PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Paul Muhapuro (ranked 433 p4p, 1002 weight class) and Shane Stead (ranked 57 p4p, 139 weight class). The atmosphere really building for this one as we go over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Muhapuro
vs
Stead

177 cm
23
202
9 - 3 - 0

190 cm
23
195
5 - 2 - 0

Good wrestling
Excellent boxer
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
Decent boxing
Good gas tank

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the middleweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 9 - 3 - 0, fighting out of London, Paul Muhapuro!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 5 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Shane Stead!
The judges for this bout are Colin Fotheringham, Chris Edwards and Paul Tew.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Stead throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Muhapuro was looking to counter that move with a punch but didn't quite pull the trigger.
Muhapuro scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Muhapuro has been working on his boxing with his coaches at Gymi in the buildup to the fight.
Stead slips a jab from Muhapuro.
Muhapuro dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Muhapuro connects with a good right hand that stumbles Stead. Stead circles away out of range and recomposes himself.

It looks like Shane Stead has been cut.
A cross from Stead lands.
Muhapuro lands with a shot to the body.
Muhapuro ducks under a wild hook from Stead.
Muhapuro looking to land some kicks to the body here.
Stead misses with a body punch
and Muhapuro counters with a body kick that stops Stead in his tracks momentarily.
Stead fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Muhapuro looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Muhapuro cracks Stead with a good jab.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A jab from Muhapuro misses.
Stead feints the counter takedown.
Stead takes a swing at Muhapuro's ribcage but misses.
Stead throws a front kick aimed at Muhapuro's knee but Muhapuro avoids it well.
Stead takes a body kick right on the floating rib. Ouchie.
A solid leg kick lands there for Muhapuro.
Muhapuro fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Stead swings for the body but Muhapuro moves out of range.
Nice uppercut lands for Muhapuro. That snapped Stead's head back.
Muhapuro misses with a combination
letting Stead counter with a right hand.
We've been informed that Stead 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.
Muhapuro avoids a punch combination nicely.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Stead throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Muhapuro tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Stead was well out of range. Poor timing from Muhapuro.
Stead misses with a body shot.
Muhapuro swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Stead.
Stead takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Muhapuro throws a leg kick that is checked
and Stead counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Muhapuro turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Stead has his front leg slapped to the side - a nice low kick landing there from Muhapuro.
Muhapuro punishes Stead's body with a nice straight punch.
Muhapuro wants to land a leg kick but Stead is out of range.
A big right from Stead misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Muhapuro shapes like he's going to throw a leg kick but settles back down.
A jab lands there for Muhapuro.
Muhapuro moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Stead just misses with a punch to the body.
Muhapuro throwing a counter right hand but Stead manages to avoid it.
Stead checks a leg kick.
Muhapuro throws a leg kick which misses Stead's front leg but catches the back leg as Stead tries to avoid it.
Stead ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Stead uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Muhapuro.
Stead lands a pitter patter jab to the forehead of his opponent.
Stead's hands are dropping dangerously low here and Muhapuro connects clean with a right hook that sends him down to one knee! Stead scrambles back to his feet.

That has opened up Shane Stead's cut even more.
Stead takes a jab right on the nose. That must have hurt but he shrugs his shoulders and looks to return the favor.
Muhapuro blocks a low kick nicely.
It looked like Muhapuro wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Muhapuro ducks under a wild hook from Stead.
Stead misses with a wild body shot.
Stead looks to throw the jab but Muhapuro is out of range.
Stead with a nice cross.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Stead waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Muhapuro.
Good standup being displayed there by Stead as he connects with a hook.
Stead works Muhapuro's body with a nice hook.
Muhapuro stuffs the takedown attempt from Stead. Stead gets slowly back to his feet.
Muhapuro takes a swing at Stead's ribcage but misses.
Paul Muhapuro is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Stead jabs Muhapuro right on the nose. Muhapuro blinks but takes it well.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Paul Muhapuro dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Shane Stead's cut.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

Stead blocks the body kick.
Muhapuro lands a slapping body shot.
Shane Stead seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Muhapuro fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Muhapuro is looking to chop away at Stead's legs.
Paul Muhapuro is winning the standup battle so far.
Stead throws a jab but it's blocked by Muhapuro.
Muhapuro looks to throw the jab but Stead is out of range.
Muhapuro swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Stead appeared to try and counter that last move with a leg kick.
Nice jab there from Stead.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Stead misses with a straight right.
Stead throws the left hand but Muhapuro avoids the punch easily.
Muhapuro ducks under a wild hook from Stead.
Muhapuro half committed to a counter leg kick.
A swing and a miss from Stead.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Muhapuro lands a vicious shot with the stealth of a sniper and the strength of a viper. Are vipers that strong? I can think of lots of things that are stronger than a viper - not many rhyme with sniper though.
Muhapuro misses the jab.
Muhapuro uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Stead.
Stead takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
Stead fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.
Stead drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Muhapuro lands with an overhand left.
Stead throws a couple of head shots and lands with the final one - a decent hook, which struck Muhapuro on the side of the head.
Muhapuro scoring well with a low kick there.
Muhapuro swings for the body but Stead moves out of range.
Stead will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Stead swings for the body but Muhapuro moves out of range.
Muhapuro looked to counter that last move with a leg kick but didn't pull the trigger.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Stead shoots in looking for a takedown but Muhapuro manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Stead's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Muhapuro went nuts there looking for a big combo counter but none of the flurry connected.
Muhapuro tries to move into range but Stead moves to the side and lands with a nice right hand.
Nice straight punches there by Stead. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Stead.
Stead swings for the body but Muhapuro moves out of range.
Stead takes one on the chin but seems OK.
Stead takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
Stead misses with a body shot
and Stead takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.

The cut above Shane Stead's eye is starting to cause him problems now.
Stead closes this distance looking for a takedown but Muhapuro circles away.
Muhapuro jinks towards his opponent looking like he wants to counter with a mid kick but doesn't commit.
Stead moves his head to the side to avoid a jab but walks straight into a cross.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Nice shot lands for Muhapuro.
Muhapuro misses with a looping left.
Stead drops down looking to force a counter takedown but Muhapuro defends it well.
Stead's leg has a nasty welt from taking a succession of leg kicks. That must be slowing him down.
Muhapuro on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
Muhapuro throws a head kick that half lands.

Stead is rocked!
Muhapuro takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
Stead tries to score with a low kick but Muhapuro moves his leg out of the way.
Muhapuro walks into a jab.
Both these guys seem content to just stand up and trade with eachother but Stead might want to think about changing up his gameplan a bit because over the course of the fight, Muhapuro has got the better of the exchanges.
Muhapuro sizes up Stead with a pawing jab and scores with a straight right down the middle.
Jab from Muhapuro.
Stead is still on wobbly legs! Can Muhapuro finish him?

Shane Stead's cut is absolute horrible now. This looks like something out of a horror film with blood covering both fighters.
A low kick lands for Muhapuro.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A big right from Muhapuro misses.
Stead seems to have recovered his senses.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
The fighters circle momentarily. Stead darts into range and connects with a nice straight punch.
Stead misses with a lunging right hand
and Muhapuro counters with a body kick that stops Stead in his tracks momentarily.
Muhapuro is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Stead can do to turn this around?
A jab lands there for Muhapuro.
Stead with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Muhapuro to score with a decent uppercut.
Stead misses with a body punch
and he gets countered with a snapping leg kick.
Stead fakes a jab and then connects with a hook.
Stead jabbing away but nothing is landing.
It looked like Muhapuro wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Stead does a little shimmy and throws a leg kick. The leg kick missed by a considerable margin though, making him look a little bit silly for doing the shimmy.
Muhapuro fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Stead looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Stead misses the shot to the body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Paul Muhapuro dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Shane Stead's cut.
That's time! Muhapuro's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Muhapuro thumps Stead with a low kick.
Muhapuro scoring well with a low kick there.
Muhapuro throws a sloppy head kick

so Stead counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.

Muhapuro has butterfly guard. He's looking to stand up here. He pushes Stead off him and springs to his feet nicely. The crowd applauds.
Good leg kick by Muhapuro.
A big left from Stead misses.
Muhapuro avoids the body shot from Stead.
Stead feints a straight left to the body, then turns around with a flashy move and hits Muhapuros jaw with a dramatic spinning back fist!
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Stead is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Muhapuro.
Stead scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A combination from Muhapuro does no damage.
Stead scores with a jab to the body.
Stead misses with a straight right.
Stead works his jab well there, keeping his opponent at a distance.
Muhapuro throws a hook but Stead blocks it.
Stead throws out a counter right but Muhapuro avoids it with no problem.
Stead swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Muhapuro cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Muhapuro throws a quick inside leg kick.
A big left from Stead misses.
Muhapuro throws a low kick but it's checked well by Stead.
Stead checks the leg kick.
A looping hook to the body misses from Stead. Muhapuro does a little dance to reset his feet.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Muhapuro cracks Stead with a nice right hand that draws applause from the crowd.
Muhapuro pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Stead misses the jab.
Stead throws a right and a left that both miss.
It looked like Muhapuro was trying to counter with a body shot coming off that last attack from Stead.
Stead throws a body shot but no joy.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Muhapuro throws out a loose jab but Stead uses good head movement to avoid it.
Stead throws the left hand but Muhapuro avoids the punch easily.
Muhapuro tried to counter with a leg kick but Stead avoided it.
Stead scores with a jab. Muhapuro acknowledges it with a nod of the head.
Muhapuro pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Stead looked like he wanted to counter with a punch but didn't throw it.
Stead drops his hands momentarily and Muhapuro takes advantage with a crisp shot to the head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Stead misses with an uppercut. Muhapuro saw that one coming.
An attempted straight right counter from Muhapuro misses the target.
Stead throws a jab when Muhapuro was well out of range.
The crowd cheers as Stead lands an impressive looking overhand right. Muhapuro doesn't seem phased though.
A nice leg kick from Muhapuro, right into the meat of the thigh.
Muhapuro bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Stead looks to land a left hand but Muhapuro moved out of range nicely.
Oooooooooooh, not good. A low kick from Muhapuro lands where it shouldn't have, right in the... well, you know what he did? He kicked him in the penis. He's injured, injured bad. The referee sends both fighters to their corners and Stead has 5 minutes to recover. He's OK now though... a thumbs up from Stead and we're back underway with a touch of gloves.
Stead waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Muhapuro.
Stead has a pretty nasty looking mouse under his right eye.
Stead throws a hook but Muhapuro avoids it easily.
Stead cracks Muhapuro with a right hand to the side of the head.
Stead misses with a takedown attempt - Muhapuro sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Stead moves out of range of the body kick.
Muhapuro lands with a shot to the body.
Muhapuro uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Stead.
Stead throws a shot from downtown. Muhapuro moves away and avoids it.
Muhapuro went nuts there looking for a big combo counter but none of the flurry connected.
Stead fakes a jab and then connects with a hook.
Muhapuro lands a jab to the nose.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Muhapuro scores with a jab to the jaw.

The referee calls the doctor in to look at Shane Stead's cut. Oh no, the doctor has called an end to the bout!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 4:53 of round 3, we have a winner by way of TKO (Cut). Paul Muhapuro!
Paul Muhapuro retains his middleweight title!