PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Clayton Norcross (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Joe Masseria (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Norcross
vs
Masseria

197 cm
18
210 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

185 cm
19
218 lbs
2 - 1 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Excellent MT
Intelligent

Good takedowns
Brawler
Solid 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 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Clayton Norcross!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Joe Masseria!
The judges for this bout are Tarja Halkonen, Marco Blurström and Arvi Lind.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
The fighters circling - Masseria throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Norcross shoots for a takedown but Masseria saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Norcross fails in his attempt to clinch.
Masseria looks to land a combination but Norcross avoids it well.
Jab, cross, leg kick. Nice combination by Norcross!
Norcross changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Masseria tries to avoid it but Norcross manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Masseria to the ground. Masseria escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Clayton Norcross seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Norcross throws a right high kick that is partially blocked by Masseria.
Masseria misses the shot to the body.

Masseria closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Norcross to the mat! Norcross manages to get full guard.
Masseria 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.
Masseria loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Masseria sitting in guard here, content to control.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Masseria trying to control the position from guard on top but Norcross is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Norcross is looking to stand up but Masseria isn't so interested in that idea.
Masseria controls the pace of the fight for a moment.

Despite being in the dominant position, Joe Masseria just isn't active enough and the referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Norcross turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.

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.
Norcross is looking to clinch.
Norcross has his takedown stuffed

and Masseria counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Masseria.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Clayton Norcross. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Masseria sitting in guard here, content to control.
Masseria throwing strikes but missing.
Norcross is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Masseria sitting in guard, not really doing much.
Norcross looking for a sweep. Not yet Norcross, not yet.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Norcross will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Masseria missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Masseria is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Masseria throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Masseria has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Norcross with a lazy takedown attempt
and Masseria counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Masseria takes a jab right on the nose. That must have hurt but he shrugs his shoulders and looks to return the favor.
Norcross defending well as Masseria loads up on a big left hand.
Norcross with a poor takedown

and Masseria counters with a single leg into guard. Norcross didn't expect that.
Masseria 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.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Masseria stopping the sweep attempt from Norcross.
Masseria 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.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Masseria's corner are shouting for him to control the position and he seems happy to oblige.
Masseria throwing strikes from guard but Norcross blocks nicely.
Masseria is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Norcross working a defensive guard here.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Joe Masseria dominated that round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Norcross tries to clinch but Masseria moves away

and Masseria decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Norcross's guard.
Masseria trying to control but Norcross is working from the bottom.
Masseria stops Norcross from standing up.
Norcross looking for a sweep. Not yet Norcross, not yet.
Masseria postures up in Norcross's guard and throws a big left but Norcross blocks it.
Masseria is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Norcross avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Norcross working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Masseria.
Masseria is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.
Norcross gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily

and Masseria counters with a nice single leg takedown and he's in Norcross's guard now.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Norcross wants to get back to his feet but Masseria is in a dominant position and won't allow it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Masseria postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Norcross is trying to control the position but Masseria postures up.
Norcross is looking to stand up but Masseria isn't so interested in that idea.
Masseria slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
Norcross wants to stand up but Masseria is controlling him.
Masseria is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Norcross looking to control.

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.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.
Norcross gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily

and Masseria counters with a single leg into guard. Norcross didn't expect that.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Masseria accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Masseria looking to control the position here, rather than advance.
Masseria working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Norcross's head.
Masseria's corner is telling him to maintain position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Norcross looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Norcross keeping moving, preventing Masseria from controlling successfully.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

Despite being in the dominant position, Joe Masseria just isn't active enough and the referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Masseria throws a left and a right that both miss
and Norcross counters with a head kick.
Norcross closes the distance but Masseria moves to the side

and Masseria counters with a nice double leg into side control. Norcross won't be happy with that.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Norcross trying to remain calm as Masseria controls from the top position.
Norcross dodges the ground and pound from Masseria.
Masseria in side control, throwing shots but Norcross defends.
Norcross defending against the ground and pound.
Norcross parries the strikes from Masseria easily there. Masseria is wary of posturing up too much because it might enable Norcross to escape.
Norcross avoids any damage from the ground and pound of Masseria.
Masseria looking to punish the body of his opponent here but Norcross is avoiding damage well.
Masseria in side control lands a decent elbow.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
You can see the frustration on Norcross's face as Masseria controls the position.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.
Norcross darts in trying to clinch

and Masseria counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Masseria.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Joe Masseria showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business. This is the final round!

Norcross tries to clinch

and Masseria counters with a shoot takedown. Norcross fights it but they end up in guard.
Masseria has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Norcross is trying to keep Masseria in close.
Masseria controls the pace of the fight for a moment.
Let's hope that Masseria has the urge to step up the pace any second now because for the last 15 or 20 seconds he's just been holding on tight.
Masseria takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Norcross wants to stand and escape but Masseria is having none of it.
Norcross keeping moving, preventing Masseria from controlling successfully.
Norcross is trying to control the position but Masseria postures up.
Masseria trying to control the position from guard on top but Norcross is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Despite being in the dominant position, Joe Masseria just isn't active enough and the referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Norcross blocks a jab.
Norcross throws a head kick that half lands.
Joe Masseria is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

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.
Norcross throws a good cross that connects.
The fighters circling - Masseria throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Norcross gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily

and Masseria decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Norcross's guard.

Norcross has his foot on Masseria's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Masseria works his way back into a safe position though.
Masseria content to stall in guard here.
Norcross trying to keep a closed guard but Masseria is proving a slippery customer.
Masseria controls from within his opponent's guard.
Joe Masseria has got the better of the ground game so far.
Masseria throws a big right hand that misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Masseria won't allow Norcross to sweep him here.
Masseria is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Masseria lands a couple of digs.
Norcross is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Norcross tries to land a sweep but no joy.

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.
Masseria trying to control but Norcross is working from the bottom.
Norcross is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Masseria is controlling him.
Masseria looking to control the position here, rather than advance.
Masseria with a nice head shot there.

And that's the end of the fight!
Joe Masseria comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Masseria winning every round here. Surely the decision will go his way and he'll pick up a well deserved decision victory. 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 Tarja Halkonen scores the fight 27:30
Judge Marco Blurström scores the fight 27:30
Judge Arvi Lind scores the fight 26:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Joe Masseria!