PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Chiharu Shiba (ranked 2931 p4p, 260 weight class) and Ilya Yaj (ranked 2260 p4p, 224 weight class). Shiba comes to the cage accompanied by Godsmack - Immune & Sick Puppies - Survive . This should be a great matchup!

Shiba
vs
Yaj

173 cm
26
150 lbs
3 - 2 - 0

170 cm
26
146 lbs
5 - 4 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Excellent boxer
Cardio machine

BJJ White Belt
Excellent MT
Good gas tank

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 3 - 2 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Chiharu Shiba!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 5 - 4 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Ilya Yaj!
The judges for this bout are Michael Johnstone, Winston Alpacca and Santiago Holmes.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Yaj throws a good cross that connects.
Yaj takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Shiba scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Yaj looks more muscular than last time we saw him. He must have been on the weights.
Shiba looks to score with a jab to the body but Yaj is just out of range.
Shiba lands with a shot to the body.
Shiba definitely looks more muscular than last time we saw him fight.
Shiba throws a big shot that misses.
Yaj wants to counter the offense by Shiba and move into the clinch position.
Shiba throws out a loose jab but Yaj uses good head movement to avoid it.
Shiba connects with a crisp jab.
Yaj tries to clinch but Shiba is having none of it.
Shiba lands a two punch combo.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Shiba throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Yaj scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
Yaj avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Yaj gets cracked with a nice right hand there by Shiba.
Shiba misses the jab.
Yaj tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Shiba paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Shiba throwing a counter right hand but Yaj manages to avoid it.
Shiba throws a nice looking combination but Yaj bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Yaj tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Chiharu Shiba seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

Yaj pushes Shiba up against the cage in a clinch.
Shiba lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
Yaj blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Shiba works on Yaj's body with a couple of short punches.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Yaj is working Shiba over against the cage.
Yaj struggles to land a body shot inside as Shiba controls his hands.
A shot in the inside from Shiba.
Shiba wants to get back to striking at distance but Yaj won't allow it.
A right hook to the body lands for Shiba.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Shiba.
Shiba is trying to break the clinch but Yaj is controlling him.
A right handed body shot lands from Yaj.

Shiba pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.

Shiba has closed the distance and engaged Yaj in a clinch.
Yaj misses with a body punch.
Yaj misses with a punch to the body.
Shiba softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Yaj working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Shiba tries to circle away but Yaj has him pinned against the cage.
Shiba tries to work over Yaj's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Shiba is trying to break the clinch but Yaj is controlling him.
Yaj lands with a light punch inside.
Shiba is trying to break the clinch but Yaj is controlling him.
Nice body punch from Yaj - that landed with a thud.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Shiba struggles to land a body shot inside as Yaj controls his hands.
A head punch on the inside from Yaj fails to land.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Shiba can't find room to land a body shot as Yaj controls the action.
Shiba can't break the clinch.
Yaj tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Yaj fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Shiba doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Yaj doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Shiba pushes Yaj back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Shiba swings wildly with an uppercut but Yaj uses good head movement to avoid it.
Shiba lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Shiba goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
A head punch on the inside from Yaj fails to land.
Shiba is leaning against Yaj and scores with a nice uppercut to the body.
Yaj presses Shiba against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
Shiba wants to get back to striking at distance but Yaj won't allow it.
Shiba tries to work over Yaj's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Nice body punch from Shiba.
Yaj lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Shiba or not.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Yaj throws a punch but it's blocked by Shiba.
Yaj struggles to land a body shot inside as Shiba controls his hands.
Shiba lands a hook to the side of the head.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Yaj.
Yaj blocks an uppercut.
Yaj misses with the head strike.
Shiba blocking some punches.
Yaj blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Shiba is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Shiba swings wildly with an uppercut but Yaj uses good head movement to avoid it.
Shiba blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Yaj has Shiba pressed against the cage, preventing Shiba from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Shiba misses with a hook to the ribs.
Shiba lands a nice shot to the body.
Yaj misses with a punch to the body.
Yaj lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Shiba backwards.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Shiba.
Shiba looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Yaj fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Yaj softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Shiba tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Shiba goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Yaj.
Still in the clinch, Shiba scores with a nice short uppercut.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Shiba creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Shiba misses with a hook from the clinch.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Shiba.
Shiba misses with a punch to the body.
Yaj tries a body shot but Shiba blocks it.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Yaj blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Shiba has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.
Shiba goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Yaj digs a right hand into Shiba's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Shiba's gas tank.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
A head punch on the inside from Yaj fails to land.
Yaj working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Yaj misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Shiba blocks a body shot from Yaj.
Shiba lands with a short punch from the clinch.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Chiharu Shiba dominated that round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Shiba misses with a body shot.
Yaj is trying to avoid his opponent's strikes and get into the clinch.
Nice uppercut lands for Shiba. That snapped Yaj's head back.
Shiba throws a nice looking combination but Yaj bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Shiba walks forward and throws a big overhand right! Yaj drops to the floor like a sack of potatoes! Shiba swarms on him with more punches until the referee wrestles him away from Yaj's unconscious body! Wow, that was brutal!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 0:15 of round 2, we have a winner by way of TKO (Strikes). Chiharu Shiba!
Chiharu Shiba 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.