PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Desmond Darby (ranked 5635 p4p, 371 weight class) and Tai Whishermann (ranked 4933 p4p, 355 weight class). Tai Whishermann struggled to make weight for this fight. He only made it down to 146.2lbs at the first attempt and had to take the additional two hours to make the official bout weight. Let's see how much it's taken out of him. Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Darby
vs
Whishermann

175 cm
25
155 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

178 cm
24
155 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Solid boxing
KO power

BJJ Purple Belt
Counter fighter
Likes musicals

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 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of London, Desmond Darby!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Tai Whishermann!
The judges for this bout are Steven Brown, Paul Tew and Colin Fotheringham.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Whishermann moves forwards but Darby connects with a nice, crisp jab.
Darby throws a right and a left that Whishermann avoids nicely.

Whishermann shoots in and bounces Darby off the cage to secure the takedown into guard.
Darby wants to get back to his feet but Whishermann is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Darby is looking to sweep but instead, Whishermann has passed into half guard.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Whishermann in particular looking to stall.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Whishermann slips a nice elbow through Darby's hands, connecting with Darby's forehead.
Darby moves his hips nicely and gets into full guard.
Whishermann is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Darby throws some sloppy strikes off his back.
Whishermann 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.
Whishermann stops Darby from standing up.
Darby throws a couple of shots from the bottom but they don't land.
Darby preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Whishermann wants to pass the guard but Darby is keeping the position.

That's two 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.
Darby bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Whishermann's guard.

Darby is looking to work some ground and pound but Whishermann has wrist control.
Whishermann has Darby pulled in close to control his posture.
Darby working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Whishermann's head.
Whishermann seems keen to control rather than go for a submission, at least for now.
Whishermann has momentary wrist control but Darby slips an elbow through the middle.
Darby is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Whishermann working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Darby.
Whishermann manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Darby manages to get himself to full guard.

Whishermann is holding a leg here, probably looking for an ankle lock - he drops back and goes for it! Darby is in trouble! Is it all over??? No! Darby has escaped and now he's on top!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Darby postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Whishermann wants to sweep but no luck.
Whishermann avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Whishermann is doing well to control the posture of his opponent and prevent any damage.
Darby working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Darby missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Darby is looking to stand up but Whishermann won't let him.
Darby is looking to work some ground and pound but Whishermann has wrist control.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Darby trying to stand up but can't free himself from Whishermann's guard.
Whishermann looking to control the pace of the fight rather than finish it.
Darby wants to get up but he can't break Whishermann's closed guard. He needs to be careful trying to break the legs open, as he's open to submissions here.
Darby being controlled here momentarily.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

Darby got a little sloppy there for a moment and Whishermann has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Darby has managed to get both his arms back between Whishermann's legs - danger averted.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Whishermann looking to control.
Whishermann avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Darby is fighting to break Whishermann's control of his arms but Whishermann is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Desmond Darby dominated that round.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action.

Darby jabs. That one connects to the head of his opponent.
A low kick from Darby is predictable there

and Whishermann counters with a nice double leg into side control. Darby won't be happy with that.
An elbow from Whishermann crashes against the mat.
Whishermann lands some shots froms side control.
Darby is trying to escape and get back to his feet.
Darby takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.

Whishermann wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Darby, who protects the arm well.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Whishermann cracks Darby with a big elbow.
Darby is trying to stand back up. He's worked his way up against the cage but Whishermann has just dragged him back down to the mat.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Whishermann goes for an armbar here - this could be all over! But no, Darby has escaped beautifully and is now on top in side control! Oh, that's unlucky for Whishermann but great work by Darby.
Whishermann struggling a bit here.
Whishermann looks more muscular than last time we saw him. He must have been on the weights.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Darby looking to punish the body of his opponent here but Whishermann is avoiding damage well.
Darby wants to stand but Whishermann has his arm trapped.
Darby working the ground and pound but he's contacting the mat, not the fighter.
Darby lands a decent elbow from side control.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Whishermann can't do much from the bottom here.
A bit of a lull in the action here.
Whishermann is trying to control Darby's posture but Darby avoids it.
Darby misses with the ground and pound.

Darby stands up.
Whishermann tries to move into range but Darby moves to the side and lands with a nice right hand.
Darby scores with a straight right hand, right through his opponent's guard.
Darby scores with a jab.
Darby is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Whishermann can do to turn this around?
Darby throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Darby manages to get an easy takedown there - catching Whishermann on his heels. He'll look to pass Whishermann's guard now, I'm sure.
Whishermann working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Darby.
Whishermann utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Darby preventing the sweep.
Whishermann is pulling down on Darby's head. It's preventing any offense from Darby, at least for the moment.
Whishermann looking to hit a scissor sweep but Darby is one step ahead there.
Whishermann pulls Darby in close to prevent any damage.

Darby stands and steps away. Whishermann gets to his feet too and we're back to the striking game.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Darby lands a powerful looking uppercut that connected with his opponent's jaw.
Whishermann fails with the takedown.
Darby wants to clinch but Whishermann slips to the side

so Whishermann counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
Whishermann trying to control but Darby is working from the bottom.
Whishermann is breathing heavily.
Whishermann not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Desmond Darby overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Whishermann wants to control from the top but Darby keeps moving.
Darby wants to stand and escape but Whishermann is having none of it.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Desmond Darby dominated that second round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!

A low kick from Darby is predictable there

and Whishermann counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.

Darby manages to create a bit of space in order to work his way back to his feet. Whishermann keeps hold of his opponent and drives him back against the cage.
Darby tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Whishermann avoids it.
Darby stalling in the clinch but Whishermann improves position.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Darby.

Darby has managed to pull guard. Let's see whether he can work an aggressive guard. It will also be interesting to see what tactics Whishermann uses from the top position.
Darby can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Whishermann controls the pace.
Darby looking for a sweep. Not yet Darby, not yet.
Whishermann landing with the ground and pound.
Darby tries to land a sweep but no joy.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Whishermann scoring with punches to the head and body.
Whishermann stopping the sweep attempt from Darby.
Whishermann showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Whishermann makes a bit of distance and scores with some ground and pound, still in guard.
Whishermann prevents Darby from getting back to his feet.
Whishermann showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Whishermann is looking to work some ground and pound but Darby has wrist control.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Whishermann is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Nice cross by Darby.
Darby is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Whishermann.
Whishermann drops down looking to force a counter takedown but Darby defends it well.
Darby ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Whishermann moves away.
And Whishermann tries to counter it with a takedown but Darby pushes his down on his head and steps out.
Darby moves in looking to clinch but Whishermann pushes him off.
Darby throws an off balance right hand

and Whishermann counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Darby wants to stand back up but Whishermann manages to pass into side control.
Darby wants to escape from the position here - easier said than done!
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Whishermann grinds an elbow into Darby's temple.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Whishermann works a knee to the body and follows up with a nice elbow to the head.
Whishermann taking a breather here.
Whishermann is continuing to stall.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Darby tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Darby is looking to work his way out of this bad position but Whishermann is controlling him well.
Whishermann working the body and head with strikes.
Darby is putting a lot of effort into getting back to his feet here.
Darby is looking for a sweep.
Tai Whishermann has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Darby is working hard to escape and get back to his feet. After a battle for position, Whishermann asserts his dominance and retains side control.
Desmond Darby is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Whishermann working the body and head with strikes.

And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Tai Whishermann.
Well Darby 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 Steven Brown scores the fight 29:28
Judge Paul Tew scores the fight 30:27
Judge Colin Fotheringham scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Desmond Darby!