren misses with a hook.
Sodergren takes a jab right on the nose. That must have hurt but he shrugs his shoulders and looks to return the favor.
Sodergren takes a swing at Cooke's ribcage but misses.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Basten Sodergren dominated that round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Sodergren throws a low kick, looking for Cooke's leg but Cooke calmly moves out of range.
Sodergren lands a glancing blow to the side of Cooke's head.
Sodergren scores with a reasonable looking shot to the body. Cooke doesn't seem bothered though.

Cooke has Sodergren up against the cage in a clinch.
Sodergren misses with a body punch.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.
Cooke working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Cooke misses with some punches.
Cooke using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Sodergren has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Cooke blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Cooke doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Sodergren tries to circle away but Cooke has him pinned against the cage.
Cooke has Sodergren pressed against the cage.

Cooke breaks the clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sodergren throws a push kick but Cooke slaps the foot to one side.
Sodergren has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Sodergren misses with a leg kick.
As Sodergren looks to move away, Cooke throws a big counter combo but Sodergren just gets out of the way.
Cooke thumps Sodergren with a low kick.
Sodergren throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Cooke stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
A low kick from Cooke is predictable there
and Sodergren makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Cooke slips a jab from Sodergren.
An attempted straight right counter from Cooke misses the target.
Sloppy strikes from Sodergren. Those never looked like landing.
Sodergren swings for the body but Cooke moves out of range.
Good shot there by Sodergren.
Sodergren misses with an uppercut
and Cooke counters with a solid body kick.
Cooke shapes like he's going to throw a leg kick but settles back down.
Cooke uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Sodergren.
Sodergren lands with a good body shot.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Cooke throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Cooke throws a head kick but Sodergren moves out of range.
Sodergren thows a leg kick but Cooke checks it
and Cooke counters with an inside leg kick.
Sodergren just misses with a punch to the body.
Sodergren with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Cooke throws a sloppy head kick and Sodergren moves out of range easily.
Sodergren scores with a jab to the jaw.
Cooke uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Sodergren.
Sodergren wants to land a leg kick but Cooke is out of range.
It looked like Cooke was looking amped, ready to throw a big counter but didn't commit.
Sodergren is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Cooke.
Sodergren throws a head kick that misses.
Cooke looking to throw a kick but he's pulled out of it.
Cooke ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Cooke cracks Sodergren with a nice right hand that draws applause from the crowd.
Sodergren throws a low kick but Cooke moves out of range easily.
Cooke tries to close the distance and clinch but Sodergren swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Sodergren steps in looking to counter with the mid kick but it doesn't connect.
Cooke connects with a body shot that sends Sodergren's belly button to the back.
Cooke throws a quick inside leg kick.
Sodergren lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Cooke circles away quickly and effectively.
The fighters circling - Cooke throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Cooke moves out of range as Sodergren strikes.
Sodergren misses with a leg kick
and Cooke counters with a three punch combo that has Sodergren backing up. Sodergren nods at Cooke to acknowledge the strikes.
Basten Sodergren seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Sodergren moves out of range of the body kick.
Sodergren throws out a loose jab but Cooke uses good head movement to avoid it.
Cooke throws a lazy right hand but Sodergren sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sodergren throws the kick towards the body but Cooke avoids it.
Cooke keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Sodergren.
Cooke throws out a leg kick but Sodergren moves out of range and Cooke only half commits.
Sodergren throws a decent looking leg kick but it doesn't land clean.
A quick step to the side and Cooke tries to counter with a shot to the body but it doesn't connect.
Sodergren is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Cooke.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Cooke digs a good body shot into Sodergren's ribs.
Cooke thuds a left hand into Sodergren's body.
Cooke displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Sodergren throws out the jab.
Sodergren fakes low and throws an overhand right that catches Cooke on the side of the head.
Cooke throws a head kick that misses.
Sodergren scores with a shot to the body.
Cooke misses with a hook. Sodergren ducked under it nicely.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Matt Cooke will probably get the nod.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

Good standup being displayed there by Sodergren as he connects with a hook.
Sodergren throws a leg kick that is checked
and Cooke counters with a straight right hand.
Sodergren connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.
A swing and a miss from Sodergren.
Sodergren looks to land a body kick but Cooke moved away.
Cooke misses with a low kick as Sodergren jumps back.
Sodergren fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Cooke keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Cooke misses with a kick to the body.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
An inside leg kick lands from Sodergren.
The fighters are starting to get sweaty, which will make takedowns a bit more tricky.
Sodergren chopped to the floor by a nice leg kick but he springs right back up before Cooke can pounce on him.
Sodergren wants to slow Cooke down by chopping away at his legs.
Sodergren's leg has a nasty welt from taking a succession of leg kicks. That must be slowing him down.
Cooke lands a nice hook to Sodergren's body. Sodergren takes it in his stride and looks to land his own strikes.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sodergren gets off balance looking for a body kick
and Cooke counters with a thumping low kick.
Cooke goes for a high kick. It partially lands.
Cooke fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Sodergren manages to avoid it.
Sodergren misses with a lunging right hand
and Cooke counters with a low kick, right behind Sodergren 's knee.
Cooke slips a jab from Sodergren.
It looked like Cooke was trying to counter with a body shot coming off that last attack from Sodergren.
Sodergren swings and misses with a hook to the body.
A punch lands to the side of Sodergren 's head but he takes it in his stride.
Cooke throws a head kick that misses.
Nice cross by Sodergren.
Sodergren with a nice cross.
Cooke throws a head kick but Sodergren moves out of range.
Sodergren scores with a jab to the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Cooke takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Cooke throws a push kick but Sodergren slaps the foot to one side.
Sodergren misses with an attempted mid kick.
Cooke scores with a nice right hand.
Sodergren throws a leg kick
and Cooke connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Sodergren throws out a loose jab but Cooke uses good head movement to avoid it.
Sodergren is looking to slow Cooke down with leg kicks.
Cooke takes a swing at Sodergren's ribcage but misses.
Cooke will need to close the distance a bit before he attacks - that leg kick was thrown from too far away.
Sodergren lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Cooke misses with a right hand
and Sodergren connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Sodergren fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sodergren works the jab nicely.
A jab from Cooke does it's job there.
Sodergren throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Cooke counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Sodergren misses with an attempted mid kick.
Cooke lands a jab.
Cooke throws a head kick that misses
and Sodergren counters with a leg kick that reverborates around the arena.
Sodergren throws a leg kick but Cooke sees it coming and checks it nicely.
Cooke fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Sodergren manages to avoid it.
Sodergren lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as Cooke backs up against the cage.
Sodergren swings and misses with a shot to the body
and he gets countered with a snapping leg kick.
Sodergren missing with a left hand there. Cooke was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Sodergren swings for the body but Cooke moves out of range.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Sodergren on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Cooke. Cooke obviously looking to wear him down.
Cooke looking to throw a kick but he's pulled out of it.
Sodergren throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Nice cross by Sodergren.
Sodergren avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Sodergren follows through with a counter body kick but it doesn't land.
Cooke steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Sodergren.
Cooke fires out a quick counter leg kick but Sodergren just manages to avoid it.
Sodergren with a body punch. A glancing blow.
A bone on bone clash there as Cooke blocks the leg kick.
Sodergren throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Sodergren throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Cooke looked to counter that last move with a leg kick but didn't pull the trigger.
Cooke uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Sodergren.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close third round but Basten Sodergren just about did enough to take it.
That's time! Cooke's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Cooke takes one to the side of the head.
Cooke attempts a leg kick but it's missed by a good margin.
It looks like Cooke has been trying to sharpen up his punching technique, as it looks crisper than last time we saw him.
Nice body kick from Sodergren.
Sodergren throws a leg kick but Cooke moved away.
Cooke throws a body punch but Sodergren moves out of range.
Sodergren throws the left hand but Cooke avoids the punch easily.
Sodergren jabs at Cooke's body.
Sodergren scores with a nice head shot.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
A nice inside leg kick there by Sodergren. That's going to slow Cooke down.
Sodergren fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Cooke connects with a solid leg kick.
Sodergren checks a leg kick.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Cooke takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Cooke connects with a looping left hand that seems like it dazed Sodergren momentarily.
Sodergren lands a nice leg kick that just misses Cooke's sensitive parts.
Cooke is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Nice shot by Cooke.
Cooke slips a jab from Sodergren.
Sodergren digs a good hook to Cooke's body.
A nice leg kick lands there from Sodergren.
Cooke throws a head kick that misses.
Sodergren throws a right hand that Cooke ducks under and follows up with a left that Cooke also avoids with ease.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Sodergren jabs. That one connects to the head of his opponent.
Cooke lands with an overhand left.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Sodergren looks to land a right hand but Cooke moved out of range.
A telegraphed right hand from Sodergren misses the target.
Cooke avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
A little feinted left hand from Cooke on the counter but he doesn't commit to it.
Cooke throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Sodergren throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Cooke stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
Cooke connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.
Cooke swings for the body but Sodergren moves out of range.
Sodergren throws a body shot but no joy.
An attempted straight right counter from Cooke misses the target.
Sodergren wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
Sodergren scores with a sloppy right hand. Cooke should have avoided that one.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Cooke misses with a body shot.
A nice side step and Sodergren releases a counter shot to the body, but it doesn't find it's home.
Sodergren connects with a hook to the side of his opponent's head.
Sodergren getting the better of the striking in that exchange.
Sodergren throws a poor cross that misses
and Cooke counters with a stiff right hand.
Cooke lands a nice shot that snaps Sodergren's head back.
Cooke lands a nice looking body shot.
Sodergren throws a body kick despite being completely out of range
and Cooke counters with an outside leg kick.
Sodergren checks a leg kick.
An inside leg kick from Cooke misses.
Cooke slips under a jab from Sodergren.
Nice body kick there by Cooke.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sodergren throws a body shot but no joy.
Sodergren lands with a nice body punch.
Cooke staying out of range there.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Sodergren punishes Cooke's body with a nice straight punch.
Sodergren looking to land some kicks to the body here.
Sodergren throws a leg kick
and Cooke counters with an inside leg kick.
Cooke with a jab.
Cooke pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Cooke pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Cooke drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Cooke jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Sodergren looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Sodergren steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Cooke.
Sodergren swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Basten Sodergren dominated that fourth round.
That's time! Cooke's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight. Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

Cooke throws the kick towards the body but Sodergren avoids it.
Cooke drops his hands momentarily and Sodergren takes advantage with a crisp shot to the head.
A low kick from Cooke misses
and Sodergren counters with a nice low kick that buckles Cooke's knee momentarily.
Sodergren swings for the body but Cooke moves out of range.
Nice defenses there by Cooke.
Sodergren misses with the body kick
and Cooke counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Cooke takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Cooke displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Sodergren throws out the jab.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Cooke misses with a wild body shot.
Sodergren thows a left - swing and a miss!
Cooke seem to be loading up, looking for a big counter.
Sodergren slips under a jab.
Sodergren comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Cooke lands with a right hand.
Sodergren thows a body kick. Cooke tries to catch it but that hurt him.
Cooke lands a jab to Sodergren's midsection.
Sodergren throws a head kick that misses.
A little feinted left hand from Cooke on the counter but he doesn't commit to it.
Sodergren finds nothing but air with that leg kick attempt.
A slow jab from Sodergren misses its intended target.
Some bone on bone action there as Cooke checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Cooke lands a jab to Sodergren's midsection.
Cooke changes levels and scores with a jab to the body.
Sodergren with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Cooke keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
A slow jab from Cooke misses its intended target.
Matt Cooke has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Sodergren dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Cooke. That did some damage!
Sodergren misses with an uppercut.
Sodergren throws a leg kick but Cooke sees it coming and moves out of range.
Cooke tried to counter with a leg kick but Sodergren avoided it.
Sodergren fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Cooke moves out of range of the body kick.
Cooke appeared to be looking to counter that last move with a leg kick.
Sodergren misses with a hook.
Cooke on the wrong end of a nice hook.
A shot to the liver by Sodergren. Beautiful body shot.
Nice defenses there by Sodergren.
Sodergren lands a head kick. Cooke smiles back at him and beckons him forward.
Cooke tries to score with a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Cooke bobbing and weaving, closes the distance and lands a hook to the side of Sodergren's head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Cooke throws a leg kick that misses.
Cooke misses with a kick to the body
and Cooke takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Sodergren misses with a combination
and Cooke connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.

Sodergren is rocked!
Ohhhhh! A huge head kick from Cooke! Sodergren is out on his feet! Cooke rushes in and throws more strikes. The ref is looking closely - Sodergren is covering up but the punishment is just too much and the ref steps in to stop the fight! Sodergren is staring into space, just thankful that the beatdown has ended. Brutal finish.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 3:31 of round 5, we have a winner by way of TKO (Strikes). Matt Cooke!
Matt Cooke retains his middleweight title!
Matt Cooke bigged himself up after the win. The crowd seemed to love it.