PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Shaun Hawkins (ranked 4473 p4p, 5059 weight class) and Ivan Marcum (ranked 542 p4p, 587 weight class). These two fighters really are very evenly matched on the feet - it will be fascinating to see who can assert themselves in that aspect of the fight.

Hawkins
vs
Marcum

180 cm
26
179
1 - 3 - 0

182 cm
25
177
0 - 0 - 0

Good wrestling
Basic striking
Very strong

Good takedowns
Counter fighter
Granite 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 1 - 3 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Shaun Hawkins!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Ivan Marcum!
The judges for this bout are Sandra Marshall, Michael Johnstone and Santiago Holmes.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Marcum swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Hawkins feinted with a counter takedown.
Marcum scores with a body shot.
Marcum fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Hawkins manages to avoid it.
Hawkins half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Shaun Hawkins seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Marcum rushes in with a sloppy looking punch

and Hawkins counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Marcum has hold of Hawkins's hands but Hawkins slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Marcum trying to hold on to Hawkins's head to control him but Hawkins postures up.
Hawkins takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Marcum has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Hawkins is working away from the top position though.
Marcum wants to get back to full guard.
Hawkins controlling the action here.
Marcum tries to get to full guard but Hawkins has control of the leg.
Hawkins thows a huge punch but Marcum dodges it nicely.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Marcum tries to roll over but Hawkins keeps him under control.
Hawkins looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
Marcum is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Hawkins drops an elbow to the side of Marcum's head.
Hawkins scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Hawkins is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Hawkins has improved his flexibility recently so we will have to see if he can use that to his advantage.
Hawkins prevents Marcum from improving his position.
Hawkins working over Marcum with some ground and pound. Marcum looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Hawkins prevents Marcum from improving his position.
Marcum is staying active underneath Hawkins, who seems content to just control the action from this position.
Marcum tries to get to full guard but Hawkins has control of the leg.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hawkins lands strikes from half guard.
Hawkins lands with an elbow from half guard - that looked like it hurt.
Hawkins keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
Hawkins blocks the strikes from Marcum.
Hawkins slips a nice elbow through Marcum's hands, connecting with Marcum's forehead.
Hawkins wants to pass the guard but Marcum is defending well.
Hawkins is thwarting Marcum's attempts to control the position.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Hawkins wants to lay and pray for a moment but Marcum keeps working.
Hawkins lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hawkins takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Hawkins lands with a punch from half guard.
Hawkins takes a deep breath and rests his weight momentarily on top of his opponent, to control the position.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Hawkins lands a nice short elbow.
Marcum trying to control here.
The referee calls for the fighters to work.
Hawkins prevents Marcum from improving his position.
Hawkins seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Hawkins winds up and cracks Marcum with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Hawkins wants to take a breather but Marcum is having none of it.
Nice strikes from Hawkins there.
Hawkins is thwarting Marcum's attempts to control the position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hawkins lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
Marcum is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Hawkins's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Hawkins's back!
Marcum struggling to keep hold of the position.

Marcum looking for the choke but no joy.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Marcum trying desperately to keep hold of the dominant position.
Hawkins tries to roll but Marcum sticks to his back.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Shaun Hawkins dominated that round.
That's time! Back to the action!

Hawkins shoots in with a lovely double leg takedown. Marcum manages to land in full guard to minimise the damage.
Marcum wants to sweep here but Hawkins controlling him for the moment.
Marcum is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Hawkins scoring with some ground and pound.

Marcum has his foot on Hawkins's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Hawkins works his way back into a safe position though.
Marcum working a defensive guard but Hawkins passes into half guard.
Marcum moves his hips nicely and gets into full guard.
Hawkins trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hawkins trying to pass the guard. He's being very persistent here but Marcum manages to land a sweep and now he's on top!

Marcum is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Marcum looking to pass the guard.
Shaun Hawkins overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Marcum is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.
Hawkins will have to put a bit more behind his punches if he's going to do any damage from this position.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now Hawkins is on top in guard.

Hawkins is pushing down on Marcum's leg trying to pass to half guard. Marcum is fighting to maintain full guard but Hawkins has managed to sneak the leg through.
Marcum trying to control from the bottom.
Marcum has hold of Hawkins's hands but Hawkins slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Hawkins is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Marcum can do to turn this around?
Hawkins working over Marcum with some ground and pound. Marcum looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Marcum won't allow Hawkins to pass to mount.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Marcum trying to control here but he's found himself mounted! Oh no!
Marcum regains half guard.
Hawkins passes into side control, despite Marcum's attempt to control the position.
Marcum is looking for a sweep.
Marcum manages to land a sweep and he's now on top! Lovely Jiu Jitsu!
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Hawkins is looking to improve his position.
Hawkins is doing well to avoid being mounted. He's controlling the position at the moment.
Hawkins is refusing to be controlled, as Marcum sits in half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hawkins tries to roll over but Marcum keeps him under control.
Marcum perhaps working for something from half guard, or maybe not. It looks like he's just sitting there.
Marcum is trying to control the action in half guard but Hawkins is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
Marcum is looking to advance position but Hawkins won't allow it.
Marcum working the head and body with strikes.
Marcum is just content to waste time from the top position. Hawkins takes advantage of the situation and regains full guard.
Hawkins knows he needs to get back to his feet asap. He's simply no match for Marcum on the ground.
Hawkins is looking to sweep but instead, Marcum has passed into half guard.

That's four 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.
Marcum wants to take a breather but Hawkins is having none of it.
Hawkins gets back to full guard.
Marcum wants to control from the top but Hawkins keeps moving.
Marcum being controlled here momentarily.
Marcum wants to pass the guard but Hawkins is keeping the position.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Hawkins keeping moving, preventing Marcum from controlling successfully.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Shaun Hawkins dominated that second round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! This is the final round!

Hawkins fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Hawkins dives in for a single leg takedown but Marcum sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.
Marcum tries to pull guard but Hawkins won't allow it.
Marcum tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Hawkins smiles and moves away.
Hawkins misses with a takedown attempt - Marcum sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Shaun Hawkins. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Hawkins takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hawkins slips under a jab from Marcum.

Hawkins closes the distance and looks for a trip takedown... aaaand he's got it - Hawkins lands in his opponent's guard.
Marcum trying to keep a closed guard but Hawkins is proving a slippery customer.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Marcum being controlled here, momentarily.
Hawkins postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Hawkins not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Marcum looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Ivan Marcum has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Hawkins has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.

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.
Hawkins is working Marcum over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Hawkins postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Hawkins cracks Marcum with a solid left hand.
Hawkins working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Marcum's head.
Marcum trying to control the position.
Hawkins sneaks a leg through and gets to half guard. That was like a knife through butter how easily he passed Marcum's guard.
Marcum is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Hawkins's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Hawkins's back!

Marcum is looking for the choke from the back position but Hawkins is controlling his hands well.
A lull in the action here.

Hawkins fending off the submission attempt from Marcum.
Marcum takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Marcum missing with punches from the back.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hawkins wants to escape the position.

Hawkins is in a bad position with Marcum working for a choke. Hawkins manages to spin nicely into guard and the danger is over for the moment.
Hawkins landing with the ground and pound.
Hawkins wants to control from the top but Marcum keeps moving.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Marcum keeping full guard, as Hawkins tries to pass.
Hawkins working from the guard for now, landing some ground and pound.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now Marcum is on top in guard.

Shaun Hawkins is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Hawkins looking to hit a scissor sweep but Marcum is one step ahead there.
Marcum sneaks a leg through and gets to half guard. That was like a knife through butter how easily he passed Hawkins's guard.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Marcum is trying to control the action in half guard but Hawkins is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
Hawkins tries to roll over but Marcum keeps him under control.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Shaun Hawkins.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Hawkins, 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 Sandra Marshall scores the fight 30:27
Judge Michael Johnstone scores the fight 30:27
Judge Santiago Holmes scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Shaun Hawkins!