PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between jimmy toral (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Mordion Zeraka (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). We have two fighters making their debuts here, so let's see who comes out of this one with their first professional victory.

toral
vs
Zeraka

225 cm
20
230 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

180 cm
18
265 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Big heart

BJJ Blue Belt
Good elbows
Determined

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, jimmy toral!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Mordion Zeraka!
The judges for this bout are Tiny Johnson, Cecil Peabody and Frank Dennis.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Zeraka is looking to clinch.

Zeraka drives through and clinches with toral against the cage.
Zeraka stalling here - the referee won't stand for too much of that.
toral makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
toral can't break the clinch.
Zeraka throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but toral blocks it with crossed arms.
toral takes an elbow to the forehead.
Zeraka lands an elbow that stopped toral in his tracks for a moment.

It looks like jimmy toral has been cut.
Zeraka comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.

toral works for the underhooks and manages to get a trip takedown into guard.
toral postures up.
Zeraka looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
toral wants to pass the guard but Zeraka is keeping the position.
Zeraka wants to sweep but no luck.
Zeraka utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.

That's one minute gone in the round.
toral wants to control from the top but Zeraka keeps moving.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
toral with a flurry of punches that miss.
toral tries to free his leg and advance position but Zeraka is retaining full guard.
Zeraka wants to sweep here but toral controlling him for the moment.

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

Zeraka takes the fight into the clinch.
Zeraka with a knee to the head.
toral dodges an elbow strike from Zeraka.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Zeraka.

toral escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.

Zeraka gets in close and instigates a clinch.
Zeraka with a knee to the head.
Zeraka looks gassed!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A nice glancing elbow lands by Zeraka.
toral looking for a takedown.
Zeraka throws a knee to the head but misses.
toral really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.
toral working hard to break the clinch.
toral wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Zeraka has him pressed against the cage.
Zeraka lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.
Zeraka misses with a knee to the head.
Zeraka tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
A frustrated look appears on toral's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Zeraka misses with a knee to the head.

toral pulls guard.
toral throwing strikes off his back to little effect.
Zeraka wants to get up but he can't break toral's closed guard. He needs to be careful trying to break the legs open, as he's open to submissions here.

toral escapes his hips to the side and looks to be working for an armbar. Zeraka gives him a little smile and shakes his head. No chance.
toral is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
toral will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
toral is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
toral is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
toral has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.
toral lands with a punch from half guard.

toral is looking for a kimura. It's going to be difficult to finish that from half guard though and Zeraka defends it well.
Zeraka is trying to stand.
Zeraka is not content to let toral control the position.

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.
toral passes to full mount!
toral scoring with some good ground and pound from mount here. Will he manage to finish Zeraka?
toral scoring with some good ground and pound from mount here. Will he manage to finish Zeraka?
toral working the ground and pound effectively.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
toral cracks Zeraka with a nasty head shot there - the crowd let out an audible gasp there, as the noise reverberated around the arena.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

jimmy toral dominated that round.
The cut man is working on jimmy toral's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Zeraka stuffs the takedown attempt from toral. toral gets slowly back to his feet.
toral looks to land a combination but Zeraka avoids it well.
toral shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Zeraka is looking to clinch but toral is avoiding it.
toral keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
toral fails with a takedown attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for jimmy toral. That's going to take a lot out of him.
toral ducks down and throws a hook to the body.
jimmy toral seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Zeraka instigates a clinch.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
toral tries to score a body lock takedown but Zeraka shows good agility there to stay on his feet.
toral takes an elbow to the forehead.

That's one minute gone in the round.
toral tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Zeraka just stands there and leans against the cage.
toral is looking to break free of the clinch but Zeraka has double underhooks.
Zeraka with an attempt at a knee that misses.
toral tries to circle away but Zeraka has him pinned against the cage.
Zeraka gets an overhook and lands an elbow to the side of the head.
Nice elbow from Zeraka.
Zeraka misses with a knee to the head.
toral jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Zeraka walks away with a smile on his face. toral gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.

Zeraka instigates a clinch.
Zeraka throws a knee to the head but misses.
toral avoiding damage as Zeraka throws knees to the body.
Zeraka using the Thai plumb to throw knees but toral has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
toral lands a body punch in the clinch.
toral taking a breather.
Zeraka prevents the takedown attempt.
toral tries to pull guard but Zeraka holds him up against the cage and eventually toral drops back down to his feet.
Zeraka gets underhooks to prevent toral's takedown attempt.
toral takes an elbow to the temple.
toral tries to pull guard but Zeraka holds him up against the cage and eventually toral drops back down to his feet.
Zeraka looking to throw knees to the head but toral is blocking nicely.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Zeraka looks to throw an elbow but misses.
Zeraka lands an elbow inside that toral shrugs off.
Zeraka tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
toral drops down for a takedown but doesn't get it.
toral takes an elbow to the forehead.
toral is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Zeraka gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.
toral tries to stall but Zeraka uses the opportunity to gain a better position.
A knee to the head by Zeraka.

toral breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
toral throws a series of punches but Zeraka avoids them all with ease.
toral ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Zeraka moves away.

Zeraka drives through and clinches with toral against the cage.
Zeraka prevents toral from breaking the clinch.
Zeraka lands an elbow inside that toral shrugs off.
Zeraka throws a punch but it's blocked by toral.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
toral wants a takedown but no success here.
toral blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Zeraka creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
Zeraka tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
toral missing with knees to the body.
Zeraka with a knee to the head.
Zeraka comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
With the two fighters working up against the cage, Zeraka just misses with a elbow thrown towards toral's brow.
toral tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Zeraka smiles and moves away.
toral tries to clinch but Zeraka moves away

and Zeraka counters into the clinch. Nicely done.
Zeraka wants to stall.
toral tries for a takedown. No joy.
toral jumps guard but Zeraka stands there with toral around his waist. toral gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Zeraka lands an elbow that stopped toral in his tracks for a moment.
toral fails to pull the fight into his guard.
A nice glancing elbow lands by Zeraka.

toral manages to pull guard. Let's see whether he can land a sub off his back.
toral controls Zeraka momentarily but Zeraka frees himself.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Zeraka wants to stand but toral is controlling his posture from full guard.
Zeraka must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.

Zeraka decides to stand up and beckons his opponent to follow.
Zeraka wants to clinch
and toral counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.
toral tries to clinch there but Zeraka circles away.
Zeraka doesn't manage to clinch there - toral circles away.
Zeraka fails in his attempt to clinch.
Zeraka tries to clinch there but toral circles away.

toral instigates a clinch.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Mordion Zeraka showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on jimmy toral's cut.
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!

toral looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
toral lands with an overhand left.
toral tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Zeraka swivels and escapes.
Zeraka tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but toral paws at him with a jab and circles away.
A combination from toral does no damage.

Zeraka pushes toral up against the cage in a clinch.
Zeraka using the Thai plumb to throw knees but toral has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
toral pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
toral lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Zeraka lands a nice elbow.
Zeraka prevents toral from breaking the clinch.
Zeraka tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
toral blocks an elbow strike from Zeraka.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
toral is trying to drag Zeraka to the mat but Zeraka just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
toral avoids a wild elbow strike from Zeraka.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Zeraka lands a shoulder strike.
Zeraka unloads a knee to the mid-section.
Zeraka misses with a knee strike.
With the two fighters working up against the cage, Zeraka just misses with a elbow thrown towards toral's brow.
Zeraka missing with knees to the body.
Zeraka misses with an elbow strike.
Zeraka throws an elbow but it's blocked.
toral is trying to push Zeraka away but Zeraka has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Zeraka throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Good anti-grappling being displayed by Zeraka as toral tries to tie him up.
toral tries to break free but Zeraka pushes him back against the cage.
Good anti-grappling being displayed by Zeraka as toral tries to tie him up.
Zeraka trying to control the position but instead, toral has worked for underhooks and has pushed Zeraka into the cage.
Zeraka throws a knee to the head but misses.
toral with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
toral blocks an elbow strike from Zeraka.
toral jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Zeraka walks away with a smile on his face. toral gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for jimmy toral. That's going to take a lot out of him.
toral lands a beauty of a right hand that gets the crowd cheering.

That's two 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.
toral smiles there as he lands a nice right hand right on the button.
Decent striking displayed by toral there.
toral darts in trying to clinch

and Zeraka moves into the clinch.
With the fighters up against the cage, Zeraka throws an elbow but misses.
toral tries to break free but Zeraka pushes him back against the cage.
toral is trying to drag Zeraka to the mat but Zeraka just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
Zeraka tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Zeraka throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but toral blocks it with crossed arms.
toral dodges an elbow strike from Zeraka.
toral lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Zeraka misses with a knee strike.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
With the fighters up against the cage, Zeraka throws an elbow but misses.
toral wants a takedown but no success here.
Zeraka throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but toral blocks it with crossed arms.
toral has Zeraka pressed up against the cage and is working for takedown. Zeraka manages to improve position though and keeps the fight standing.
Zeraka throws an elbow that misses.
Zeraka connects with a knee to the head.
toral cracks Zeraka with a nice body shot.
Zeraka pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
toral will no doubt start fighting again in a minute but for now he's just having a little rest, leaning Zeraka up against the cage.
Zeraka misses with a knee strike.
Zeraka lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
toral has had enough of the clinch but Zeraka keeps him there for the moment.
toral dodges an elbow strike from Zeraka.
Zeraka creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
toral wants a takedown.
toral takes a knee right on the jaw!
toral tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Zeraka smiles and moves away.
Zeraka swats away the attempt to clinch by toral.

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.
toral tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Zeraka paws at him with a jab and circles away.
toral walks into a stiff left hand from Zeraka.

Zeraka clinches up with toral and pushes him back against the cage.
Zeraka lands an elbow inside that toral shrugs off.
Zeraka throws a knee to the head but misses.
toral tries for a takedown. No joy.
toral is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
toral blocks an elbow strike from Zeraka.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Zeraka lands an elbow inside that toral shrugs off.
Zeraka creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
toral blocks an elbow strike from Zeraka.
toral tries to pull guard but Zeraka won't allow it.

And that's the end of the fight!
Mordion Zeraka comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Zeraka has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 Tiny Johnson scores the fight 28:29
Judge Cecil Peabody scores the fight 28:29
Judge Frank Dennis scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Mordion Zeraka!