PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Shiro Tanaka (ranked 2583 p4p, 231 weight class) and Killua Zoldyk (ranked 2962 p4p, 255 weight class). Tanaka comes to the cage accompanied by The good the bad and the ugly theme song. Well, I have no idea who's going to take this one!

Tanaka
vs
Zoldyk

172 cm
19
149 lbs
4 - 1 - 0

178 cm
21
152 lbs
5 - 4 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Excellent MT
Cardio machine

BJJ Purple Belt
Good kicks
Granite chin

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 4 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Amsterdam, Shiro Tanaka!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 5 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Killua Zoldyk!
The judges for this bout are Skip Squint, Darius Henderson and Chris Dean.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Zoldyk drives through with a really nice takedown into side control.
Zoldyk landing with strikes to the head and body from side control.
Zoldyk working the ground and pound.
Tanaka is trying to get back to his feet.
Tanaka takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.
Zoldyk working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.
Zoldyk taking a breather here.
You can see the frustration on Tanaka's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Zoldyk advances nicely into full mount.
Zoldyk is landing with some decent strikes but Tanaka is trying to advance his position so the referee is letting the fight continue.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Tanaka is trying desperately to improve position.
Tanaka's coaches at UnderGround Training Facility have been working on his defensive grappling in preparation for this fight so let's see if he can get out of this tricky position.
Tanaka's corner are shouting for him to stand up but that's bad cornering - how is he meant to stand up when he's mounted? He should be looking to improve his position on the ground before trying to stand back up.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Zoldyk tries to control but Tanaka wriggling away.
Zoldyk looking to control and managing it successfully.
Tanaka tries to buck Zoldyk off but he can't manage it.
Zoldyk breaks from Tanaka's wrist control and lands an elbow.
Tanaka slips a leg in and gets back to half guard.
Zoldyk is looking to take a break and control but Tanaka is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Zoldyk controlling the pace.
Zoldyk stops Tanaka from getting back to his feet.
Tanaka is looking for a sweep. Zoldyk is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Zoldyk performing his best blanket impression for a moment.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Zoldyk lands strikes from half guard.
Zoldyk takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Zoldyk is nestled in close to Tanaka, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Zoldyk winds up and cracks Tanaka with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Zoldyk works his way into side control.
Zoldyk is looking to take a break and control but Tanaka is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Tanaka tries to work a leg under to get back to half guard but Zoldyk wriggles his own leg back out and remains in side control.
Tanaka sneaks back into half guard.

Tanaka is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Zoldyk pulls his head out easily.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Killua Zoldyk dominated that round.
That's time! Back to the action!

Tanaka tests Zoldyk's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Zoldyk misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
Tanaka wants to take advantage of his opponent's missed offense by moving into the clinch.
Shiro Tanaka is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Zoldyk goes for a double leg but Tanaka avoids the attempt and the two fighters end up clinched against the cage as Tanaka continues to drive forward.
Killua Zoldyk seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

Tanaka darts in and clinches Zoldyk up against the cage.
Zoldyk has dropped down and is looking to force the takedown but it's defended by Tanaka after a bit of a struggle.
Shiro Tanaka has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Killua Zoldyk.
A left hand lands to the body for Tanaka.
Tanaka gets double underhooks to prevent a takedown attempt from Zoldyk.
Tanaka prevents a takedown attempt there.
Zoldyk changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Tanaka fights it off and pushes away nicely.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Tanaka fails with an attempt to clinch.
Tanaka tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Zoldyk manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Tanaka slaps away a takedown attempt from Zoldyk, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Tanaka just misses with a punch to the body.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Zoldyk closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. Tanaka quickly recovers to half guard.
Tanaka wants to get back to his feet.
Zoldyk looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.

Tanaka is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Zoldyk pulls his head out easily.
Tanaka is trying to stand.
Tanaka avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Zoldyk.
Tanaka wants to get back to full guard.
Zoldyk stops Tanaka from getting back to his feet.
Zoldyk landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
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. Zoldyk connects with a nice short shot to Tanaka's temple.
Zoldyk not doing much here.
Tanaka is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Zoldyk scores with a couple of nice shots.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Tanaka tries to kick Zoldyk off but Zoldyk keeps his base steady and stays in half guard.
Zoldyk takes a deep breath and rests his weight momentarily on top of his opponent, to control the position.
Zoldyk prevents Tanaka from improving his position.

Tanaka is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Zoldyk pulls his head out easily.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Zoldyk landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Zoldyk controlling the pace.
Zoldyk wants to pass to mount but Tanaka is defending the position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close second round but Killua Zoldyk will probably get the nod - 10:9.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! This is the final round!

Zoldyk fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
Tanaka thinks about countering with a head kick.
Killua Zoldyk is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Tanaka wants to clinch.
Tanaka fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Zoldyk has been the more effective fighter overall so far.

Tanaka gets taken down but at least he's managed to land in guard.

Zoldyk is trying to tuck his arms in to keep them safe but Tanaka has managed to isolate one of them and has got a loose triangle. Zoldyk is looking to defend but Tanaka has done well to lock his legs together - this could be big trouble for Zoldyk! Tanaka pulls down on the head and a little smile comes across his face - he knows he's got it. Yep, Zoldyk taps out and this one is all over!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 0:43 of round 3, we have a winner by way of Submission (Triangle). Shiro Tanaka!
Shiro Tanaka was full of energy after the big win and talked about how he thinks he can do big things in this sport. The crowd were appreciative of his determination to succeed.