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PBP Commentary |
Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Suporn Red Gym (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Kazushi Sakuraba (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Red Gym comes to the cage accompanied by It's a long road. Sakuraba has chosen Lose yourself as his entrance music. Kazushi Sakuraba has the eye of the tiger tonight.
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| 178 cm
29
189 lbs
23 - 15 - 0 |
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185 cm
25
201 lbs
11 - 0 - 1 |
Great wrestler
Excellent boxer
Insanely flexible |
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Good wrestler
Excellent MT
Good gas tank |
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Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the middleweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of
23 - 15 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Suporn Red Gym!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of
11 - 0 - 1, fighting out of Sydney, Kazushi Sakuraba!
The judges for this bout are Summer Carpenter, Winston Howard and Bruno Hogan.
The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Some bone on bone action there as Red Gym checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Jab, jab by Sakuraba - just one landing.
Sakuraba attempts a low kick but it misses it's target.
Sakuraba with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Red Gym shoots in looking for a takedown but Sakuraba manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Red Gym's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Red Gym keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Sakuraba.
Red Gym walks straight into an uppercut. Luckily it didn't land flush.
Red Gym shoots in but Sakuraba avoids the takedown attempt easily.
A solid leg kick lands there for Sakuraba.
Sakuraba ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Sakuraba misses with a wild body shot.
Sakuraba feints and then cracks Red Gym's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Red Gym down.
Kazushi Sakuraba seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Red Gym shoots in and gets a takedown into Sakuraba's guard.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Sakuraba manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Red Gym manages to get himself to full guard.
Sakuraba trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Sakuraba is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Red Gym wants to control but Sakuraba passes easily into half guard.
Sakuraba takes a deep breath and rests his weight momentarily on top of his opponent, to control the position.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Red Gym moves into full guard.
Red Gym tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Sakuraba is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
Red Gym wants to sweep but no luck.
The ref stands the fighters back up. Kazushi Sakuraba was stalling too much, according to the referee.
Sakuraba is looking to land body kicks.
Sakuraba connects with an inside leg kick.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sakuraba cracks Red Gym with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.
Nice straight punches there by Red Gym. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Red Gym.
Sakuraba throws a hook but Red Gym avoids it easily.
Sakuraba misses with a low kick.
Sakuraba lands a leg kick and bounces back out of range.
Sakuraba throws a sloppy head kick and Red Gym moves out of range easily.
Sakuraba lands a jab to Red Gym's midsection.
Red Gym fails with a takedown attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Suporn Red Gym. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Red Gym slips a jab and a cross from Sakuraba.
Sakuraba displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Red Gym.
No luck with that takedown attempt from Red Gym.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Red Gym misses with a takedown attempt - Sakuraba sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Sakuraba throws a right hand that Red Gym ducks under and follows up with a left that Red Gym also avoids with ease.
Red Gym shoots in but Sakuraba avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Sakuraba throws a jab but it's blocked by Red Gym.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Sakuraba lets the fists fly and connects with a left straight followed by a right hook.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Red Gym drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.
Sakuraba preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
Kazushi Sakuraba dominated that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.
Red Gym avoids the head kick by Sakuraba.
A cross from Sakuraba lands.
Sakuraba catches Red Gym with a nice straight right. He seems pissed - ooooh, it's on now! On like donkey kong!
Sakuraba throws a body kick that misses.
Red Gym fakes a strike and closes the distance, dragging Sakuraba to the ground. Red Gym is now in Sakuraba's guard.
Red Gym working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Red Gym throwing strikes from guard but Sakuraba blocks nicely.
Red Gym in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Sakuraba is trying to keep Red Gym in close.
Sakuraba working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Red Gym.
Red Gym throws a strike but Sakuraba rolls with it and manages to sweep. Now he's in guard on top.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Sakuraba wants to control from the top but Red Gym keeps moving.
Red Gym is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Red Gym keeping full guard, as Sakuraba tries to pass.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.
Sakuraba sitting in guard here, content to control.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
OK we're going to have a standup here. Kazushi Sakuraba hasn't been effective enough on the ground and the referee wants a restart.
Sakuraba ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Red Gym moves away.
Sakuraba stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Sakuraba wants it to stay on the feet.
Some wild striking there from Sakuraba.
Sakuraba connects with a lovely right hand, straight down the pipe.
Sakuraba thumps Red Gym with a low kick.
Sakuraba swings for the body but Red Gym moves out of range.
Red Gym throws a jab when Sakuraba was well out of range.
Sakuraba chopping away at his opponent's legs.
Sakuraba fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Red Gym lands a jab.
Sakuraba connects with a right hand. Red Gym shakes it off.
A solid leg kick lands there for Sakuraba.
Red Gym shoots in for a takedown but Sakuraba shows good takedown defense.
A good leg kick by Sakuraba.
Red Gym slips a straight right by Sakuraba.
Sakuraba pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Sakuraba throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Red Gym checks a low kick from Sakuraba.
Sakuraba misses with a lunging right hand
and Red Gym counters with a takedown into side control.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Red Gym working the ground and pound.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Red Gym misses with an attempted head punch from side control.
Sakuraba parries the strikes from Red Gym easily there. Red Gym is wary of posturing up too much because it might enable Sakuraba to escape.
Sakuraba is looking for a sweep.
Red Gym looking to punish the body of his opponent here but Sakuraba is avoiding damage well.
Red Gym tries to score with some ground and pound. Sakuraba controls his posture well this time though and the shots don't do any damage.
Red Gym sitting in side control, looking to soften his opponent up with elbows and hammerfists but Sakuraba is avoiding damage well and looking to escape the position.
Sakuraba takes a big shot right to the temple there but he's taken it well.
Red Gym working the head and body with strikes.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Red Gym cracks Sakuraba with an elbow. That is naaassty.
Red Gym misses with a strike but at least he's keeping busy, looking to cause some damage - that will still help him when it comes to the judges scorecards.
The ground and pound from Red Gym seems to be hitting the mat more than his opponent.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
Suporn Red Gym dominated that second round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.
Red Gym ducks under a wild hook from Sakuraba.
Red Gym dives in and grabs Sakuraba's left leg, looking for a takedown. Sakuraba pushes down on Red Gym's head and hops out.
A leg kick checked by Red Gym.
A head kick misses from Sakuraba.
Sakuraba misses the jab.
Red Gym doesn't react quick enough there as he takes a shot to the body.
Sakuraba moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Kazushi Sakuraba seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Sakuraba connects with a solid leg kick.
Red Gym displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Sakuraba throws out the jab.
Sakuraba swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Sakuraba keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Red Gym bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Red Gym avoids a low kick by using good footwork.
Sakuraba tries to score with a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Sakuraba throws a hook but Red Gym avoids it easily.
Red Gym blocks a low kick nicely.
Sakuraba displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Red Gym.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Suporn Red Gym. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Sakuraba looks to land a body kick but Red Gym moved away.
A nice leg kick lands there from Sakuraba.
Red Gym takes a shot to the body in his stride.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Sakuraba swings widly with a right hand
and Red Gym counters with a nice double leg into guard.
Suporn Red Gym overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Sakuraba uses the cage to get back to his feet.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Red Gym throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Sakuraba's waist but Sakuraba gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Red Gym off to one side.
Sakuraba dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Sakuraba lands a high kick!
Sakuraba misses with a looping left.
Sakuraba lands a jab to the nose.
Sakuraba throws a leg kick but Red Gym moved away.
Red Gym shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Sakuraba sprawls well. Sakuraba wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Red Gym gets slowly back to his feet.
Sakuraba misses with a right hand
and Red Gym counters with a takedown into side control! That could mean trouble for Sakuraba!
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sakuraba tries to buck Red Gym off but Red Gym is having none of it.
Sakuraba is trying to control Red Gym's posture but Red Gym avoids it.
Sakuraba parries the strikes from Red Gym easily there. Red Gym is wary of posturing up too much because it might enable Sakuraba to escape.
You can see the frustration on Sakuraba's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Sakuraba dodges the ground and pound from Red Gym.
Red Gym looks up at the clock and then as Sakuraba takes his cue and looks up at the clock too, Red Gym smacks him right in the chops with a big elbow! How rude!
Sakuraba is looking to reverse the position.
Red Gym postures up a little and throws a couple of hammerfists but they don't connect properly.
Red Gym sitting in side control, looking to soften his opponent up with elbows and hammerfists but Sakuraba is avoiding damage well and looking to escape the position.
Red Gym looks up at the clock and then as Sakuraba takes his cue and looks up at the clock too, Red Gym smacks him right in the chops with a big elbow! How rude!
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Red Gym is trying to ground and pound but Sakuraba uses the momentary lack of control by Red Gym to regain half guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Red Gym wants to advance to full mount but Sakuraba doesn't think that's going to happen and regains full guard instead.
Red Gym loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Red Gym advances position into side control!
The ground and pound from Red Gym seems to be hitting the mat more than his opponent.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Sakuraba manages to land a sweep and he's now on top! Lovely Jiu Jitsu!
Red Gym wants to control but Sakuraba is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Red Gym tries to get to full guard but Sakuraba has control of the leg.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
A close third round but Kazushi Sakuraba just about did enough to take it.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action.
A head kick from Sakuraba lands but Red Gym takes it in his stride.
Sakuraba fakes a jab and throws a low kick but Red Gym checks it well.
Red Gym throws a loose over hand right and dives in with a double leg takedown. Sakuraba tries to sprawl but it's too late and the fighters hit the mat. Red Gym is in Sakuraba's guard.
Red Gym loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Red Gym postures up in Sakuraba's guard and throws a big left but Sakuraba blocks it.
Sakuraba utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Sakuraba is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Red Gym throws an elbow that misses. Sakuraba uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Red Gym's guard. Nice move by Sakuraba!
Red Gym wants to control but instead he gets his guard passed and Sakuraba is now in half guard.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Sakuraba controlling the pace.
Sakuraba tries to stand and escape but Red Gym is controlling the position.
Sakuraba is pressing down on Red Gym's thigh, looking to free his foot. Red Gym is holding on for now.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Red Gym wants to get back to his feet.
Red Gym is looking for a sweep. Sakuraba is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
It looks like the ref is thinking about a standup.
Kazushi Sakuraba has forced the referee to step in and restart the fight on the feet.
Red Gym takes a jab right on the kisser.
Red Gym moves out of range of the body kick.
Kazushi Sakuraba is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Sakuraba throws a sloppy head kick and Red Gym moves out of range easily.
Sakuraba buckles his opponent's knee momentarily with a nice leg kick.
Red Gym avoids a low kick by using good footwork.
Sakuraba swings widly with a right hand
and Red Gym counters with a nice double leg into guard.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Red Gym throws an elbow that misses. Sakuraba uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Red Gym's guard. Nice move by Sakuraba!
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Red Gym keeping moving, preventing Sakuraba from controlling successfully.
Sakuraba is standing up over Red Gym. Red Gym looks to escape but Sakuraba dives into side control.
Red Gym manages to work his way to half guard, despite Sakuraba's best efforts.
Well, if Sakuraba is going to just lie there, perhaps we should talk about what we're having for dinner tonight… I'm having a ham and pineapple pizza… Yum. Can't wait.
Red Gym is trying to get back to full guard.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Red Gym trying to control here but he's found himself mounted! Oh no!
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Sakuraba controlling from mount.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
That was a close fourth round but I would say that Suporn Red Gym will probably get the nod.
That's time! Red Gym's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight. 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.
Red Gym avoids the body shot from Sakuraba.
A head kick misses from Sakuraba.
Sakuraba throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Red Gym gets a takedown into half guard.
Sakuraba keeping control of the position.
Red Gym throws a big elbow that misses, also allowing Sakuraba to regain full guard.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Red Gym landing with the ground and pound.
Sakuraba seems keen to control rather than go for a submission, at least for now.
Red Gym missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Red Gym cracks Sakuraba with a solid left hand.
Red Gym in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Red Gym throws an elbow that misses. Sakuraba uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Red Gym's guard. Nice move by Sakuraba!
Red Gym wants to control but instead he gets his guard passed and Sakuraba is now in half guard.
Red Gym slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Sakuraba controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.
Sakuraba stopping the sweep attempt from Red Gym.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sakuraba's corner is telling him to maintain position.
Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Sakuraba scores with a leg kick.
Red Gym shoots in for a takedown from distance. He catches Sakuraba napping and manages to drive through into side control!
Red Gym creates some space and throws a big elbow, but Sakuraba sees it coming and moves his head just enough to avoid the strike.
Red Gym working the strikes but Sakuraba uses the opportunity to regain half guard.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Red Gym looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
Red Gym is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Red Gym wants to free his trapped foot but Sakuraba is holding on for dear life with his legs.
Red Gym stops Sakuraba from getting back to his feet.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Red Gym throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Red Gym looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.
Sakuraba is trying to control but can't.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Sakuraba avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Red Gym.
Sakuraba blocking the ground and pound attempt from Red Gym.
Red Gym throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
And that's the end of the fight!
Suporn Red Gym showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Red Gym 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 5 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Summer Carpenter scores the fight 49:46
Judge Winston Howard scores the fight 47:48
Judge Bruno Hogan scores the fight 47:48
In favor of your winner, by split decision... Kazushi Sakuraba!
Kazushi Sakuraba is the new middleweight champion!
A victorious Kazushi Sakuraba thanked his army of followers in his post fight interview, telling people to make sure they follow him on Twitter.
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| S |
C
A |
G |
S |
C
B |
G |
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S |
C |
G |
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energy
A | B |
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hype
A | B |
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pop
A | B |
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mgr
A | B |
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FIGHT
RATING
100% |
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