PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Manny Pacquiao (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Anton Bacaltos (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Manny Pacquiao has the edge in experience - let's see if he can make that count tonight.

Pacquiao
vs
Bacaltos

169 cm
24
145 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

178 cm
18
155 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

BJJ White Belt
Excellent MT
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 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Manny Pacquiao!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Anton Bacaltos!
The judges for this bout are Ivan Kurochkin, Vladimir Khabensky and Valeri Chadov.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Bacaltos moves in looking to clinch but Pacquiao pushes him off.
Pacquiao tries to clinch but Bacaltos moves out of range.
Bacaltos keeps the fight on the outside.
Bacaltos looks to clinch
and Pacquiao counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Bacaltos closes the distance looking to clinch
and Pacquiao counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.
Bacaltos wants to clinch but Pacquiao slips to the side
and Pacquiao counters with a left to the body.
Bacaltos closes the distance looking to clinch

and Pacquiao counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Pacquiao.
Pacquiao working some strikes from top position.
Bacaltos is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Bacaltos wants to sweep here but Pacquiao controlling him for the moment.
Bacaltos has a closed guard, preventing Pacquiao from standing up.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Bacaltos looking to control.

Bacaltos wriggles free and stands up.
Bacaltos moves out of range of the leg kick from Pacquiao.
Bacaltos tries to clinch up
and Pacquiao counters with a nice uppercut.

Pacquiao drives through and clinches with Bacaltos against the cage.
Bacaltos lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!

It looks like Manny Pacquiao has been cut.
Pacquiao wants to get back to striking at distance but Bacaltos won't allow it.
Bacaltos misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Pacquiao.
Bacaltos landing knees to the body.
Bacaltos lands a nice knee to the body.
Pacquiao working hard to break the clinch.
Pacquiao is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Pacquiao is trying to break the clinch but Bacaltos is controlling him.
Pacquiao is breathing heavily.
Pacquiao has had enough of the clinch but Bacaltos keeps him there for the moment.
Bacaltos with a knee to the head.
Pacquiao wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Bacaltos with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Pacquiao tries to break the clinch but Bacaltos is controlling the position.
Pacquiao tries to pull guard but Bacaltos won't allow it.
Pacquiao working hard to break the clinch.
Bacaltos is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Pacquiao is defending well for now.
Kneeeeees! The crowd are calling for knees to the body. Bacaltos obliges.
Pacquiao dictating the pace here, as the fighters clinch against the cage.
Pacquiao tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Bacaltos smiles and moves away.
Bacaltos closes the distance looking to clinch
and Pacquiao counters with a right hand to the body.
Anton Bacaltos is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Bacaltos darts in trying to clinch

and Pacquiao counters by moving into the clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bacaltos working Pacquiao over with knees to the body.
Bacaltos using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.
Bacaltos lands a nice knee to the body.
Bacaltos using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.
Bacaltos landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Bacaltos landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Bacaltos unloads a knee to the mid-section.
Bacaltos working Pacquiao over with knees to the body.
Bacaltos lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!
Bacaltos is trying to wear down his opponent with knees to the body.
Bacaltos connects with a knee to the head.
Bacaltos lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!
Bacaltos connects with a nasty looking knee right to Pacquiao's face.
Bacaltos landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Bacaltos crunches a lovely knee into Pacquiao's ribcage.
Pacquiao tries to pull guard but Bacaltos won't allow it.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Manny Pacquiao. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Pacquiao takes a knee to the side of the body.
Bacaltos connects with a knee to the head.
Bacaltos landing knees to the body.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Bacaltos lands a nice knee to the body.
Kneeeeees! The crowd are calling for knees to the body. Bacaltos obliges.
Pacquiao wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Bacaltos has him pressed against the cage.
Bacaltos using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.
Pacquiao tries to break free but Bacaltos pushes him back against the cage.
Knees to the body from Bacaltos.
Pacquiao trying to land knees to the body.
Bacaltos scores with a knee to the head.
Bacaltos avoids the elbow strike from Pacquiao, against the cage.
Bacaltos lands a good knee to the midsection. Pacquiao won't want to take too many of those.
Bacaltos with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
Pacquiao has had enough of the clinch but Bacaltos keeps him there for the moment.
Pacquiao tries to pull guard but Bacaltos won't allow it.
A knee to the head by Bacaltos.
Knees to the body from Bacaltos.
Pacquiao wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Pacquiao tries to break free but Bacaltos pushes him back against the cage.
Bacaltos unloads a knee to the mid-section.
Bacaltos crunches a lovely knee into Pacquiao's ribcage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Manny Pacquiao will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Manny Pacquiao's cut.
That's time! Pacquiao's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Excellent takedown into side control there by Pacquiao.
Bacaltos struggling a bit here.
Bacaltos sneaks a leg under to get back to half guard.
Pacquiao throws a strike but Bacaltos avoids it easily and moves to full guard.
Pacquiao wanted to stand there but Bacaltos had control of the position.
Bacaltos working a defensive guard here.
Pacquiao would like to get this fight back to the feet but can't get free from the closed guard.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Bacaltos bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Pacquiao's guard.
Bacaltos wants to control from the top but Pacquiao keeps moving.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Bacaltos is looking to stand up but Pacquiao won't let him.
Bacaltos won't allow Pacquiao to get back to his feet.
Bacaltos passes easily into side control. Nice work.

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.
Bacaltos wants to lay and pray for a moment but Pacquiao keeps working.
Bacaltos might have to switch it up a bit here because his efforts to control Pacquiao kaven't been going to plan, at least at the current moment in time.
Bacaltos tries to advance to mount but can't.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Well, the referee has seen enough. Neither fighter is active enough on the ground so he's stood them back up.

Pacquiao has closed the distance and engaged Bacaltos in a clinch.
Bacaltos connects with a knee to the head.
Pacquiao swings wildly with an uppercut but Bacaltos uses good head movement to avoid it.
Pacquiao avoiding damage as Bacaltos throws knees to the body.
Bacaltos trying to land knees to the body.
Nice body punch from Pacquiao - that landed with a thud.
Bacaltos lands a nice knee to the body.
Bacaltos connects with a nasty looking knee right to Pacquiao's face.
Pacquiao jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Bacaltos walks away with a smile on his face. Pacquiao gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
Pacquiao keeps the fight on the outside.
Pacquiao circles away from the clinch attempt.
Bacaltos is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Pacquiao is looking to clinch but Bacaltos is avoiding it.
Bacaltos darts in trying to clinch

and Pacquiao counters by moving into the clinch. Good anticipation by Pacquiao.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Pacquiao is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Bacaltos is keeping busy.
Bacaltos working Pacquiao over with knees to the body.
Bacaltos with a knee to the head.
Bacaltos putting his Muay Thai to good use. He has Pacquiao in a tight clinch and is doing some damage with knees to the body.
Knees in the clinch landing for Bacaltos.
Pacquiao takes a knee right on the jaw!
Bacaltos misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Pacquiao.
Bacaltos with a knee to the head.
Pacquiao trying to stall but Bacaltos improves his position.
Bacaltos landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Bacaltos lands a knee to the head.
Bacaltos with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Bacaltos connects with a knee to the head.
Pacquiao wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Bacaltos tries to land a knee to the head but Pacquiao blocks with his arms.
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 Manny Pacquiao will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Manny Pacquiao'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. And we move into the final round!

Bacaltos darts in trying to clinch
and Pacquiao counters with a lovely shot to the body.
Bacaltos tries to grapple but his opponent circles
and Pacquiao counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Pacquiao is looking to wear down Bacaltos with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Pacquiao closes this distance looking for a takedown but Bacaltos circles away.
Bacaltos tries to grapple but his opponent circles
and Pacquiao counters with a nice uppercut.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Pacquiao shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Bacaltos as he avoids it easily.
Pacquiao tries to clinch but Bacaltos is having none of it.
Bacaltos fails with an attempt to clinch.
Bacaltos tries to clinch up.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Bacaltos wants to clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Bacaltos tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Pacquiao paws at him with a jab and circles away.

Bacaltos gets a clinch.
Bacaltos scores a nice knee to the body.
Pacquiao tries to break the clinch but Bacaltos is controlling the position.
Kneeeeees! The crowd are calling for knees to the body. Bacaltos obliges.
Knees in the clinch landing for Bacaltos.
Pacquiao tries to pull guard but Bacaltos won't allow it.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Manny Pacquiao. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Pacquiao takes a knee to the side of the body.
Bacaltos putting his Muay Thai to good use. He has Pacquiao in a tight clinch and is doing some damage with knees to the body.
Bacaltos lands a nice knee to the body.
Bacaltos has Pacquiao pressed against the cage, preventing Pacquiao from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Pacquiao takes a knee to the side of the body.
Bacaltos lands a knee to the body.
Knees in the clinch landing for Bacaltos.
Pacquiao wants to get back to striking at distance but Bacaltos won't allow it.
Bacaltos utilising his Muay Thai to score with a knee to the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Bacaltos lands a knee to the body.
Bacaltos scores a nice knee to the body.
Bacaltos working Pacquiao over with knees to the body.
Bacaltos keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Pacquiao's efforts to push away.
Bacaltos lands a knee to the head.
A frustrated look appears on Pacquiao's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Bacaltos working Pacquiao over with knees to the body.
Bacaltos connects with a nasty looking knee right to Pacquiao's face.
Pacquiao tries to break the clinch but Bacaltos is controlling the position.
Pacquiao misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Bacaltos.
Bacaltos misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Pacquiao.
Bacaltos unloads a knee to the mid-section.
Pacquiao wants to break free but Bacaltos has control.
Bacaltos lands a knee to the body.
Pacquiao tries to pull guard but Bacaltos won't allow it.
A knee to the head by Bacaltos.
Pacquiao looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Pacquiao tries to break free but Bacaltos pushes him back against the cage.
Knees to the body from Bacaltos.
Pacquiao is trying to force a seperation but Bacaltos has the dominant position.
Pacquiao tries to circle away but Bacaltos has him pinned against the cage.
Bacaltos is trying to wear down his opponent with knees to the body.
Bacaltos lands a good knee to the midsection. Pacquiao won't want to take too many of those.

Pacquiao ties up his opponent against the cage and manages to drag the fight down to the ground. Pacquiao no doubt will be looking to work submissions from his guard.
Bacaltos trying to control but Pacquiao is working from the bottom.
Bacaltos wants to stand and escape but instead Pacquiao has hit a sweep and he's now on top in guard.

Pacquiao drops back looking for a heel hook - he quickly realises he's not going to get it but Bacaltos manages to dive on top of him before he can escape and now Pacquiao has Bacaltos in his guard.
Pacquiao on his back here. We all know that wrestlers don't like being on their back so let's see if Pacquiao tries to get out of the position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Pacquiao keeping moving, preventing Bacaltos from controlling successfully.
Pacquiao is looking to stand up but Bacaltos isn't so interested in that idea.

And that's the end of the fight!
Anton Bacaltos comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Pacquiao 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 Ivan Kurochkin scores the fight 29:28
Judge Vladimir Khabensky scores the fight 29:30
Judge Valeri Chadov scores the fight 29:30

In favor of your winner, by split decision... Anton Bacaltos!