PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Wesley Whitaker (ranked 2110 p4p, 229 weight class) and Cal Riven (ranked 4220 p4p, 377 weight class). Riven has chosen Man In The Box as his entrance music. Both fighter's entrance songs getting the crowd jumping here.

Whitaker
vs
Riven

182 cm
22
183 lbs
3 - 1 - 0

182 cm
22
184 lbs
4 - 5 - 0

Decent wrestler
Excellent MT
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
Excellent MT
Heavy handed

Urban Fighter

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 3 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Wesley Whitaker !
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 4 - 5 - 0, fighting out of New York, Cal Riven!
The judges for this bout are John Mangel, Ben Hemmingworth and Ben Watson.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Riven misses with a looping left.
Whitaker throws a big shot that misses.
Whitaker throws an off balance right hand
and Riven makes him pay by landing a thudding low kick.
Riven misses with a low kick.
As Riven looks to move away, Whitaker throws a big counter combo but Riven just gets out of the way.
Riven bobs and weaves and unloads with a good uppercut.
Riven is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Whitaker wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
Sloppy strikes from Whitaker . Those never looked like landing.
Whitaker rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Riven moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
A punch lands to the side of Riven 's head but he takes it in his stride.
Whitaker tries to clinch up but Riven circles away and keeps his distance.
Riven throws a sloppy head kick
and Whitaker counters with a two punch combo.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Whitaker tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Riven throws a head kick but Whitaker moves out of range.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Riven misses with a kick to the body
and Whitaker counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.
Riven throws a head kick but Whitaker moves out of range.
Riven throws a big shot that misses.

Riven tries to keep at a distance but Whitaker has taken the fight into the clinch.
Riven lands a hook that snaps the head of Whitaker backwards.
Riven swings away with an uppercut that misses.
The referee calls for Riven to work.
Riven makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.

Whitaker breaks the clinch.
Riven moves out of range of the strikes.
Riven only half commits to the counter leg kick.
Whitaker throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Riven sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Whitaker throws a right and a left that both miss.

Whitaker darts in and clinches Riven up against the cage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Whitaker tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Riven's elbow.
A head punch on the inside from Whitaker fails to land.

Whitaker escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
A combination from Whitaker does no damage.
Riven swings for the body but Whitaker moves out of range.
Good work by Whitaker as he checks the leg kick.
Whitaker wants to clinch.
A telegraphed right hand from Whitaker misses the target.
Whitaker wants to clinch but Riven slips to the side
and Riven counters with a flying knee. Nice.
Whitaker takes a push kick to the midsection and stumbles backwards.
Riven tries to grapple but his opponent circles
letting Whitaker counter with a right hand.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A jab from Whitaker finds it's way through Riven's defenses.
Wesley Whitaker seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Riven misses with a double jab.

Whitaker moves into the clinch.

Whitaker breaks the clinch.
Whitaker lands a slapping body shot.

Riven clinches up against the cage.

Whitaker pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Riven blocks a jab.
Riven swats away the attempt to clinch by Whitaker .
Riven slips under a jab.
Whitaker avoids a kick to the body.
Whitaker rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Riven counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Riven tries to close the distance and clinch up but Whitaker swats him away and circles back towards the center.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Whitaker connects with a good right hand that stumbles Riven. Riven circles away out of range and recomposes himself.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Riven lands a jab to the head.
Whitaker feints a jab promting Riven to slip. Whitaker then demonstrates his capabilities by jabbing again. Riven slips again and ducks right into an uppercut.
Riven misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Riven takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.
Riven pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Whitaker appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Whitaker is really head hunting here, hardly looking to strike to the body at all.
Whitaker misses with a series of wild punches.
Sloppy strikes from Whitaker . Those never looked like landing.
Riven takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Riven swats away the attempt to clinch by Whitaker .
Riven feints with a shoulder and throws a nice leg kick to Whitaker 's calf.
Whitaker blocks a head kick by Riven.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Wesley Whitaker dominated that round.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Whitaker misses with a left hand
and Riven counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Riven cracks Whitaker with a right hand to the side of the head.
Wesley Whitaker is winning the standup battle so far.
Whitaker misses with a series of wild punches.
Whitaker misses with a telegraphed body shot
and Riven counters with a right hand to the body.
Riven keeps the fight on the outside.
Riven throws a hook but Whitaker avoids it easily.
Wesley Whitaker is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Riven connects with a leg kick. He turned his hip over nicely there.

Riven gets in close and instigates a clinch.
Whitaker prevents a body shot from Riven.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Whitaker escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Whitaker takes a swing at Riven's ribcage but misses.
Riven tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Whitaker paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Riven tries a head kick but it misses.
Riven takes one on the chin but seems OK.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Whitaker gets cracked with a nice right hand there by Riven.
Whitaker tries to clinch but Riven is having none of it.
A telegraphed right hand from Whitaker misses the target.
Whitaker looks to be in better condition than last time we saw him fight. Obviously he's been working hard on his cardio.
Riven swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Whitaker connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Whitaker throws a lazy uppercut
and Riven counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Whitaker misses with a two punch combination.
Whitaker misses the jab.
Riven is looking for the big counter here.
Riven misses with the body kick
and Whitaker counters with a left and a right that stings Riven.
We are yet to see a takedown attempt from Riven in the fight. On paper you would think he is the more dominant ground fighter so let's see if these unusual tactics pay off.
Riven lands a front kick.
Riven steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Whitaker .
Whitaker takes a step back and watches a body kick go sailing past his mid section.
Riven blocks a jab.
Riven tries a head kick but it misses.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Riven circles away from the clinch attempt.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A punch combination from Whitaker misses.
Riven keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Riven is trying to avoid his opponent's strikes and get into the clinch.
Whitaker throws a shot from downtown. Riven moves away and avoids it.
An inside leg kick lands from Riven.
Whitaker bobbing and weaving, closes the distance and lands a hook to the side of Riven's head.
Nice defenses there by Riven.
Riven does a little shimmy and throws a leg kick. The leg kick missed by a considerable margin though, making him look a little bit silly for doing the shimmy.
Whitaker throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Riven misses with a low kick.
Riven swats away the attempt to clinch by Whitaker .
Whitaker lands a jab to the nose.

Whitaker moves into the clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Riven wants to stall.
Riven lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Whitaker working hard to break the clinch.
Whitaker working hard to break the clinch.
Whitaker blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Whitaker can't break the clinch.
Whitaker stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
Riven pressing his opponent against the cage.
A shot in the inside from Whitaker .

Whitaker pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Whitaker misses with a body shot.
Whitaker misses with an uppercut.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Whitaker throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Riven misses with a double jab
and Whitaker cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Some wild striking there from Riven.
Riven throws a body kick but he was well out of range there.
Whitaker swinging wildly here.
Riven looks to land a left hand but Whitaker moved out of range nicely.

Whitaker closes the distance and pushes Riven back into the cage.
Riven lands with a left to the head.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
A frustrated look appears on Whitaker 's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Whitaker is trying to break the clinch but Riven is controlling him.
Riven working aggressively here.
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 Wesley Whitaker will probably get the nod.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action. This is the final round!

Riven misses with a double jab.
Whitaker appears to be looking for a counter takedown.

Whitaker closes the distance and pushes Riven back into the cage.
Whitaker is trying to break the clinch but Riven is controlling him.
Whitaker looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Riven has a couple of punches blocked by Whitaker .

Riven breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Riven's corner calls for a 1, 2 combination and Riven duly obliges.
Whitaker lands a jab-cross combination.
Good leg kick by Riven there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Riven throws a body kick despite being completely out of range
and Whitaker counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Riven misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Whitaker seem to be loading up, looking for a big counter.
Riven showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Whitaker .
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Riven tries to close the distance and clinch up but Whitaker swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Whitaker throws a big counter combination but Riven scrambles out of danger and avoids any damage.
Whitaker blocks a low kick nicely.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Riven ducks under a wild hook from Whitaker .
Riven tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Whitaker paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Riven throws a body shot but no joy.
Whitaker tries to clinch up but Riven circles away and keeps his distance.
Riven throws a front kick that sends Whitaker stumbling back into the cage.
Riven uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Whitaker .
Riven throws a head kick but Whitaker moves out of range.
Whitaker lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as Riven backs up against the cage.
Whitaker scores to the head and body with a nice combination!
Riven jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Whitaker tries to bum rush Riven with a series of wild strikes but Riven uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Whitaker looks to land a left hand but Riven moved out of range nicely.
Whitaker jabs Riven to the body, keeping him at a distance.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Whitaker swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Riven cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Riven pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
As Riven looks to move away, Whitaker throws a big counter combo but Riven just gets out of the way.
Whitaker scores with a hook.
Riven pivots, looking for a leg kick but Whitaker is out of range and Riven settles back down.
Riven misses with an attempted mid kick.
Whitaker looks to land a right hand but Riven moved out of range.
A looping hook to the body misses from Whitaker . Riven does a little dance to reset his feet.
Whitaker swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Riven slips under a jab.
Whitaker swings for the body but Riven moves out of range.
Whitaker backing away here, and Riven unleashes a leg kick that just misses.

Whitaker has taken the fight to the clinch.
Riven misses with the head strike.
Riven lands a shoulder strike.

Whitaker manages to break the clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Riven wants to clinch.
Whitaker punishes Riven's body with a nice straight punch.
Cal Riven has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

Whitaker closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Wesley Whitaker is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
A frustrated look appears on Riven's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Riven misses with a punch on the inside.
Riven misses with the head strike.
Riven misses with a short punch on the inside.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Riven creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Whitaker blocks an uppercut.
Riven scores with a shoulder strike.
Riven misses with some punches.
Riven swings wildly with an uppercut but Whitaker uses good head movement to avoid it.
Riven tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Riven throws an elbow that misses.
Riven goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Riven tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Whitaker avoids it.

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 Wesley Whitaker .
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Whitaker , winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 John Mangel scores the fight 30:27
Judge Ben Hemmingworth scores the fight 30:27
Judge Ben Watson scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Wesley Whitaker !
Wesley Whitaker looked relieved post fight as he said the following; 'Thanks to all of my fans who believed in me, this is just the beginning..to my sponsors Urban Fighter to the end...and to my brothers BAD BOY MMA come get some.'.