PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Blake Souza (ranked 1794 p4p, 2763 weight class) and Jakobe Blankenship (ranked 120 p4p, 162 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Souza
vs
Blankenship

170 cm
21
143
6 - 1 - 0

155 cm
19
143
1 - 0 - 0

Good wrestling
Counter fighter
Cardio machine

Good takedowns
Decent boxing
Good gas tank

Wrestler Wayfare
âš”ï¸Conquest Nutritionâš”ï¸

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 6 - 1 - 0, fighting out of London, Blake Souza!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Jakobe Blankenship!
The judges for this bout are Steve Erwin, Darius Henderson and Ben Hemmingworth.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Souza shoots in and bounces Blankenship off the cage to secure the takedown into guard.
Souza postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Souza looking to pass the guard.
Souza throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Blankenship works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Blankenship avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Souza has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.
Souza is working Blankenship over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Souza scoring with some ground and pound.
Blankenship looking to hit a scissor sweep but Souza is one step ahead there.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Souza cracks Blankenship with a solid left hand.
Souza wants to control from the top but Blankenship keeps moving.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Blankenship preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Blankenship utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Souza throws a big right hand that misses.
Souza will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Souza postures up and lands a big shot to Blankenship's brow.
Souza postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Blankenship keeping moving, preventing Souza from controlling successfully.
Souza connects with a couple of short punches.
Souza throwing strikes from guard but Blankenship blocks nicely.

Blankenship has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but Souza can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.
Souza content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Souza is stalling in the full guard.
Souza lands a couple of elbows.
Souza with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Souza lands a couple of digs.
Souza lands a couple of digs.
Blankenship utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Blankenship avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
We've been hearing good reports from Souza's training camp. Apparently he has been rolling around with some good quality BJJ practitioners and has been sharpening his skills. Let's see if that has an impact on the fight today.
Souza with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
The fighters are going at a pretty good pace and they're both starting to sweat now.
Souza is working Blankenship over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Souza works a leg free and moves into half guard.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!

Souza looking for a kimura but he'll have to free his other leg if he wants to finish that. Perhaps he's just using it as a distraction technique.
Souza working over Blankenship with some ground and pound. Blankenship looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Souza is thwarting Blankenship's attempts to control the position.
Blankenship has been taking part in the yoga sessions down at Bigfoot BJJ. Presumably he's going to look for a slick submission... Or maybe he's looking to avoid one.
Blankenship won't allow Souza to pass to mount.
Souza working the head and body with strikes.
Souza landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Souza looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.
Souza winds up and cracks Blankenship with a swinging punch to the side of the head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Souza looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Blankenship with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.

Souza is working for a kimura but Blankenship is defending it quite comfortably.
Souza tries to pass to full mount but Blankenship defends it.
Well, if Souza is going to just lie there, perhaps we should talk about what we're having for dinner tonight… I'm having a ham and pineapple pizza… Yum. Can't wait.

Souza seems to be looking for submissions.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Souza is looking to advance position but Blankenship won't allow it.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Blake Souza dominated that round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Souza shoots in for a takedown and gets it.
Blankenship wants to improve his position but Souza is controlling well.

Souza is thinking about going for an arm triangle but he can't free his leg.

Souza wants to work for an arm triangle but Blankenship is really keeping half guard well and defending the submission attempt.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Souza working over Blankenship with some ground and pound. Blankenship looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Souza takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Blankenship tries to get to full guard but Souza has control of the leg.

Souza is trying to work for a kimura but Blankenship is defending well.
Souza is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
Souza is nestled in close to Blankenship, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Souza scoring with strikes to the body and head.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Blankenship is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Souza scores with a couple of nice shots.

Souza is looking for a kimura here.
Nice strikes from Souza there.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Souza is trying to work for a kimura but Blankenship is defending well.
Blankenship is not content to let Souza control the position.
Blankenship on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Souza is trying to control the action in half guard but Blankenship is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
Souza is nestled in close to Blankenship, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Souza looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.
Blankenship is looking to improve his position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Souza is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Blankenship sees it coming and defends easily.
Souza lands with a punch from half guard.
Souza is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Souza is pressing down on Blankenship's thigh, looking to free his foot. Blankenship is holding on for now.
Souza working Blankenship over with strikes.
Souza lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
Souza takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.

Blankenship is rocked!
Blankenship is looking to control Souza's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Blankenship avoid being mounted?
Blankenship is still in real trouble! Can Souza finish him?
Blankenship is trying to get back to full guard.
Souza is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Blankenship can do to turn this around?

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Blankenship taking some punishment here, with Souza in his half guard.
Blankenship seems to have recovered his senses.

Souza is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Blankenship sees it coming and defends easily.
Souza is nestled in close to Blankenship, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Souza landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Souza is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Souza scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Souza is controlling the pace.

Souza is trying to work for a kimura. This could be trouble! No, Blankenship has managed to free his arm - good work.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Blake Souza dominated that second round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! This is the final round!

Souza closes the distance and pushes Blankenship back into the cage.
Blankenship blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Souza doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Souza lands a right hand.
Souza is trying to pull guard but Blankenship has him pressed against the cage.
Souza jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Blankenship walks away with a smile on his face. Souza gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Blankenship is looking for a takedown here. He's shot in and has managed to get it, finishing up in Souza's half guard.

Souza looking for submissions from an awkward position here.
Blankenship seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Souza does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Souza looking to work for a kimura from the bottom.
Blankenship wants to take a breather but Souza is having none of it.
Blankenship throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Souza is trying to control but can't.
The fighters are battling for position here. Souza manages to regain full guard. Nice work.

Souza working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Blankenship doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Blankenship manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.

Blankenship got a little sloppy there for a moment and Souza has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Blankenship has managed to get both his arms back between Souza's legs - danger averted.
Blankenship trying to control the position from guard on top but Souza is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Souza is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Blankenship defends well.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Souza pulls Blankenship in close to prevent any damage.

Souza had isolated an arm as going for a kimura. Blankenship defends it easily.

Souza is working for submissions here. He's thrown up his legs looking for a triangle but Blankenship frees his head nicely. Oh but Souza has switched to an armbar! Blankenship is tapping furiously! Lovely submission there!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2:38 of round 3, we have a winner by way of Submission (Triangle Armbar). Blake Souza!
A relieved looking Blake Souza thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.