PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Franco Gomez (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Ana Balestra (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Well, the cameraman is lingering on a pretty young lady for a bit too long there. Keep your eyes on the fighters buddy or you'll miss the fighter intros!

Gomez
vs
Balestra

172 cm
20
142 lbs
4 - 6 - 0

169 cm
25
130 lbs
3 - 1 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter striker
KO power

Good wrestler
Brawler
Very confident

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 4 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Franco Gomez!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Ana Balestra!
The judges for this bout are Mauricio Rocha, Paulo Santos and Daniel Cesar.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Gomez throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Balestra's waist but Balestra gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Gomez off to one side.
Gomez tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Balestra paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Gomez closes this distance looking for a takedown but Balestra circles away.
Gomez looks for a takedown but Balestra sprawls well.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Franco Gomez. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Balestra closes the distance and clinches.

Balestra jumps guard and drags Gomez to the mat. He's obviously going to be looking for submissions off his back.
The referee is asking the fighters to pick up the pace.
Balestra is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Gomez preventing the sweep.
Gomez advances to half guard.
Gomez throwing shots but Balestra is blocking nicely.
Balestra is trying to control but can't.

Gomez is working for a submission of some sort.
Balestra is refusing to be controlled, as Gomez sits in half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Balestra tries to roll over but Gomez keeps him under control.
Balestra is looking to control Gomez's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Balestra avoid being mounted?
Gomez trying to control from half guard but Balestra is working away.
Balestra makes his way to full guard. A much better position for Balestra.
Balestra seems keen to control rather than go for a submission, at least for now.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Balestra keeping full guard, as Gomez tries to pass.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
Gomez closes this distance looking for a takedown but Balestra circles away.
Gomez doesn't manage to clinch there - Balestra circles away.
Gomez shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Balestra sprawls well. Balestra wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Gomez gets slowly back to his feet.

Balestra looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into mount! Oh, that's bad for Gomez!
Gomez sneaks a leg under to get to half guard.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Balestra controlling the action here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gomez trying to hold on to Balestra's head to control him but Balestra postures up.
Balestra with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.
Gomez gets full guard.
Balestra is in close to Gomez's body, working some short punches and elbows.
Balestra is looking to stand up but Gomez won't let him.

Gomez working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Balestra doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Balestra manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Balestra working some strikes from top position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Balestra with a flurry of punches that miss.
Balestra trying to control but Gomez is working from the bottom.
Balestra trying to pass the guard. He's being very persistent here but Gomez manages to land a sweep and now he's on top!
Gomez looking to pass the guard.
Gomez missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.

Balestra working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Gomez doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Gomez manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.

Balestra throwing his legs up looking for a triangle.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Ana Balestra dominated that round.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Balestra shoots in looking for a takedown. Gomez tries to sprawl out of it but Balestra keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Gomez manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.

Gomez tries to keep at a distance but Balestra has taken the fight into the clinch.
Balestra goes for a takedown attempt but Gomez pushes him away and we're back to fighting at a distance.

Balestra has closed the distance and engaged Gomez in a clinch.
Gomez gets underhooks to prevent Balestra's takedown attempt.
Franco Gomez has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Ana Balestra.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gomez has dropped down and is looking to force the takedown but it's defended by Balestra after a bit of a struggle.
Balestra struggles to land a body shot inside as Gomez controls his hands.
Gomez lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Balestra fails to pull guard.
Gomez is working on a leg, looking for a takedown but Balestra is defending well.
Balestra tries to land knees in the clinch but Gomez avoids the damage to the body.

Balestra has managed to pull guard. Let's see whether he can work an aggressive guard. It will also be interesting to see what tactics Gomez uses from the top position.
Gomez trying to control the position from guard on top but Balestra is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Balestra looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Balestra trying to keep a closed guard but Gomez is proving a slippery customer.
Gomez tries to stand but Balestra is controlling from the bottom.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Gomez trying to control but Balestra is working from the bottom.
Ana Balestra has got the better of the ground game so far.
Gomez has decided he wants to stand but the closed guard of Balestra is proving hard to escape from.

The ref stands the fighters back up because Franco Gomez just wasn't active enough.
Gomez fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Gomez takes a step back and watches a body kick go sailing past his mid section.
Gomez looks frustrated there after his takedown attempt is stuffed easily.
Ana Balestra seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

Balestra closes the distance and pushes Gomez back into the cage.
Balestra can't get the takedown.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Balestra turns his back and goes for a hip toss. It's a bit messy but it gets the job done and Balestra manages to end up in side control.
Balestra working the head with strikes.
Gomez tries to get back to half guard but can't.

Balestra stands up and we're back to a striking position.
Balestra throws a left and a right that both miss
enabling Gomez to counter with a crisp jab.
Balestra throws a sloppy head kick
and Gomez counters with a left and a right that stings Balestra.
Franco Gomez is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Balestra is breathing heavily.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Balestra.
Gomez shoots in looking for a takedown but Balestra manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Gomez's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!

Balestra closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Balestra trying to control the position but instead, Gomez has worked for underhooks and has pushed Balestra into the cage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gomez tries to pull guard but Balestra holds him up against the cage and eventually Gomez drops back down to his feet.

Gomez gets control of Balestra's arms and successfully pulls guard. Gomez will no doubt be looking for submissions off his back.
Gomez throwing strikes off his back to little effect.
Balestra passes into half guard.
Balestra stops Gomez from getting back to his feet.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Balestra slows the pace down in half guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Ana Balestra showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action. This is the final round!

No luck for Gomez with that takedown attempt.

A momentary lapse in concentration from Gomez enables Balestra to shoot in and score with a neat double leg. Gomez manages to secure a closed guard as the fighters hit the mat.
Gomez trying to keep a closed guard but Balestra is proving a slippery customer.
Balestra stopping the sweep attempt from Gomez.
Balestra looking to control the position here, rather than advance.
Gomez looking for a sweep. Not yet Gomez, not yet.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Balestra looking to pass the guard.
We must be close to a standup if these guys don't pick up the pace.

Gomez is working an open guard so Balestra takes the opportunity to get back to his feet.
Balestra misses the shot to the body.
Gomez closes the distance but Balestra moves to the side

and Balestra decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Gomez's guard.

Gomez throwing his legs up looking for a triangle.
Balestra must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Balestra trying to control the position from guard on top but Gomez is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Gomez is working an open guard so Balestra takes the opportunity to get back to his feet.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Balestra throws a right and a left that both miss.
Gomez shoots in but doesn't get the takedown

so Balestra counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Balestra is standing up over Gomez. Gomez looks to escape but Balestra dives into side control.
Balestra creates a bit of distance and throws down some hard shots.
Gomez is looking for a sweep.
Gomez regains half guard.
Gomez is looking to improve his position.
Gomez is looking to control Balestra's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Gomez avoid being mounted?

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Balestra is looking to take a break and control but Gomez is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Balestra is taking a breather. Gomez 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.
Gomez is looking for a sweep. Balestra is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Gomez trying to hold on to Balestra's head to control him but Balestra postures up.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Balestra stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Balestra wants it to stay on the feet.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Franco Gomez. That's going to take a lot out of him.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Balestra.
Balestra fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Gomez avoids it really well and circles away.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Gomez gets tackled into the cage by Balestra. Balestra maintains the clinch.
Balestra has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.

Balestra jumps guard and drags Gomez to the mat. He's obviously going to be looking for submissions off his back.
Balestra trying to control the position.
Balestra preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Franco Gomez has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Balestra managing to control the position.
Ana Balestra is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Balestra has momentary wrist control but Gomez slips an elbow through the middle.

And that's the end of the fight!
Ana Balestra comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Balestra winning every round here. Surely the decision will go his way and he'll pick up a well deserved decision victory. 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 Mauricio Rocha scores the fight 27:30
Judge Paulo Santos scores the fight 27:30
Judge Daniel Cesar scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Ana Balestra!