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PBP Commentary |
Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Melekh David (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Nuriel Leonard (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). These two fighters really are very evenly matched on the feet - it will be fascinating to see who can assert themselves in that aspect of the fight.
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| 170 cm
31
149 lbs
21 - 12 - 0 |
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168 cm
34
147 lbs
29 - 13 - 0 |
Great wrestler
World class boxer
Insanely flexible |
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Olympic wrestler
World class MT
Granite chin |
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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
21 - 12 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Melekh David!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of
29 - 13 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Nuriel Leonard!
The judges for this bout are Frank Antenori, Timothy Bukovac and Jack Bonds.
The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Leonard scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
David blocks a jab.
Leonard scores with a reasonable looking shot to the body. David doesn't seem bothered though.
Leonard throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent David stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
Leonard misses with a hook. David ducked under it nicely.
Leonard looks to throw the jab but David is out of range.
David looks to have improved his striking defense since last time we saw him fight.
Leonard avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Leonard gets in close and instigates a clinch.
Leonard misses with a hook to the ribs.
Leonard misses with some punches.
Leonard lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!
It looks like Melekh David has been cut.
Leonard gets double underhooks to prevent a takedown attempt from David.
Leonard fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
David lands with a short punch from the clinch.
David is trying to drag Leonard to the mat but Leonard just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
That's one minute gone in the round.
David drops down for a takedown but doesn't get it.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Melekh David. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Leonard tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and David avoids it.
David takes a knee to the side of the body.
We've been informed that Leonard has been sparring a lot of Muay Thai in the buildup to this fight so let's see if that has an impact on the result.
Leonard wants a takedown but no success here.
Leonard tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
David is looking for a takedown.
Leonard goes for a takedown attempt but David pushes him away and we're back to fighting at a distance.
Leonard throws a lazy right hand but David sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.
Leonard throws an overhand right that lands on David's shoulder, as David tries to avoid the shot.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Leonard doesn't manage to clinch there - David circles away.
Leonard waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract David.
Leonard lands the left hand.
Leonard changes levels and drives through with a really nice takedown into side control. David looks really pissed at himself for not defending that better.
David is positioning himself to get back to half guard.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
David is not content to let Leonard control the position.
David manages to land a sweep and he's now on top! Lovely Jiu Jitsu!
Leonard tries to get to full guard but David has control of the leg.
David tries to pass the half guard into mount. Leonard knows what he's doing though and prevents the attempt.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Leonard is doing well to control the position and prevent David from advancing to side control.
Leonard avoiding damage under a succession of punches from David.
David tries to pass to full mount but Leonard defends it.
David is thwarting Leonard's attempts to control the position.
David winds up and cracks Leonard with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Leonard is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
David thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Leonard's head.
David throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Leonard tries to get to full guard but David has control of the leg.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Leonard keeping control of the leg, stopping his opponent passing to mount.
David is looking to pass Leonard's guard but actually Leonard recovers to full guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
Nuriel Leonard dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Melekh David's cut.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!
Leonard throws a right hand that misses
and David counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
David trying to control the action but Leonard is working from the bottom.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
David trying to control from Leonard's half guard. Leonard has other ideas though and has regained full guard.
David has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.
David working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Melekh David overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Leonard looking to hit a scissor sweep but David is one step ahead there.
David pushes down on Leonard's leg and manages to get into half guard.
David is trying to control. Leonard wants to improve his position but can't escape this time.
That's one minute gone in the round.
David sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Leonard defending well though.
Leonard wants to get back to full guard.
David trying to mount his opponent but Leonard defends it.
David trying to control from half guard but Leonard is working away.
David missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
David trying to mount his opponent but Leonard defends it.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Leonard is looking for a sweep. David is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
David is looking to pass the guard... He's managed it - he's now in full mount!
David lands with some strikes.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
David avoids the attempt from Leonard to control.
Leonard is trying to avoid being dragged into an even worse position than he's already in but David is staying active.
David with a couple of short strikes.
Leonard taking shots to the head.
David unloads with some shots from mount but Leonard bucks and avoids them well.
David looking to finish with strikes here!
Leonard is looking to improve his position but David isn't that keen on the idea.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Leonard is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.
Leonard is squirming around, avoiding David's attempts to control the action.
David landing strikes, looking to finish!
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
David with shots to the head and body - Leonard looks very uncomfortable down there.
Leonard is working to get back to half guard.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Leonard sneaks a leg back under and regains half guard and is working straight away to try and get back to guard. He hasn't managed just yet though.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
Melekh David dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Melekh David's cut.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!
David will need to close the distance a bit before he attacks - that leg kick was thrown from too far away.
David throws a head kick but Leonard moves out of range.
Nuriel Leonard seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Leonard connects with a single shot there.
Leonard ducks down and throws a hook to the body but David moves away.
Leonard throws a right hand that misses
and David counters with a takedown into side control! That could mean trouble for Leonard!
David working away.
David landing a few strikes.
David wants to control but Leonard is keeping him busy.
David postures up a little and throws a couple of hammerfists but they don't connect properly.
David wants to control but Leonard is keeping him busy.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
This has been an exciting period of action!
David misses with the ground and pound.
That's one minute gone in the round.
David has knee on belly and moves into mount.
Leonard really trying hard to get back to half guard here.
David throws a strike there. Leonard manages to avoid it well and slips a leg under to get to half guard.
Leonard slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.
David throwing strikes from guard but Leonard blocks nicely.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as David accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
David stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Leonard swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Leonard utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
David pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Leonard is keeping the position for now.
Leonard wants to hit a switch here but David passes into full mount! Oh no, disaster for Leonard there!
Leonard tries to hold on but David postures up.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
David moves into side control, trying to work for a kimura. That looks painful! Will he finish!!?? No, Leonard has worked his arm free - good work by Leonard!
Leonard is trying to control David's posture but David avoids it.
Leonard is looking to reverse the position.
David creates some space and throws a big elbow, but Leonard sees it coming and moves his head just enough to avoid the strike.
Leonard can't do much from the bottom here.
David is looking to take a break and control but Leonard is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
David is working Leonard over with some ground and pound from side control.
Leonard wants to control but David postures up.
Leonard takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.
Leonard defending against the ground and pound.
David is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Leonard knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.
You can see the frustration on Leonard's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
And that's the end of the fight!
Melekh David showed his dominance in that final round.
I think David 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 3 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Frank Antenori scores the fight 29:28
Judge Timothy Bukovac scores the fight 29:28
Judge Jack Bonds scores the fight 29:28
In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Melekh David!
Melekh David 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.
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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
52% |
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