PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Ceasar Morgan (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Kenshin Yamamoto (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Morgan kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is Fat Lip. 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.

Morgan
vs
Yamamoto

175 cm
40
145 lbs
21 - 21 - 1

169 cm
42
147 lbs
24 - 13 - 1

Abu Dhabi Champ
Solid boxing
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
Excellent boxer
Powerful

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 21 - 21 - 1, fighting out of Los Angeles, Ceasar Morgan!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 24 - 13 - 1, fighting out of New York, Kenshin Yamamoto!
The judges for this bout are Taro Takaoka, Yuuki Gou and Shirou Masuda.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Yamamoto blocks the body kick.
Yamamoto drops down looking to force a counter takedown but Morgan defends it well.
Morgan tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Yamamoto was well out of range. Poor timing from Morgan.
Morgan throws a hook but Yamamoto blocks it.
Morgan throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Yamamoto's waist but Yamamoto gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Morgan off to one side.
Morgan lands a high kick!

Yamamoto drives through with a takedown into guard.
Morgan is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Morgan wants to sweep but no luck.
Morgan trying to keep a closed guard but Yamamoto is proving a slippery customer.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Yamamoto pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Morgan is keeping the position for now.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Yamamoto tries to stand but Morgan is controlling from the bottom.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Morgan tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Yamamoto looking to pass the guard.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.

Yamamoto scores with a takedown into Morgan's guard.
Yamamoto scores with a decent looking elbow strike.
Yamamoto in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Morgan wants to sweep here but Yamamoto controlling him for the moment.
Yamamoto controls the pace of the fight for a moment.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Yamamoto throws a big elbow that misses.
Morgan looking to hit a scissor sweep but Yamamoto is one step ahead there.
Yamamoto seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Morgan has a takedown stuffed.

Yamamoto gets a double leg takedown into Morgan's guard.

Morgan has managed to wall walk up one of the corner posts to get back to his feet. Yamamoto is pushing him up against the cage, looking to control the position.

Yamamoto has double underhooks and is working for a body lock takedown. He's got it. The fighters land in half guard but Morgan regains guard immediately.
Yamamoto sitting in guard, not really doing much.
Morgan not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Yamamoto controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.
Morgan keeping moving, preventing Yamamoto from controlling successfully.
Morgan controls Yamamoto momentarily but Yamamoto frees himself.
Yamamoto preventing the sweep.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Yamamoto trying to control but Morgan is working from the bottom.
The referee is pacing around the two fighters - he looks like he's thinking about a standup.
Morgan can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Yamamoto controls the pace.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

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

Morgan tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Yamamoto defends well and Morgan ends up having to push Yamamoto into the cage where they will battle it out in the clinch.
Yamamoto is definitely looking for the counter takedowns here.
Morgan bobs and weaves and unloads with a good uppercut.

Yamamoto drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.
Morgan bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Yamamoto's guard.

Morgan trying to control the position from guard on top but Yamamoto is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Yamamoto doesn't do any damage with a couple of strikes from the bottom.
Morgan won't allow Yamamoto to sweep him here.
Yamamoto is controlling Morgan's posture.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Morgan stays in close to Yamamoto's body and controls the position.
Yamamoto not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Morgan trying to control the position from guard on top but Yamamoto is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Morgan is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Yamamoto keeping moving, preventing Morgan from controlling successfully.
Yamamoto looking to hit a scissor sweep but Morgan is one step ahead there.
Morgan postures up.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Morgan shoots for a double leg takedown but Yamamoto sprawls well. He's pushed Morgan's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
And Yamamoto tries to counter it with a takedown but Morgan pushes his down on his head and steps out.
Morgan shoots for a takedown but Yamamoto saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Ceasar Morgan. That's going to take a lot out of him.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Morgan is defended easily by Yamamoto.
Yamamoto has been the more effective fighter overall so far.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.
Morgan fails with an attempt to clinch.
Ceasar Morgan is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Yamamoto stuffs the takedown.
Yamamoto is definitely looking for the counter takedowns here.

Yamamoto feints and then dives in with a takedown. That was a long way out but the feint bought him enough time to close the distance and complete the takedown. Now we'll play guard for a bit and see who can get the better of that position.
Morgan looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Yamamoto wants to stand but Morgan has a closed guard, so he can't escape.
Yamamoto pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Morgan is keeping the position for now.
Yamamoto looking to control the position here, rather than advance.
Kenshin Yamamoto has got the better of the ground game so far.
Yamamoto wants to stand but Morgan has a closed guard, so he can't escape.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Yamamoto postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Morgan preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Yamamoto preventing the sweep.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Yamamoto closes this distance looking for a takedown but Morgan circles away.
Morgan tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Yamamoto manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.

Yamamoto shoots in for a takedown from distance. He catches Morgan napping and manages to drive through into side control!
Yamamoto wants to stand but Morgan has his arm trapped.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Yamamoto works to advance to full mount. Morgan defends for a few seconds but eventually he succumbs.
Morgan tries to hold on but Yamamoto pushes him away.
Yamamoto in mount throwing good strikes here, bouncing his opponent's head off the canvas.

Yamamoto moves into side control, trying to work for a kimura. That looks painful! Will he finish!!?? No, Morgan has worked his arm free - good work by Morgan!
Yamamoto tries to advance to mount but can't.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Yamamoto wants to control but Morgan is keeping him busy.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kenshin Yamamoto showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! Let's get this one finished - here comes the final round!

Morgan drives through with a really nice takedown into side control.
Yamamoto is looking to regain half guard here but Morgan keeps moving and retains side control.
Morgan trying to control the action but Yamamoto is working from the bottom.
Yamamoto is positioning himself to get back to half guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Yamamoto tries to escape but Morgan is in control.
You can see the frustration on Yamamoto's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Yamamoto tries to work a leg under to get back to half guard but Morgan wriggles his own leg back out and remains in side control.
Yamamoto is still trying to improve position.
Morgan trying to control the position but Yamamoto is working away.
Yamamoto tries to work a leg under to get back to half guard but Morgan wriggles his own leg back out and remains in side control.
Yamamoto is looking to work his way out of this bad position but Morgan is controlling him well.
Yamamoto is trying to control Morgan's posture but Morgan avoids it.
Morgan wants to lay and pray for a moment but Yamamoto keeps working.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.

Morgan manages to get an easy takedown there - catching Yamamoto on his heels. He'll look to pass Yamamoto's guard now, I'm sure.

Yamamoto kicks Morgan off and gets to his feet.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Yamamoto drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.

Morgan uses the cage to get back to his feet.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Yamamoto looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Morgan is fending him off so far but Yamamoto persists. Nope, Morgan circles away and we're back to standing.
Morgan changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Yamamoto tries to avoid it but Morgan manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Yamamoto to the ground. Yamamoto escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Morgan shoots in for a takedown but Yamamoto shows good takedown defense.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

Yamamoto shoots in and bounces Morgan off the cage to secure the takedown into guard.
Yamamoto trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Yamamoto is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Morgan is looking to stand back up but Yamamoto counters by passing into half guard. Oops... bit sloppy there by Morgan.
Yamamoto looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.
Morgan is doing well to avoid being mounted. He's controlling the position at the moment.
Morgan regains full guard. Nicely done.
Yamamoto is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Morgan looking to control.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

Morgan looking for a guillotine here but Yamamoto defends easily.
Yamamoto postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.
Ceasar Morgan has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Yamamoto wanted to stand there but Morgan had control of the position.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Ceasar Morgan seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Morgan goes for a double leg but Yamamoto avoids the attempt and the two fighters end up clinched against the cage as Yamamoto continues to drive forward.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Ceasar Morgan. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Yamamoto scores with a takedown into Morgan's guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
Kenshin Yamamoto comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Yamamoto 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 Taro Takaoka scores the fight 27:30
Judge Yuuki Gou scores the fight 27:30
Judge Shirou Masuda scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Kenshin Yamamoto!
After winning the bout, Kenshin Yamamoto thanked all his fans and promised he'd do even better in his next fight. The crowd seemed to love his humility.