PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Short Badass (ranked 665 p4p, 96 weight class) and Zuillnic Canto (ranked 2346 p4p, 307 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the ring.

Badass
vs
Canto

175 cm
22
215 lbs
10 - 3 - 1

190 cm
22
221 lbs
5 - 0 - 0

Good wrestling
World class boxer
Granite chin

Good wrestler
Decent boxing
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 2 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 10 - 3 - 1, fighting out of London, Short Badass!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 5 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Zuillnic Canto!
The judges for this bout are Hirohito Nitta, Shirou Masuda and Sosuke Kotani.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Canto swings away with a body shot that misses
and Badass counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Badass takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Badass lands a nice hook to Canto's body. Canto takes it in his stride and looks to land his own strikes.
Canto swings and misses with a shot to the body
letting Badass counter with a right hand.
We've been informed that Canto has been sparring a lot of Muay Thai in the buildup to this fight so let's see if that has an impact on the result.
Canto with a lazy takedown attempt
and Badass counters with a lovely straight right hand!

It looks like Zuillnic Canto has been cut.
Badass uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Canto.
Nice straight punches there by Canto. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Canto.
Canto misses with a straight right.
Canto lands with an uppercut that bounces Badass off the ropes and back into range.
Canto misses the shot to the body.
Canto throws a right hand that misses
and Badass counters with a lovely straight right hand!
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.

Canto shoots in looking for a single leg takedown. Badass is trying to defend but Canto finishes it well and ends up in half guard. Let's see if he can advance position further.
We could do with one of the fighters taking the initiative a bit more on the ground - they're both waiting to capitalize on a mistake.

Canto is thinking about going for an arm triangle but he can't free his leg.
Canto is looking to advance position but Badass won't allow it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Badass is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Canto trying to pass the guard but Badass defending well.
Canto is looking to pass the guard... He's managed it - he's now in full mount!

Canto goes for an armbar but he's fallen flat on his backside there and now Badass is on top in guard.
Canto wants to sweep here but Badass controlling him for the moment.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Badass wants to control from the top but Canto keeps moving.
Canto working a defensive guard but Badass manages to pass into side control anyway.
Badass remains in side control and seems content to stay there. It's a versatile position from which he can work both strikes and submissions, whilst maintaining that control, so maybe he'll sit here for a while.
Canto is positioning himself to get back to half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Canto is trying to control Badass's posture but Badass avoids it.
Badass wants to lay and pray for a moment but Canto keeps working.
The fighters are tangled up in the ropes here. We might need a restart if the fighters can't break free themselves.
Canto is looking to reverse the position.
Canto struggling a bit here.
Canto is looking to reverse the position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.
Canto trying to control but Badass flips him over like a cheap hooker and has his back!
A lull in the action here.
Badass is looking cool and calm here, just waiting for a good opportunity to attack and finish the fight from this dominant position.
Canto rolls, trying to escape but Badass keeps control of the position.

That's five minutes gone in the round.
Canto manages to reverse the position and now he's in Badass's guard. Nice work there by Canto.
Canto looking to sit in guard and control but Badass gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.

Badass is looking to pass into half guard but Canto pushes him away with his feet and jumps on top - now Canto is in guard.

Canto looking to sit in guard and control but Badass gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.

Canto controlling Badass's posture.

That's six minutes gone in the round.
Canto working a defensive guard but Badass passes into half guard.
Canto trying to control from the bottom.
Canto might have to switch it up a bit here because his efforts to control Badass haven't been going to plan, at least at the current moment in time.
Canto is trying is best to control the position here.
Badass is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.
Badass is thwarting Canto's attempts to control the position.

That's seven minutes gone in the round.
Badass passes into side control, despite Canto's attempt to control the position.
Canto wants to control but Badass postures up.
Badass wants to control but Canto is keeping him busy.
Badass is pausing for a moment. What's he doing? It looks like he's clearing his nose. Oh dude! He's shot a load of snot all down Canto's shoulder. That is not cool.
Badass tries to advance to mount but Canto denies him.
Badass working away.

That's eight 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.
You can see the frustration on Canto's face as Badass controls the position.
Canto is trying to work for a sweep but Badass has mounted him!
Canto is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
Badass controlling from mount.
Canto is in all sorts of trouble here.
The fighters are trapped in the ropes so we're going to have a reposition here. The ref calls for a break and repositions the fighters in the center of the ring.
Canto keeps trying to improve his position.
Canto sneaks a leg back under and regains half guard and is working straight away to try and get back to guard. He hasn't managed just yet though.
Canto is looking to control Badass's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Canto avoid being mounted?

That's nine minutes gone in the round.
Badass keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
Canto is looking to get back to full guard here but Badass has managed to pass to side control instead.
Badass remains in side control and seems content to stay there. It's a versatile position from which he can work both strikes and submissions, whilst maintaining that control, so maybe he'll sit here for a while.
Canto is trying to control Badass's posture but Badass avoids it.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Canto is trying to avoid being dragged into an even worse position than he's already in but Badass is staying active.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Short Badass dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Zuillnic Canto's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!

The fighters circling - Canto throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
It looked like Badass was trying to counter with a body shot coming off that last attack from Canto.
Badass jabs at Canto's body.
Canto uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.
Canto misses with a wild body shot.
Badass on the wrong end of a decent looking cross there.
Canto misses with a left hand
and Badass counters with a stiff right hand.
Canto gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
enabling Badass to counter with a crisp jab.
Canto shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Badass as he jumps to the side.
It looked like Badass wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Canto throws a body shot but no joy.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Canto fakes an overhand right and shoots for a takedown. Badass sprawls well initially but Canto persists and gets the takedown into half guard.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!

Canto is looking for a kimura. It's pretty deep but Badass still has the half guard so he's probably OK. Oh, Badass has exploded into a beautiful escape there and after a quick scramble, he's ended up in side control on top! Nice work!
Canto is letting Badass control him for a moment.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Canto tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Badass wants to control but Canto is keeping him busy.
Canto is looking to reverse the position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Canto is trying to control Badass's posture but Badass avoids it.
Canto tries to bench press Badass off him but Badass keeps the position.
Canto is not content to let Badass control the position.
Canto is looking for a sweep.
Badass has control of an arm but Canto manages to advance to Badass's back!

Canto is looking to finish the fight by rear naked choke. Badass knows exactly what he's got planned though, so he's defending well. Maybe a few strikes would soften Badass for a finish.
Badass staying busy and making it hard for Canto to control.
Badass is in a tricky position but he's been working on his transitions down at London BALLS OF STEEL, so we'll see if he gets out of it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Canto is working for the rear naked choke. He has one arm under the chin but Badass has hold of the other arm. A bit of a stalemate here.
Canto struggling to keep hold of the position.
Badass might be looking to lock onto one of his opponent's long limbs for a submission, whilst we're on the ground.

Canto goes for a risky armbar from back mount and it's not paid off. Badass escapes and is now in half guard on top.
Badass is controlling the pace.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Canto trying to control but Badass postures up.
Canto is not content to let Badass control the position.
Canto trying to control but Badass postures up.
Canto moves his hips nicely and gets into full guard.

That's five minutes gone in the round.
A real slowdown in the pace of the fight for a moment, as Canto holds on and takes a little breather.
Canto is looking to sweep but instead, Badass has passed into half guard.
Badass is figuring out what he wants to do next.

Canto with the active half guard here but Badass passes nicely into side control.

That's six 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.
Canto seems a little lost for a moment, as Badass dominates the positioning.
Canto struggling a bit here.
Canto is trying to work for a sweep but Badass has mounted him!
Canto tries to lock up and control but Badass gives him a forearm to the face and pushes him away.
Canto is desperately trying to improve his position but Badass has a good base and remains in mount.
Canto is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.

That's seven minutes gone in the round.
Badass tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
Badass continues to stall.
Short Badass overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Canto sneaks a leg under to get to half guard.
Canto tries to regain full guard. Instead though, Badass has advanced to mount. Uh oh.
Canto tries to lock up and control but Badass gives him a forearm to the face and pushes him away.

That's eight minutes gone in the round.
Canto working to try and regain half guard.
Canto is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
Badass wants to control but Canto has made it back to half guard. Nice work.
Canto trying to control but Badass postures up.

That's nine minutes gone in the round.

Canto looking for submissions off his back.
Canto wants to get back to full guard.
Badass sitting and controlling from the half guard.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Canto is trying to get back to full guard.

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 Short Badass.
Well Badass 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 2 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Hirohito Nitta scores the fight for Short Badass!
Judge Shirou Masuda scores the fight for Short Badass!
Judge Sosuke Kotani scores the fight for Short Badass!

Short Badass wins by unanimous decision!
Short Badass decided to hype himself up post fight. It was going well but he went on about it a bit too long and the crowd turned on him a little.