PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Kenji Silva (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Avon Barksdale (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Silva
vs
Barksdale

188 cm
28
198 lbs
20 - 8 - 0

185 cm
26
195 lbs
8 - 4 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Dangerous knees
Very strong

BJJ Purple Belt
Great elbows
Powerful

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 20 - 8 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Kenji Silva!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 8 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Avon Barksdale!
The judges for this bout are Daniel Franklin, Tiny Johnson and Alan Glass.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Barksdale is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Silva is looking to score with low kicks.
Barksdale closes the distance looking to clinch
and Silva makes him pay by landing a thudding low kick.
Avon Barksdale seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Silva throws a nice looking combination but Barksdale bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Well, he's not going to score with shots like that. A lazy body kick attempt from Silva.
Barksdale takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Silva throws a head kick that connects with a bit of head and a bit of hand.
Barksdale dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Silva. That did some damage!
Silva throws a body kick that misses

and Barksdale counters by clinching up.
Barksdale prevents a body shot from Silva.
Barksdale misses with a hook from the clinch.
Silva tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
A shot in the inside from Barksdale.
An uppercut to the body lands inside from Barksdale.
Barksdale lands a left hand.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Silva misses with the head strike.
Barksdale lands a hook that snaps the head of Silva backwards.
Barksdale misses with the head strike.
Barksdale has a couple of punches blocked by Silva.
Silva tries to throw a body punch but Barksdale avoids it by throwing Silva back against the cage.
Barksdale looks to throw an elbow but misses.
Silva dictating the pace here, as the fighters clinch against the cage.
Silva dodges an elbow strike from Barksdale.
Silva dodges an elbow strike from Barksdale.
Barksdale misses with some punches.
A short body shot lands from Barksdale as the two fighters clinch.
Barksdale lands an elbow inside.

It looks like Kenji Silva has been cut.
Barksdale tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Barksdale gets through Silva's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Silva misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Barksdale.
Barksdale takes a knee to the side of the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Barksdale lands a right hand.
Silva softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Barksdale swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Silva tries a body shot but Barksdale blocks it.
Barksdale doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Barksdale lands an elbow inside that Silva shrugs off.
Silva misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Barksdale.
Silva avoids a wild elbow strike from Barksdale.
Silva avoids the elbow strike from Barksdale, against the cage.
Silva using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Barksdale has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Barksdale is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Silva is defending well for now.
Knees in the clinch landing for Silva.
Barksdale lands a left hand.
Barksdale wants to break the clinch but can't.
Barksdale pushes Silva back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Silva with an attempt at a knee that misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Silva working Barksdale over with knees to the body.
Barksdale swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Barksdale comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
Silva tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Barksdale avoids it.
Silva prevents a body shot from Barksdale.
Silva tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Silva misses with a punch to the body.
Silva trying to land knees to the body.
Silva misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Barksdale.

Barksdale breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Barksdale looks to clinch
and Silva counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Barksdale moves away from the strike by Silva.
Silva thumps Barksdale with a low kick.
Barksdale tries to close the distance and clinch but Silva swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Barksdale tries to clinch up but Silva circles away and keeps his distance.
Barksdale tries to clinch there but Silva circles away.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Silva connects with an inside leg kick.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Silva avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Silva avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Silva dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Barksdale. That did some damage!
Barksdale doesn't manage to clinch there - Silva circles away.
Barksdale wants to clinch up but Silva keeps it at a distance.
Barksdale chopped to the floor by a nice leg kick but he springs right back up before Silva can pounce on him.
Silva misses with a kick to the body.
Silva is looking to chop away at Barksdale's legs.
Silva pulls out of a head kick attempt.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Silva tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Barksdale tries to clinch there but Silva circles away.
Silva keeps the fight on the outside.
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 Kenji Silva will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Kenji Silva'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.

Barksdale fails in his attempt to clinch.
Silva circles away from the clinch attempt
and Silva counters with a lovely straight right hand!

Barksdale darts in and clinches Silva up against the cage.
Barksdale tries to work over Silva's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
A nice right hand lands inside from Barksdale.
Silva blocking some punches.
Barksdale has Silva pressed against the cage, preventing Silva from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Barksdale misses with a short punch on the inside.
Silva blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Barksdale lands a right hand.
Silva misses with a hook to the ribs.
Both guys are working to get underhooks.
Silva scores with a knee to the head.
Barksdale tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Barksdale scores with a shot to the side of Silva's head.
Barksdale throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Silva tries to land knees in the clinch but Barksdale avoids the damage to the body.
Silva on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Barksdale pushes Silva back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Silva lands a hook that snaps the head of Barksdale backwards.
The fighters are going at a pretty good pace and they're both starting to sweat now.
Barksdale misses with a punch to the body.
Barksdale lands a nice elbow.
Barksdale tries a body shot but Silva blocks it.

Barksdale breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Barksdale tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Silva walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Barksdale checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Silva throws a half hearted mid kick.
Barksdale fails with an attempt to clinch.
A leg kick checked by Barksdale.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Barksdale fails with an attempt to clinch.
Barksdale tries to close the distance and clinch but Silva swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Barksdale on the wrong end of a nice jab.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Silva throws a body kick that misses.
Silva throws a nice head kick!
Barksdale fails with an attempt to clinch.
Barksdale doesn't manage to clinch there - Silva circles away.
Silva circles away from the clinch attempt.
Barksdale fails with an attempt to clinch.
Barksdale avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Barksdale misses with a body shot.
Kenji Silva is winning the standup battle so far.
Barksdale closes the distance looking to clinch
and he gets countered with a snapping leg kick.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Barksdale wants to clinch.
Some bone on bone action there as Silva checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Barksdale tries to close the distance and clinch up but Silva swats him away and circles back towards the center.
The fight stays on the outside here - Barksdale looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Barksdale tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in the close the distance. Silva manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Barksdale is looking to clinch.
Barksdale avoids a kick to the body.
Silva lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Barksdale fails with an attempt to clinch.
Barksdale doesn't manage to clinch there - Silva circles away.
Silva lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
An inside leg kick from Silva misses.
Barksdale is looking to clinch but Silva is avoiding it.
Silva tried to score with a low kick but Barksdale checks it.
Silva throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Silva waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Barksdale.
Silva thows a left - swing and a miss!

Barksdale has managed to clinch.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Barksdale.
Silva blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Barksdale misses with a punch on the inside.
Silva is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
A head punch on the inside from Barksdale fails to land.
Barksdale missing with knees to the body.
Barksdale pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Avon Barksdale showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Kenji Silva's cut.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action. Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

Silva throws the kick towards the body but Barksdale avoids it.
Silva scores with a push kick.

Barksdale moves into the clinch.
Barksdale doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Silva blocks an elbow strike.
Barksdale tries to break free but Silva pushes him back against the cage.
Barksdale throws a punch but it's blocked by Silva.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Silva.
Silva scores with a shoulder strike.
Barksdale tries a body shot but Silva blocks it.
Silva using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.
With the two fighters working up against the cage, Barksdale just misses with a elbow thrown towards Silva's brow.
Barksdale misses with some punches.
Barksdale wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Silva has him pressed against the cage.

Silva's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Barksdale tries to clinch
and Silva counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Barksdale tries to clinch up but Silva circles away and keeps his distance.
Barksdale is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Silva throws a head kick but Barksdale moves out of range.
Barksdale drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Barksdale tries to clinch but Silva moves out of range.
Barksdale tries to check the leg kick but that clearly hurt him.
Barksdale avoids a kick to the body.
Barksdale wants to clinch.
Barksdale tries to clinch up but Silva circles away and keeps his distance.
Barksdale tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Silva paws at him with a jab and circles away.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Barksdale tries to clinch up but Silva circles away and keeps his distance.
Barksdale tries to clinch up
and Silva counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Silva throws a quick head kick that skims the top of Barksdale's head.
Barksdale fails with an attempt to clinch.
Silva throws a low kick but Barksdale avoids it.
Silva bobs and weaves and then throws a good body kick.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Barksdale tries to clinch but Silva moves out of range.
Silva misses with a straight left.
Silva keeps the fight on the outside.
Barksdale tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Silva paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Barksdale uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Silva.
Barksdale is looking to take this fight into the clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Silva scores with a jab.
Barksdale is looking to clinch but Silva is avoiding it.
Silva throws a body punch but Barksdale moves out of range.
Silva looks to throw a body kick

and Barksdale holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.
Barksdale misses with a body punch.
Silva lands with a short shot to the head.
A short left from Barksdale.
Silva scores a nice knee to the body.
Silva tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Silva effectively controlling the action here.
Barksdale misses with the head strike.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Barksdale pushes Silva back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Barksdale misses with some punches.

Silva manages to break the clinch.
Barksdale tries to close the distance and clinch but Silva swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.

Barksdale moves into range and clinches up with Silva.
A short uppercut from Silva.
Barksdale wants to get back to striking at distance but Silva won't allow it.
Silva struggles to land a body shot inside as Barksdale controls his hands.
Silva putting his Muay Thai to good use. He has Barksdale in a tight clinch and is doing some damage with knees to the body.
A battle for position here, against the cage.
Barksdale avoiding damage as Silva throws knees to the body.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Silva landing knees to the body.
Silva prevents a body shot from Barksdale.
Silva struggles to land a body shot inside as Barksdale controls his hands.
Barksdale softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Kenji Silva.
I think Silva 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 Daniel Franklin scores the fight as a draw!
Judge Tiny Johnson scores the fight for Avon Barksdale!
Judge Alan Glass scores the fight for Kenji Silva!

The fight ends as a draw!