PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Haral Dir (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Imran Khan (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Buckle up people - heeeeeeeeeere we go!

Dir
vs
Khan

181 cm
34
205 lbs
14 - 18 - 0

186 cm
23
210 lbs
1 - 2 - 0

Good wrestling
Basic striking
Very strong

BJJ Blue Belt
Excellent MT
Solid chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 14 - 18 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Haral Dir!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Imran Khan!
The judges for this bout are John Mangel, Winston Howard and Hugh Johnson.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Dir shoots in for a takedown but Khan shows good takedown defense.
Khan tries to clinch but Dir moves out of range.
Haral Dir seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Khan tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Dir paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Khan tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Dir pulls out of a head kick attempt.
The fight stays on the outside here - Khan looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Khan misses with a hook.
Dir wants to clinch.
Dir takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.

Dir feints and then dives in with a takedown. That was a long way out but the feint bought him enough time to close the distance and complete the takedown. Now we'll play guard for a bit and see who can get the better of that position.
Khan being controlled here, momentarily.

Dir stands up from guard. Let's bang!
Khan tries to clinch but Dir is having none of it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Khan moves in looking to clinch but Dir pushes him off.

Dir clinches with his opponent.
Khan looks to throw an elbow but misses.
Khan is trying to force a seperation but Dir has the dominant position.
Khan with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Khan dictating the pace here, as the fighters clinch against the cage.
Khan using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Dir has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Dir is struggling to control the position.
Khan is pushing Dir up against the cage, for a bit of lean and pray action. Action being used the in the loosest possible sense of the word.
Khan throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Dirs head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Dir is working hard here but doesn't seem to be able to control effectively, up against the cage.
An uppercut to the body lands inside from Khan.
Khan creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
Dir goes for a takedown in the clinch but Khan prevents it.
Khan tries to break free but Dir pushes him back against the cage.
Khan is stalling here. The referee will be looking to step in if he doesn't pick up the pace.
Khan wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Dir has him pressed against the cage.
Dir avoiding damage as Khan throws knees to the body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Khan is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Dir is defending well for now.
Khan is trying to push Dir away but Dir has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Khan lands with a short shot to the head.
Khan tries to land knees in the clinch but Dir avoids the damage to the body.
Dir managing to block the knees to the body from Khan.
Dir keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Khan's efforts to push away.
A battle for position here, against the cage.
Khan lands a shoulder strike.
Khan throws a head punch that misses.
Khan misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Dir.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Khan stalling here - the referee won't stand for too much of that.

Dir breaks the clinch.
Dir will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Haral Dir. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Dir changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Khan tries to avoid it but Dir manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Khan to the ground. Khan escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Dir finds nothing but air with that leg kick attempt.
Nice body punch from Khan.
Khan tries to close the distance and clinch but Dir swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Khan fails with an attempt to clinch.
Dir shoots in and drives through. Khan sprawls well.
Khan keeps the fight on the outside.
Khan lands a nice looking body kick.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Khan fails in his attempt to clinch.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.

Khan tries to sprawl but Dir drives through with a takedown into half guard.
Khan wants to get back to his feet.
Dir tries to pass to full mount but Khan defends it.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Imran Khan will probably get the nod.
That's time! Back to the action!

Dir avoids a punch combination nicely.

Dir looking for a takedown here - he's got it.
Dir preventing the sweep.

Khan pushes Dir off for just long enough to get back to his feet. Very athletic spring there.
Khan fails with an attempt to clinch.

Khan closes the distance and clinches.
Khan with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Khan wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Khan misses with a knee to the head.
Khan tries to land a knee to the head but misses.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Khan is looking to control Dir's arms but Dir gets an underhook and turns him. Now Khan has his back to the cage.
Khan misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Dir tries for a takedown. No joy.
Khan tries to land a knee to the head but Dir blocks with his arms.
Khan trying to stall but Dir improves his position.
Khan is looking to break free of the clinch but Dir has double underhooks.
Khan with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Dir avoiding damage as Khan throws knees to the body.
Khan is trying to break free.
Dir managing to block the knees to the body from Khan.
Khan on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Khan tries to land knees in the clinch but Dir avoids the damage to the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Khan's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Dir looks for a takedown but Khan sprawls well.
Dir shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Khan as he jumps to the side.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Haral Dir. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Dir looks for a takedown. He's got it. We're now in half guard.
Dir controlling the action here.
Dir prevents Khan from standing back up.
Dir not doing much here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Khan is staying active underneath Dir, who seems content to just control the action from this position.
Dir perhaps working for something from half guard, or maybe not. It looks like he's just sitting there.

We're going to have a standup here because Haral Dir wasn't active enough for the referee's liking.
Khan tries to clinch up but Dir circles away and keeps his distance.
Dir tries to clinch there but Khan circles away.
The fight stays on the outside here - Dir looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Dir fails with an attempt to clinch.
Imran Khan is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.

Dir fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Khan, pushing him back against the cage.
Khan is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Khan swings wildly with an uppercut but Dir uses good head movement to avoid it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Khan prevents a takedown attempt there.
Dir is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.
Khan landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Dir trying to control the position but instead, Khan has worked for underhooks and has pushed Dir into the cage.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Khan landing some nice looking knees to the body.
Dir drops down looking for an ankle pick but Khan pulls his leg out and moves away.
Khan throws a right high kick that is partially blocked by Dir.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close second round but Imran Khan will probably get the nod - 10:9.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action. So, we enter the final round. Let's see if either fighter can bring us a finish, or whether we're going to the judges scorecards.

Khan misses with a jab, cross combination.
A low kick from Dir is predictable there
and Khan cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Khan doesn't manage to clinch there - Dir circles away.

A momentary lapse in concentration from Khan enables Dir to shoot in and score with a neat double leg. Khan manages to secure a closed guard as the fighters hit the mat.

Khan is looking for a triangle here but Dir uses the submission attempt to pass into side control.
Khan is looking to regain half guard here but Dir keeps moving and retains side control.
Dir taking a breather here.
Khan tries to bench press Dir off him but Dir keeps the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Dir decides to stand back up.
Dir moves in looking to clinch but Khan pushes him off.

Khan gets a clinch.
Khan has had enough of the clinch but Dir keeps him there for the moment.
Dir blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Dir is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Dir on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Khan tries to break the clinch but Dir is controlling the position.
Khan is trying to break the clinch but Dir has him pressed against the cage.
Dir takes a knee to the side of the body.
Khan lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Khan with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Khan fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
A knee to the head by Khan.
Khan misses with a knee strike.
Dir managing to block the knees to the body from Khan.
Dir has dropped down and is looking to force the takedown but it's defended by Khan after a bit of a struggle.
Khan is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Khan lands a knee to the head.
Khan can't break the clinch.
Khan trying to land knees to the body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Khan is trying to break free.
Khan lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!
Dir stalling in the clinch but Khan improves position.
Good anti-grappling being displayed by Dir as Khan tries to tie him up.
Khan tries to land a knee to the head but Dir blocks with his arms.
Khan misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Khan prevents the takedown attempt.
Imran Khan is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Khan can't find room to land a body shot as Dir controls the action.
Khan is defending well against a takedown attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Haral Dir. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Good anti-grappling being displayed by Dir as Khan tries to tie him up.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Dir managing to block the knees to the body from Khan.
Dir is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Khan gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.
Khan lands a nice knee to the body.
Dir drops to a knee looking for a takedown but Khan gets the underhooks and prevents it.
Khan working some nice short punches in the clinch.
Haral Dir has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Khan lands a body shot in the clinch.

And that's the end of the fight!
Imran Khan comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Khan 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 John Mangel scores the fight 27:30
Judge Winston Howard scores the fight 27:30
Judge Hugh Johnson scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Imran Khan!