PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Im Hwoarang (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Bankavo Jr (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Hwoarang's entrance music is Pain - Shut your mouth. A fine choice. Bankavo Jr told me before the fight that he's been watching a lot of DVDs so let's see if that helps him in this one! I can't wait to find out!

Hwoarang
vs
Jr

181 cm
25
150 lbs
1 - 1 - 0

175 cm
25
150 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Excellent MT
Good chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Solid Muay Thai
Solid chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 1 - 1 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Im Hwoarang!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Bankavo Jr!
The judges for this bout are Michael Johnstone, Santiago Holmes and Daniel Franklin.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Jr shoots in and drives through. Hwoarang sprawls well.
Jr blocks a head kick by Hwoarang.
Jr walks into a left hand.

It looks like Bankavo Jr has been cut.
Jr avoids the head kick by Hwoarang.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Jr is defended easily by Hwoarang.
Hwoarang leaves Jr with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
Im Hwoarang has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Bankavo Jr.
Hwoarang tries a head kick but it misses.

Jr drives through and clinches with Hwoarang against the cage.
Hwoarang misses with a knee to the head.
A bit of stalling here from Jr.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hwoarang tries a knee to the head but Jr blocks it.
Jr displaying some good clinch control by pressing Hwoarang up against the cage.
Jr drops down for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Jr is trying to drag Hwoarang to the mat but Hwoarang just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Jr doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Hwoarang throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Jr blocks it with crossed arms.
Hwoarang using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Jr has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Jr has Hwoarang pressed up against the cage and is working for takedown. Hwoarang manages to improve position though and keeps the fight standing.
Hwoarang looking to throw knees to the head but Jr is blocking nicely.
Jr goes for a takedown attempt but Hwoarang pushes him away and we're back to fighting at a distance.
Jr tries to clinch up but Hwoarang circles away and keeps his distance.
Hwoarang scores with a head kick.
Hwoarang looks to be in better condition than last time we saw him fight. Obviously he's been working hard on his cardio.
Hwoarang lands with a kick to the temple. Jr shrugs as if to say "is that all you've got?"
Hwoarang throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Hwoarang throws a head kick that misses
and Jr connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.

Jr instigates a clinch.
Hwoarang looking to throw knees to the head but Jr is blocking nicely.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hwoarang throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Jr blocks it with crossed arms.
Hwoarang stalling in the clinch but Jr improves position.
Hwoarang is breathing heavily.
Jr stalling here - the referee won't stand for too much of that.
Jr trying to land knees to the body.

Jr pulls guard effortlessly.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Jr looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Jr is pulling down on Hwoarang's head to control his posture.
Hwoarang would like to get this fight back to the feet but can't get free from the closed guard.
Hwoarang won't allow Jr to sweep him here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hwoarang trying to stand up but can't free himself from Jr's guard.
Hwoarang knows he needs to get back to his feet asap. He's simply no match for Jr on the ground.
Jr trying to control the position here.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.
Jr throws a couple of shots from the bottom but they don't land.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Hwoarang misses with a head kick.
Hwoarang tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Jr tries to counter by closing the distance.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.
Hwoarang misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Jr looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Hwoarang is fending him off so far but Jr persists. Nope, Hwoarang circles away and we're back to standing.
Jr takes a head kick and keeps coming.
Hwoarang takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.
Jr lands a straight punch to the body, keeping Hwoarang at a distance.
Jr fails with a takedown attempt.
Hwoarang is looking to counter with head kicks.
Hwoarang throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
And Jr responds with a good body kick, but Hwoarang manages to step out the way in time.
Hwoarang shoots and misses
and Jr counters with a left and a right that stings Hwoarang.

Jr clinches up against the cage.

Jr breaks from the clinch.
Jr shoots for a takedown but Hwoarang saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Hwoarang throws a sloppy head kick and Jr moves out of range easily.
Hwoarang throws a head kick but Jr moves out of range.
Hwoarang defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Jr.
Jr thuds a left hand into Hwoarang's body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Im Hwoarang dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Bankavo Jr'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.

Jr throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Hwoarang.
Jr fails to land the takedown.
Hwoarang thinks about countering with a head kick.
Hwoarang throws a head kick but Jr moves out of range.
Hwoarang throws a sloppy head kick

and Jr counters by clinching up.
Hwoarang throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Jr blocks it with crossed arms.

Jr pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
A head kick misses from Hwoarang.
Hwoarang misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Hwoarang throws a head kick but Jr moves out of range.
Hwoarang looks to throw the jab but Jr is out of range.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Jr looks for a takedown but Hwoarang sprawls well.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Jr tries for a takedown but Hwoarang sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.
Im Hwoarang has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Bankavo Jr.
Hwoarang throws a head kick but Jr moves out of range.
That's a knee to de groin and it's over and out! Jr crumples to the ground after an illegal strike from Hwoarang - the referee stops the clock and Jr gets 5 minutes to recover from that one. "I'm sorry" says Hwoarang. Jr manages to get back to his feet and the fight resumes.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hwoarang tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Jr feints the counter takedown.
Hwoarang misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.

Jr gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
Hwoarang prevents a takedown attempt there.

Jr breaks from the clinch.
Hwoarang avoids the head kick by Jr.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Jr.
Hwoarang misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
A little jabbing left from Jr on the counter but it doesn't find it's target.
Jr dives in for a single leg takedown but Hwoarang sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.
Jr fails to land the takedown.
Hwoarang tries a head kick but it misses.
Hwoarang tries a head kick but it misses.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Jr fails to land the takedown.
Bankavo Jr is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
A head kick misses from Hwoarang.
No joy there for Jr, who threw a few shots but didn't land.

Hwoarang fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Jr, pushing him back against the cage.
Hwoarang throws a knee to the head but misses.
Jr leaning against his opponent.

Jr's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Hwoarang misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Jr tries to counter by closing the distance.
Jr closes this distance looking for a takedown but Hwoarang circles away.
Hwoarang moves into range and lands a nice body kick.
Hwoarang is trying hard to land a takedown here. Jr sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Hwoarang throws a sloppy head kick and Jr moves out of range easily.
Hwoarang tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Im Hwoarang is winning the standup battle so far.

Jr instigates a clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hwoarang misses with a knee to the head.

Jr pulls guard.
Jr is avoiding any damage by keeping wrist control.

Jr is throwing his legs up, looking for submissions. Hwoarang is aware though and is defending well.

Jr working for a triangle but Hwoarang defends it easily.
Jr thows some rabbit punches from the bottom but they don't do any damage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.

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

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Im Hwoarang dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Bankavo Jr's cut.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action. And we move into the final round!

Jr shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Hwoarang throws a head kick but Jr moves out of range.
Hwoarang is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Jr can do to turn this around?
Hwoarang tries a head kick but it misses.

Jr moves into the clinch.
The referee calls for Jr to work.
Hwoarang misses with a knee strike.
Hwoarang tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Jr missing with knees to the body.
Hwoarang misses with a knee strike.
Hwoarang throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Jr blocks it with crossed arms.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hwoarang tries to land a knee to the head but Jr blocks with his arms.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Hwoarang gets through Jr's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.

Jr breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.

Jr is looking for a takedown here. He's shot in and has managed to get it, finishing up in Hwoarang's half guard.
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!
Jr content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Jr is looking to pass the guard... He's managed it - he's now in full mount!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.
Jr controlling his opponent.
Hwoarang tries to buck Jr off but he can't manage it.
Jr sitting in mount, just looking to control for the moment.
Jr thowing shots but they're missing.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Jr looking for an armbar but decides to keep the dominant position instead.
Jr looking to finish with strikes here!
Jr looking to finish with strikes here!

Jr looking for an armbar but decides to keep the dominant position instead.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Jr thowing shots but they're missing.
Jr looking to finish with strikes here!

Jr looking for a guillotine from mount but Hwoarang is having none of it.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Jr thowing shots but they're missing.

And that's the end of the fight!
Bankavo Jr comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Hwoarang 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 Michael Johnstone scores the fight 29:28
Judge Santiago Holmes scores the fight 29:28
Judge Daniel Franklin scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Im Hwoarang!
Im Hwoarang 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.