PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Bernardo Quelhas (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Claudio Ricardo (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Quelhas's entrance music is Chama os Mulekes - Cone Crew Diretoria. A fine choice. We have two fighters making their debuts here, so let's see who comes out of this one with their first professional victory.

Quelhas
vs
Ricardo

180 cm
25
170 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

177 cm
22
168 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Basic striking
Good chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Determined

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Bernardo Quelhas!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Claudio Ricardo!
The judges for this bout are Paulo Santos, Alexandre Firmino and Felipe Paraventi.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Quelhas checks a low kick from Ricardo.
Quelhas keeps the fight on the outside.
Quelhas fails with a takedown attempt.
Ricardo throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Ricardo misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Nice sprawl there from Ricardo as Quelhas shoots in.

Quelhas closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Ricardo to the mat! Ricardo manages to get full guard.
If this pace continues, the referee will definitely step in and force a standup.
Ricardo looking for a sweep. Not yet Ricardo, not yet.
Quelhas stays in close to Ricardo's body and controls the position.
Ricardo is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Quelhas is stalling in the full guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.

Quelhas shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.
Quelhas is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
Quelhas trying to control from half guard but Ricardo is working away.
Ricardo has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Quelhas is working away from the top position though.
Quelhas trying to pass the guard but Ricardo defending well.

Ricardo actively working from the bottom here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ricardo is trying to get back to full guard.
Quelhas is taking a breather. Ricardo says something to him but it's hard to make out. Perhaps he's telling him to get on with it and actually do something.
Ricardo wants to control but Quelhas is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Ricardo is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Quelhas's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Quelhas's back!
Quelhas tries to break free.
Quelhas manages to reverse the position and now he's in Ricardo's guard. Nice work there by Quelhas.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Ricardo is looking for a triangle here but Quelhas uses the submission attempt to pass into side control.
Quelhas taking a breather here.
Ricardo wants to escape from the position here - easier said than done!
Quelhas moves into full mount!
Quelhas trying to control but Ricardo is having none of it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ricardo is wriggling around trying to escape.
Quelhas content just to control the position here.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Quelhas seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Ricardo for as long as he can get away with.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Bernardo Quelhas 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.

Quelhas shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Ricardo as he avoids it easily.
Quelhas stuffs the takedown.

Ricardo gets a clinch.
Quelhas is defending well against a takedown attempt.
Quelhas tries to score a body lock takedown but Ricardo shows good agility there to stay on his feet.

Quelhas is working on a single leg takedown against the cage. Ricardo can't fight it off and eventually Quelhas manages to take the fight to the floor. Ricardo looks annoyed but at least he's managed to land in guard.
Quelhas is standing up over Ricardo. Ricardo looks to escape but Quelhas dives into side control.
Quelhas in side control lands a decent elbow.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Quelhas staying calm.
Ricardo sneaks back into half guard.
Ricardo is looking to escape.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Quelhas controlling the action here.
Bernardo Quelhas overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Quelhas prevents Ricardo from standing back up.
Quelhas winds up and cracks Ricardo with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Ricardo is pressing down on Quelhas's left leg trying to get back to full guard. He's managed it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Quelhas controls from within his opponent's guard.
Quelhas trying to control the position from guard on top but Ricardo is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Quelhas prevents Ricardo from getting back to his feet.
Ricardo is breathing heavily.
Ricardo looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Quelhas wants to control from the top but Ricardo keeps moving.
The referee is asking the fighters to pick up the pace.

The ref stands the fighters back up because Bernardo Quelhas just wasn't active enough.
Ricardo misses with a takedown attempt

and Quelhas counters with a nice double leg into guard.
Bernardo Quelhas has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Claudio Ricardo.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Quelhas trying to control the position from guard on top but Ricardo is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Ricardo keeping full guard, as Quelhas tries to pass.

Quelhas avoids a guillotine attempt easily.
Quelhas forces his way into half guard.
Quelhas not doing much here.
Quelhas working over Ricardo with some ground and pound. Ricardo looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Quelhas sitting and controlling from the half guard.

Ricardo actively working from the bottom here.
Quelhas is figuring out what he wants to do next.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.

Ricardo actively working from the bottom here.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Bernardo Quelhas dominated that second round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! And we move into the final round!

A momentary lapse in concentration from Ricardo enables Quelhas to shoot in and score with a neat double leg. Ricardo manages to secure a closed guard as the fighters hit the mat.
Quelhas trying to control but Ricardo is working from the bottom.
Quelhas advances position into side control!
The referee asks Quelhas politely if he wouldn't mind getting on with it and actually doing something. Quelhas prefers to stall for the moment though.
Ricardo is trying to control Quelhas's posture but Quelhas avoids it.
Ricardo is trying to escape the position but Quelhas is controlling the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Ricardo pushes Quelhas away and creates a bit of space to escape. He's almost out here... but no, Quelhas gets a good hold of his legs and remains firmly in side control.
Quelhas trying to control the position but Ricardo is working away.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.
Ricardo sneaks back into half guard.
Quelhas content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
Quelhas stops Ricardo from getting back to his feet.
Ricardo takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Quelhas wants to pass the guard but Ricardo is defending well.

Bernardo Quelhas has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
Quelhas shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Ricardo pinned against the cage. Ricardo gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ricardo looks for a takedown but Quelhas sprawls well.

Ricardo has closed the distance and engaged Quelhas in a clinch.
Ricardo is trying to pull guard but Quelhas turns him against the cage and we stay in the clinch.
Ricardo is looking for a takedown.
Bernardo Quelhas has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Claudio Ricardo.

Quelhas lands a takedown into guard.
Ricardo is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Quelhas looking to control the position here, rather than advance.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
We've had a lack of effective grappling in the last minute or so, which could well see a referee standup.

Bernardo Quelhas has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
Ricardo misses with a double jab

and Quelhas counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Quelhas.
Quelhas forces his way into half guard.
Ground and pound from Quelhas.
Still in half guard, Quelhas seems content to control.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Quelhas passes the guard and advances to mount!
Quelhas takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Quelhas scoring with some good ground and pound from mount here. Will he manage to finish Ricardo?
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Ricardo is trying to escape the mount.
Quelhas controlling from mount.

And that's the end of the fight!
Bernardo Quelhas showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Quelhas, 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 Paulo Santos scores the fight 30:27
Judge Alexandre Firmino scores the fight 30:27
Judge Felipe Paraventi scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Bernardo Quelhas!
Bernardo Quelhas was full of energy after the big win and talked about how he thinks he can do big things in this sport. The crowd were appreciative of his determination to succeed.