PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Razor Ramon (ranked 22828 p4p, 674 weight class) and Phil Maroni (ranked 5073 p4p, 541 weight class). Buckle up people - heeeeeeeeeere we go!

Ramon
vs
Maroni

187 cm
20
189 lbs
1 - 6 - 0

177 cm
27
190 lbs
3 - 3 - 0

Good takedowns
Brawler
Granite chin

BJJ Purple Belt
Good kicks
Granite chin

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 1 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Razor Ramon!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Hilo, Phil Maroni!
The judges for this bout are Jeff Smith, Josh West and Colin Fray.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Maroni throws a nice outside leg kick.
Maroni throws a leg kick

and Ramon counters with a nice shoot takedown that brings the fighters to the ground.
Ramon preventing the sweep.
Ramon looking to control the position here, rather than advance.
Ramon trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Ramon 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.
Ramon controls the pace of the fight for a moment.

Ramon drops back for a leg but he's not going to get it - he lets go and Maroni dives on top into guard.

I've been told that Maroni has been drilling his wrestling of late, which has already helped him take this fight to the mat. Let's see how much of an impact it has on the outcome of the ground game.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Maroni pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Ramon is keeping the position for now.
Maroni trying to pass the guard. He's being very persistent here but Ramon manages to land a sweep and now he's on top!

Ramon postures up in Maroni's guard and throws a big left but Maroni blocks it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Maroni controlling the position.
Ramon engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
Ramon wants to control from the top but Maroni keeps moving.
Ramon sitting in guard, not really doing much.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Maroni wants to get back to his feet but Ramon passes into half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.
Maroni tries to roll over but Ramon keeps him under control.

Ramon seems to be looking for submissions.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Maroni is looking for a sweep. Ramon is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Ramon controlling the action here.

Ramon is working for a submission of some sort.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Ramon seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.
Ramon has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.

Ramon is working for a submission of some sort.
Ramon missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.

Ramon is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Maroni sees it coming and defends easily.
Maroni trying to control from the bottom.
Ramon thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Ramon is taking a breather. Maroni says something to him but it's hard to make out. Perhaps he's telling him to get on with it and actually do something.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Maroni fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Ramon has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!

Ramon pushes Maroni up against the cage in a clinch.
Maroni is looking for a takedown.

Maroni manages to break the clinch.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Razor Ramon dominated that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Ramon tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Maroni tries to buck Ramon off but Ramon is having none of it.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Ramon just content to control the position.

Ramon tries for a kimura but Maroni is defending well.
An elbow from Ramon crashes against the mat.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Maroni tries to improve position but can't.
Ramon in side control, just content to control the action for now.
Ramon wants to control but Maroni is keeping him busy.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Ramon works to advance to full mount. Maroni defends for a few seconds but eventually he succumbs.

Ramon working to secure an arm triangle but it's not happening for him just yet.
Ramon is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Maroni can do to turn this around?
Ramon controlling the pace for now.
Maroni regains half guard.
Maroni is not content to let Ramon control the position.
Ramon is thwarting Maroni's attempts to control the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Ramon looks to land a strike but Maroni avoids it nicely and regains full guard.
Ramon in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.

Ramon gets to his feet. Maroni looking to butt scoot but the ref puts an end to that. On your feet son!
Maroni uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.

Ramon gets the takedown into side control.

Maroni throws his opponent off and manages to get back to his feet! Nicely done!

Ramon 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.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Maroni avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Maroni keeping moving, preventing Ramon from controlling successfully.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ramon passes Maroni's right leg, so he's now in half guard.
Ramon content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
Maroni trying to control but Ramon postures up.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.

Ramon wants to work for an arm triangle but Maroni is really keeping half guard well and defending the submission attempt.
Ramon looks over to his corner - he wants some instructions but his corner are not responding.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Razor Ramon dominated that second round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! Let's get this one finished - here comes the final round!

Maroni throws a leg kick but Ramon sees it coming and checks it nicely.

Maroni gets caught on his heels momentarily as he allows Ramon to score an easy takedown into full guard.
Ramon sitting in guard, not really doing much.
Ramon trying to control the position from guard on top but Maroni is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Ramon wants to stand and escape but instead Maroni has hit a sweep and he's now on top in guard.

Maroni trying to control the position from guard on top but Ramon is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Ramon looking for submissions off his back, moving his hips, looking for an opening.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Maroni works a leg free and moves into half guard.
Maroni is trying to control. Ramon wants to improve his position but can't escape this time.
Maroni prevents Ramon from improving his position.
Maroni is thwarting Ramon's attempts to control the position.

Maroni looking for a kimura but he'll have to free his other leg if he wants to finish that. Perhaps he's just using it as a distraction technique.
The fighters are battling for position here. Ramon manages to regain full guard. Nice work.

That's two 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.
Maroni throws a big elbow that misses.
Maroni trying to control the position from guard on top but Ramon is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Ramon controlling the position.
Maroni trying to control the position from guard on top but Ramon is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Ramon manages to wriggle out and sneak his way back up to his feet, so the fighters are now clinched up against the cage.
Maroni landing some nice looking knees to the body.

Ramon is trying to trip Maroni. He has hold of a leg but Maroni is hopping around, keeping his balance for the moment. Ramon persists though and gets the takedown into guard.
Maroni looking to control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Maroni being controlled here, momentarily.
Phil Maroni has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Ramon postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Razor Ramon overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Maroni wants to hit a switch here but Ramon passes into full mount! Oh no, disaster for Maroni there!
Ramon throwing sloppy strikes, which aren't doing any damage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.
Ramon thuds his fist into the canvas! Oooouch!
Ramon controlling from mount.
Ramon throws some wild stikes that Maroni manages to avoid easily.

Maroni defends a decent attempt at a guillotine from Ramon.
Maroni is squirming around, avoiding Ramon's attempts to control the action.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Maroni bucks up and manages to get a nice reversal! He's in guard on the top - nicely done!
Razor Ramon is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Ramon controlling Maroni's posture.

And that's the end of the fight!
Razor Ramon showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Ramon, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 Jeff Smith scores the fight 30:27
Judge Josh West scores the fight 30:27
Judge Colin Fray scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Razor Ramon!
In defeat, Phil Maroni stepped up to the mic, saying 'He was the better man tonight'.