PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Craig Mason (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Papoh Bamoya (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Bamoya has chosen Lupang Hinirang as his entrance music. 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.

Mason
vs
Bamoya

178 cm
23
181 lbs
8 - 3 - 0

182 cm
20
180 lbs
4 - 1 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Solid boxing
Very strong

BJJ Blue Belt
Dangerous knees
Powerful

Broken Halo Pride Nutrition
Firebird Designs

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 8 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Craig Mason!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 4 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Papoh Bamoya!
The judges for this bout are Tatsuya Matsuyama, Hirohito Nitta and Yukihiro Yamamoto.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Bamoya closes the distance and clinches.
Bamoya utilising his Muay Thai to score with a knee to the body.
Bamoya lands an elbow just above Mason 's eye.

It looks like Craig Mason has been cut.
Bamoya lands an elbow just above Mason 's eye.
Bamoya keeps control of Mason as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Mason managing to block the knees to the body from Bamoya.
Bamoya lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!

Craig Mason's cut is getting worse.
Bamoya with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Bamoya lands an elbow inside.
Bamoya landing some nice looking knees to the body.
Mason is breathing heavily.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Mason jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Bamoya walks away with a smile on his face. Mason gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
Mason circles away from the clinch attempt.
Mason looks to score with a jab to the body but Bamoya is just out of range.
Bamoya throws a nice outside leg kick.
Mason fails to land the takedown.
Mason keeps the fight on the outside.
A chopping leg kick lands by Bamoya.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Bamoya feints and then cracks Mason's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Mason down.
Papoh Bamoya is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.

Bamoya pushes Mason up against the cage in a clinch.
Bamoya lands a knee to the head.
Bamoya lands a knee to the head.

Craig Mason's cut is bleeding quite badly. He's got to try and protect it.
Bamoya putting his Muay Thai to good use. He has Mason in a tight clinch and is doing some damage with knees to the body.
Mason managing to block the knees to the body from Bamoya.
Bamoya misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Mason.
Mason fails to pull guard.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Craig Mason. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Bamoya lands a good knee to the midsection. Mason won't want to take too many of those.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Bamoya connects with a nasty looking knee right to Mason's face.
Mason takes a knee to the side of the body.
Bamoya landing knees to the head.
Bamoya misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Mason.
Bamoya scores a nice knee to the body.
Mason wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Bamoya tries to land knees in the clinch but Mason avoids the damage to the body.
Bamoya lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Mason managing to block the knees to the body from Bamoya.
Mason managing to block the knees to the body from Bamoya.
Mason takes an elbow to the forehead.
Bamoya unloads a knee to the mid-section.
Bamoya lands a nice knee to the body.
Bamoya using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Mason takes a knee right on the jaw!

Jeez, Craig Mason's cut is really nasty now. The referee must be thinking about getting that checked.
Bamoya with a knee to the head.
Mason takes a knee to the side of the body.
Bamoya tries a knee to the head but Mason blocks it.
Mason is trying to break free.
Mason tries to break the clinch but Bamoya is controlling the position.
Bamoya landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Mason wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Mason looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Mason tries to circle away but Bamoya has him pinned against the cage.
Bamoya misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Mason.
Bamoya lands a knee to the head.
Mason looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
A short body shot lands from Mason as the two fighters clinch.
Mason avoiding damage as Bamoya throws knees to the body.
Bamoya using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Mason has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Bamoya creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.

Mason's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Mason checks a leg kick.
Bamoya ducks under a wild hook from Mason.
Bamoya wants to clinch up but Mason keeps it at a distance.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bamoya looking to throw a kick but he's pulled out of it.
Mason jabs away that one connects to the head of his opponent.
Mason ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Bamoya moves away.
Bamoya throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Mason swats away the attempt to clinch by Bamoya.
Mason throws a right and a left that both miss.
Mason looks for a takedown but Bamoya sprawls well.
Bamoya swings away with a body shot that misses
and Mason counters with a left to the body.

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.
Mason lands with a nice body punch.
Bamoya moves into range and lands a nice body kick.
A punch combination from Bamoya misses.
Bamoya throws a sloppy head kick
and Mason counters with a right hand to the body.
Mason throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
A low kick from Bamoya misses

and Mason counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Bamoya is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Mason connects with a nice short shot to Bamoya's temple.
Mason is trying to control. Bamoya wants to improve his position but can't escape this time.
Mason 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.
Bamoya pushes Mason off looking to stand but Mason dives back in and keeps control.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Papoh Bamoya dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Craig Mason's cut.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Bamoya looks to land a right hand but Mason moved out of range.
Bamoya misses with a head kick.
Bamoya tries to score with an inside leg kick but telegraphs it and Mason is able to avoid easily.
Bamoya looks for the body kick but Mason saw that one coming.
Mason scores with a punch to the gut of his opponent.
Mason blocks a head kick by Bamoya.
Bamoya takes one on the chin but seems OK.
Mason misses with a straight left.
Bamoya is breathing heavily.
Bamoya tries to close the distance and clinch up but Mason swats him away and circles back towards the center.

Mason feints and as Bamoya raises his hands in defense, Mason changes levels and drives through with a takedown into guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Bamoya is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Mason postures up.
Mason wants to control from the top but Bamoya keeps moving.
Bamoya wants to stand and escape but Mason is having none of it.
Mason postures up in Bamoya's guard and throws a big left but Bamoya blocks it.
Bamoya preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Bamoya looking to land some kicks to the body here.
Papoh Bamoya is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Mason catches Bamoya with a nice straight right. He seems pissed - ooooh, it's on now! On like donkey kong!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Mason shoots in and drives through. Bamoya sprawls well.
Bamoya throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Mason counters with a stiff right hand.
Bamoya tries to clinch but Mason is having none of it.
Mason circles away from the clinch attempt
and Mason counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Mason is looking to wear down Bamoya with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Bamoya tries to clinch but Mason moves away
and Mason counters with a three punch combo that has Bamoya backing up. Bamoya nods at Mason to acknowledge the strikes.
Nice cross by Mason.
Mason closes this distance looking for a takedown but Bamoya circles away.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Mason shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Bamoya pinned against the cage. Bamoya gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Craig Mason. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Bamoya goes for a high kick. It partially lands.
Bamoya misses with a shot to the body
and Mason counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Bamoya pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Good work by Bamoya as he checks the leg kick.
Mason fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Bamoya takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.

Mason darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Mason not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Mason stops Bamoya from getting back to his feet.

Bamoya has one foot on Mason's thigh - he pushes off and manages to get back to his feet.
Bamoya throws the kick towards the body but Mason avoids it.
Bamoya throws a head kick that half lands.
Papoh Bamoya seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Mason fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Mason tests Bamoya's chin there with a solid looking shot.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Mason connects with a jab.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Craig Mason dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Craig Mason's cut.
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. This is the final round!

Mason thows a left - swing and a miss!
Bamoya misses with the body kick
and Mason connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Mason fails to land with a series of punches.
Bamoya doesn't manage to clinch there - Mason circles away.
Bamoya closes the distance but Mason moves to the side

and Mason counters with a single leg into guard. Bamoya didn't expect that.
Mason lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
Mason postures up.
Mason throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Bamoya works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Bamoya is wriggling around but Mason manages to pass to half guard.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

Mason is looking for a kimura here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Bamoya blocking the ground and pound attempt from Mason.
Bamoya has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Mason is working away from the top position though.
Mason looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
Mason is looking to advance position but Bamoya won't allow it.
Bamoya trying to control but Mason postures up.
Mason scoring with strikes to the body and head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Mason prevents Bamoya from standing back up.
Bamoya trying to hold on to Mason's head to control him but Mason postures up.
Mason stops Bamoya from getting back to his feet.
Bamoya is trying to maintain the position but Mason is very close to passing his half guard.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
A jab from Mason finds it's way through Bamoya's defenses.
Mason keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
Mason tries to check the leg kick but that clearly hurt him.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Mason throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Bamoya throws a low kick but his opponent is out of range.
Mason throws a looping overhand right but Bamoya ducks down to avoid it.
Bamoya throws a lazy head kick
and Mason counters with a left and a right that stings Bamoya.
Mason takes a swing at Bamoya's ribcage but misses.

Mason throws the overhand right but ducks down into a quick takedown attempt. Bamoya was covering up waiting for the punch and Mason finishes the takedown easily into guard.
Bamoya tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Bamoya wants to get back to his feet but Mason is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Bamoya is using up a lot of energy trying to get back to his feet. Perhaps he should improve his position first.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Bamoya keeping full guard, as Mason tries to pass.
Bamoya really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Mason. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Bamoya keeping moving, preventing Mason from controlling successfully.
Mason won't allow Bamoya to get back to his feet.
Bamoya wants to get back to his feet but he's too absorbed in his own little project and Mason manages to pass to side control.
Mason passes to full mount!

Mason looking to secure an arm triangle but Bamoya defends it well.

And that's the end of the fight!
Craig Mason showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Mason has won this one but let's see what the judges have to say. 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 Tatsuya Matsuyama scores the fight for Papoh Bamoya!
Judge Hirohito Nitta scores the fight for Papoh Bamoya!
Judge Yukihiro Yamamoto scores the fight for Papoh Bamoya!

Papoh Bamoya wins by unanimous decision!