PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Enrique Rodrigo (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Pablo Caceres (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Man, I cannot wait for this one!

Rodrigo
vs
Caceres

183 cm
20
175 lbs
6 - 2 - 0

187 cm
24
173 lbs
7 - 8 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Counter striker
Very strong

BJJ Purple Belt
Counter striker
Determined

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 6 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Enrique Rodrigo!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 7 - 8 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Pablo Caceres!
The judges for this bout are Alexandre Firmino, Thiago Cunha and Emerson Jorge.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Caceres tries to clinch but Rodrigo is having none of it.

Rodrigo gets taken down but at least he's managed to land in guard.

Rodrigo uses the cage to get back to his feet.
Caceres tries to work over Rodrigo's front leg with a kick but Rodrigo checks it.
Rodrigo takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
Caceres will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.

Caceres has taken the fight to the clinch.
Rodrigo is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Caceres gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.
Caceres will no doubt start fighting again in a minute but for now he's just having a little rest, leaning Rodrigo up against the cage.

Caceres jumps guard and drags Rodrigo to the mat. He's obviously going to be looking for submissions off his back.

Caceres pushes Rodrigo off for just long enough to get back to his feet. Very athletic spring there.
Caceres fails with a takedown attempt.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rodrigo has his takedown stuffed
and Caceres counters with a head kick.
Rodrigo closes this distance looking for a takedown but Caceres circles away.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Enrique Rodrigo. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Caceres misses with a takedown

and Rodrigo counters with a nice single leg takedown and he's in Caceres's guard now.
Rodrigo advances position into side control!

Rodrigo looking for an arm triangle but it's way too loose to do anything.
Caceres is being controlled here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Rodrigo goes for an armbar! This could be all over! Wait, no, Caceres rolls with the submission and now he's on top in Rodrigo's guard! Nice work there by Caceres!
Caceres throwing strikes from guard but Rodrigo blocks nicely.
Caceres is looking to work some ground and pound but Rodrigo has wrist control.
Caceres trying to control but Rodrigo is working from the bottom.
Caceres must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Caceres won't allow Rodrigo to get back to his feet.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Caceres stands up from guard. Let's bang!
Caceres fakes low and throws an overhand right that catches Rodrigo on the side of the head.
Rodrigo shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Caceres counters with a big head kick but Rodrigo shrugs it off.
Rodrigo swats away the attempt to clinch by Caceres.

Caceres gets taken down but at least he's managed to land in guard.
Rodrigo passes Caceres's left leg - he's now in half guard.
Rodrigo tries to pass the half guard into mount. Caceres knows what he's doing though and prevents the attempt.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Rodrigo 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.
Rodrigo is breathing heavily.
Rodrigo wants to pass the guard but Caceres is defending well.
Caceres is looking to control Rodrigo's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Caceres avoid being mounted?
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

Rodrigo seems to be working for a kimura but Caceres defends the submission attempt.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Rodrigo looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Pablo Caceres will probably get the nod.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Caceres misses with a takedown attempt

and Rodrigo counters with a takedown into side control.
Caceres is looking for a sweep.
Rodrigo trying to control the action but Caceres is working from the bottom.

Rodrigo is trying to land an Americana. He has the arm isolated but Caceres is keeping cool and he's avoided the danger for now.
You can see the frustration on Caceres's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.

Rodrigo thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.

Rodrigo tries for a kimura but Caceres is defending well.

Rodrigo is looking for a kimura. He might have it! No, Caceres has escaped the position, nice work there.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Caceres struggling a bit here.
Caceres manages to work his way to half guard, despite Rodrigo's best efforts.
Rodrigo working to pass to mount. He's got his hand pressing down on Caceres's thigh. Caceres counters though and makes it back to full guard.
Rodrigo trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Rodrigo prevents Caceres from getting back to his feet.
Caceres keeping full guard, as Rodrigo tries to pass.
Rodrigo advances to half guard.
Caceres connecting with a few gentle strikes.

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.

Caceres makes some distance and scrambles quickly back to his feet. Nice work!
Caceres is looking to clinch but Rodrigo is avoiding it.
Caceres chopping away at his opponent's legs.
Pablo Caceres is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Caceres tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Rodrigo paws at him with a jab and circles away.

Caceres moves into the clinch.
Rodrigo drops to a knee looking for a takedown but Caceres gets the underhooks and prevents it.
The pace slowing considerably in the clinch, as Caceres takes a break from that fighting nonsense to think about the finer things in life.
Rodrigo tries to score a body lock takedown but Caceres shows good agility there to stay on his feet.

Caceres jumps guard and drags Rodrigo to the mat. He's obviously going to be looking for submissions off his back.
Rodrigo trying to control but Caceres is working from the bottom.
Rodrigo is really struggling to control Caceres but he's trying to hold on to the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Caceres is looking to stand up but Rodrigo isn't so interested in that idea.
Caceres looking to hit a scissor sweep but Rodrigo is one step ahead there.
Caceres is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.
Caceres seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Rodrigo does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Caceres prevents Rodrigo from standing back up.
Enrique Rodrigo overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.
Caceres content to control rather than advance.
Rodrigo is looking to escape.
Caceres tries to stand but his arm is trapped.
Rodrigo is trying to stand up here but Caceres is controlling him well.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Enrique Rodrigo will probably get the nod.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! This is the final round!

Rodrigo tries for a takedown but Caceres circles away easily

and Caceres counters into the clinch. Nicely done.
Caceres lands a body punch - he's looking to wear down Rodrigo.
The referee calls for Caceres to work.
Caceres is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.

Caceres gets a trip takedown into half guard.

Rodrigo makes some distance and scrambles quickly back to his feet. Nice work!

Rodrigo shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in full mount! That's better than Rodrigo was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!

Rodrigo looks like he's working for a submission but he's not found anything just yet.
Caceres wants to hold on but Rodrigo pushes him away.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Rodrigo goes for an armbar but he's fallen flat on his backside there and now Caceres is on top in guard.
Caceres controls from within his opponent's guard.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Rodrigo preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Rodrigo wants to stand but Caceres is controlling the position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.
Caceres trying to control but Rodrigo is working from the bottom.

Rodrigo has his feet on Caceres's hips. He pushes off and gets to his feet. Nice work.
Rodrigo swats away the attempt to clinch by Caceres.
Rodrigo keeps the fight on the outside.
Caceres gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily

and Rodrigo counters with a nice double leg into guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Rodrigo passes Caceres's left leg - he's now in half guard.
Rodrigo wants to free his trapped foot but Caceres is holding on for dear life with his legs.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

Rodrigo is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Caceres sees it coming and defends easily.

Caceres is defending against the submission attempts here by Rodrigo.
Rodrigo prevents Caceres from standing back up.

That's four 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.
Caceres is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Rodrigo's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Rodrigo's back!
Caceres missing with punches from the back.
Rodrigo looking very determined here, making life difficult for Caceres.
Rodrigo controlling the position well but he knows he's in a bad position.
Caceres is striking well from the back but Rodrigo escapes and manages to control the positon and works his way to half guard. A much better position - the crisis is over for the time being.

And that's the end of the fight!
Enrique Rodrigo showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Rodrigo 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 Alexandre Firmino scores the fight 29:28
Judge Thiago Cunha scores the fight 28:29
Judge Emerson Jorge scores the fight 29:29

The fight is ruled a draw!