PBP Commentary

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

Epson
vs
Uzumaki

225 cm
23
150 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

177 cm
20
150 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

Decent wrestler
Brawler
Big heart

BJJ White Belt
World class boxer
Very confident

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 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Martin Epson!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Naruto Uzumaki!
The judges for this bout are Sosuke Kotani, Taro Takaoka and Tatsuya Matsuyama.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Uzumaki throws a hook but Epson blocks it.
Epson tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Epson will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Epson uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Uzumaki.
Uzumaki connects with a slap. Keep your fist closed son.
Uzumaki lands a head shot.
Epson really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.
Epson ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Uzumaki ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Uzumaki throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Epson.
Uzumaki keeps the fight on the outside.
Epson takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Epson shoots in for a takedown but Uzumaki shows good takedown defense.
Uzumaki looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Uzumaki scores with a hook to the body. Epson takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
Epson showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Uzumaki.
Uzumaki moving in and out of range nicely, whilst landing the scoring shot.
Nice uppercut lands for Uzumaki. That snapped Epson's head back.

Epson has closed the distance and engaged Uzumaki in a clinch.

Epson has dropped down and is working for a takedown. Uzumaki is trying to keep an underhook but Epson manages to get the takedown into half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
The referee calls for the fighters to work.
Uzumaki is trying to stand.
Epson looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.

Epson decides to return to a standing position.
The fight stays on the outside here - Epson looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
A looping hook to the body misses from Uzumaki. Epson does a little dance to reset his feet.
A jab from Uzumaki misses.
Epson uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Uzumaki.

That's two 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.
A slow jab from Uzumaki misses its intended target.
Epson showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Uzumaki.
Uzumaki throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Epson stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
Epson dives in and grabs Uzumaki's left leg, looking for a takedown. Uzumaki pushes down on Epson's head and hops out.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Martin Epson. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Epson showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Uzumaki.
Uzumaki throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Uzumaki misses with a jab, cross combination.
Epson uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Uzumaki.
Uzumaki keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
Epson displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Uzumaki throws out the jab.
Uzumaki connects with the punch.
Uzumaki circles away from the clinch attempt.
Epson takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Uzumaki lands a slapping body shot.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Uzumaki fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Epson manages to avoid it.
Uzumaki thows a body shot but no joy.
Epson takes one to the chin there.
Uzumaki will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Uzumaki lets the fists fly and connects with a left straight followed by a right hook.
Uzumaki misses with a wild body shot.
Epson wants to clinch up but Uzumaki keeps it at a distance.
Naruto Uzumaki seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Uzumaki misses with a looping left.
Uzumaki swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Uzumaki scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Epson shoots in for a takedown but Uzumaki shows good takedown defense.
Uzumaki throws a hook but Epson blocks it.
Naruto Uzumaki is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Epson lands with a cross to side of his opponent's head.
Epson avoids the body shot from Uzumaki.
Epson looks frustrated there after his takedown attempt is stuffed easily.
Epson takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Epson throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Uzumaki's waist but Uzumaki gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Epson off to one side.
Epson tries to clinch there but Uzumaki circles away.
Uzumaki lands a glancing blow to the side of Epson's head.
Uzumaki blocks a head kick by Epson.
Uzumaki lands a pitter patter jab to the forehead of his opponent.
Epson rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Uzumaki moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Uzumaki scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Uzumaki lands with a hook. Epson tried to avoid it but it clipped the top of his head.
Uzumaki moves into range and throws a lovely three punch combination.
Uzumaki stooping low to avoid any incoming strikes and then lunges in with an uppercut come cross that lands flush.
Epson will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Uzumaki throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Uzumaki throws a series of strikes that have Epson backpedaling.
Uzumaki connects with a crisp jab.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Naruto Uzumaki dominated that round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Uzumaki misses with a looping left.
Nice uppercut there from Uzumaki.
Uzumaki dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Uzumaki throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Uzumaki misses with a wild combination.
Uzumaki dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Uzumaki misses with a body shot.

A momentary lapse in concentration from Uzumaki enables Epson to shoot in and score with a neat double leg. Uzumaki manages to secure a closed guard as the fighters hit the mat.
Epson trying to control the position from guard on top but Uzumaki is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Uzumaki wants to get back to his feet but Epson passes into half guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Epson perhaps working for something from half guard, or maybe not. It looks like he's just sitting there.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Epson stops Uzumaki from getting back to his feet.
Epson controlling the action here.

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.

We're going to have a standup here because Martin Epson wasn't active enough for the referee's liking.
Uzumaki connects with the punch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Epson misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
Uzumaki scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
Uzumaki looks to score with a jab to the body but Epson is just out of range.
Uzumaki lands a right hook to the body.
A shot to the liver by Uzumaki. Beautiful body shot.
A nice combination there by Uzumaki.

Epson clinches with his opponent.

Epson escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Epson fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Uzumaki thows a body shot but no joy.
Epson will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Martin Epson. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Epson wants to clinch.
Epson throws a half hearted mid kick.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Epson shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Uzumaki as he jumps to the side.
Epson will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Uzumaki scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Uzumaki is throwing a lot of body shots here, looking to wear down Epson rather than just go for the knockout.
Uzumaki throws a series of punches but Epson moves out of range.
Uzumaki lands a straight punch to the body, keeping Epson at a distance.
Uzumaki swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Epson.
Epson shoots in but no luck this time.
Uzumaki scores with a jab. Epson acknowledges it with a nod of the head.
No joy there for Uzumaki, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Epson tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Uzumaki paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Epson closes this distance looking for a takedown but Uzumaki circles away.
Uzumaki scores with a reasonable looking shot to the body. Epson doesn't seem bothered though.
Uzumaki ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Uzumaki connects with the punch.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close second round but Naruto Uzumaki will probably get the nod - 10:9.
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!

Epson shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Uzumaki pinned against the cage. Uzumaki gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Uzumaki misses with a jab, cross combination.
Epson takes a big uppercut there. He seems a bit wobbly but no, he's OK.
Uzumaki misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Uzumaki misses with the combination.
Uzumaki scores with a nice strike.
Uzumaki thows a body shot but no joy.
Uzumaki lands a jab. Then a cross. Then finally a nice hook to the body. Good work there by Uzumaki.
Uzumaki looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Uzumaki fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Epson looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Uzumaki darts in and out, connecting with a jab.
Epson moves his head to the side to avoid a jab but walks straight into a cross.
Epson slips a straight right by Uzumaki.
Uzumaki looks to score with a jab to the body but Epson is just out of range.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Epson closes the distance and clinches.

Epson pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Uzumaki connects with a crisp jab.
Uzumaki tries to bum rush Epson with a series of wild strikes but Epson uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Epson uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Uzumaki.
Epson swings for the body but Uzumaki moves out of range.
Epson throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Uzumaki misses with a wild body shot.
Uzumaki lands the left hand.
Uzumaki misses with a looping right.
Epson on the wrong end of a nice hook.
Epson swings away with a body shot that misses
and Uzumaki counters with a right hand to the body.
Epson shoots in and drives through. Uzumaki sprawls well.
Epson shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Uzumaki pinned against the cage. Uzumaki gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Martin Epson. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Uzumaki displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Epson.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A cross from Uzumaki lands.
Epson shoots in for a takedown but Uzumaki shows good takedown defense.
Uzumaki cracks a nice hook into Epson's ribs.
Uzumaki tests Epson's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Uzumaki misses with a double jab.
Uzumaki misses the shot to the body.
Uzumaki throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Epson.
Nice body punch from Uzumaki.
Uzumaki throws a series of punches but Epson moves out of range.
Epson on the wrong end of a nice hook.
Uzumaki lands with a two punch combination before moving back out of range.
Uzumaki misses with a body shot.
Epson has his head slapped from side to side by a 3 punch combination. That must have hurt him.
Epson takes a punch to the jaw and another one to the bread basket.
Uzumaki looks to land a combination. Epson sees it coming but can only parry a couple of the shots.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Uzumaki just misses with a punch to the body.
Epson moves forwards but Uzumaki connects with a nice, crisp jab.
Jab, jab by Uzumaki - just one landing.
Epson fails with the takedown.
Uzumaki looks to score with a jab to the body but Epson is just out of range.
Uzumaki uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.
Uzumaki rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Epson moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Uzumaki keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
Uzumaki digs a good hook to Epson's body.
Uzumaki lands a jab-cross combination.
Epson shakes his hands off, looking to compose himself, but takes a jab to the jaw whilst he does it.
Uzumaki digs a good hook to Epson's body.
Uzumaki misses with a series of wild punches.
Uzumaki throws out a powerful jab.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Uzumaki throws a jab when Epson was well out of range.
Uzumaki lands with a shot to the body.
Uzumaki fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Epson manages to avoid it.
Uzumaki throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Epson.
Uzumaki throws out a powerful jab.
Uzumaki lands a nice hook to Epson's body. Epson takes it in his stride and looks to land his own strikes.
Uzumaki throws a body punch but Epson moves out of range.
Uzumaki fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Uzumaki lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as Epson backs up against the cage.
Uzumaki scores with a shot to the body.
A cross from Uzumaki lands.
Epson fails with a takedown attempt.
Naruto Uzumaki seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Epson tries to close the distance and clinch but Uzumaki swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Martin Epson has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Naruto Uzumaki is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Epson looks like he's developed a pretty tasty lump over his left eye. He'll need to avoid taking much more damage to that.
Uzumaki connects with a looping right hand.

And that's the end of the fight!
Naruto Uzumaki comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Uzumaki 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 Sosuke Kotani scores the fight 27:30
Judge Taro Takaoka scores the fight 27:30
Judge Tatsuya Matsuyama scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Naruto Uzumaki!