PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Marcus Witcher (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Damien Gracie (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Witcher comes to the cage accompanied by Vader - Sword of the Witcher. Marcus Witcher has the edge in experience - let's see if he can make that count tonight.

Witcher
vs
Gracie

178 cm
26
166 lbs
8 - 5 - 0

182 cm
25
170 lbs
4 - 3 - 0

Good takedowns
Solid boxing
Big right hand

BJJ Brown Belt
Counter striker
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the lightweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 8 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Marcus Witcher!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 4 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Damien Gracie!
The judges for this bout are Ian Loll, Steve Smith and Yves DeLean.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Gracie shoots in but Witcher avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Gracie shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Witcher defends it nicely.
Witcher lands a jab followed by a nice looking cross.
Gracie dives in and grabs Witcher's left leg, looking for a takedown. Witcher pushes down on Gracie's head and hops out.
Marcus Witcher has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Damien Gracie.
Gracie uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Witcher.
Gracie tries for a takedown but Witcher sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.
Witcher throws a body punch but Gracie moves out of range.
A left lands for Witcher.
Marcus Witcher seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Gracie changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Witcher tries to avoid it but Gracie manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Witcher to the ground. Witcher escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Gracie avoids the body shot from Witcher.
A head kick misses from Witcher.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gracie takes one on the chin but seems OK.
Witcher misses with a body kick.
Witcher tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Witcher punishes Gracie's body with a nice straight punch.
Witcher misses with a body shot.
Gracie shoots in and drives through. Witcher sprawls well.
Gracie shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Witcher pinned against the cage. Witcher gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Gracie looks gassed!
Gracie takes a shot to the nose. Hopefully that hasn't broken it.
Witcher connects with a lovely jab that went straight through the gap between Gracie's hands.
Witcher works Gracie's body with a nice hook.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Gracie fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Witcher avoids it really well and circles away.
Witcher lands with a nice body punch.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Witcher connects with a good right hand that stumbles Gracie. Gracie circles away out of range and recomposes himself.
Gracie takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Witcher lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Gracie circles away quickly and effectively.
Gracie is trying desperately to land a takedown but Witcher is having absolutely none of it. This is turning into a bit of a nightmare for Gracie.
Witcher works his jab well there, keeping his opponent at a distance.
Witcher darts in and out, connecting with a jab.
Gracie takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
Witcher digs a good body shot into Gracie's ribs.
Witcher comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Witcher misses with a series of wild punches.
Witcher connects with a looping right hand.
Witcher ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Witcher throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Gracie on the wrong end of a nice jab.
Gracie takes one on the chin but seems OK.
Witcher scores with a jab.
Witcher misses with a few strikes there.
Nice sprawl there from Witcher as Gracie shoots in.
Gracie takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A nice combination there by Witcher.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Witcher moves into range and throws a lovely three punch combination.
Witcher throws a quick head kick that skims the top of Gracie's head.
Witcher changes levels and scores with a jab to the body.
No joy there for Witcher, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Witcher ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Witcher stuns Gracie with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Witcher moves into range and throws a combination. A nice jab followed by a hook to the body.
Nice takedown defense from Witcher. No joy for Gracie on that attempt.
Witcher fakes low and throws an overhand right that catches Gracie on the side of the head.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Marcus Witcher dominated that round.
That's time! Witcher's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Witcher works the jab nicely.
Witcher is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Gracie can do to turn this around?
Nice sprawl there from Witcher as Gracie shoots in.
Witcher throws a sloppy head kick and Gracie moves out of range easily.
Witcher scores with a reasonable looking shot to the body. Gracie doesn't seem bothered though.
Gracie doesn't react quick enough there as he takes a shot to the body.
Gracie needs to keep his hands up - Witcher had a free shot at his head there.
Witcher misses with a jab, cross combination.
Gracie doesn't react quick enough there as he takes a shot to the body.
Witcher fakes a jab and then connects with a hook.
Witcher changes levels and scores with a jab to the body.
No luck for Gracie with that takedown attempt.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Witcher ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Gracie is breathing heavily.
Witcher throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Gracie stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
Marcus Witcher is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Gracie takes a punch to the jaw and another one to the bread basket.
Marcus Witcher is winning the standup battle so far.
Gracie looks shocked there as he takes a right hand to the temple.
Witcher misses with a wild combination.
Nice sprawl there from Witcher as Gracie shoots in.
Marcus Witcher has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Damien Gracie.
Witcher lands a lovely overhand right.
Both these guys seem content to just stand up and trade with eachother but Gracie might want to think about changing up his gameplan a bit because over the course of the fight, Witcher has got the better of the exchanges.
Witcher lands a nice shot to the body.
Witcher with a hook.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Gracie walks into a jab.
Witcher misses with a double jab.
Gracie dodges the punch combination from Witcher.
A combination from Witcher does no damage.
Witcher scores with a crisp jab that stopped Gracie in his tracks.
Witcher jabs at Gracie's body.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Gracie wants to clinch up but Witcher keeps it at a distance.
Witcher throws a right and a left that both miss.
Witcher stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Witcher wants it to stay on the feet.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Witcher catches Gracie with a nice straight right. He seems pissed - ooooh, it's on now! On like donkey kong!
Witcher misses with a few strikes there.
Witcher works Gracie's body with a nice hook.
Gracie avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Witcher fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.
Witcher misses with a few strikes there.
Gracie looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Witcher is fending him off so far but Gracie persists. Nope, Witcher circles away and we're back to standing.
Witcher scores with a hook to the body. Gracie takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
Witcher tests Gracie's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Gracie takes one to the side of the head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Witcher tries a head kick but it misses.
Witcher throws a series of punches but Gracie moves out of range.
Gracie ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Some wild striking there from Witcher.
Witcher tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
A slow jab from Witcher misses its intended target.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Gracie shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Witcher defends it nicely.
Witcher paws at his opponent with the jab and then lunges in with a straight, right on the button.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Marcus Witcher dominated that second round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! And we move into the final round!

Witcher thows a body shot but no joy.
Witcher throws a jab when Gracie was well out of range.
Gracie shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
A jab from Witcher does it's job there.
Gracie shoots for a double leg takedown but Witcher sprawls well. He's pushed Gracie's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Witcher takes a swing at Gracie's ribcage but misses.
Witcher throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Gracie doesn't react quick enough there as he takes a shot to the body.
Witcher circles away from the clinch attempt.
Gracie has a pretty nasty looking mouse under his right eye.
Witcher rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Gracie moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Marcus Witcher is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
No luck with that takedown attempt from Gracie.
Marcus Witcher has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Damien Gracie.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Witcher swinging wildly here.
Witcher throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Witcher lands a vicious shot with the stealth of a sniper and the strength of a viper. Are vipers that strong? I can think of lots of things that are stronger than a viper - not many rhyme with sniper though.
Gracie will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Witcher throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Gracie throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Witcher's waist but Witcher gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Gracie off to one side.
Witcher stalks Gracie and leaps in with a furious combination of punches. Uppercuts and crosses smash into Gracie's face. Gracie staggers backwards, shaken.
Witcher swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.
Witcher lands a right hook to the body.
Witcher misses with a double jab.
Gracie walks into a left hand.
Witcher connects with a crisp jab.
Good standup being displayed there by Witcher as he connects with a hook.
Witcher works the jab nicely.
Witcher scores with a reasonable looking shot to the body. Gracie doesn't seem bothered though.
Witcher cracks Gracie with a right hand to the side of the head.
Witcher misses with a two punch combination.
Witcher pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Gracie keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gracie defending well as Witcher loads up on a big left hand.
Witcher takes a swing at Gracie's ribcage but misses.
Gracie fails with a takedown attempt.
Gracie changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Witcher tries to avoid it but Gracie manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Witcher to the ground. Witcher escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Witcher lands with a two punch combination before moving back out of range.
Gracie takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Gracie tries to close the distance and clinch up but Witcher swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Witcher lands a glancing blow to the side of Gracie's head.
Marcus Witcher is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Jab, jab by Witcher - just one landing.
Gracie fails with the takedown.
Witcher moves into range and connects with a jab.
Gracie showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Witcher.
Witcher takes a step towards his opponent and connects with a left hand, before circling away.
Boom, another hit is landed. "You're gunna get knocked out" taunts Witcher, as that shot connected.
Gracie ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Witcher moves away.
Damien Gracie has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Witcher dips down and scores with a jab to the body.

And that's the end of the fight!
Marcus Witcher showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Witcher has outscored his opponent in every aspect of the fight today. Only a scarily incompetent judge or two will keep him from a well deserved win... 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 Ian Loll scores the fight 30:25
Judge Steve Smith scores the fight 30:25
Judge Yves DeLean scores the fight 30:25

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Marcus Witcher!