PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Andre Ribero (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and John Nwachukwu (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Ribero
vs
Nwachukwu

185 cm
20
210 lbs
6 - 3 - 0

189 cm
21
205 lbs
8 - 3 - 0

BJJ Brown Belt
Counter fighter
KO power

BJJ Purple Belt
Decent knees
Powerful

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 6 - 3 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Andre Ribero!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 8 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, John Nwachukwu!
The judges for this bout are Aleksei Zolotukhin, Illya Tyunina and Dmitry Maklakov.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Nwachukwu gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Nwachukwu.
Nwachukwu lands a knee to the head.
Ribero can't get the takedown.
Nwachukwu lands a left hand that snaps the head of Ribero backwards.
Ribero managing to block the knees to the body from Nwachukwu.
Ribero is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the cage enables Nwachukwu to keep the fight standing.
Nwachukwu lands a body punch.
Nwachukwu misses with a knee strike.

Ribero pulls guard successfully.
Nwachukwu tries to free his leg and advance position but Ribero is retaining full guard.

Ribero escapes his hips to the side and looks to be working for an armbar. Nwachukwu gives him a little smile and shakes his head. No chance.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Nwachukwu stays in close to Ribero's body and controls the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Ribero working a defensive guard here.
Nwachukwu is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.

Nwachukwu drops back for a leg! It's a sloppy attempt though and Nwachukwu jumps back into guard quickly, to retain the dominant position.
Nwachukwu showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Nwachukwu trying to control but Ribero is working from the bottom.

The ref calls for a clean break and stands the fighters back up. John Nwachukwu wasn't active enough on the ground.
Nwachukwu takes a swing at Ribero's ribcage but misses.
Nwachukwu throws a sloppy head kick and Ribero moves out of range easily.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ribero with a poor takedown

and Nwachukwu holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Andre Ribero. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Ribero wants a takedown.
Ribero drops down for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Nwachukwu with a knee to the head.
Nwachukwu throws a knee to the head but misses.
Kneeeeees! The crowd are calling for knees to the body. Nwachukwu obliges.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Ribero takes a knee right on the jaw!

It looks like Andre Ribero has been cut.
Nwachukwu tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Ribero's elbow.
Nwachukwu connects with a nasty looking knee right to Ribero's face.
Ribero tries to pull guard but Nwachukwu won't allow it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Ribero fails to pull the fight into his guard.
The two fighters are working to gain dominance in the clinch.
Ribero wants to take the fight to the mat but Nwachukwu manages to get underhooks and keep the fight in the clinch.
Ribero jumps guard but Nwachukwu turns him against the cage and keeps the fight standing.
Ribero jumps guard but Nwachukwu stands there with Ribero around his waist. Ribero gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Nwachukwu landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Ribero is breathing heavily.
Nwachukwu with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
Nwachukwu is trying to wear down his opponent with knees to the body.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Nwachukwu taking a break, stalling in the clinch.
Ribero avoiding damage as Nwachukwu throws knees to the body.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Nwachukwu with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
Nwachukwu landing knees to the head.
Nwachukwu looking to throw knees to the head but Ribero is blocking nicely.
Nwachukwu scores a nice knee to the body.
Nwachukwu using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.
Nwachukwu crunches a lovely knee into Ribero's ribcage.
Nwachukwu putting his Muay Thai to good use. He has Ribero in a tight clinch and is doing some damage with knees to the body.
Nwachukwu using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Ribero has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Nwachukwu misses with a knee to the head.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Come on Nwachukwu - let's have some action - none of this stalling nonsense.
Nwachukwu putting his Muay Thai to good use. He has Ribero in a tight clinch and is doing some damage with knees to the body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

John Nwachukwu dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Andre Ribero's cut.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Nwachukwu lands a high kick to the side of Ribero's head that stuns him and send him tumbling down to the canvas! Nwachukwu dives into guard, looking to finish.

Ribero is rocked!
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Ribero looking for a sweep. Not yet Ribero, not yet.
Nwachukwu trying to control the position from guard on top but Ribero is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Nwachukwu pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Ribero is keeping the position for now.
Nwachukwu 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.

Ribero has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but Nwachukwu can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.
Nwachukwu wants to control from the top but Ribero keeps moving.
Nwachukwu sneaks a leg through and gets to half guard. That was like a knife through butter how easily he passed Ribero's guard.

Nwachukwu is thinking about going for an arm triangle but he can't free his leg.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Ribero is looking to control Nwachukwu's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Ribero avoid being mounted?
Nwachukwu tries to stand but his hand is stuck under Ribero.
Nwachukwu wants to pass to mount but Ribero is defending the position.

Ribero is defending against the submission attempts here by Nwachukwu.
Ribero is trying to get back to full guard.
Nwachukwu really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Ribero. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.

Nwachukwu seems to be working for a kimura but Ribero defends the submission attempt.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Nwachukwu is working for submissions here but there's nothing on.

Ribero looking for submissions from an awkward position here.
Ribero gets back to full guard.
Ribero wants to control here, rather than go for any submissions from the bottom. At least for now.
Nwachukwu passes Ribero's left leg - he's now in half guard.

Ribero actively working from the bottom here.

Nwachukwu is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Nwachukwu scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Ribero is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Ribero moves into full guard.
Nwachukwu slips nicely into half guard.
Nwachukwu is thwarting Ribero's attempts to control the position.

Nwachukwu is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Ribero is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Nwachukwu pulls his head out easily.

Nwachukwu seems to be looking for submissions.

Ribero is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Nwachukwu pulls his head out easily.
Nwachukwu seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Ribero does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Nwachukwu is in a good position here but he's just trying to control... And he's not even managing to do that successfully.
John Nwachukwu has got the better of the ground game so far.

Nwachukwu is trying to work for a kimura but Ribero is defending well.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Nwachukwu wants to pass the guard but Ribero is defending well.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

John Nwachukwu showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Andre Ribero's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Ribero gets cracked there but stands up to it.

Nwachukwu gets a clinch.
Nwachukwu using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Ribero has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Nwachukwu tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Ribero avoids it.
Nwachukwu tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Ribero's elbow.
Nwachukwu trying to land knees to the body.
Ribero tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Nwachukwu just stands there and leans against the cage.
Nwachukwu tries a knee to the head but Ribero blocks it.
Ribero has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Nwachukwu avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.
Ribero jumps guard but Nwachukwu stands there with Ribero around his waist. Ribero gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Andre Ribero. That's going to take a lot out of him.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Nwachukwu tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Ribero is looking to take this one to the mat.
Ribero is trying to drag Nwachukwu to the mat but Nwachukwu just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
Nwachukwu lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!
Ribero is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Nwachukwu softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Nwachukwu throws a knee to the head but misses.
Nwachukwu stalling in the clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Nwachukwu struggles to land a body shot inside as Ribero controls his hands.
Nwachukwu misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Ribero.
Nwachukwu with a knee to the head.
Nwachukwu lands with a short shot to the head.
John Nwachukwu seems to be working more effectively in the clinch in the fight so far.
Nwachukwu with a knee to the head.
Nwachukwu with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Nwachukwu is pushing Ribero up against the cage, for a bit of lean and pray action. Action being used the in the loosest possible sense of the word.
Nwachukwu scores a nice knee to the body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Nwachukwu working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Nwachukwu utilising his Muay Thai to score with a knee to the body.
Nwachukwu landing some nice looking knees to the body.
Nwachukwu has Ribero pressed against the cage.
Nwachukwu using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Ribero has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Nwachukwu slows down the pace here.
Ribero fails to pull the fight into his guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Nwachukwu tries a knee to the head but he's missed.

Ribero jumps into guard, dragging Nwachukwu to the mat.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

Nwachukwu gets to his feet - Ribero follows without any prompting.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Nwachukwu throws a right high kick that is partially blocked by Ribero.
Nwachukwu lands the left hand.
A good leg kick by Nwachukwu.
Ribero with a lazy takedown attempt
and Nwachukwu counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Ribero with a lazy takedown attempt
and Nwachukwu counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.

A big head kick from Nwachukwu and Ribero is sent sprawling to the canvas!
Oh Ribero is still in real trouble! Will he be able to recover?!!
Nwachukwu trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

John Nwachukwu really dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Andre Ribero's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Nwachukwu lands a nice looking body shot.
Ribero seems to have got his legs back now.
Ribero circles away from the clinch attempt

and Ribero counters with a nice single leg takedown and he's in Nwachukwu's guard now.
Nwachukwu wants to stand and escape but Ribero is having none of it.
Ribero wants to pass the guard but Nwachukwu is keeping the position.
Ribero is working hard here to advance position.
Ribero won't allow Nwachukwu to get back to his feet.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.

Ribero has gone for a leg lock! Nwachukwu slips out almost immediately though and dives into Ribero's guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Nwachukwu trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Nwachukwu is looking to pass into half guard but Ribero pushes him away with his feet and jumps on top - now Ribero is in guard.

Ribero has gone for a leg lock! Nwachukwu slips out almost immediately though and dives into Ribero's guard.

Ribero is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
It's got to the stage where if one of these guys blows hard enough, the other might fall over.
Nwachukwu trying to control but Ribero is working from the bottom.
Nwachukwu looking to pass the guard.
Nwachukwu wants to control from the top but Ribero keeps moving.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Ribero throws his legs up looking to secure a triangle. Oh, that looks pretty tight, I gotta say! Nwachukwu escapes and throws Ribero's legs to the side, diving into side control!
Nwachukwu wants to lay and pray for a moment but Ribero keeps working.
You can see the frustration on Ribero's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Nwachukwu trying to control the action but Ribero is working from the bottom.
You can see the frustration on Ribero's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Nwachukwu tries for a kimura but Ribero is defending well.

Nwachukwu tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Ribero gets back to half guard.

Ribero looking for submissions off his back.

Ribero looking to work for a kimura from the bottom.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Nwachukwu is looking to take a break and control but Ribero is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Nwachukwu trying to control the pace.

Ribero looking for submissions off his back.

Ribero is defending against the submission attempts here by Nwachukwu.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.

Nwachukwu is working for a kimura but Ribero is defending it quite comfortably.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close fourth round but John Nwachukwu will probably get the nod - 10:9.
The cut man is working on Andre Ribero's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! This is the final round!

Nwachukwu pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Nwachukwu throws a head kick that misses

and Ribero decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Nwachukwu's guard.
Nwachukwu wants to stand up but Ribero is controlling him.
Nwachukwu keeping moving, preventing Ribero from controlling successfully.
Ribero looking to pass the guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Ribero slips nicely into half guard.
Ribero trying to mount his opponent but Nwachukwu defends it.
Ribero stops Nwachukwu from getting back to his feet.
Nwachukwu scrambles, trying to get to his feet, but Ribero manages to mount him!

Ribero swings around for an armbar but it's a sloppy attempt and Nwachukwu is now in Ribero's guard. A big mistake from Ribero there, giving up the dominant position!

Ribero is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Nwachukwu defends well.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Nwachukwu trying to control but Ribero is working from the bottom.

Nwachukwu has gone for a leg lock! Ribero slips out almost immediately though and dives into Nwachukwu's guard.

Ribero drops back, looking for a kneebar! Nwachukwu looks panicked! The fighters roll across the mat, one looking to finish, one looking to escape. Nwachukwu looks to have wriggled free... Yes, he's got his leg free and he's dived into side control! Good work there from Nwachukwu!
Nwachukwu lands some shots froms side control.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!

Nwachukwu looking for an arm triangle but it's way too loose to do anything.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Nwachukwu tries for an arm triangle. That looks pretty tight to me. Is this one over!?! Possibly, maybe, no Nwachukwu has let go of the choke. Obviously it wasn't as tight as we thought!
Nwachukwu tries to move into full mount but can't pass Ribero's legs.
Ribero manages to land a sweep and he's now on top! Lovely Jiu Jitsu!
Ribero wants to lay and pray for a moment but Nwachukwu keeps working.

Nwachukwu kicks Ribero off and gets back to his feet.
Nwachukwu throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Good leg kick by Nwachukwu there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Nwachukwu misses with a body kick.
John Nwachukwu seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Ribero doesn't succeed with the takedown

and Nwachukwu holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.
Andre Ribero has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Nwachukwu tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Nwachukwu working Ribero over with knees to the body.
Nwachukwu scores with a knee to the head.
Nwachukwu has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Nwachukwu tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Ribero tries for a takedown. No joy.
Nwachukwu blocks an uppercut.

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 Andre Ribero.
Well Nwachukwu has outworked and out performed his opponent in all aspects of the game today. He was simply too good and the decision should be no more than a formality. Over to the ring announcer for the scorecards.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 5 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Aleksei Zolotukhin scores the fight 46:50
Judge Illya Tyunina scores the fight 46:49
Judge Dmitry Maklakov scores the fight 47:48

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... John Nwachukwu!
John Nwachukwu took his opportunity to call for a title shot in his post fight interview.