PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Hannibal Barca (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Childish Gambino (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Barca kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is Carthage. Gambino has chosen RAW (backwards) as his entrance music. 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.

Barca
vs
Gambino

175 cm
31
165 lbs
21 - 9 - 0

182 cm
41
166 lbs
37 - 21 - 0

Great wrestler
World class boxer
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
World class boxer
Good gas tank

KAISER Nutrition - Q160
FORCEE

FORCEE

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the lightweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 21 - 9 - 0, fighting out of New York, Hannibal Barca!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 37 - 21 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Childish Gambino!
The judges for this bout are Robert Douchet, Gregory Folan and Yves DeLean.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Gambino takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Gambino misses with a few strikes there.
Barca slips a jab and a cross from Gambino.

Barca closes the distance and looks for a trip takedown... aaaand he's got it - Barca lands in his opponent's guard.
Gambino is trying to keep Barca in close.
Gambino is looking to stand up but Barca isn't so interested in that idea.
Barca postures up and scores with a shot to the body and a follow up elbow to the head.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Barca throws a big elbow that misses.
Barca postures up.
Gambino looks more muscular than last time we saw him. He must have been on the weights.
Hammerfist, elbow! yells Barca's corner. There ya go! There ya go!
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Barca trying to control the position from guard on top but Gambino is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Barca loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Barca postures up in Gambino's guard and throws a big left but Gambino blocks it.
Barca postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Gambino trying to keep a closed guard but Barca is proving a slippery customer.
Gambino utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Barca with a flurry of punches that miss.
Barca trying to control but Gambino is working from the bottom.
Gambino can't keep his opponent in guard - Barca advances to half guard, no doubt looking to mount.
Gambino is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Gambino regains full guard, whilst avoiding punches from Barca.
Gambino utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Gambino working a defensive guard here.
Barca pushes down on Gambino's leg and manages to get into half guard.
Gambino tries to roll over but Barca keeps him under control.
Gambino trying to control here.
Barca throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Barca throws a big elbow that misses, also allowing Gambino to regain full guard.
Barca is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.

Gambino working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Barca doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Barca manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Gambino avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Barca scores with a decent looking elbow strike.
Barca in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Barca has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.
Barca trying to control the position from guard on top but Gambino is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Barca lands a couple of elbows.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Barca cracks Gambino with a solid left hand.
Barca forces his way into half guard.
Barca is keen to just control but Gambino is a slippery customer.
Barca slips a nice elbow through Gambino's hands, connecting with Gambino's forehead.
Barca tries to pass the half guard into mount. Gambino knows what he's doing though and prevents the attempt.
Barca throwing shots but Gambino is blocking nicely.
Barca trying to control the action but Gambino is working from the bottom.

Barca seems to be working for a kimura but Gambino defends the submission attempt.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Gambino avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Barca.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Hannibal Barca dominated that round.
That's time! Barca's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Gambino takes a shot to the nose. Hopefully that hasn't broken it.
Barca tries to score a power double leg takedown but Gambino sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten Barca somewhat.
It seemed like Gambino was going to counter with the hook but didn't fully commit to it.
Barca throws a lazy uppercut
and Gambino counters with a left and a right that stings Barca.
Gambino fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
A big left from Barca misses.

Barca shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in side control! That's better than Barca was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!
Barca scoring with punches from side control.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Barca wants to control but Gambino is keeping him busy.
Barca working the head and body with strikes.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gambino is trying to stand back up. He's worked his way up against the cage but Barca has just dragged him back down to the mat.

Barca is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Gambino knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.
Gambino is looking for a sweep.
Barca working the ground and pound but Gambino is defending the strikes.
Gambino prevents Barca from improving position.
Gambino defending against the ground and pound.
Gambino wants to get back to his feet but Barca drags him back down.
Barca lands a nice forearm strike.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Gambino is working hard to escape and get back to his feet. After a battle for position, Barca asserts his dominance and retains side control.
Barca working the ground and pound.
Gambino parries the strikes from Barca easily there. Barca is wary of posturing up too much because it might enable Gambino to escape.
Gambino is trying to stand back up. He's worked his way up against the cage but Barca has just dragged him back down to the mat.
Gambino tries to buck Barca off but Barca is having none of it.
Barca misses with the ground and pound.
Barca landing strikes.
Barca working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.
Gambino is being controlled here.
Barca tries to move to mount but Gambino blocks the move with his legs.
Barca in side control, trying to ground and pound but not landing this time.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
You can see the frustration on Gambino's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Barca wants to lay and pray for a moment but Gambino keeps working.
Barca landing with strikes to the head and body from side control.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Gambino is trying to control Barca's posture but Barca avoids it.

Barca is trying to get an arm triangle but Gambino is defending well.
Barca tries to cartwheel into mount but he doesn't manage it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.

Barca tries for a kimura but Gambino is defending well.
Barca working the ground and pound but he's contacting the mat, not the fighter.

Barca is trying to land an Americana. He has the arm isolated but Gambino is keeping cool and he's avoided the danger for now.
Gambino manages to get back to half guard.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Gambino is holding on to half guard well.
Barca winds up and cracks Gambino with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Hannibal Barca dominated that second round.
That's time! Barca's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Gambino takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Gambino connects with a nice looking jab.
A jab from Barca does it's job there.
Barca misses with a straight left.
Barca looks to land a left hand but Gambino moved out of range nicely.
Barca misses with the combination.
Barca lands a straight punch to the body, keeping Gambino at a distance.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Barca throws a hook but Gambino blocks it.
Gambino uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Barca.
Gambino throws a jab when Barca was well out of range.
Gambino moves out of range as Barca strikes.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Barca is moving around nicely and scores here with a single head shot.
Barca keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Hannibal Barca seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Gambino keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Childish Gambino is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Barca scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Gambino misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Barca throws an overhand right that lands on Gambino's shoulder, as Gambino tries to avoid the shot.
Barca changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Gambino tries to avoid it but Barca manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Gambino to the ground. Gambino escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Gambino lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Barca circles away quickly and effectively.
Barca ducks under a wild hook from Gambino.
Gambino takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Hannibal Barca is winning the standup battle so far.
Gambino takes a jab right on the kisser.
Barca is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Gambino can do to turn this around?

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Barca looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Barca fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Barca slips a jab and a cross from Gambino.
Childish Gambino is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Barca throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Barca is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Gambino.
Barca takes a step back and watches a body kick go sailing past his mid section.

Barca closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Gambino to the mat! Gambino manages to get full guard.
Gambino keeping moving, preventing Barca from controlling successfully.
Barca loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Barca controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.
Gambino keeping full guard, as Barca tries to pass.
Hannibal Barca overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gambino working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Barca.
Barca with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Barca is in close to Gambino's body, working some short punches and elbows.
Barca lands a couple of elbows.
Barca is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Barca postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.

Barca is trying to work a guillotine from the top, or something like that? Don't know how he thinks he's going to get a finish from there.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Barca accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Barca content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.
Barca throws a big elbow that misses.
Barca postures up in Gambino's guard and throws a big left but Gambino blocks it.
Barca controls from within his opponent's guard.
Barca postures up and lands a big shot to Gambino's brow.
Gambino is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Barca throws a big right hand that misses.
Barca is working Gambino over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Hannibal Barca clearly takes that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Barca displaying good standup as he scores with a three punch combination.
Barca misses with a wild combination.
Gambino misses with a combination
and Barca counters with a straight right hand.
Barca dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Gambino gets cracked there but stands up to it.
Barca lands with an uppercut that bounces Gambino off the cage and back into range.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Barca shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Barca showed some decent athleticism there.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Barca missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Barca throwing shots but Gambino is blocking nicely.
Barca passes to side control.
Gambino tries to buck Barca off but Barca is having none of it.
Gambino takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.
An elbow from Barca crashes against the mat.
Barca content to control the pace. The referee will try and keep them active though.
Gambino can't do much from the bottom here.
Barca wants to control but Gambino is keeping him busy.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Gambino is trying to stand back up. He's worked his way up against the cage but Barca has just dragged him back down to the mat.
Gambino parries the strikes from Barca easily there. Barca is wary of posturing up too much because it might enable Gambino to escape.
Barca connects with a decent looking elbow from side control that caused Gambino some visible discomfort.
Barca trying to control the position but Gambino is working away.
Barca scores with a couple of short elbows.
Gambino taking punishment in the form of punches.
Barca landing a few strikes.

Gambino is rocked!
Barca happy to just control the position for now.
Gambino is still in real trouble! Can Barca finish him?

Barca working hard here to secure a kimura but he's not really in the right position for it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Barca scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at Gambino to see if he's OK.
Gambino tries to buck Barca off but Barca is having none of it.
Gambino seems to have recovered his senses.
Barca sitting in side control, looking to soften his opponent up with elbows and hammerfists but Gambino is avoiding damage well and looking to escape the position.
Sloppy strikes there by Barca.

Barca wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Gambino, who protects the arm well.
Barca scoring with punches from side control.
Barca cracks Gambino with a big elbow.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gambino dodges the ground and pound from Barca.
Barca scoring with punches from side control.
Gambino pushes Barca away and creates a bit of space to escape. He's almost out here... but no, Barca gets a good hold of his legs and remains firmly in side control.
Gambino is not content to let Barca control the position.
Barca connects with a decent looking elbow from side control that caused Gambino some visible discomfort.
Barca in side control here. He's dropped a big elbow there and Gambino looks hurt! Oh, he is hurt! Barca turns on the heat and pounds him out for a TKO victory! Good killer instinct there!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 4:55 of round 4, we have a winner by way of TKO (Strikes). Hannibal Barca!
Hannibal Barca retains his lightweight title!
Hannibal Barca spent the whole post fight interview bigging himself up. It didn't go down that well with the fans after a while as they thought it was a bit arrogant.