PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Rakeem Marley (ranked 1594 p4p, 1850 weight class) and Desmond Okafor (ranked 234 p4p, 261 weight class). Marley comes to the cage accompanied by Damian Marley - Welcome to Jamrock. Desmond Okafor will no doubt be looking to use his reach advantage to good effect.

Marley
vs
Okafor

189 cm
32
216
11 - 17 - 0

202 cm
38
215
14 - 7 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
World class MT
Granite chin

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 11 - 17 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Rakeem Marley!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 14 - 7 - 0, fighting out of London, Desmond Okafor!
The judges for this bout are Anthony Taglia, Bruno Lombardi and Russell Pearce.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Marley throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Marley throws a right and a left that Okafor avoids nicely.
Marley closes the distance and takes a jab right on the nose as he does so.
Okafor takes a push kick to the midsection and stumbles backwards.
Okafor misses with a hook. Marley ducked under it nicely.
Good leg kick by Marley.
Okafor swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Okafor throws a series of punches but Marley avoids them all with ease.
Marley tries a head kick but it misses.
Marley cracks a nice hook into Okafor's ribs.
Marley avoids the body shot from Okafor.
Okafor just manages to avoid a counter high kick fromMarley.
Marley dips to his left and cracks Okafor with an uppercut!
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Okafor dips to his left and cracks Marley with an uppercut!
Okafor misses with a body kick.
Okafor throws a body shot but no joy.
Marley appears to be looking for a big counter.
Marley jabs at Okafor's body.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Okafor swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Marley.
Okafor throws a hook but Marley blocks it.
Marley is looking to counter with a shot to the body.
Okafor misses with a jab to the body
and Marley counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.
Marley has been working on his boxing with his coaches at LA Training Center in the buildup to the fight.
Okafor throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Marley avoids the body shot from Okafor.
Marley went nuts there looking for a big combo counter but none of the flurry connected.
Marley slips under a jab from Okafor.
Okafor uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Marley.
Okafor looks to score with a jab to the body but Marley is just out of range.
Okafor takes an uppercut right on the jaw but it doesn't phase him.
Okafor throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Okafor lands a nice hook to Marley's body. Marley takes it in his stride and looks to land his own strikes.
Marley lands an overhand right.
Marley jabs Okafor right on the nose. Okafor blinks but takes it well.
Desmond Okafor seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Marley moves out of range of the strikes.
Okafor has been spending a lot of time sparring his boxing in the run up to the fight, trying to sharpen up those hands and look for a knockout.
Okafor lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.
Okafor swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Marley lands a big head kick that sends Okafor tumbling to the mat! Marley takes a step backwards and waves Okafor back to his feet - he wants the finish!

Okafor is rocked!
Marley throws a right hand that Okafor ducks under and follows up with a left that Okafor also avoids with ease.
Marley backing away here, and Okafor unleashes a leg kick that just misses.
Okafor is still on wobbly legs! Can Marley finish him?
Okafor cracks Marley with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.
Marley lands with a right that hurts Okafor. Okafor looks to clinch but Marley throws a short knee that drops Okafor. This one is all over!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2:19 of round 1, we have a winner by way of TKO (Punch and Knee). Rakeem Marley!
During a confident post fight interview, Rakeem Marley thanked all his fans. He seemed very genuine when describing how motivated his fans keep him.