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PBP Commentary |
Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Nuriel Leonard (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Paul Bourque (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Paul Bourque is staring across the cage at his opponent, tweaking his nipples.
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| 168 cm
42
147 lbs
43 - 21 - 0 |
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192 cm
47
156 lbs
54 - 28 - 2 |
Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Granite chin |
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Good wrestler
World class boxer
Heavy handed |
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Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the lightweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of
43 - 21 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Nuriel Leonard!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of
54 - 28 - 2, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Paul Bourque!
The judges for this bout are Daniel Cesar, Mauricio Rocha and Luis Engracia.
The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Bourque just misses with a punch to the body.
Bourque throws out a loose jab but Leonard uses good head movement to avoid it.
Leonard with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Bourque to score with a decent uppercut.
Bourque scores with a straight right hand, right through his opponent's guard.
Leonard throws a loose over hand right and dives in with a double leg takedown. Bourque tries to sprawl but it's too late and the fighters hit the mat. Leonard is in Bourque's guard.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Leonard accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Leonard trying to control but Bourque is working from the bottom.
Leonard throwing strikes from guard but Bourque blocks nicely.
Leonard has been talking about how he's improved his wrestling in the run up to the fight so let's see if that's enough to sway the balance.
Leonard with a flurry of punches that miss.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Leonard throwing strikes from guard but Bourque blocks nicely.
Leonard distracts Bourque with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Leonard in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Leonard trying to control the position from guard on top but Bourque is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Leonard postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Bourque is a painfully thin specimen of a man. You do wonder whether a good body kick would snap him clean in two.
Leonard with a flurry of punches that miss.
Leonard is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Leonard 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.
Leonard cracks Bourque with a solid left hand.
Leonard is looking to work some ground and pound but Bourque has wrist control.
Leonard trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
That's two 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.
Leonard has gone for a leg lock! Bourque slips out almost immediately though and dives into Leonard's guard.
Leonard might be looking to lock onto one of his opponent's long limbs for a submission, whilst we're on the ground.
Bourque is looking to stand up but Leonard won't let him.
Bourque won't allow Leonard to sweep him here.
Bourque stands and steps away. Leonard gets to his feet too and we're back to the striking game.
Bourque cracks a nice hook into Leonard's ribs.
Bourque will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Leonard misses with a hook. Bourque ducked under it nicely.
The fighters circling - Leonard throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Leonard slips a jab and a cross from Bourque.
A big left from Leonard misses.
Bourque uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Leonard.
A big right from Bourque misses.
Leonard misses with an uppercut.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bourque throws a right hand that Leonard ducks under and follows up with a left that Leonard also avoids with ease.
Bourque swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Leonard counters with a stiff right hand.
Leonard throws a body punch but Bourque moves out of range.
Bourque ducks under a wild hook from Leonard.
Bourque walks into a left hand.
Leonard moves out of range of the strikes.
Bourque looks to land a right hand but Leonard moved out of range.
Bourque tries to keep at a distance but Leonard has taken the fight into the clinch.
Leonard throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Leonard tries a knee to the head but Bourque blocks it.
A short left from Leonard.
The fighters are starting to get sweaty, which will make takedowns a bit more tricky.
Leonard connects with a nasty looking knee right to Bourque's face.
Leonard keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Bourque's efforts to push away.
Leonard with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Still in the clinch, Leonard scores with a nice short uppercut.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Leonard slows down the pace here.
Leonard throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Bourque blocks it with crossed arms.
Bourque can't find room to land a body shot as Leonard controls the action.
Leonard looking to throw knees to the head but Bourque is blocking nicely.
Leonard leaning against his opponent.
Leonard stalling against the cage.
Leonard dictating the pace here, as the fighters clinch against the cage.
Leonard gets a warning from the ref for wasting time.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
Nuriel Leonard dominated that round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!
Leonard on the wrong end of a nice jab.
Wow, both these guys are really going for it!
Bourque throws a series of punches but Leonard avoids them all with ease.
Leonard swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Bourque lands with a straight right. Leonard didn't see that one coming.
Leonard throws an off balance right hand
and Bourque counters with a stiff right hand.
A big right from Leonard misses.
Leonard misses with a two punch combination.
Bourque looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Jab from Leonard.
Leonard takes an uppercut right on the jaw but it doesn't phase him.
A slow jab from Leonard misses its intended target.
Paul Bourque is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Leonard misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Bourque.
Leonard swinging wildly here.
Bourque uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Leonard.
Leonard throws a looping overhand right but Bourque ducks down to avoid it.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Bourque smiles there as he lands a nice right hand right on the button.
Bourque thows a left - swing and a miss!
Bourque wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
It really doesn't seem like the step up in weight is hurting Leonard here at all. He's more than holding his own against the bigger man.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Leonard ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Bourque moves away.
Leonard on the wrong end of a nice jab.
Leonard lands with a cross to side of his opponent's head.
Leonard lands with a good body shot.
Leonard takes one on the chin but keeps coming.
Leonard throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Bourque lands a head shot.
Leonard throws a jab but it's blocked by Bourque.
Leonard on the wrong end of a decent looking cross there.
Nice straight punches there by Leonard. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Leonard.
Leonard slips a jab and a cross from Bourque.
Paul Bourque is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Some wild striking there from Bourque.
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!
Bourque uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Leonard.
Leonard throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Bourque counters with a right hand to the body.
Leonard bobbing and weaving, closes the distance and lands a hook to the side of Bourque's head.
Leonard scores with a nice takedown into half guard. Let's see what he's got on the ground.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Leonard not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Bourque tries to roll over but Leonard keeps him under control.
Leonard seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.
Leonard sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Bourque defending well though.
Bourque wants to get back to full guard.
Leonard trying to control the action but Bourque is working from the bottom.
Bourque avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Leonard.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Leonard working over Bourque with some ground and pound. Bourque looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Leonard is stalling here. Bourque is in no mood to hang around though. He's locked up a kimura from the bottom! Leonard seems to be keeping calm but he's forced to roll out of the hold and Bourque has ended up in side control on the top. Nice work.
Bourque decides to stand back up. Bourque steps back and let's Leonard get back to his feet.
Leonard is really head hunting here, hardly looking to strike to the body at all.
Bourque lands with a straight right. Leonard didn't see that one coming.
Bourque throws a lazy uppercut
and Leonard counters with a takedown into side control.
Leonard throwing strikes but missing, from side control.
Leonard throwing strikes but missing, from side control.
Leonard lands some shots froms side control.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Leonard grinds an elbow into Bourque's temple.
Leonard 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.
Nuriel Leonard overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Leonard tries to score with some ground and pound. Bourque controls his posture well this time though and the shots don't do any damage.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Leonard throwing ground and pound but whilst doing so, he forgets to control position and Bourque works his way back to half guard. Good composure under pressure.
Bourque on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Leonard is trying to control. Bourque wants to improve his position but can't escape this time.
Leonard sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Bourque defending well though.
Bourque blocking the ground and pound attempt from Leonard.
Leonard looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
Leonard landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Leonard perhaps working for something from half guard, or maybe not. It looks like he's just sitting there.
Leonard missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
That was a close second round but I would say that Nuriel Leonard will probably get the nod.
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. Let's get this one finished - here comes the final round!
A lazy left from Leonard finds it's target.
Bourque takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Leonard fakes low and throws an overhand right that catches Bourque on the side of the head.
Leonard misses with a wild body shot.
Bourque looks to land a right hand but Leonard moved out of range.
An attempted straight right counter from Leonard misses the target.
Leonard throws a shot from downtown. Bourque moves away and avoids it.
Bourque staying out of range there.
Bourque misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Leonard.
Bourque misses with a body shot.
A counter left hand to the body from Leonard misses its target.
Leonard throws a hook but Bourque avoids it easily.
Bourque throws a two punch combo that lands nicely.
Bourque fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Leonard manages to avoid it.
Bourque uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Leonard.
Bourque takes a swing at Leonard's ribcage but misses.
A little feinted left hand from Leonard on the counter but he doesn't commit to it.
Bourque is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Leonard.
Bourque has used his reach advantage pretty well so far tonight.
Leonard throws a right hand that misses
and Bourque counters nicely by changing levels and landing a hook to the body.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Leonard throws a hook but Bourque blocks it.
A looping hook to the body misses from Leonard. Bourque does a little dance to reset his feet.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Leonard has closed the distance and engaged Bourque in a clinch.
Leonard stalling here - the referee won't stand for too much of that.
Leonard lands a hook that snaps the head of Bourque backwards.
Leonard throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Bourques head.
The two fighters are working to gain dominance in the clinch.
Bourque has had enough of the clinch but Leonard keeps him there for the moment.
Come on Leonard - let's have some action - none of this stalling nonsense.
Bourque blocks a body shot from Leonard.
Leonard keeps control of Bourque as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Paul Bourque has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Nuriel Leonard is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Leonard with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Leonard misses with a short punch on the inside.
Come on Leonard - let's have some action - none of this stalling nonsense.
Leonard with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Leonard manages to break the clinch.
Bourque gets caught napping as Leonard dives in and scores a takedown. Bourque manages to retain guard.
Leonard is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Bourque can do to turn this around?
Leonard loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Leonard throwing strikes but missing.
Leonard trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Leonard missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bourque wants to improve his position but instead Leonard has moved into half guard.
Leonard throwing shots but Bourque is blocking nicely.
Leonard is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Leonard with the ground and pound but Bourque uses the opportunity to regain guard.
Leonard throws a strike but Bourque rolls with it and manages to sweep. Now he's in guard on top.
Bourque stands up from guard. Let's bang!
Bourque throws a nice looking combination but Leonard bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Leonard avoids the body shot from Bourque.
Paul Bourque seems to be getting the better of the standup.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
A punch combination from Bourque misses.
Bourque blocks a jab.
Leonard swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Bourque.
Leonard gets cracked there but stands up to it.
A slow jab from Leonard misses its intended target.
Bourque throws a one two combo.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Bourque throws out a loose jab but Leonard uses good head movement to avoid it.
Leonard looks to throw the jab but Bourque is out of range.
Leonard misses with an uppercut.
Nice uppercut there from Leonard.
The fighters circling - Leonard throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Bourque looks to throw the jab but Leonard is out of range.
Bourque works over Leonard's head and body with a nice combination.
Leonard throws out a powerful jab.
Bourque catches Leonard with a nice straight right. He seems pissed - ooooh, it's on now! On like donkey kong!
Leonard slips under a jab.
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 Nuriel Leonard.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Leonard, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 Daniel Cesar scores the fight 30:27
Judge Mauricio Rocha scores the fight 30:27
Judge Luis Engracia scores the fight 30:27
In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Nuriel Leonard!
A determined Nuriel Leonard didn't want to dwell on this fight in his post fight interview. Instead he was more keen to state he wants a title shot. Let's see if he gets it!
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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
57% |
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