PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Date Niaz (ranked 4375 p4p, 4351 weight class) and Mike Castro (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). We have two fighters making their debuts here, so let's see who comes out of this one with their first professional victory.

Niaz
vs
Castro

180 cm
24
145
0 - 0 - 0

180 cm
18
155
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Brawler
Big heart

BJJ Blue Belt
Good kicks
Intelligent

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Date Niaz!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Mike Castro!
The judges for this bout are Frank Dennis, Alan Glass and Wesley Smith.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Niaz rushes Castro and pushes him back against the cage in a clinch.

Niaz pulls guard effortlessly.
Castro trying to control the position from guard on top but Niaz is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Niaz wants to stand but Castro is controlling the position.
Niaz has a butterfly guard looking to sweep but Castro has passed into side control.

Castro tries for an arm triangle. That looks pretty tight to me. Is this one over!?! Possibly, maybe, no Castro has let go of the choke. Obviously it wasn't as tight as we thought!
Castro trying to control the action but Niaz is working from the bottom.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Niaz gets one leg under and gets the fight to half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Niaz is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Castro pulls his head out easily.
Castro prevents Niaz from improving his position.
Niaz looks like he's trying to stand up.
Niaz has his hands clasped together around Castro's back. He's all about the action.
Niaz has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.

Castro is trying a forearm choke… I don't think that's going to do much at this level of the game.
Castro wants to control but Niaz is keeping him busy.
Niaz keeping control of the position.
If this pace continues, the referee will definitely step in and force a standup.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Niaz works his way to full guard. Good work.

Niaz is active off his back here, looking for submissions.

Castro drops back for a leg but he's not going to get it - he lets go and Niaz dives on top into guard.

The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Niaz with a nice head shot there.
Niaz is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Castro trying to keep a closed guard but Niaz is proving a slippery customer.

Castro is working an open guard so Niaz takes the opportunity to get back to his feet.

Niaz looks for a takedown. He's got it. We're now in half guard.
Niaz slows the pace down in half guard.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Niaz is thwarting Castro's attempts to control the position.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Date Niaz dominated that round.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action.

Niaz on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Castro. Castro obviously looking to wear him down.
Castro with a nice calf kick.
Castro blocks a head kick by Niaz.
Castro feints a counter leg kick.
Date Niaz seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

Niaz decides to change it up a bit and drives through with a nice takedown into half guard.
Castro is trying to escape back to his feet but Niaz uses the scramble to pass into side control.
Niaz working the ground and pound.
Niaz passes to full mount! That's big trouble for Castro!
Niaz tries to stand up but he's trapped just for the moment.
A nice elbow there by Niaz.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Castro is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
A nice elbow there by Niaz.

Niaz has control of Castro's right arm, working for a kimura. It's a bit of a token attempt though and Castro regains control of the situation pretty easily.
Niaz landing punches.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Castro is in a horrible position here. Niaz smacks him with another shot as he tries to escape the position.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Castro is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
Niaz takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
Castro is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.

Niaz is standing up, even though he is in mount.

Niaz drives through with a takedown into Castro's guard. Let's see what he can do from the top position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Niaz slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.
Castro can't keep his opponent in guard - Niaz advances to half guard, no doubt looking to mount.
Niaz seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.
Niaz is thwarting Castro's attempts to control the position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
My god... these two guys really need to pick up the pace or everyone will leave to go get a beer.
Niaz is looking to pass the guard... He's managed it - he's now in full mount!
Niaz tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
Niaz with the ground and pound from mount.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Niaz pushing the pace here, looking to move to his opponents back and work for a finish.
Niaz avoids the attempt from Castro to control.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Date Niaz 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!

Niaz closes the distance and pushes Castro back into the cage.
Castro working Niaz over with knees to the body.

Niaz pulls guard successfully.
Niaz pulls Castro in close to prevent any damage.
Castro wants to control from the top but Niaz keeps moving.
Niaz bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Castro's guard.

We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Niaz tries to stand but Castro is controlling from the bottom.
Niaz controls from within his opponent's guard.
Niaz really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Castro is trying to control the position but Niaz postures up.
Niaz works over Castro with some ground and pound from guard.
Niaz wants to get up but he can't break Castro's closed guard. He needs to be careful trying to break the legs open, as he's open to submissions here.
Niaz chips away with some ground and pound.
Niaz seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.

That's two 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.
Castro is trying to hold Niaz in close to prevent damage but Niaz has managed to pass into half guard.
Niaz landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Castro on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Niaz slips a nice elbow through Castro's hands, connecting with Castro's forehead.
Castro trying to hold on to Niaz's head to control him but Niaz postures up.
Niaz frees up his trapped foot and advances to mount.
Niaz controlling his opponent.
Castro looking to escape from mount but he's given up his back!
Niaz is throwing punches to the body, looking to soften Castro up.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Good control from Niaz.

Niaz looking for the RNC.
Good control from Niaz.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!

And that's the end of the fight!
Date Niaz showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Niaz, 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 Frank Dennis scores the fight 30:26
Judge Alan Glass scores the fight 30:26
Judge Wesley Smith scores the fight 30:26

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Date Niaz!