PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Erick Darko (ranked 934 p4p, 148 weight class) and Argat Khan (ranked 3151 p4p, 420 weight class). Darko's ring entrance music is that housewives' favourite, S.C.O.S.A - Flatbush Zombies. Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Darko
vs
Khan

179 cm
24
187 lbs
12 - 7 - 1

178 cm
21
176 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
Excellent boxer
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
Excellent MT
Good gas tank

Arcticus University: London
Aspire Clothing

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 12 - 7 - 1, fighting out of London, Erick Darko!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Argat Khan!
The judges for this bout are Aafke Stam, Daniel Blasius and Paul Aken.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Darko gets in close and instigates a clinch.
Khan tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
A short uppercut from Darko.

It looks like Argat Khan has been cut.
Darko lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Darko has a couple of punches blocked by Khan.
Khan lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Darko backwards.
Khan lands a nice shot to the body.
Darko throws a head punch that misses.
Khan swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Khan tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Darko lands with a left to the head.
Khan lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
Khan tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Darko blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Khan misses with a short punch on the inside.
Khan misses with some punches.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Darko.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Khan.
Khan lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
Darko tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Good body shot from Darko.
Darko lands with a short punch from the clinch.
Darko scores with an uppercut up the middle.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Darko misses with a hook from the clinch.
Darko swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Darko swings wildly with an uppercut but Khan uses good head movement to avoid it.
Khan tries to throw a body punch but Darko avoids it by throwing Khan back against the cage.
Khan throws a head punch that misses.
Darko lands a hook to the side of the head.
Darko misses with a hook from the clinch.
Khan has been looking to improve his clinch game in recent weeks. Darko seems to have the measure of him in the clinch so far, so let's see if Khan can turn it around.
Khan blocking some punches.
Darko lands a nice looking hook to the body, against the cage.
Khan tries to work over Darko's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Khan misses with a short punch on the inside.
Darko lands with a light punch inside.
Khan lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Darko misses with a punch on the inside.
Khan can't find room to land a body shot as Darko controls the action.
A right hand to the body from Darko.
Khan throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Darko swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Darko lands a hook that snaps the head of Khan backwards.
Khan lands with a short punch from the clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Darko misses with a short punch on the inside.
Darko tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Khan lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Darko or not.
A short right from Darko.
Khan lands a right hand.
Darko working aggressively here.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Darko.
Khan misses with the head strike.
Darko misses with the head strike.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Khan.
Khan misses with a hook from the clinch.
The pace slowing considerably in the clinch, as Khan takes a break from that fighting nonsense to think about the finer things in life.
Khan is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.
A right hook to the body lands for Khan.
Khan tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Darko's elbow.
A nice right hand lands inside from Khan.
Darko misses with some punches.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Khan.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Darko.
Khan misses with a hook from the clinch.
Darko prevents a body shot from Khan.
Darko has a couple of punches blocked by Khan.
Darko presses Khan against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
Darko tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Darko misses with the head strike.
Darko misses with a short punch on the inside.
Khan can't find room to land a body shot as Darko controls the action.
Khan works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
A head punch on the inside from Khan fails to land.
Darko blocks an uppercut.
Khan struggles to land a body shot inside as Darko controls his hands.
Khan doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Darko misses with a body punch.
Khan makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
Khan lands a nice shot to the body.
Khan lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Darko is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Khan pulls him back up using the underhooks.
Darko misses with some punches.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Darko throws a head punch that misses.
Darko throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Darko working aggressively here.
Darko lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
A head punch blocked on the inside by Khan.
Darko tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Darko gets through Khan's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Khan has a couple of punches blocked by Darko.
Khan blocking some punches.
Khan blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Good body shot from Khan.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Darko.
Khan tries to throw a body punch but Darko avoids it by throwing Khan back against the cage.
Khan swings away with an uppercut that misses.
A hook to the body from Khan.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Darko blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
A hook to the body from Khan.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Darko.
Khan digs a right hand underneath Darko's ribcage. Darko let out a lung full of air as it connected.
Darko prevents a body shot from Khan.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Erick Darko will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Argat Khan's cut.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Khan changes levels and scores with a jab to the body.
Darko with a jab.
Khan lands a really nice looking cross but Darko seems unphased.
Boom, another hit is landed. "You're gunna get knocked out" taunts Darko, as that shot connected.
Darko throws a big shot that misses.
Khan throws a lazy uppercut
and Darko cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Darko avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Darko connects with a good right hand that stumbles Khan. Khan circles away out of range and recomposes himself.

Darko has closed the distance and engaged Khan in a clinch.
Khan misses with a punch to the body.
Darko lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Darko blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Darko tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Darko throws a punch but it's blocked by Khan.
Khan swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Erick Darko has scored more points in the clinch so far.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Darko swings wildly with an uppercut but Khan uses good head movement to avoid it.
Darko misses with a hook from the clinch.
Khan misses with the head strike.
Darko misses with a hook from the clinch.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Khan.
Darko tries to pull guard but Khan holds him up against the cage and eventually Darko drops back down to his feet.
A short right from Khan.
Darko misses with some punches.
A head punch on the inside from Darko fails to land.
Khan blocks an uppercut.
Khan misses with a body punch.
Khan blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Khan tries to throw a body punch but Darko avoids it by throwing Khan back against the cage.
Darko tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Darko misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Darko lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Khan misses with a hook from the clinch.
Khan can't find room to land a body shot as Darko controls the action.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Darko scores with a shoulder strike.
Khan swings wildly with an uppercut but Darko uses good head movement to avoid it.
Khan makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
Darko tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
A nice right hand lands inside from Darko.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Khan pushes Darko back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Darko blocks an uppercut.
Darko blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
A head punch on the inside from Darko fails to land.
Darko prevents a body shot from Khan.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Darko.
Darko pushes Khan back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Darko.
Khan swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Darko blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Darko blocking some punches.
Darko swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Darko scores with a shot to the side of Khan's head.
Darko misses with a punch on the inside.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Khan blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Khan blocking some punches.
A nice left hand lands by Darko.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Darko.
Khan struggles to land a body shot inside as Darko controls his hands.
A short left from Darko.
Darko pushes Khan back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Khan.
Darko blocking some punches.
A short right from Darko.
Khan lands with a left to the head.
Darko tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Khan blocking some punches.
Khan lands with a left to the head.

Darko has hold of one of Khan's legs. Khan is fighting the takedown attempt but Darko gets the trip and lands the takedown into guard.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Darko lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
Darko throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Khan works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Khan keeping moving, preventing Darko from controlling successfully.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Darko trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Darko trying to control the position from guard on top but Khan is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Darko passes easily into side control. Nice work.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Darko controls the position.

Darko is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Khan knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.
Darko landing strikes.
Darko is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Khan can do to turn this around?
Darko is putting a hurting on Khan here, landing some big shots from side control.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Erick Darko dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Argat Khan's cut.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business. Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

Jab by Darko.
A big right from Khan misses.
Khan throws a big shot that misses.
Khan misses with a low kick.
Khan looks to throw the jab but Darko is out of range.
Khan walks into a left hand.
Khan connects with an inside leg kick.
Darko rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Khan moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Khan throws a combination. Darko tries to block but a couple of punches get through.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Khan lands a nice shot to the body.
Darko throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Khan swings for the body but Darko moves out of range.
Darko is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Khan.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Darko lunges at Khan with a hook that half lands and is half blocked by Khan's hand.
Darko lands a nice shot that snaps Khan's head back.
Darko is really head hunting here, hardly looking to strike to the body at all.
Khan moves away from the strike by Darko.
Darko misses with a straight left.
Darko has his hands up protecting his head but a hook from Khan finds it's way round the side to connect with Darko's head.
Khan swings for the body but Darko moves out of range.
Khan throws a jab when Darko was well out of range.
Darko moves out of range as Khan strikes.
Darko half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Darko tries to clinch up but Khan circles away and keeps his distance.
A swing and a miss from Darko.
Khan defending well as Darko loads up on a big left hand.
Darko slips a straight right by Khan.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Darko misses the jab.
Erick Darko seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Khan fails to land with a series of punches.
Darko blocks a jab.
Khan needs to keep his hands up - Darko had a free shot at his head there.
Darko tries to clinch there but Khan circles away.
Darko throws a body shot but no joy.
A swing and a miss from Darko.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Khan throws a jab but it's blocked by Darko.
Khan misses the jab.
Khan misses with a wild body shot.
Khan tries to land a leg kick but Darko saw it coming and moves away.
Darko attempts a counter takedown but Khan avoids it well and moves away.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Darko.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A jab from Khan misses.
Darko tries to clinch but Khan is having none of it.
Darko throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Khan throws a lazy right hand but Darko sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.
A swing and a miss from Darko.
Khan ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Darko moves away.
Darko lands a right hook to the body.
Argat Khan has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Darko slips under a jab from Khan.
Darko looks to land a right hand but Khan moved out of range.
Erick Darko is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Khan throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Darko counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Khan throws a quick inside leg kick.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Khan looks to land a right hand but Darko moved out of range.
Darko connects with a lovely jab that went straight through the gap between Khan's hands.
Khan ducks under a wild hook from Darko.
Khan takes a swing at Darko's ribcage but misses.
Khan misses with an uppercut. Darko saw that one coming.
Darko changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
Darko scores with a decent looking hook.
Darko uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Khan.
Darko scores with a nice strike.
Erick Darko is winning the standup battle so far.
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!
Khan comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.
Darko connects with a nice looking jab.
Nice straight punches there by Darko. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Darko.
Darko fakes a jab and then connects with a hook.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Erick Darko.
Well Darko has outscored his opponent in every aspect of the fight today. Only a scarily incompetent judge or two will keep him from a well deserved win... 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 Aafke Stam scores the fight 30:27
Judge Daniel Blasius scores the fight 30:27
Judge Paul Aken scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Erick Darko!
Erick Darko seemed lost for words in his post fight interview but he remembered to thank his fans and directed everyone to his website.