PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Cocaine Cowboy (ranked 7667 p4p, 574 weight class) and Xander Draven (ranked 5515 p4p, 503 weight class). The crowd seem to be enjoying Draven's choice of entrance music: The Bombshell - Powerman 5000. Cocaine Cowboy looks tired to me. Hopefully he has got enough gas left in the tank to put in a good performance.

Cowboy
vs
Draven

180 cm
23
155 lbs
0 - 1 - 0

169 cm
20
155 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Counter fighter
Very strong

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Enjoys gardening

Wild Rio Nutrition - 90% Laundry

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the lightweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Cocaine Cowboy!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Xander Draven!
The judges for this bout are Frank Dennis, Robert Twigg and Daniel Franklin.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Draven misses with a series of wild punches.
Cowboy is looking for a counter combo.

Draven drives through and clinches with Cowboy against the cage.
Draven working hard to break the clinch.
Good anti-grappling being displayed by Cowboy as Draven tries to tie him up.
Draven dictating the pace here, as the fighters clinch against the cage.
Draven can't break the clinch.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Cowboy tries for a takedown. No joy.
Cowboy has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Draven avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.
Draven wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Draven pressing his opponent against the cage.
Cowboy is trying to drag Draven to the mat but Draven just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Cocaine Cowboy. That's going to take a lot out of him.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Draven stalls.
Draven's corner are urging him to control the action in the clinch for a moment, rather than mount any serious offense. I'm sure the crowd appreciate those instructions... not.
Draven receives a warning from the referee for stalling.
Draven digs a right hand into Cowboy's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Cowboy's gas tank.
Draven stalling the fight.
Cowboy tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Draven smiles and moves away.
Good exchange - Draven coming out on top.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Draven connects with a single shot there.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Cowboy.
Cowboy is breathing heavily.
Draven throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Cowboy on the wrong end of a decent looking cross there.

Draven has closed the distance and engaged Cowboy in a clinch.

Cowboy has picked Draven up - he's going for a ride! Cowboy dumps his opponent to the mat with a thud and settles into half guard.

Draven kicks off Cowboy and gets to his feet.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Draven tries to bum rush Cowboy with a series of wild strikes but Cowboy uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Draven connects with a right hand. Cowboy shakes it off.

Draven clinches up with Cowboy and pushes him back against the cage.
Draven misses with a body punch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Draven is trying to break the clinch but Cowboy has him pressed against the cage.

Cowboy breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Draven tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.

Draven gets in close and instigates a clinch.
Draven tries to circle away but Cowboy has him pinned against the cage.
Draven is trying to break free.
Cowboy is trying to maintain a safe position but Draven gets an underhook and turns Cowboy into the cage.
Draven has had enough of the clinch but Cowboy keeps him there for the moment.
Draven just leaning against Cowboy, taking a breather.
Cowboy connects with a nasty looking knee right to Draven's face.
Cowboy jumps guard but Draven turns him against the cage and keeps the fight standing.
Draven is pressed up against the cage. Cowboy has hold of a leg and is looking to drag Draven down to the mat. Draven avoids the attempt though and has circled away. We're back to striking at a distance.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The fight stays on the outside here - Cowboy looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Draven tries a head kick but it misses.
Draven closes the distance and lands a one-two.
Xander Draven seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

Draven has closed the distance and engaged Cowboy in a clinch.
Draven wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Cowboy has him pressed against the cage.
Draven throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.

Draven breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Cowboy takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Draven has been working on his striking defense in training and it's paying off as Cowboy is landing a low percentage of strikes.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Draven with a body punch. A glancing blow.
Draven throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Draven lands a jab. Then a cross. Then finally a nice hook to the body. Good work there by Draven.
Cowboy moves out of range of the leg kick from Draven.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Xander Draven dominated 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.

Draven pushes Cowboy up against the cage in a clinch.
Draven lands a hook that snaps the head of Cowboy backwards.
Draven tries to break free but Cowboy pushes him back against the cage.
Draven wants to get back to striking at distance but Cowboy won't allow it.

Draven pulls guard successfully.
Cowboy postures up.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Draven pulls Cowboy in close to his closed guard and prevents Cowboy from doing any damage or advancing position.
Draven looking to control.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Cowboy with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Cowboy working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Cowboy won't allow Draven to sweep him here.
Cowboy is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
This fight brought to you by 5M nutrition - it's mmmmm tasty. Nice jab by Draven.

Draven drives through and clinches with Cowboy against the cage.
Draven pressing his opponent against the cage.
Draven wants to stall.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Cowboy trying to land knees to the body.
A short right from Draven on the inside.

Cowboy manages to pull guard. Let's see whether he can land a sub off his back.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

Cowboy throws his legs up looking to secure a triangle. Oh, that looks pretty tight, I gotta say! Draven escapes and throws Cowboy's legs to the side, diving into side control!

Draven decides to stand up, so the ref orders Cowboy to his feet.

Draven gets in close and instigates a clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Cowboy tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Draven just stands there and leans against the cage.

Cowboy manages to break the clinch.

Draven forces Cowboy back against the cage and clinches.
Draven throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Draven gets underhooks to prevent Cowboy's takedown attempt.
Cowboy keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Draven's efforts to push away.
Cowboy is trying to pull guard but Draven turns him against the cage and we stay in the clinch.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Cocaine Cowboy. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Cowboy has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Draven avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.
Draven has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
A left hand lands to the body for Draven.
Draven just leaning against Cowboy, taking a breather.

Draven breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Xander Draven seems to be getting the better of the standup.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Draven lands with a straight right. Cowboy didn't see that one coming.
Cowboy takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.
Draven listening to his corner there, landing a nice uppercut.
Draven works over Cowboy's head and body with a nice combination.
Draven moves into range and throws a lovely three punch combination.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Draven shoots in for a double leg but Cowboy sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
Draven is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Draven misses with a two punch combination.
Draven misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
No luck for Cowboy with that takedown attempt.
Draven keeps his opponent at a distance with a nice jab.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Xander Draven 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! This is the final round!

Cowboy doesn't react quick enough there as he takes a shot to the body.

Cowboy gets in close and instigates a clinch.
A body shot lands from Draven.
Draven wants to break free but Cowboy has control.
Cowboy is looking for a takedown.
Draven wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Cowboy has him pressed against the cage.
Draven is working Cowboy over against the cage.
Draven controlling the action here for a moment.
Draven wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Cowboy has him pressed against the cage.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Cowboy pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Draven swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Cowboy.
Cocaine Cowboy is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Draven throws a push kick but Cowboy slaps the foot to one side.
Draven lands with a cross to side of his opponent's head.
The crowd cheers as Draven lands an impressive looking overhand right. Cowboy doesn't seem phased though.

Draven closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Cowboy jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Draven walks away with a smile on his face. Cowboy gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
Draven tries a head kick but it misses.
Draven scores with a one two! Cowboy had his feet all tangled up there and couldn't avoid the strikes.
Draven comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.
Draven tries to bum rush Cowboy with a series of wild strikes but Cowboy uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Draven throws a right and a left that both miss.

Cowboy closes the distance, clinches up and gets a nice trip takedown into side control. Very smooth.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Draven manages to get back to half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Draven has one foot on Cowboy's thigh - he pushes off and manages to get back to his feet.
Draven might want to mix his strikes up a bit more. He's just going for head shots at the moment and that can become a bit predictable.
Draven scores with a nice right hand.
Draven ducks down and throws a hook to the body.
Jab by Draven.

Cowboy moves into the clinch.
Draven is trying to force a seperation but Cowboy has the dominant position.
With the two fighters working up against the cage, Draven just misses with a elbow thrown towards Cowboy's brow.
Draven wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Draven is trying to break the clinch but Cowboy has him pressed against the cage.
Cowboy fails to pull the fight into his guard.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Cocaine Cowboy. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Draven stalling in the clinch but Cowboy improves position.

Cowboy lands a takedown into guard.

Draven manages to wriggle out and sneak his way back up to his feet, so the fighters are now clinched up against the cage.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Xander Draven seems to be working more effectively in the clinch in the fight so far.
A hook to the body from Draven.
Cowboy is working for takedown but Draven is calmly controlling the position for now.
Cowboy's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Draven tries to circle away but Cowboy has him pinned against the cage.
Cowboy jumps guard but Draven stands there with Cowboy around his waist. Cowboy gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Draven wants to break free but Cowboy has control.
Cowboy is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the cage enables Draven to keep the fight standing.
Draven tries to break the clinch but Cowboy is controlling the position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Draven leaning against his opponent.
Draven avoiding damage.
Draven stalling.
Draven continues to stall. The referee tells him to work or he's going to break them up.

Cowboy breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Draven keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Draven lands a right hook to the body.

Draven gets a clinch.
Draven working hard to break the clinch.
Draven gets double underhooks to prevent a takedown attempt from Cowboy.
Cocaine Cowboy has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Draven is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.

And that's the end of the fight!
Xander Draven comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Draven 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 Frank Dennis scores the fight 27:30
Judge Robert Twigg scores the fight 27:30
Judge Daniel Franklin scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Xander Draven!
Xander Draven decided to go for the less than humble approach in his post fight interview, telling everyone how he is going to conquer the world. The crowd seemed to like it when really that sort of approach could have gone either way.