OPG 1: A New Way PBP Commentary

Undercard bout

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Ravi Santos (ranked 4542 p4p, 4387 weight class) and Sean Whelan (ranked 479 p4p, 463 weight class). We have two fighters making their debuts here, so let's see who comes out of this one with their first professional victory.

Santos
vs
Whelan

182 cm
18
180
0 - 0 - 0

180 cm
18
175
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Solid boxing
Cuts easily

BJJ White Belt
Dangerous knees
Solid chin

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 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of London, Ravi Santos!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of London, Sean Whelan!
The judges for this bout are Timothy Bukovac, Percy O'Donnell and Don Winkell.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Santos looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Whelan is fending him off so far but Santos persists. Nope, Whelan circles away and we're back to standing.
Whelan darts in trying to clinch
and Santos counters with a straight right hand.

Whelan gets in close and instigates a clinch.
Kneeeeees! The crowd are calling for knees to the body. Whelan obliges.
Whelan connects with a knee to the head.

It looks like Ravi Santos has been cut.
Santos tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Santos.
Santos jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Whelan walks away with a smile on his face. Santos gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Ravi Santos. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Whelan clinches up with Santos and pushes him back against the cage.
Santos lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
Whelan lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Santos lands a hook that snaps the head of Whelan backwards.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Santos lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Santos fails to pull guard.
Santos lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Kneeeeees! The crowd are calling for knees to the body. Whelan obliges.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Whelan landing knees to the body.
Whelan tries to land a knee to the head but Santos blocks with his arms.
Whelan blocks a couple of punches on the inside.

Santos decides to pull guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

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

Ladies and gentlemen, after 1:32 of round 1, we have a winner by way of Submission (Triangle). Ravi Santos!

C
A

C
B

energy
A | B

hype
A | B

pop
A | B

mgr
A | B

FIGHT
RATING
77%

Undercard bout

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Matyas Magyar (ranked 4344 p4p, 5194 weight class) and Levi Hess (ranked 404 p4p, 441 weight class). Matyas Magyar could well score a knockout today. He has the power to get to Levi Hess's chin.

Magyar
vs
Hess

175 cm
18
165
0 - 0 - 0

180 cm
18
155
0 - 1 - 0

Good wrestling
Basic striking
Cuts easily

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Tends to cut

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 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Matyas Magyar!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of New York, Levi Hess!
The judges for this bout are Percy O'Donnell, Timothy Bukovac and Frank Antenori.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Magyar takes a nasty kick to the mid section... That should keep him thinking. Does he try and block and risk a head kick landing?

Hess moves into the clinch successfully.
Hess is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Magyar is keeping busy.

Magyar wants the takedown. Hess is fighting it off but Magyar persists and manages to bring the fight to the ground, ending up in Hess's guard against the cage.
Magyar's corner is telling him to maintain position.
Magyar's ground tactics aren't going to win him many fans. Let's hope he's got fireworks for us if he gets back to his feet because he's not doing much on the ground.
Hess preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Magyar looking to pass the guard.
Magyar prevents Hess from getting back to his feet.

Hess manages to escape and get back to his feet.

Magyar darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Magyar is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.
Hess taking some punishment here, with Magyar in his half guard.
Magyar scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Magyar winds up and cracks Hess with a swinging punch to the side of the head.

Hess is rocked!
Magyar drops an elbow to the side of Hess's head.
Hess is still in real trouble! Can Magyar finish him?
Ground and pound from Magyar.
Magyar is sitting in half guard. He's postured up and lands a nice elbow. Oh, Hess is hurt! He's hurt bad - Magyar fires away with more strikes and the referee jumps in to save Hess from any more punishment! Congratulations to Magyar! Great finish!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2:58 of round 1, we have a winner by way of TKO (Strikes). Matyas Magyar!
A relieved looking Matyas Magyar thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.

C
A

C
B

energy
A | B

hype
A | B

pop
A | B

mgr
A | B

FIGHT
RATING
54%

Undercard bout

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Kash Klay (ranked 25818 p4p, 5163 weight class) and Benny Strand (ranked 534 p4p, 474 weight class). Klay has a slight injury, which hopefully won't affect the fight too much. Kash Klay looks tired to me. Hopefully he has got enough gas left in the tank to put in a good performance.

Klay
vs
Strand

187 cm
18
187
2 - 4 - 0

187 cm
18
190
0 - 1 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter fighter
Can Moonwalk

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 2 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Kash Klay!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Benny Strand!
The judges for this bout are Timothy Bukovac, Jack Bonds and Frank Antenori.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Klay scores with a straight right hand, right through his opponent's guard.
Strand looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Strand looks to land a combination but Klay avoids it well.
Klay scores with a nice looking left hook and follows it up with an uppercut!
Strand displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Klay throws out the jab.
Strand let fly with a counter punch to the body but it didn't land.
Klay thows a left - swing and a miss!
Klay connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.

Strand changes levels and drives through with a really nice takedown into side control. Klay looks really pissed at himself for not defending that better.
Klay tries to wriggle free to get back to his feet but he's given up his back! Oops.
Klay is breathing heavily.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Strand lands a shot to the body.
Strand lands strikes to the head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Strand lands a punch to the side of the head from the back.
Oooh a big shot gets through from Strand. Many more shots like that and the referee will have to think about stepping in!
Strand is working the ground and pound here and the referee is taking a close look at Klay. He must escape soon or this one will be stopped.
Strand is punishing Klay with strikes - can he finish him?!
Klay knows he needs to get back to his feet asap. He's simply no match for Strand on the ground.

Strand has managed to slip his arm under Klay's chin. This could be all over... yep, Klay is tapping out! Submission win for Strand.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 1:41 of round 1, we have a winner by way of Submission (RNC). Benny Strand!

C
A

C
B

energy
A | B

hype
A | B

pop
A | B

mgr
A | B

FIGHT
RATING
78%

Co-main event

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Cael Pearson (ranked 5840 p4p, 4324 weight class) and Benny West (ranked 505 p4p, 432 weight class). Cael Pearson is staring across the cage at his opponent, tweaking his nipples... Tweaking his own nipples that is.

Pearson
vs
West

188 cm
18
190
2 - 2 - 0

182 cm
18
190
1 - 0 - 0

Good wrestling
Basic striking
Granite chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Decent boxing
Tends to cut

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 2 - 2 - 0, fighting out of London, Cael Pearson!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Benny West!
The judges for this bout are Frank Antenori, Jack Bonds and Timothy Bukovac.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
West swings wildly with a couple of big hooks

and Pearson counters by moving into the clinch. Good anticipation by Pearson.

Pearson is trying to trip West. He has hold of a leg but West is hopping around, keeping his balance for the moment. Pearson persists though and gets the takedown into guard.
Pearson controls the pace of the fight for a moment.
Pearson stands up over West, holding his feet. He dives back in and lands a decent shot to the head.
Pearson with a nice head shot there.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
West has momentary wrist control but Pearson slips an elbow through the middle.
Pearson wants to pass the guard but West is keeping the position.
Pearson is stalling in the full guard.
Pearson seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down West for as long as he can get away with.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Pearson working some strikes from top position.
West lands a beautiful sweep and he's now moved into his opponent's guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Pearson controlling West's posture.
Pearson looking to hit a scissor sweep but West is one step ahead there.
Pearson is avoiding any damage by keeping wrist control.
West trying to stand up but can't free himself from Pearson's guard.

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.
Pearson wants to improve his position but instead West has moved into half guard.
Pearson controlling the position well.
Pearson looks to be in better condition than last time we saw him fight. Obviously he's been working hard on his cardio.
Pearson is trying to control but can't.
Pearson controlling the position well.
We've had a lack of effective grappling in the last minute or so, which could well see a referee standup.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Pearson is trying to control but can't.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
West misses with an uppercut. Pearson saw that one coming.

Pearson closes the distance and clinches.
Pearson is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the cage enables West to keep the fight standing.

Pearson has hold of one of West's legs. West is fighting the takedown attempt but Pearson gets the trip and lands the takedown into guard.
West keeping moving, preventing Pearson from controlling successfully.
Pearson stands up over West, holding his feet. He dives back in and lands a decent shot to the head.
We've been informed that West has been working hard on his conditioning in the buildup to the fight.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
West wants to stand but Pearson is controlling the position.
West keeping moving, preventing Pearson from controlling successfully.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Pearson chips away with some ground and pound.
Pearson working some strikes from top position.
West can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Pearson controls the pace.
Pearson continues to stall.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
West wants to stand and escape but Pearson is having none of it.
Pearson has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Cael Pearson dominated that round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

West swings for the body but Pearson moves out of range.
West throws a left and a right that both miss

and Pearson counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
West is trying to stand back up but Pearson is controlling him
Pearson is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Pearson lands strikes from half guard.

West has one foot on Pearson's thigh - he pushes off and manages to get back to his feet.
West throws a left and a right that both miss

and Pearson counters by moving into the clinch.
Pearson is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the cage enables West to keep the fight standing.

Pearson has West pressed up against the cage. He's trying to work for a single leg takedown. Pearson pulls back from the cage and twists to the side, sending West tumbling to the mat - Pearson dives into West's guard.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
West looking to sweep using the butterfly guard but Pearson puts pay to that idea as he passes nicely into half guard.
West throws a strike from the bottom that misses.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Pearson takes a deep breath and rests his weight momentarily on top of his opponent, to control the position.
Pearson tries to pass to full mount but West defends it.
Pearson knows he needs to get back to his feet asap. He's simply no match for West on the ground.
Pearson is working hard here to advance position.
West has hold of Pearson's hands but Pearson slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Pearson with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.
Pearson winds up and cracks West with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Pearson performing his best blanket impression for a moment.
Pearson wants to pass the guard but West is defending well.
Pearson takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
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. Pearson connects with a nice short shot to West's temple.
West regains full guard. Nicely done.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Pearson engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
West is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Pearson is controlling him.
Pearson with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Pearson wants to pass the guard but West is keeping the position.
Pearson slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.
West wants to stand up but Pearson is controlling him.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
West throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped

and Pearson counters with a nice double leg into half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Pearson is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Pearson prevents West from standing back up.
Pearson controlling the action here.
Pearson looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Pearson is figuring out what he wants to do next.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Cael Pearson dominated that second 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. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!

West throws a right hand that misses

and Pearson decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in West's guard.
Pearson is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Pearson lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
West wants to get back to his feet but Pearson is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Pearson is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.
Pearson connects with a couple of short punches.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Pearson's corner is telling him to maintain position.
Pearson is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Pearson stands and throws West's legs to the side, diving into side control.
Pearson is moving around in side control but his primary objective seems to be to maintain the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
West tries to buck Pearson off but Pearson is having none of it.
West wants to get back to his feet.
Pearson working the head and body with strikes.
West is being controlled here.
Pearson trying to control the action but West is working from the bottom.
Pearson controlling the position from side mount.
Pearson is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that West can do to turn this around?
Pearson's ground tactics aren't going to win him many fans. Let's hope he's got fireworks for us if he gets back to his feet because he's not doing much on the ground.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.
West throws a couple of strikes even though he's not really in a good position to do so.
Pearson controls the position from side control.
West gets one leg under and gets the fight to half guard.
Pearson not doing much here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Pearson scores with a couple of good hammerfists.
The referee calls for the fighters to work.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.

Pearson drives through with a really nice takedown into side control.
West is not content to let Pearson control the position.
Benny West has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Pearson tries to move to mount but West blocks the move with his legs.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
West wants to get back to his feet.
Pearson lands some shots froms side control.
A lull in the action here as Pearson stalls from top position.
More hug and hope from Pearson.
Cael Pearson overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
West sneaks a leg under to get back to half guard.
Cael Pearson is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Pearson is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.

And that's the end of the fight!
Cael Pearson showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Pearson, 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 Frank Antenori scores the fight 30:27
Judge Jack Bonds scores the fight 30:27
Judge Timothy Bukovac scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Cael Pearson!

C
A

C
B

energy
A | B

hype
A | B

pop
A | B

mgr
A | B

FIGHT
RATING
28%

Main event

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Michele Albertini (ranked 2764 p4p, 3396 weight class) and Sato Ngata (ranked 331 p4p, 399 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Albertini
vs
Ngata

195 cm
25
275
2 - 0 - 0

196 cm
25
277
1 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Excellent boxer
Cuts easily

Decent wrestler
Brawler
Determined

Conquest Nutrition™ (160Q) $48

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Michele Albertini!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Sato Ngata!
The judges for this bout are Jack Bonds, Percy O'Donnell and Timothy Bukovac.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Albertini takes a step towards his opponent and connects with a left hand, before circling away.

It looks like Sato Ngata has been cut.

Albertini closes the distance and clinches.

Ngata breaks the clinch.
Albertini scores with a punch to the gut of his opponent.

Ngata gets a double leg takedown into Albertini's guard.
Albertini trying to control the position here.
Ngata scoring with some ground and pound.
Ngata is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Albertini throws a couple of weedy looking strikes off his back.
Albertini seems to have improved his submission grappling technique since last time we saw him. Let's see if he can pull off a submission.
Albertini is looking to sweep but instead, Ngata has passed into half guard.

Ngata is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Albertini wants to get back to full guard.
Albertini tries to regain full guard. Instead though, Ngata has advanced to mount. Uh oh.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Albertini defends a decent attempt at a guillotine from Ngata.
A nice elbow there by Ngata.
Ngata can't quite control the action as he would like just now, as Albertini is looking to escape.
Ngata cracks Albertini with a nasty head shot there - the crowd let out an audible gasp there, as the noise reverberated around the arena.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Albertini bucks up and manages to get a nice reversal! He's in guard on the top - nicely done!
Albertini with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Albertini throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Albertini looking to sit in guard and control but Ngata gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.

Albertini avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Ngata passes Albertini's right leg, so he's now in half guard.
Ngata prevents Albertini from standing back up.
Ngata wants to take a breather but Albertini is having none of it.
Ngata seems to have lost interest with the ground game and is thinking about standing back up.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ngata is nestled in close to Albertini, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.

Ngata 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.
Albertini tries to roll over but Ngata keeps him under control.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.

Ngata 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.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Sato Ngata dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Sato Ngata's cut.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Ngata throws a head kick but Albertini moves out of range.

The fight moves into the clinch position.

Ngata's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Albertini scores with a decent looking hook.

Oooooh!!! Albertini has knocked Ngata down with a huge combo! Albertini steps away and waves a wobbly Ngata back to his feet! This one might not go much longer!

Ngata is rocked!
Albertini lands with a massive overhand right! Stick a fork in Ngata - he's out cold! Ermm... I think I just mixed my metaphors but yeah... That was a nice KO! Big win for Albertini!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 0:33 of round 2, we have a winner by way of KO (Punch). Michele Albertini!