PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Xande Moreno (ranked 1875 p4p, 1503 weight class) and John Muir (ranked 245 p4p, 199 weight class). This should be fireworks!

Moreno
vs
Muir

198 cm
31
205
8 - 6 - 0

180 cm
37
226
25 - 12 - 0

Good wrestling
World class boxer
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
World class boxer
Good gas tank

Ma Balls Is Hot Clothing
Conquer

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 8 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Xande Moreno!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 25 - 12 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, John Muir!
The judges for this bout are Ren Mimura, Taro Takaoka and Tatsuya Matsuyama.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Muir misses with a body shot.
Moreno misses with a low kick.
Muir misses with a straight right.
Muir throws a low kick but it's checked well by Moreno.
Muir tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Moreno was well out of range. Poor timing from Muir.
Muir moves away from the strike by Moreno.
Jab from Muir.
Nice uppercut lands for Muir. That snapped Moreno's head back.
Moreno looks to clinch

and Muir counters with a nice double leg into side control. Moreno won't be happy with that.
Muir landing with strikes to the head and body from side control.
You can see the frustration on Moreno's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Muir has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Muir throws a strike aimed at the side of Moreno's head but Moreno avoids it well.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Muir working away.
Muir misses with an attempted head punch from side control.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Moreno tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Muir throws a knee to the body but it doesn't do much damage.
Moreno regains half guard.
Muir working over Moreno with some ground and pound. Moreno looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Muir throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Muir is thwarting Moreno's attempts to control the position.
Muir thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Muir throwing shots but Moreno is blocking nicely.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Muir thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Moreno's head.
Muir looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Moreno with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Muir thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.

Moreno is defending against the submission attempts here by Muir.
Muir wants to free his trapped foot but Moreno is holding on for dear life with his legs.
Moreno wants to improve his position but Muir is controlling well.
Muir throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Muir working Moreno over with strikes.
Moreno is looking to improve his position.
Moreno wants to control but Muir is keeping busy.
Moreno is trying is best to control the position here.
Moreno keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Muir thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Moreno's head.
Muir not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Muir wants to lay and pray for a moment but Moreno keeps working.
Muir sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Moreno defending well though.
Muir is looking to take a break and control but Moreno is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Muir looks to land a strike but Moreno avoids it nicely and regains full guard.
Moreno controls Muir momentarily but Muir frees himself.
Muir scoring with some ground and pound.
Muir with a flurry of punches that miss.
Muir is looking to work some ground and pound but Moreno has wrist control.
Moreno is trying to keep Muir in close.
Muir cracks Moreno with a solid left hand.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Moreno looking to control.
Moreno will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Muir throws a big elbow that misses.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

John Muir dominated that round.
That's time! Back to the action!

Moreno throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Muir appeared to try and counter that last move with a leg kick.
Moreno takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
Muir tries to land a front kick but Moreno steps back. That was a bit too telegraphed.
Moreno is looking to counter punch.
Moreno throws a mid kick that lands with a slap.
Muir looks to land a body kick but Moreno moved away.
The fighters circling - Moreno throws out the jab but it was never going to land.

Moreno gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
Moreno lands a left hand that snaps the head of Muir backwards.
Muir has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Moreno swings wildly with an uppercut but Muir uses good head movement to avoid it.
Muir creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Muir misses with a body punch.
Muir tries a body shot but Moreno blocks it.
A head punch on the inside from Moreno fails to land.
Muir misses with a punch to the body.

Muir escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Nice defenses there by Moreno.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Muir throws a head kick that misses
and Moreno makes him pay by landing a thudding low kick.
Muir jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Muir avoids the head kick by Moreno.
Muir appears to be waiting to throw a counter punch to the body.
A slow jab from Moreno misses its intended target.
Moreno moves out of range of the leg kick from Muir.
Moreno is looking to counter punch.
Moreno throws a wild body kick that Muir sees coming a mile off.
Moreno swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Moreno bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Muir looks to land a combination but Moreno avoids it well.
Moreno throwing a counter right hand but Muir manages to avoid it.
Moreno connects with a right hand. Muir shakes it off.
Moreno misses with a hook. Muir ducked under it nicely.
Muir fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Good leg kick by Muir.
Moreno takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.
Muir wants to slow Moreno down by chopping away at his legs.

Moreno clinches up with Muir and pushes him back against the cage.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
A short right from Moreno on the inside.
Muir misses with a hook to the ribs.
Moreno avoids the elbow strike from Muir, against the cage.
Muir throws an elbow but it misses.
Muir misses with a punch on the inside.
Moreno has a couple of punches blocked by Muir.
A nice left hand lands by Moreno.
Moreno misses with a hook from the clinch.
Muir struggles to land a body shot inside as Moreno controls his hands.
Moreno misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Moreno blocks an elbow strike.
Moreno is leaning against Muir and scores with a nice uppercut to the body.
Moreno blocks a body shot from Muir.
Muir takes a shot to the head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Moreno pushes Muir back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Moreno working aggressively here.
Muir swings wildly with an uppercut but Moreno uses good head movement to avoid it.
Muir lands a shot to the body.
Moreno doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Moreno stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
Moreno prevents a body shot from Muir.
Moreno wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Muir doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Moreno scores with a hook to the body.
Muir swings wildly with an uppercut but Moreno uses good head movement to avoid it.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Muir.
Muir's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Muir scores with a shot to the side of Moreno's head.
Muir can't find room to land a body shot as Moreno controls the action.
Moreno misses with the head strike.
Moreno blocks a body shot from Muir.

Muir's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Moreno throws a body punch but Muir moves out of range.
Muir throws a lazy uppercut
and Moreno counters with an outside leg kick.
Muir is breathing heavily.
Moreno misses with a jab, cross combination.
Moreno lands a jab.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Muir checks a leg kick.
Muir throws a low kick but his opponent is out of range.
Moreno lands the left hand.
Xande Moreno is winning the standup battle so far.
Moreno checks a low kick. Bone on bone - not my idea of a good time.
A looping hook to the body misses from Muir. Moreno does a little dance to reset his feet.
Moreno throws a head kick that half lands.
John Muir seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Muir misses with a left hand
letting Moreno counter with a right hand.
Muir gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
and Moreno counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Xande Moreno dominated that second round.
That's time! Moreno's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight. This is the final round!

Muir thuds his right hand into Moreno's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.
Muir misses with a hook
and Moreno counters with a nice uppercut.
Muir looks to land a right hand but Moreno moved out of range.
Moreno swung with a counter right hand that didn't connect.
Muir keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Moreno.
Muir appeared to try and counter that last move with a leg kick.
Well, he's not going to score with shots like that. A lazy body kick attempt from Moreno.
Moreno displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Muir.
A jab from Moreno does it's job there.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Muir stuns Moreno with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.
Moreno fails in his attempt to clinch.
Moreno ducks under a wild hook from Muir.
Moreno slips under a jab from Muir.
Moreno is looking to counter punch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Muir looks to score with a jab to the body but Moreno is just out of range.
And Moreno counters with a quick kick to the body but Muir blocks it.
Muir misses with an uppercut. Moreno saw that one coming.
Muir dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Muir lands with a shot to the body.
A looping hook to the body misses from Muir. Moreno does a little dance to reset his feet.
Muir dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Moreno. That did some damage!
Muir misses with a straight left.
Moreno is looking to counter punch.
Moreno pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Moreno will need to close the distance a bit before he attacks - that leg kick was thrown from too far away.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Muir! But no joy.
Moreno walks straight into an uppercut. Luckily it didn't land flush.
Jab by Muir.
Moreno misses with a straight right.
Muir wants to counter the offense by Moreno and move into the clinch position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Muir throws a jab when Moreno was well out of range.
Moreno keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
A bone on bone clash there as Muir blocks the leg kick.
Muir misses the shot to the body.
Moreno throws a big counter combination but Muir scrambles out of danger and avoids any damage.
Muir is moving around nicely and scores here with a single head shot.
A lazy left from Muir finds it's target.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Muir misses with a straight left.
Muir lands a body shot.
Muir throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
An inside leg kick from Muir misses.
Moreno was looking to counter that move with a punch but didn't quite pull the trigger.
Muir connects with a solid leg kick.
Moreno throws a lazy uppercut
and Muir counters with a nice body shot.
Moreno lands with a nice body kick.
Muir takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Moreno throws a looping overhand right but Muir ducks down to avoid it.
Muir throws a looping overhand right but Moreno ducks down to avoid it.
Muir takes one on the button.
Muir misses with an uppercut
and Moreno counters with a nice body kick.
Muir sees a low kick coming and goes to check it, but it's actually a body kick and it thuds into his unprotected ribs.
The crowd cheers as Moreno lands an impressive looking overhand right. Muir doesn't seem phased though.
Moreno doesn't manage to clinch there - Muir circles away.

Moreno takes the fight into the clinch.
Moreno misses with a punch on the inside.
Muir misses with a punch to the body.
Moreno misses with a short punch on the inside.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Muir.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Muir goes for a takedown attempt but Moreno pushes him away and we're back to fighting at a distance.
Muir throws a decent looking leg kick but it doesn't land clean.
Moreno swung with a counter right hand that didn't connect.
Muir pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Muir avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Muir wants to counter with a clinch but Moreno pushes him away.
The fighters circle momentarily. Muir darts into range and connects with a nice straight punch.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Muir throws a body shot but no joy.
Moreno thows a left - swing and a miss!
Moreno pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Moreno misses the shot to the body.
Muir scores with a spinning back kick!
Moreno avoids the head kick by Muir.
Muir throws an overhand right that lands on Moreno's shoulder, as Moreno tries to avoid the shot.
Muir throws a leg kick
and Moreno counters with a straight right hand.

And that's the end of the fight!
John Muir comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Muir has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 Ren Mimura scores the fight 28:29
Judge Taro Takaoka scores the fight 28:29
Judge Tatsuya Matsuyama scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... John Muir!
An out of breath John Muir thanked his loyal fans in his post fight interview, giving them credit for his success over the course of his career.