PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Michael Smith (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Karol Karol (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Man, I cannot wait for this one!

Smith
vs
Karol

172 cm
26
140 lbs
2 - 1 - 0

180 cm
18
140 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

BJJ White Belt
Brawler
Determined

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 2 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Michael Smith!
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, Karol Karol!
The judges for this bout are Tiny Johnson, George Francis and Alan Glass.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Smith lands with a nice combination. Karol backs away looking to recover.
Karol Karol seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Karol displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Smith throws out the jab.

Smith throws a left that rocks Karol and follows with a right that sends him tumbling to the canvas! Smith dives into side control, looking to finish! Can Karol regain composure!

Karol is rocked!

It looks like Karol Karol has been cut.
Karol is looking to work his way out of this bad position but Smith is controlling him well.
Karol is still in real trouble! Can Smith finish him?

Karol bucks up and manages to escape back to his feet!
Karol seems to have recovered his senses.
Karol stalks Smith and leaps in with a furious combination of punches. Uppercuts and crosses smash into Smith's face. Smith staggers backwards, shaken.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Smith connects with a right hand. Karol shakes it off.
Smith scores with a jab to the body.

Smith forces Karol back against the cage and clinches.
Karol fails to pull the fight into his guard.
Smith looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Smith is pressed up against the cage. Karol has hold of a leg and is looking to drag Smith down to the mat. Smith avoids the attempt though and has circled away. We're back to striking at a distance.
Smith jabs Karol right on the nose. Karol blinks but takes it well.
Smith looks to throw the jab but Karol is out of range.
Karol darts in trying to clinch

and Smith counters by clinching up.
Karol is looking to control Smith's arms but Smith gets an underhook and turns him. Now Karol has his back to the cage.

Karol ties up his opponent against the cage and manages to drag the fight down to the ground. Karol no doubt will be looking to work submissions from his guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Smith tries to free his leg and advance position but Karol is retaining full guard.
Smith stopping the sweep attempt from Karol.
Smith slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.
Smith has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.
Karol not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Smith wants to pass the guard but Karol is keeping the position.
Smith not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.

Michael Smith has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
Karol takes one on the button.

Oh, that's a big right hand from Smith and Karol goes tumbling to the canvas! Smith follows him to the ground and looks to finish from half guard.
Karol looks gassed!
Smith sitting and controlling from the half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Smith moves into full mount! Karol won't be happy about that!
Smith looking to control and managing it successfully.
Karol is a painfully thin specimen of a man. You do wonder whether a good body kick would snap him clean in two.
Smith's ground tactics aren't going to win him many fans. Let's hope he's got fireworks for us if he gets back to his feet because he's not doing much on the ground.
Smith has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

We're going to have a standup here because Michael Smith wasn't active enough for the referee's liking.
Karol tries to clinch but fails miserably
and Smith counters with a nice uppercut.
Karol fails to land with a series of punches.
Karol is trying hard to land a takedown here. Smith sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Michael Smith has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Karol Karol.
Danga de danga de dang - Smith scores with a four punch combination!
Smith lands with a right hand.

Smith drops Karol with a right and a left! Smith comes rushing in but Karol regains his composure and manages to keep Smith in guard.
Smith sitting in guard, not really doing much.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Smith postures up.
Smith slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.
Karol thows some rabbit punches from the bottom but they don't do any damage.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Karol can do anything to dispel that myth.
Karol doesn't do any damage with a couple of strikes from the bottom.
Smith slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Michael Smith.
Karol wants to clinch but Smith slips to the side

and Smith moves into the clinch.

Smith manages to break the clinch.
Smith connects with a looping right hand.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Smith paws at his opponent with the jab and then lunges in with a straight, right on the button.
Smith scores with a nice head shot.
Smith lands a nice shot to the body.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
A punch combination from Smith misses.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Karol.
Karol takes one on the chin but keeps coming.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Michael Smith dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Karol Karol's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Karol shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Smith counters with a right hand to the body.
Karol takes one to the side of the head.
Karol tries to clinch
letting Smith counter with a right hand.
Smith cracks Karol with an open hand slap.
Karol closes the distance but Smith moves to the side
and Karol takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Karol tries to clinch but Smith moves away
and Smith counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Karol shoots and misses
and Karol takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Smith tests Karol's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Michael Smith is winning the standup battle so far.
Karol closes the distance and clinches up with Smith, looking for a takedown. Karol pushes Smith against the cage but Smith circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Michael Smith has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Karol Karol.
Karol takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Karol is on the wrong end of a nice combination from Smith.
Michael Smith is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Smith getting the better of the striking in that exchange.

Smith darts in and clinches Karol up against the cage.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Smith softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Karol goes for a takedown attempt but Smith pushes him away and we're back to fighting at a distance.
Oooooooooooh, not good. A low kick from Karol lands where it shouldn't have, right in the... well, you know what he did? He kicked him in the penis. He's injured, injured bad. The referee sends both fighters to their corners and Smith has 5 minutes to recover. He's OK now though... a thumbs up from Smith and we're back underway with a touch of gloves.
Smith throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Karol stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
Karol takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.
Smith jabs Karol right on the nose. Karol blinks but takes it well.
Karol on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
Karol with a poor takedown
and Smith counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Smith is really head hunting here, hardly looking to strike to the body at all.
Karol takes one to the side of the head.
Karol fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
Karol with a poor takedown
enabling Smith to counter with a crisp jab.
Karol looks to clinch
and Smith counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Smith feints a jab promting Karol to slip. Smith then demonstrates his capabilities by jabbing again. Karol slips again and ducks right into an uppercut.
Karol has a pretty nasty looking mouse under his right eye.
Karol doesn't succeed with the takedown
and Smith connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Smith scores with a nice right hand.
Karol shoots in but Smith avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Smith throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Karol.
Smith ducks down and throws a hook to the body.
Smith throws a left and a right that both miss

and Karol counters with a nice single leg takedown and he's in Smith's guard now.
Karol trying to control the position from guard on top but Smith is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Karol decides he's had enough of playing guard and decides to stand. Come on Smith, up you get!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Smith ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Karol misses with a hook.
Smith throws a series of punches but Karol avoids them all with ease.
Karol wants to clinch but Smith slips to the side
and Karol takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Smith takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.

Smith drives through and clinches with Karol against the cage.
Karol taking a breather.
Smith wants to break the clinch but can't.

Smith breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Horrible takedown by Karol or perhaps it was just good defense by Smith which made him look bad.
Smith throws a looping overhand right but Karol ducks down to avoid it.

Karol shoots in for a takedown and gets it.

Karol is looking for a kimura here.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Smith wants to get back to his feet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Michael Smith dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Karol Karol's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. This is the final round!

Karol shoots in for a double leg but Smith sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.

Smith clinches up with Karol and pushes him back against the cage.
Smith scores with a shoulder strike.

Smith breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Karol tries to clinch but fails miserably
letting Smith counter with a right hand.
Karol moves to clinch but Smith breaks away
letting Smith counter with a right hand.
Smith misses with a combination
and Karol counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Karol tries for a takedown but Smith circles away easily
and Smith counters with a straight right hand.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Karol gets cracked there but stands up to it.
Nice takedown defense from Smith. No joy for Karol on that attempt.
Michael Smith has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Karol Karol.
Smith connects with a single shot there.
Smith scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Smith lands a nice shot that snaps Karol's head back.
Smith scores with a big left there. The judges will like that one.

Smith closes the distance and clinches.
Smith lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Karol backwards.
Smith blocks an uppercut.
Smith blocks an uppercut.
Smith wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Both guys are working to get underhooks.
Smith lands a hook to the side of the head.

Smith pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Smith cracks Karol with a hook to the jaw. Both fighters smile at eachother and high-five before getting back down to business.
Nice takedown defense from Smith. No joy for Karol on that attempt.
Smith lands a jab to the nose.
Smith lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Karol circles away quickly and effectively.
Karol shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Smith pinned against the cage. Smith gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Karol shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Smith pinned against the cage. Smith gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Karol closes the distance but Smith moves to the side
and Smith counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Sloppy strikes from Smith. Those never looked like landing.
Michael Smith is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Karol misses with a takedown attempt - Smith sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Karol shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Smith counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Smith throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Smith waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Karol.
Smith just misses with a punch to the body.
Karol misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
Smith with a body punch. A glancing blow.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Karol is looking to clinch but Smith is avoiding it.
Smith with a nice cross.
Smith throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Karol shoots and misses

and Smith counters by clinching up.
A head punch on the inside from Karol fails to land.
Smith wants to get back to striking at distance but Karol won't allow it.
Smith tries to break free but Karol pushes him back against the cage.
Karol pushes off an throws an elbow but Smith leans to the side and avoids it. We're back to clinching against the cage.
Karol wants a takedown.
Smith is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Smith can't break the clinch.
Come on Karol - let's have some action - none of this stalling nonsense.
Come on Smith - let's have some action - none of this stalling nonsense.
Smith tries to break free but Karol pushes him back against the cage.

That's four 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.
Karol is trying to stall.
Smith can't break the clinch.
Karol wants a takedown but no success here.
Smith slowing the pace effectively.
Smith tries to break the clinch but Karol is controlling the position.

Karol gets control of Smith's arms and successfully pulls guard. Karol will no doubt be looking for submissions off his back.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Smith accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Smith stays in close to Karol's body and controls the position.
Smith wants to stand but Karol has a closed guard, so he can't escape.
Smith showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Karol wants to control here, rather than go for any submissions from the bottom. At least for now.

And that's the end of the fight!
Michael Smith showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Smith, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 30:27
Judge George Francis scores the fight 30:27
Judge Alan Glass scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Michael Smith!