PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Don Gotti (ranked 1964 p4p, 239 weight class) and Jan Paul Valens (ranked 1623 p4p, 200 weight class). Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Gotti
vs
Paul Valens

175 cm
28
170 lbs
14 - 10 - 1

177 cm
27
170 lbs
13 - 8 - 0

BJJ Red Belt
World class boxer
Insanely flexible

Olympic wrestler
World class MT
Good gas tank

Sin City Allstars

Bullet Proof System

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 14 - 10 - 1, fighting out of Helsinki, Don Gotti!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 13 - 8 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Jan Paul Valens!
The judges for this bout are Radbod Blank, Nard Betker and Wagner Zegers.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Gotti scores with a nice one two combo and darts back out of range to avoid anything coming in the opposite direction.
Valens throws a big shot that misses.
Gotti throws a lazy uppercut
and Valens connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Valens connects with an inside leg kick.
Valens lands a vicious shot with the stealth of a sniper and the strength of a viper. Are vipers that strong? I can think of lots of things that are stronger than a viper - not many rhyme with sniper though.
Gotti definitely looks more muscular than last time we saw him fight.
Valens looks to score with a jab to the body but Gotti is just out of range.
Gotti wants to clinch up but Valens keeps it at a distance.
Valens tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Gotti was well out of range. Poor timing from Valens.
Valens on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
Gotti cracks Valens with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.
Valens throws a head kick that misses.
Gotti connects with a jab.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Valens connects with a looping left hand that seems like it dazed Gotti momentarily.
Gotti lands a two punch combo.

Gotti closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Gotti drops to a knee looking for a takedown but Valens gets the underhooks and prevents it.
Valens swings wildly with an uppercut but Gotti uses good head movement to avoid it.
Gotti is trying to drag Valens to the mat but Valens just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
Gotti tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gotti is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Don Gotti. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Gotti lands a left hand that snaps the head of Valens backwards.
Valens prevents the takedown attempt.
Valens working hard to break the clinch.
Valens lands a body punch.
Gotti tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Valens's elbow.

Valens breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Valens throws a body shot but no joy.
Gotti with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Valens to score with a decent uppercut.
Gotti misses with an uppercut.
Gotti throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Wow, both these guys are really going for it!
Valens throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Valens misses the jab.
Good exchange - Gotti coming out on top.
Gotti is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Valens throws a fast counter high kick but Gotti manages to duck under it in time.
Gotti throws a leg kick but Valens moved away.
Valens throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Gotti tries to counter with a takedown but Valens is quick to defend against it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Gotti throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Valens stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
Gotti's corner calls for a 1-2. Gotti obliges with the 1 part as he scores the single shot and moves back out of range.
Gotti throws a shot from downtown. Valens moves away and avoids it.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Gotti lands a slapping body shot.
Gotti scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
Gotti tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
A solid leg kick lands there for Valens.
Valens scores with a kick to the midsection.
The fighters circling - Gotti throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Gotti throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Valens is looking to chop away at Gotti's legs.
Gotti scores with a shot to the body.
A looping hook to the body misses from Gotti. Valens does a little dance to reset his feet.
Valens lands a straight punch to the body, keeping Gotti at a distance.
Valens thuds a left hand into Gotti's body.
Gotti fakes low and throws an overhand right that catches Valens on the side of the head.
Valens tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Gotti keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Valens.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Nice straight punches there by Gotti. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Gotti.
Valens throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Gotti wants to slow Valens down by chopping away at his legs.
Gotti fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Valens avoids it really well and circles away.
Gotti throws a two punch combo that lands nicely.
Valens misses with an attempted mid kick.
Gotti throwing a counter right hand but Valens manages to avoid it.
A clash of legs there as Valens blocks the low kick.
Valens misses with a looping left.
Gotti misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.

Gotti drives through with a takedown into Valens's guard. Let's see what he can do from the top position.
Valens not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Gotti controlling from the top position.
Valens looking to sweep here. No luck so far.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gotti trying to control the position from guard on top but Valens is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Gotti sitting in guard here, content to control.
Valens has a closed guard, preventing anything of note from happening. Perhaps he's looking to stall.
Gotti wants to control from the top but Valens keeps moving.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Valens slips a jab from Gotti.
Valens walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.
Don Gotti seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Gotti tries to clinch there but Valens circles away.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Don Gotti 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.

Gotti takes a shot to the body in his stride.
Gotti looks to land a left hand but Valens moved out of range nicely.
Gotti checks the leg kick nicely there.
Gotti doesn't react quick enough there as he takes a shot to the body.
Gotti is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Valens can do to turn this around?
Gotti lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Valens circles away quickly and effectively.
A countering left hand to the body from Valens misses.
Gotti misses the shot to the body.
Gotti ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Valens moves away.
Valens connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.
Valens is throwing a lot of body shots here, looking to wear down Gotti rather than just go for the knockout.
Gotti misses the jab.
Valens throws a jab when Gotti was well out of range.
Gotti comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.
Valens moves out of range as Gotti strikes.
Valens with a nice cross.
Valens lands a nice shot to the body.
Horrible takedown attempt by Gotti or perhaps it was just good defense by Valens, which made it look bad.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Gotti fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.
Gotti keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Valens.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Left hook, right uppercut from Gotti.
Gotti avoids the head kick by Valens.
Valens misses the shot to the body.
Gotti throws a jab but it's blocked by Valens.
Gotti misses with a body shot.
Valens just misses with a punch to the body.
Gotti slips a straight right by Valens.
Gotti closes the distance and clinches up with Valens, looking for a takedown. Gotti pushes Valens against the cage but Valens circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Gotti doesn't manage to clinch there - Valens circles away.
Decent striking displayed by Valens there.
Gotti with a body punch. A glancing blow.
Nice defenses there by Valens.
Valens defending well as Gotti loads up on a big left hand.
A big right from Valens misses.
Gotti fails in his attempt to clinch.
Valens is clearly trying to counter these attacks from Gotti with a body shot.
Valens ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Valens throws a jab when Gotti was well out of range.
Valens misses with a few strikes there.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
The sound of bone on bone echoes around the arena as Valens checks a leg kick.
Jan Paul Valens is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
A clash of legs there as Valens blocks the low kick.

Gotti shoots in for a takedown from distance. He catches Valens napping and manages to drive through into side control!
Valens is trying to get back to half guard. He's pushing on Gotti's leg. He's managed it. Nice work.
Valens is looking for a sweep. Gotti is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Valens keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Valens is not content to let Gotti control the position.
Valens makes his way to full guard. A much better position for Valens.
Gotti lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
Gotti pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Valens is keeping the position for now.

Gotti is trying to work a guillotine from the top, or something like that? Don't know how he thinks he's going to get a finish from there.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Valens is adopting a defensive guard.
Valens trying to keep a closed guard but Gotti is proving a slippery customer.
Gotti is looking to work some ground and pound but Valens has wrist control.
Valens 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.
Valens keeping moving, preventing Gotti from controlling successfully.
Gotti trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.

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.
Gotti with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Gotti tries to free his leg and advance position but Valens is retaining full guard.
Valens pulls Gotti in close to prevent any damage.
Gotti lands a couple of elbows.
Valens can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Gotti controls the pace.
Gotti trying to control the position from guard on top but Valens is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Valens is trying to control the position but Gotti postures up.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Valens throws a leg kick that is checked
and Gotti counters with a straight right hand.
Gotti misses with a looping right.
Valens looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Gotti throws a combination that misses
and Valens counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Don Gotti will probably get the nod.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action! This is the final round!

Gotti tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Valens manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Gotti dives in for a single leg takedown but Valens sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.
Gotti lands a right hook to the body.
Valens misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Gotti ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Valens moves away.
A looping hook to the body misses from Gotti. Valens does a little dance to reset his feet.
Valens displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Gotti throws out the jab.
The sound of bone on bone echoes around the arena as Gotti checks a leg kick.
Gotti shoots in looking for a takedown. Valens tries to sprawl out of it but Gotti keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Valens manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Valens looked like he wanted to counter with a punch but didn't throw it.
Valens keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Gotti.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Valens moves out of range of the strikes.
Gotti lunges at Valens with a hook that half lands and is half blocked by Valens's hand.
Valens drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Gotti's hands are dropping dangerously low here and Valens connects clean with a right hook that sends him down to one knee! Gotti scrambles back to his feet.
Gotti throws a body punch but Valens moves out of range.
Valens misses with a body shot

and Gotti counters into the clinch. Nicely done.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Valens escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Gotti moves out of range as Valens strikes.
Valens cracks Gotti with a good jab.
Gotti gets cracked there but stands up to it.

Gotti closes the distance and pushes Valens back into the cage.
Gotti is looking to take this one to the mat.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Don Gotti. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Valens swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Gotti has Valens pressed against the cage, preventing Valens from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Gotti has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Valens is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.

Gotti is trying to trip Valens. He has hold of a leg but Valens is hopping around, keeping his balance for the moment. Gotti persists though and gets the takedown into guard.
Gotti trying to control the position from guard on top but Valens is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Gotti is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Valens is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.
Valens wants to control here, rather than go for any submissions from the bottom. At least for now.
Jan Paul Valens has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Valens keeping moving, preventing Gotti from controlling successfully.
Valens tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Gotti is looking to work some ground and pound but Valens has wrist control.
Both fighters have adopted an aggressive gameplan on the ground!
Valens keeping full guard, as Gotti tries to pass.
Valens tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Valens is trying to control the position but Gotti postures up.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Gotti shoots for a double leg takedown but Valens sprawls well. He's pushed Gotti's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Valens has been working his punching technique in the buildup to the fight and it appears to be paying off.
Ouch! a nice leg kick from Valens, right into the meat.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Gotti with a nice cross.
Don Gotti is winning the standup battle so far.
Gotti tries to score a power double leg takedown but Valens sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten Gotti somewhat.
Don Gotti is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gotti throws an off balance right hand
and Valens counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Gotti walks forward, straight into a front kick from Valens.
Gotti stuns Valens with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.
Gotti takes a swing at Valens's ribcage but misses.

Valens gets taken down but at least he's managed to land in guard.
Gotti controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Valens has Gotti pulled in close to control his posture.
Valens looking for a sweep. Not yet Valens, not yet.
Valens managing to control the position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gotti trying to control the position from guard on top but Valens is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Gotti looking to pass the guard.
Gotti trying to control the position from guard on top but Valens is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Valens jabs Gotti right on the nose. Gotti blinks but takes it well.
Gotti blocks a head kick by Valens.
Gotti throws a body punch but Valens moves out of range.
Valens just misses with a punch to the body.
A looping hook to the body misses from Valens. Gotti does a little dance to reset his feet.
Gotti throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Gotti takes a swing at Valens's ribcage but misses.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Don Gotti.
Well Gotti 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 Radbod Blank scores the fight 30:27
Judge Nard Betker scores the fight 30:27
Judge Wagner Zegers scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Don Gotti!
A less than humble Don Gotti misjudged his post fight interview somewhat and came across a little too arrogant whilst trying to hype up his own abilities.