PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Gilberto Da Souza (ranked 3974 p4p, 0 weight class) and Guli Gunawan (ranked 4376 p4p, 0 weight class). These two fighters really are very evenly matched on the feet - it will be fascinating to see who can assert themselves in that aspect of the fight.

Da Souza
vs
Gunawan

181 cm
25
156 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

174 cm
26
156 lbs
2 - 2 - 0

Good takedowns
Brawler
KO power

Good takedowns
Brawler
Determined

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 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Gilberto Da Souza!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Guli Gunawan!
The judges for this bout are Tiny Johnson, Chris Downing and Gwen Towbar.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Excellent takedown into side control there by Souza.
Souza scoring with punches from side control.
Gunawan takes an elbow right on the bridge of the nose and winces in pain.
Gunawan takes an elbow right on the bridge of the nose and winces in pain.

Gunawan is rocked!
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Souza working the body and head with strikes.
Gunawan is still in real trouble! Can Souza finish him?

Souza working hard here to secure a kimura but he's not really in the right position for it.
Both fighters have adopted an aggressive gameplan on the ground!
Gunawan pushes Souza away and creates a bit of space to escape. He's almost out here... but no, Souza gets a good hold of his legs and remains firmly in side control.
Souza lands a knee to the body and follows it up with some ground and pound to the head. That will wear Gunawan down.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!

Souza tries for an arm triangle. That looks pretty tight to me. Is this one over!?! Possibly, maybe, no Souza has let go of the choke. Obviously it wasn't as tight as we thought!
Souza wants to stand but Gunawan is controlling his arm.
Gunawan tries to strike but it doesn't land.
Souza lands a decent elbow from side control.
Gunawan is pushing Souza's head away, looking to escape. Souza manages to hold on to the position though.
Gunawan takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.
Gunawan throws a couple of strikes even though he's not really in a good position to do so.

Souza is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Gunawan knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.
Souza cracks Gunawan with a big elbow.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gunawan takes an elbow right on the bridge of the nose and winces in pain.
Souza tries to stand but Gunawan is controlling his head.
Souza cracks Gunawan with a big elbow.
Gunawan wings away with a couple of strikes but they don't land.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Gunawan tries to strike but it doesn't land.
Gunawan is trying to escape and get back to his feet.
Gunawan tries to work a leg under to get back to half guard but Souza wriggles his own leg back out and remains in side control.
Gunawan looks winded!
Gunawan is still trying to improve position.
Souza scores with a couple of short elbows.
Gunawan takes an elbow right on the bridge of the nose and winces in pain.
Check out the look on Souza's face as he threw that strike - that's one determined fighter!

Souza thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.
Gunawan takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.
Gunawan takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.
Souza working the head with strikes.
Gunawan tries to bench press Souza off him but Souza keeps the position.
Souza lands a decent elbow from side control.

Souza is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Gunawan knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!

Souza looking for an arm triangle but it's way too loose to do anything.
Souza throwing strikes but missing, from side control.
Souza cracks Gunawan with a big right hand but Gunawan just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.
Gunawan wants to escape from the position here - easier said than done!
Gunawan is positioning himself to get back to half guard.
Souza working the head with strikes.
Gunawan is trying to get back to half guard.
Gunawan seems to have recovered his senses.
Souza lands some shots froms side control.
Gunawan tries to buck Souza off but Souza is having none of it.
Gunawan wants to escape from the position here - easier said than done!
Souza scoring with punches and elbows.
Gunawan throws a couple of punches but he's in a bad position and they don't land.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Souza cracks Gunawan with a big right hand but Gunawan just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.
Gunawan wants to get back to his feet.

Souza is trying to land an Americana. He has the arm isolated but Gunawan is keeping cool and he's avoided the danger for now.
Gunawan throws a couple of punches but he's in a bad position and they don't land.
Souza landing strikes.
Souza tries to stand but Gunawan is controlling his head.
Gunawan tries to strike but it doesn't land.
Souza working the ground and pound from side control.
Souza blocks the strikes from Gunawan.
Souza works a knee to the body and follows up with a nice elbow to the head.
Souza cracks Gunawan with a big right hand but Gunawan just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.
Souza working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.
Souza scores with punches from side control.
Gunawan throws a couple of punches but he's in a bad position and they don't land.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Souza working the ground and pound.
Gunawan is looking to reverse the position.
Gunawan is trying to buck Souza off.
Souza lands a knee to the body and a forearm to the face.
Souza lands a few punches from side control.
Souza in side control lands a nice looking series of punches and elbows.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Gunawan is looking to work his way out of this bad position but Souza is controlling him well.
Souza landing a few strikes.
Gunawan takes a big shot right to the temple there but he's taken it well.
Souza scores with punches from side control.
Gunawan throws a couple of elbows from the bottom.

Souza thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.
Gunawan is trying to buck Souza off.
Souza scores with punches from side control.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Gilberto Da Souza dominated that round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

Gunawan tries to score a power double leg takedown but Souza sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten Gunawan somewhat.
Souza shoots in but no luck this time.
Gunawan shoots for a double leg takedown but Souza sprawls well. He's pushed Gunawan's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.

Souza looking for a takedown here - he's got it.
Souza landing some decent shots from guard.
Souza slips effortlessly into side control - very nice.
Souza cracks Gunawan with a big right hand but Gunawan just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.
Souza 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.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Gunawan on the wrong end of some ground and pound.
Gunawan taking a bit of punishment here - Souza scoring with strikes.
Souza working the body and head with strikes.
Souza is chipping away with strikes.
Gunawan tries to strike from the bottom but misses.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Gunawan is working to avoid the ground and pound but Souza connects with a decent elbow.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gunawan throws a couple of strikes even though he's not really in a good position to do so.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

Souza tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Souza tries to get to his feet but he's trapped momentarily.
Gunawan is trying to get back to his feet.

Souza is looking for a kimura. It's going to be difficult to finish that from half guard though and Gunawan defends it well.
Gunawan is trying to stand.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Gunawan is trying to get back to full guard.
Gunawan misses with some strikes from the bottom.
Gunawan tries to strike from the bottom but it doesn't land.
Souza stops Gunawan from getting back to his feet.
Gunawan throws a strike from the bottom that misses.
Gunawan is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Souza scores with a couple of nice shots.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Souza connects with a nice short shot to Gunawan's temple.
Gunawan throws a strike from the bottom that misses.
Souza winds up and cracks Gunawan with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Gunawan tries to strike from the bottom but it doesn't land.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Souza connects with a nice short shot to Gunawan's temple.
Gunawan wants to get back to full guard.
Gunawan misses with some strikes from the bottom.
Gunawan is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Souza scores with a couple of nice shots.
Gilberto Da Souza overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Souza winds up and cracks Gunawan with a swinging punch to the side of the head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gunawan punching from the bottom.
Souza lands with an elbow from half guard - that looked like it hurt.
Gunawan is looking to escape.

Souza is looking for a kimura here.
Gunawan has hold of Souza's hands but Souza slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Gunawan tries to strike from the bottom but it doesn't land.
Gunawan missing with punches from the bottom.
Souza is nestled in close to Gunawan, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.

Souza seems to be working for a kimura but Gunawan defends the submission attempt.
Gunawan looks like he's trying to stand up.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Souza landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Gunawan taking some punishment here, with Souza in his half guard.
Souza seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Gunawan misses with some strikes from the bottom.
Gunawan is trying to stand back up but Souza is controlling him
It looks like Souza is going to stand back up.
Ground and pound from Souza.
Gunawan is trying to stand up here but Souza is controlling him well.
Gunawan misses with some strikes from the bottom.
Gunawan is looking to escape.
Souza seems to have lost interest with the ground game and is thinking about standing back up.
Gunawan throws a strike from the bottom that misses.
Gunawan throws a strike from the bottom that misses.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Gilberto Da Souza dominated that second round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! Let's get this one finished - here comes the final round!

Gunawan shoots in but doesn't get the takedown

and Souza counters by moving into the clinch.
Gunawan tries for a takedown but Souza manages to get underhooks.

Souza lands a nice trip takedown into half guard.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Souza lands a nice short elbow.
Souza takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Gunawan tries to strike from the bottom but it doesn't land.

Souza is looking for a kimura but Gunawan is holding onto that half guard position, so it's hard for Souza to get the leverage.
Souza is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Souza is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
Souza drops an elbow to the side of Gunawan's head.
Souza is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.

Souza looking for a kimura but he'll have to free his other leg if he wants to finish that. Perhaps he's just using it as a distraction technique.
Gunawan missing with punches from the bottom.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gunawan is trying to stand.
Souza working over Gunawan with some ground and pound. Gunawan looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Souza lands a nice short elbow.
Souza landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Gunawan is looking to escape.
Souza takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Gunawan has hold of Souza's hands but Souza slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Gunawan throws a strike from the bottom that misses.
Souza blocks the strikes from Gunawan.
Souza prevents Gunawan from standing back up.
Souza prevents Gunawan from improving his position.
Souza is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Souza is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Souza is nestled in close to Gunawan, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Gunawan missing with punches from the bottom.
Souza scores with a couple of good hammerfists.
Souza lands with a punch from half guard.
Gunawan missing with punches from the bottom.
Gunawan punching from the bottom.
Gunawan misses with some strikes from the bottom.
Gunawan flails away from the bottom but he's not doing any damage.
Souza winds up and cracks Gunawan with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Gunawan tries to strike from the bottom but it doesn't land.
Souza looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
Souza blocks the strikes from Gunawan.
Souza is nestled in close to Gunawan, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.

Souza is working for submissions here but there's nothing on.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Ground and pound from Souza.
Souza throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Gunawan tries to strike from the bottom but it doesn't land.
Gunawan missing with punches from the bottom.
Souza working over Gunawan with some ground and pound. Gunawan looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.

Souza wants to work for an arm triangle but Gunawan is really keeping half guard well and defending the submission attempt.
Souza tries to stand but his hand is stuck under Gunawan.

Souza is looking for a kimura but Gunawan is holding onto that half guard position, so it's hard for Souza to get the leverage.
Gunawan missing with punches from the bottom.
Souza sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Gunawan defending well though.
Gunawan throws a strike from the bottom that misses.
Gunawan pushes Souza off looking to stand but Souza dives back in and keeps control.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Souza is nestled in close to Gunawan, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Gunawan is trying to stand.
Souza is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Gunawan can do to turn this around?

Souza is thinking about going for an arm triangle but he can't free his leg.
Gunawan blocking the ground and pound attempt from Souza.
Souza seems to have lost interest with the ground game and is thinking about standing back up.
Gunawan flails away from the bottom but he's not doing any damage.
Souza tries to stand but his hand is stuck under Gunawan.
Souza is looking to advance position but Gunawan won't allow it.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Souza connects with a nice short shot to Gunawan's temple.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Gunawan misses with some strikes from the bottom.
Souza blocks the strikes from Gunawan.
Souza looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Gunawan with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Guli Gunawan has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Gilberto Da Souza is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Gunawan throws a strike from the bottom that misses.

And that's the end of the fight!
Gilberto Da Souza showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Souza 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 Tiny Johnson scores the fight 30:26
Judge Chris Downing scores the fight 30:25
Judge Gwen Towbar scores the fight 30:25

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Gilberto Da Souza!