PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Mohammed Kartiko (ranked 25241 p4p, 0 weight class) and Sam Sicila (ranked 8605 p4p, 0 weight class). Both these guys have really solid chins. Will we see a standup war or will they both decide that a knockout is unlikely and try to win the fight elsewhere?

Kartiko
vs
Sicila

175 cm
20
212 lbs
1 - 3 - 0

190 cm
20
205 lbs
0 - 2 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Solid boxing
Good chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Good kicks
Solid chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 1 - 3 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Mohammed Kartiko!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 2 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Sam Sicila!
The judges for this bout are David Hoff, Winston Alpacca and Sandra Marshall.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Sicila throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.

The fight moves into the clinch position.
Sicila fails to pull guard.

Kartiko escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.

Kartiko lands a left and a right that sends Sicila crashing to the canvas! Kartiko dives into mount looking to finish!

It looks like Sam Sicila has been cut.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Sicila holding onto his opponent's waist for dear life, as Kartiko tries to land some strikes to get him to release his grip.
Kartiko controlling his opponent.
Sicila felt the need to train up his defensive grappling in the buildup to the fight. Presumably he was expecting to be in a difficult position like this, so let's see if he can get out of it.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Kartiko dominating with strikes here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kartiko thuds his fist into the canvas! Oooouch!
Kartiko controlling the position easily from mount.
Sicila looks winded!
Kartiko seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Sicila for as long as he can get away with.
Kartiko looking to ground and pound but Sicila is blocking nicely.
Kartiko controlling from the full mount.
Kartiko throwing shots from mount but they're not landing.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kartiko controlling from the full mount.
Kartiko throws an elbow from mount that misses. Lucky escape for Sicila because Kartiko loaded up on that one.
Kartiko controlling the pace for now.
Kartiko could do with losing a few pounds - he looks very soft around the mid section, to put it politely.
Kartiko continues to stall.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sicila wriggling around on the bottom manages to avoid the strikes thrown by Kartiko.
Kartiko thuds his fist into the canvas! Oooouch!
Kartiko sitting in mount, just looking to control for the moment.
Kartiko with shots to the head and body - Sicila looks very uncomfortable down there.
Kartiko punching from mount but Sicila doing a good job of avoiding damage.

Kartiko is going oldschool here, as he tries to force Sicila to tap using a forearm choke. This isn't 1993 though, so Sicila shrugs it off.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kartiko tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
Kartiko has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
Sicila tries to lock up and control but Kartiko gives him a forearm to the face and pushes him away.
Kartiko controlling his opponent.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Kartiko thowing shots but they're missing.
Kartiko content just to control the position here.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Mohammed Kartiko dominated that round.
Both fighters have cut men working on them during the interval.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Kartiko moves into the clinch.
Sicila dodges an elbow strike from Kartiko.
A shot in the inside from Kartiko.
Kartiko blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Sicila tries to land knees in the clinch but Kartiko avoids the damage to the body.
Sicila lands an elbow that stopped Kartiko in his tracks for a moment.
Sicila keeps control of Kartiko as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Sicila tries to pull guard but Kartiko won't allow it.
Kartiko wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.

Kartiko has moved round to his opponent's back and is looking for a suplex! Oh snap! He's tossed Sicila clear over his head and slammed him to the mat!
Kartiko throwing wild punches that miss their target.
Sicila is breathing heavily.
Kartiko really has the hooks in deep now - there seems like no escape for Sicila.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Kartiko is working for the rear naked choke. He has one arm under the chin but Sicila has hold of the other arm. A bit of a stalemate here.
Kartiko trying to secure his dominant position for a moment - making sure Sicila doesn't escape.
Kartiko 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.
Kartiko scores with punches to the body.
I really don't envy Sicila right now.
Kartiko missing with strikes from the back.
Kartiko throwing wild punches that miss their target.
Kartiko keeps control of the position as Sicila tries to break free.
Kartiko is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Sicila can do to turn this around?

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kartiko controls the action.
Kartiko punches the canvas rather than the man.
Kartiko biding his time, looking for the opening.
Mohammed Kartiko overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
This is a sustained period of stalling by Kartiko.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Kartiko's ground tactics aren't going to win him many fans. Let's hope he's got fireworks for us if he gets back to his feet because he's not doing much on the ground.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Mohammed Kartiko dominated that second round.
Both fighters have cut men working on them during the interval.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! So, we enter the final round. Let's see if either fighter can bring us a finish, or whether we're going to the judges scorecards.

Kartiko stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Kartiko wants it to stay on the feet.

Kartiko has taken the fight to the clinch.
Kartiko lands a body punch in the clinch.
Kartiko throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Nice body punch from Kartiko - that landed with a thud.
Kartiko is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Kartiko scores with a nice hook to the head.
Kartiko wants a takedown but no success here.
Sicila is trying to pull guard but Kartiko has him pressed against the cage.
Kartiko lands a right hand that snaps the head of Sicila backwards.

Kartiko escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Kartiko digs a good hook to Sicila's body.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kartiko paws at his opponent with the jab and then lunges in with a straight, right on the button.

Kartiko scores with a takedown into Sicila's guard.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Kartiko postures up in Sicila's guard and throws a big left but Sicila blocks it.
Sicila takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Kartiko with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kartiko throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Kartiko working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Sicila utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Kartiko throws a big right hand that misses.
Kartiko is looking to work some ground and pound but Sicila has wrist control.
Kartiko is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
More hug and hope from Kartiko.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Kartiko has been working on his balance at Cozad The Island, so perhaps that has help him stuff some of the takedown attempts by Sicila.
Sicila has his head slapped from side to side by a 3 punch combination. That must have hurt him.
Kartiko misses with a two punch combination.
Kartiko tries for a takedown but Sicila sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Kartiko shoots in and bounces Sicila off the cage to secure the takedown into guard.
Kartiko stays in close to Sicila's body and controls the position.
Sicila working a defensive guard here.
Mohammed Kartiko is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kartiko seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Sicila throws a nice looking combination but Kartiko bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.

Kartiko clinches up with Sicila and pushes him back against the cage.
Kartiko wants to break free but Sicila has control.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.

Kartiko breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.

Kartiko looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into side control! Oh, that's bad for Sicila!
Kartiko slows the pace down.

Kartiko has had enough of the ground for now and decides to stand.

Kartiko moves into the clinch.
Kartiko looks to throw an elbow but misses.
Sam Sicila has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Sicila with an attempt at a knee that misses.

And that's the end of the fight!
Mohammed Kartiko showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Kartiko 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 David Hoff scores the fight 30:26
Judge Winston Alpacca scores the fight 30:26
Judge Sandra Marshall scores the fight 30:26

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Mohammed Kartiko!
A relieved looking Mohammed Kartiko thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.