PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Felipe Gonzalez (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Fillipe Matheus (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Gonzalez comes to the cage accompanied by Inside the Fire. Felipe Gonzalez has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Gonzalez
vs
Matheus

165 cm
25
142 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

168 cm
25
141 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Solid Muay Thai
Granite chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Great elbows
Determined

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 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Felipe Gonzalez!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Fillipe Matheus!
The judges for this bout are Luis Engracia, Mauricio Rocha and Daniel Cesar.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Gonzalez connects with a solid leg kick.
Gonzalez throws the kick towards the body but Matheus avoids it.
Matheus walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.
Felipe Gonzalez seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Gonzalez throws a head kick that Matheus semi-blocks.
Gonzalez throws a sloppy head kick and Matheus moves out of range easily.

Gonzalez changes levels and drives through with a really nice takedown into side control. Matheus looks really pissed at himself for not defending that better.
Gonzalez controls the position from side control.
Matheus can't do much from the bottom here.
Gonzalez controls the position.
Gonzalez in side control, throwing shots but Matheus defends.
Matheus throwing some weak shots from the bottom that do no damage.
Matheus is trying to control Gonzalez's posture but Gonzalez avoids it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Matheus is looking for a sweep.
Gonzalez trying to control the position but Matheus is working away.

Gonzalez decides to stand up, so the ref orders Matheus to his feet.
Gonzalez displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Matheus.
Nice sprawl there from Gonzalez as Matheus shoots in.
Matheus uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Gonzalez.
Gonzalez looks to land a right hand but Matheus moved out of range.
Matheus misses with a wild body shot.
Matheus tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Matheus avoids the body shot from Gonzalez.
Matheus misses with a takedown attempt - Gonzalez sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Felipe Gonzalez has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Fillipe Matheus.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Gonzalez swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Matheus wants to clinch.

Gonzalez moves into range and clinches up with Matheus.

Gonzalez pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Matheus darts in looking for a takedown but Gonzalez gets double underhooks and turns Matheus into the cage.
The fight stays on the outside here - Matheus looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Matheus displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Gonzalez throws out the jab.
Matheus pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Matheus looks to score with a jab to the body but Gonzalez is just out of range.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Matheus tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Gonzalez was well out of range. Poor timing from Matheus.
Matheus avoids the head kick by Gonzalez.
Matheus throws a right and a left that Gonzalez avoids nicely.
Gonzalez stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Gonzalez wants it to stay on the feet.
Gonzalez fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Matheus manages to avoid it.

Gonzalez has managed to clinch.
Matheus is looking to control Gonzalez's arms but Gonzalez gets an underhook and turns him. Now Matheus has his back to the cage.

Gonzalez breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Matheus is trying hard to land a takedown here. Gonzalez sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Matheus darts in looking for a takedown but Gonzalez gets double underhooks and turns Matheus into the cage.
Gonzalez tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.

Gonzalez darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.
Gonzalez sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Matheus defending well though.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gonzalez content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
Gonzalez is looking to advance position but Matheus won't allow it.
Gonzalez throws a big elbow that misses, also allowing Matheus to regain full guard.
Gonzalez trying to control but Matheus is working from the bottom.
Matheus preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.

Matheus looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Felipe Gonzalez dominated that round.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Matheus wants to clinch up but Gonzalez keeps it at a distance.

Gonzalez feints and as Matheus raises his hands in defense, Gonzalez changes levels and drives through with a takedown into guard.
Gonzalez has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.
Gonzalez wants to control from the top but Matheus keeps moving.
Gonzalez missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Gonzalez content to stall in guard here.
Matheus keeping moving, preventing Gonzalez from controlling successfully.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Gonzalez throwing strikes but missing.

Gonzalez decides he's had enough of playing guard and decides to stand. Come on Matheus, up you get!

That's one minute gone in the round.
Matheus tries to score with an inside leg kick but telegraphs it and Gonzalez is able to avoid easily.
A chopping leg kick lands by Gonzalez.
Matheus blocks a leg kick.
Matheus wants to clinch.
Gonzalez walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Matheus checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.

The fight moves into the clinch position.
Gonzalez taking a breather.
Gonzalez goes for a takedown in the clinch but Matheus prevents it.

Gonzalez has hold of one of Matheus's legs. Matheus is fighting the takedown attempt but Gonzalez gets the trip and lands the takedown into guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Matheus working a defensive guard here.
Gonzalez trying to control the position from guard on top but Matheus is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Gonzalez tries to free his leg and advance position but Matheus is retaining full guard.
Matheus avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Matheus trying to punch from his back but it's not doing any damage.
Matheus looking to control.
Gonzalez stays in close to Matheus's body and controls the position.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gonzalez leaves Matheus with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
Gonzalez tries to counter by clinching up but Matheus breaks away and moves out of range.
Gonzalez misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Despite the aggression on Matheus's face he doesn't fully commit to the counter.
Gonzalez blocks a head kick by Matheus.
Gonzalez throws a shot to the body.
Gonzalez misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Matheus.
Matheus wants to counter the offense by Gonzalez and move into the clinch position.
Gonzalez displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Matheus.
Gonzalez is looking to wear down Matheus with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Gonzalez throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Gonzalez lands a head shot.
Gonzalez is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Matheus can do to turn this around?
Gonzalez throws a hook to the side of Matheus's head but Matheus sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
Matheus tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Gonzalez paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Gonzalez looks to throw the jab but Matheus is out of range.
Matheus shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Gonzalez defends it nicely.
Felipe Gonzalez has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Fillipe Matheus.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Matheus tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Matheus moves out of range of the leg kick from Gonzalez.
Matheus shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Matheus avoids the head kick by Gonzalez.
Matheus throws the kick towards the body but Gonzalez avoids it.
Gonzalez fires out a quick counter leg kick but Matheus just manages to avoid it.

Gonzalez has Matheus up against the cage in a clinch.
Gonzalez scores with a shot to the side of Matheus's head.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Matheus misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Gonzalez.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.

Matheus escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Matheus tries to clinch but Gonzalez moves out of range.
Gonzalez swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Gonzalez stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Gonzalez wants it to stay on the feet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Felipe Gonzalez dominated that second round.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! 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.

Matheus shoots for a double leg takedown but Gonzalez sprawls well. He's pushed Matheus's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Matheus showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Gonzalez.
Felipe Gonzalez is winning the standup battle so far.
Gonzalez looks to land a combination but Matheus avoids it well.
Matheus shoots in and drives through. Gonzalez sprawls well.

Gonzalez pushes Matheus up against the cage in a clinch.
Gonzalez blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Gonzalez managing to block the knees to the body from Matheus.
Gonzalez just leaning against Matheus, taking a breather.

Matheus breaks from the clinch.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
A head kick misses from Gonzalez.
Matheus changes levels for a counter takedown but doesn't follow through with his attempt.
Matheus shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Gonzalez as he avoids it easily.
Gonzalez drops down looking for a counter takedown but Matheus sprawls and moves away.
Felipe Gonzalez has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Fillipe Matheus.
Matheus moves out of range as Gonzalez strikes.
Matheus slaps away a takedown attempt from Gonzalez, before circling back to the center of the mat.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Matheus tries to clinch up but Gonzalez circles away and keeps his distance.
Gonzalez throws a push kick but Matheus slaps the foot to one side.
Nice uppercut lands for Gonzalez. That snapped Matheus's head back.

A momentary lapse in concentration from Matheus enables Gonzalez to shoot in and score with a neat double leg. Matheus manages to secure a closed guard as the fighters hit the mat.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Matheus wants to sweep here but Gonzalez controlling him for the moment.
Gonzalez throwing strikes but missing.
Gonzalez stands and throws Matheus's legs to the side, diving into side control.

Gonzalez is trying to land an Americana. He has the arm isolated but Matheus is keeping cool and he's avoided the danger for now.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Matheus dodges the ground and pound from Gonzalez.
Matheus tries to bench press Gonzalez off him but Gonzalez keeps the position.
The ground and pound from Gonzalez seems to be hitting the mat more than his opponent.
Gonzalez working the ground and pound but he's contacting the mat, not the fighter.
Gonzalez is looking to take a break and control but Matheus is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Gonzalez tries to advance to mount but Matheus denies him.
You can see the frustration on Matheus's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gonzalez tries to advance to mount but can't.
Matheus gets back to half guard.
Gonzalez with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.
Gonzalez not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Matheus uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Gonzalez.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Matheus looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Gonzalez is fending him off so far but Matheus persists. Nope, Gonzalez circles away and we're back to standing.
Gonzalez changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
Matheus tries to bum rush Gonzalez with a series of wild strikes but Gonzalez uses good footwork to avoid the assault.

Matheus gets tackled into the cage by Gonzalez. Gonzalez maintains the clinch.
A knee to the head by Gonzalez.
Gonzalez controlling the action here for a moment.
Gonzalez working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Felipe Gonzalez is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

Matheus manages to break the clinch.
Gonzalez looks to score with a jab to the body but Matheus is just out of range.
Matheus throws out a counter right but Gonzalez avoids it with no problem.
Matheus wants to clinch.
Fillipe Matheus has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Matheus throws a leg kick but Gonzalez checks it.

And that's the end of the fight!
Felipe Gonzalez showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Gonzalez has outscored his opponent in every aspect of the fight today. Only a scarily incompetent judge or two will keep him from a well deserved win... 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 Luis Engracia scores the fight for Felipe Gonzalez!
Judge Mauricio Rocha scores the fight for Felipe Gonzalez!
Judge Daniel Cesar scores the fight for Felipe Gonzalez!

Felipe Gonzalez wins by unanimous decision!
A very excited looking Felipe Gonzalez made sure he remembered to thank all the fans both in the arena and on the internet. He said all the coolest people spend all day on MMA websites, which got a big reaction.