PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Dan Sergeant (ranked 2295 p4p, 111 weight class) and Rex Ruger (ranked 2744 p4p, 136 weight class). The key to victory for Dan Sergeant has got to be keeping the fight on the feet.

Sergeant
vs
Ruger

175 cm
30
139 lbs
12 - 9 - 1

169 cm
29
145 lbs
6 - 5 - 0

Decent wrestler
Brawler
Good chin

Good wrestler
Basic striking
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 12 - 9 - 1, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Dan Sergeant!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 6 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Rex Ruger!
The judges for this bout are Mauricio Rocha, Leandro Rodrigues and Matheus Silva.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Ruger shoots in and drives through. Sergeant sprawls well.

Ruger fakes a strike and closes the distance, dragging Sergeant to the ground. Ruger is now in Sergeant's guard.
Sergeant on his back here. We all know that wrestlers don't like being on their back so let's see if Sergeant tries to get out of the position.
Sergeant is looking to sweep but instead, Ruger has passed into half guard.
Sergeant is looking to improve his position.

Sergeant looking for submissions off his back.
Sergeant has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Ruger is working away from the top position though.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Ruger looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Sergeant with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Ruger seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Sergeant does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Ruger is thwarting Sergeant's attempts to control the position.
My spies in All Star Performance Institute inform me that Ruger has been getting involved in the gym's BJJ sparring sessions. Let's see whether that pays dividends!
Ruger throwing shots but Sergeant is blocking nicely.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Ruger not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Sergeant is looking for a sweep. Ruger is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Ruger wants to pass to mount but Sergeant is defending the position.
Sergeant is looking to escape.
Ruger has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
Sergeant tries to roll over but Ruger keeps him under control.
Ruger wants to take a breather but Sergeant is having none of it.
Ruger is nestled in close to Sergeant, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Sergeant avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Ruger.
Ruger working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Sergeant is not content to let Ruger control the position.
Ruger missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Ruger throwing shots but Sergeant is blocking nicely.
Ruger thows a huge punch but Sergeant dodges it nicely.
Ruger trying to control from Sergeant's half guard. Sergeant has other ideas though and has regained full guard.
Ruger postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Ruger wants to control from the top but Sergeant keeps moving.
Ruger throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Sergeant works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Sergeant looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now Sergeant is on top in guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sergeant is looking to work some ground and pound but Ruger has wrist control.
Sergeant trying to control the position from guard on top but Ruger is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Ruger looking to control the pace of the fight rather than finish it.
Ruger keeping moving, preventing Sergeant from controlling successfully.
Sergeant slips effortlessly into side control - very nice.

Sergeant is trying to get an arm triangle but Ruger is defending well.
Ruger can't do much from the bottom here.

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.

Sergeant tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Ruger tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Ruger is still trying to improve position.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Sergeant trying to control the position but Ruger is working away.
Ruger is trying to stand back up. He's worked his way up against the cage but Sergeant has just dragged him back down to the mat.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Rex Ruger will probably get the nod.
That's time! Back to the action!

Ruger is on the wrong end of a nice combination from Sergeant.

Sergeant dives in and scores a takedown into Ruger's guard.
Ruger wants to get back to his feet but Sergeant passes into half guard.

Sergeant is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
Ruger moves into full guard.
Ruger lands a beautiful sweep and he's now moved into his opponent's guard.

Ruger pushing down on Sergeant's thigh, trying to pass to half guard. He's managed it... Nice work.
Rex Ruger has got the better of the ground game so far.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Ruger is nestled in close to Sergeant, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Ruger working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Ruger connects with a nice short shot to Sergeant's temple.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sergeant is looking for a sweep. Ruger is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Sergeant keeping control of the position.
Sergeant has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Ruger is working away from the top position though.
Sergeant on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Ruger wants to control but Sergeant is keeping him busy.
Ruger working over Sergeant with some ground and pound. Sergeant looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Sergeant trying to control here.
Ruger thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Sergeant's head.
Ruger throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.

That's two 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.
Ground and pound from Ruger.
Sergeant on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.

Sergeant manages to escape and get back to his feet!

Ruger throws a loose over hand right and dives in with a double leg takedown. Sergeant tries to sprawl but it's too late and the fighters hit the mat. Ruger is in Sergeant's guard.
Ruger content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.
Ruger scoring with some ground and pound.
Sergeant working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Ruger.
Sergeant keeping full guard, as Ruger tries to pass.
Ruger with a nice head shot there.
Ruger stops Sergeant from standing up.
Ruger with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Ruger working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sergeant keeping moving, preventing Ruger from controlling successfully.
Ruger postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Sergeant is pulling down on Ruger's head to control his posture.
Ruger has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Ruger lands a couple of elbows.
Ruger chips away with some ground and pound.
Ruger scoring with some ground and pound.
Ruger prevents Sergeant from getting back to his feet.
Ruger connects with a couple of short punches.
Ruger working some strikes from top position.
Ruger preventing the sweep.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ruger lands a couple of digs.
Ruger content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.
Sergeant looking for a sweep. Not yet Sergeant, not yet.
Ruger working some strikes from top position.
Ruger throws a big right hand that misses.
Sergeant trying to control the position.
The referee must be thinking about standing these guys back up.
Ruger wants to control from the top but Sergeant keeps moving.
Ruger working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.

Sergeant drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.
Ruger looking to control the pace of the fight rather than finish it.
Ruger wants to stand up but Sergeant is controlling him.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Rex Ruger showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Sergeant waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Ruger.

Ruger drives through with a takedown into Sergeant's guard. Let's see what he can do from the top position.
Ruger scoring with punches to the head and body.
Sergeant avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Sergeant working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Ruger.
Sergeant keeping moving, preventing Ruger from controlling successfully.

Sergeant is throwing his legs up, looking for submissions. Ruger is aware though and is defending well.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Sergeant is doing well to control the posture of his opponent and prevent any damage.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Ruger cracks Sergeant with a solid left hand.
Ruger throws a big right hand that misses.
Sergeant keeping moving, preventing Ruger from controlling successfully.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sergeant is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Sergeant has control of Ruger's left arm, preventing Ruger from doing any damage.
Ruger postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.
Sergeant has momentary wrist control but Ruger slips an elbow through the middle.
Sergeant is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Ruger looking to sit in guard and control but Sergeant gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.

Sergeant postures up.
Sergeant stops Ruger from standing up.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ruger is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
A real slowdown in the pace of the fight for a moment, as Ruger holds on and takes a little breather.
Ruger is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Sergeant throws a couple of head shots and lands with the final one - a decent hook, which struck Ruger on the side of the head.
Sergeant lands an overhand right.
Sergeant scores with a nice head shot.
Ruger throws a body shot but no joy.
Ruger has a takedown stuffed.
Sergeant steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Ruger.
Sergeant changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.

Ruger changes levels and drives through with a really nice takedown into side control. Sergeant looks really pissed at himself for not defending that better.

Sergeant throws Ruger to one side and escapes!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sergeant shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Ruger sprawls well. Ruger wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Sergeant gets slowly back to his feet.
Dan Sergeant is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Sergeant with a poor takedown

and Ruger counters with a nice double leg into side control. Sergeant won't be happy with that.

Sergeant bucks up and manages to escape back to his feet!
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!

Sergeant drives through with a really nice takedown into side control.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Sergeant tries to move into full mount but can't pass Ruger's legs.
Ruger is trying to buck Sergeant off.

Sergeant is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Ruger knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ruger is trying to escape and get back to his feet.
Ruger is not content to let Sergeant control the position.
Ruger is trying to escape and get back to his feet.
Sergeant scores with a couple of short elbows.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Dan Sergeant clearly takes that round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

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

Ruger is scooting his butt against the cage and has managed to get back to his feet. Sergeant presses him back against the cage, presumably looking to take the fight back to the mat.
Sergeant drops down looking for an ankle pick but Ruger pulls his leg out and moves away.
Sergeant misses with a left hand

and Ruger counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Ruger.
Sergeant is wriggling around but Ruger manages to pass to half guard.

Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Sergeant is holding on to half guard well.
Ruger missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Nice strikes from Ruger there.
Sergeant is looking for a sweep. Ruger is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Ruger takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Ruger is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Ruger lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
Ruger slips a nice elbow through Sergeant's hands, connecting with Sergeant's forehead.
Sergeant tries to get to full guard but Ruger has control of the leg.
Nice strikes from Ruger there.
Ground and pound from Ruger.

Sergeant is rocked!
Ruger stops Sergeant from getting back to his feet.
Nice strikes from Ruger there.
Ruger winds up and cracks Sergeant with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Oh Sergeant is still in real trouble! Will he be able to recover?!!
Sergeant gets back to full guard.
Sergeant seems to have got his legs back now.
Sergeant is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ruger wants to control from the top but Sergeant keeps moving.
Ruger landing some decent shots from guard.

Sergeant looking for a guillotine here but Ruger defends easily.
Ruger lands a couple of elbows.
Ruger stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Sergeant swivels though and keeps the full guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sergeant not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Sergeant is looking to stand back up but Ruger counters by passing into half guard. Oops... bit sloppy there by Sergeant.
Ground and pound from Ruger.
Ruger lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
Ruger slips a nice elbow through Sergeant's hands, connecting with Sergeant's forehead.
Sergeant is trying to stand back up but Ruger is controlling him
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Ruger lands a nice short elbow.
Sergeant wants to control but Ruger is keeping busy.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Ruger connects with a nice short shot to Sergeant's temple.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ruger slips a nice elbow through Sergeant's hands, connecting with Sergeant's forehead.
Ruger thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Sergeant's head.
Ruger lands with a punch from half guard.
Sergeant manages to get to full guard.
Ruger lands a couple of digs.
Sergeant not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Ruger throwing strikes but missing.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Ruger missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Sergeant wants to sweep here but Ruger controlling him for the moment.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Rex Ruger dominated that fourth round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. This is the final round!

Sergeant scores a trip takedown into side control. Nice.
Ruger tries to buck Sergeant off but Sergeant is having none of it.
Ruger struggling a bit here.
Sergeant trying to control the action but Ruger is working from the bottom.
Ruger manages to work his way to half guard, despite Sergeant's best efforts.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Ruger wants to improve his position but Sergeant is controlling well.
Ruger on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Sergeant is just content to waste time from the top position. Ruger takes advantage of the situation and regains full guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Ruger has a closed guard, preventing anything of note from happening. Perhaps he's looking to stall.
Ruger looking to control.
Ruger keeping moving, preventing Sergeant from controlling successfully.
Ruger is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.

Sergeant looks like he's trying to stand up.
Ruger working over Sergeant with some ground and pound. Sergeant looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Ruger connects with a nice short shot to Sergeant's temple.
Sergeant wants to get back to full guard.
Ruger missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Sergeant avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Ruger.
Ruger scores with a couple of good hammerfists.
Ruger is keen to just control but Sergeant is a slippery customer.
Ruger is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Ruger wants to take a breather but Sergeant is having none of it.
Sergeant is looking to escape.
Ruger trying to mount his opponent but Sergeant defends it.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.
Sergeant wants to improve his position but Ruger is controlling well.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Ruger takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Ruger is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Sergeant trying to control from the bottom.
Sergeant is trying to get back to full guard.
Ruger throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.

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

Ruger 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.
Sergeant preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.

Sergeant is looking for a triangle but Ruger pushes his legs off easily.
Both of our modern day gladiators look out of it here - a gruelling 5 rounds of action taking it's toll on them, no doubt.
Sergeant is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sergeant looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Sergeant working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Ruger.
Ruger throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Ruger looking to pass the guard.
If this pace continues, the referee will definitely step in and force a standup.
Ruger postures up and scores with a shot to the body and a follow up elbow to the head.
Dan Sergeant has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Sergeant controls Ruger momentarily but Ruger frees himself.
Ruger with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.

And that's the end of the fight!
Rex Ruger comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Ruger has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. Over to the ring announcer for the scorecards.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 5 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Mauricio Rocha scores the fight 46:49
Judge Leandro Rodrigues scores the fight 46:49
Judge Matheus Silva scores the fight 46:49

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Rex Ruger!