PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Dustin Cruz (ranked 25098 p4p, 24876 weight class) and Muhammad Arslan (ranked 723 p4p, 721 weight class). The crowd giving both fighters a great reception on their way into the arena. That's good to see.

Cruz
vs
Arslan

185 cm
25
170
0 - 3 - 0

180 cm
26
170
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Excellent MT
Very strong

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Inexperienced

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 - 3 - 0, fighting out of New York, Dustin Cruz!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of New York, Muhammad Arslan!
The judges for this bout are Sam Margolis, Steven Brown and Richard Clark.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Arslan shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.
Cruz is trying to stand up here but Arslan is controlling him well.
Arslan uses his free foot to push down on Cruz's thigh. Eventually he works his other foot free and he's advanced to mount - this is trouble for Cruz.

Arslan is thinking about an arm triangle here, looking to tighten it up before moving to side control. Cruz can see it coming though and defends well with a couple of strikes to the head and some good arm positioning.
Cruz knows he needs to get back to his feet asap. He's simply no match for Arslan on the ground.
Arslan trying to control but he's not successful this time.

Arslan has control of Cruz's right arm, working for a kimura. It's a bit of a token attempt though and Cruz regains control of the situation pretty easily.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Cruz is trying to stand.
Arslan pausing momentarily but resumes with a couple of decent strikes that do a bit of damage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Arslan can't quite control the action as he would like just now, as Cruz is looking to escape.
Cruz is not a happy chappy… he wants out of there.

Cruz bucks up and throws Arslan to the side - he's got back to his feet. Great escape!
Cruz wants to clinch up but Arslan keeps it at a distance.
Arslan stuffs the takedown attempt from Cruz. Cruz gets slowly back to his feet.
Cruz defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Arslan.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Arslan shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.

Arslan is looking for a kimura here.
Cruz looks like he's trying to stand up.
Cruz tries to kick Arslan off in order to stand up. Arslan Avoids the leg push though and dives into side control.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!

Cruz sneaks out the side door and pushes Arslan away - he's back to his feet. The crowd show their appreciation for the escape.
Arslan tries a head kick but it misses.
Cruz throws a big counter combination but Arslan scrambles out of danger and avoids any damage.
Arslan shoots for a double leg takedown but Cruz sprawls well. He's pushed Arslan's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Arslan tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Cruz is trying hard to land a takedown here. Arslan sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Cruz misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Dustin Cruz. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Cruz tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Arslan defends well and Cruz ends up having to push Arslan into the cage where they will battle it out in the clinch.
Cruz wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Cruz tries to break free but Arslan pushes him back against the cage.

Arslan has managed to pull guard. Let's see whether he can work an aggressive guard. It will also be interesting to see what tactics Cruz uses from the top position.
Cruz has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.
Cruz wants to stand but Arslan has a closed guard, so he can't escape.

Cruz got a little sloppy there for a moment and Arslan has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Cruz has managed to get both his arms back between Arslan's legs - danger averted.
Cruz wants to get up but he can't break Arslan's closed guard. He needs to be careful trying to break the legs open, as he's open to submissions here.
Arslan pulls Cruz in to control the position.

Cruz gets to his feet - Arslan follows without any prompting.
Cruz missing with a left hand there. Arslan was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Cruz misses with a takedown attempt - Arslan sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Arslan shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Cruz pinned against the cage. Cruz gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Arslan looks winded!
Cruz lands a nice shot that snaps Arslan's head back.
Arslan throws a sloppy head kick and Cruz moves out of range easily.
Cruz seem to be loading up, looking for a big counter.
Cruz works the jab nicely.

It looks like Muhammad Arslan has been cut.
Cruz shoots in looking for a takedown. Arslan tries to sprawl out of it but Cruz keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Arslan manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Cruz rushes Arslan and starts throwing punches like they are going out of style! Arslan is up against the cage and has nowhere to go. Cruz piles on the pressure and Arslan crumples to the floor! This one is all over!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 4:56 of round 1, we have a winner by way of TKO (Strikes). Dustin Cruz!