PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Michael Kairuz (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Chad Faber (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). The crowd giving both fighters a great reception on their way into the arena. That's good to see.

Kairuz
vs
Faber

154 cm
25
135 lbs
3 - 0 - 0

165 cm
20
144 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

Good wrestling
Counter fighter
Very quick

Good wrestler
Counter fighter
Solid chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the featherweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 3 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Michael Kairuz!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Chad Faber!
The judges for this bout are Eliza Hachem, Bruno Hogan and Francis DeMontford.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Faber lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Kairuz circles away quickly and effectively.
Kairuz tries to counter by moving into the clinch but Faber manages to circle out of the way.
Kairuz definitely looks more muscular than last time we saw him fight.
Faber takes a step towards his opponent and connects with a left hand, before circling away.

Kairuz shoots in for a takedown and gets it. Let's see what he's got on the mat.
Kairuz with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Kairuz 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.
Kairuz passes Faber's left leg - he's now in half guard.
Kairuz could do with losing a few pounds - he looks very soft around the mid section, to put it politely.
Kairuz is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Kairuz lands with a punch from half guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kairuz working Faber over with strikes.
Kairuz is controlling the pace.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Kairuz connects with a nice short shot to Faber's temple.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kairuz slips a nice elbow through Faber's hands, connecting with Faber's forehead.
Kairuz stalling.
Faber is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Kairuz scores with a couple of nice shots.
Faber has hold of Kairuz's hands but Kairuz slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Kairuz lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
Kairuz controlling the action here.
Kairuz seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Faber for as long as he can get away with.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kairuz continues to stall.
Kairuz scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Kairuz keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
The fighters are tangled up in the ropes here. We might need a restart if the fighters can't break free themselves.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kairuz takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Kairuz working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
Kairuz takes a deep breath and rests his weight momentarily on top of his opponent, to control the position.
The fighters are trapped in the ropes so we're going to have a reposition here. The ref calls for a break and repositions the fighters in the center of the ring.
More hug and hope from Kairuz.
Kairuz lands strikes from half guard.
Well, if Kairuz 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.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The referee must be thinking about standing these guys back up.
Kairuz scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Kairuz working over Faber with some ground and pound. Faber looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Kairuz keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
Kairuz drops an elbow to the side of Faber's head.
Kairuz looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Faber with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Michael Kairuz dominated that round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Kairuz throws the left hand but Faber avoids the punch easily.
We've been informed that Faber has been working hard on his conditioning in the buildup to the fight.
Kairuz shoots in for a double leg but Faber sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
Faber lets it all go there with a big combo counter but none of the punches connected.

Kairuz throws a loose over hand right and dives in with a double leg takedown. Faber tries to sprawl but it's too late and the fighters hit the mat. Kairuz is in Faber's guard.
Kairuz forces his way into half guard.
Still in half guard, Kairuz seems content to control.
Kairuz's ground tactics aren't going to win him many fans. Let's hope he's got fireworks for us if he gets back to his feet because he's not doing much on the ground.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Michael Kairuz overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Faber tries to get to full guard but Kairuz has control of the leg.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kairuz looks over to his corner - he wants some instructions but his corner are not responding.
Kairuz is nestled in close to Faber, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Kairuz performing his best blanket impression for a moment.
Ground and pound from Kairuz.

Faber looking to work for a kimura from the bottom.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.
Kairuz takes a deep breath and rests his weight momentarily on top of his opponent, to control the position.
Faber is looking to improve his position.
Kairuz content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Kairuz defending well as Faber loads up on a big left hand.
Kairuz throws a big counter combination but Faber scrambles out of danger and avoids any damage.
Chad Faber is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Faber fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Kairuz slips under a jab.
Kairuz tries to counter by clinching up but Faber breaks away and moves out of range.
Faber wants to clinch up but Kairuz keeps it at a distance.
Both fighters are looking to counter, which isn't making for the most exciting fight in the world.

Kairuz closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. Faber quickly recovers to half guard.
Kairuz controlling the action here.
Kairuz has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kairuz seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Kairuz keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
Kairuz lands strikes from half guard.
Kairuz is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.
Kairuz is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Faber can do to turn this around?
Kairuz is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Faber is breathing heavily.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Kairuz controlling the action here.
Kairuz looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Faber with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

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

Kairuz looks for a takedown. He's got it. We're now in half guard.
Kairuz is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.
Kairuz is nestled in close to Faber, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Well, if Kairuz 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.
Faber taking some punishment here, with Kairuz in his half guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kairuz content to control rather than advance.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kairuz slips a nice elbow through Faber's hands, connecting with Faber's forehead.
Kairuz is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Kairuz lands a nice short elbow.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Kairuz looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Faber with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Kairuz seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.
Kairuz working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kairuz controlling the action here.
Kairuz prevents Faber from improving his position.
Kairuz is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Kairuz tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Faber defends well and Kairuz ends up having to push Faber into the ropes where they will battle it out in the clinch.
A little jabbing left from Faber on the counter but it doesn't find it's target.
Faber keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
A nice side step and Faber releases a counter shot to the body, but it doesn't find it's home.

That's four 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.
Donk. Faber catches Kairuz right on the button with a cross.
Faber misses with a hook.
Kairuz shoots in but Faber avoids the takedown attempt easily.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Michael Kairuz. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Faber throws a right hand that Kairuz ducks under and follows up with a left that Kairuz also avoids with ease.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Michael Kairuz clearly takes that round.
That's time! Kairuz's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Kairuz keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Kairuz closes this distance looking for a takedown but Faber circles away.
Kairuz closes the distance and clinches up with Faber, looking for a takedown. Kairuz pushes Faber against the ropes but Faber circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Faber swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Kairuz wants to take advantage of his opponent's missed offense by moving into the clinch.
Nice uppercut lands for Faber. That snapped Kairuz's head back.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Nice sprawl there from Faber as Kairuz shoots in.
Faber swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Michael Kairuz. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Kairuz shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Faber as he avoids it easily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kairuz fails with the takedown.
Faber's corner calls for a 1-2. Faber obliges with the 1 part as he scores the single shot and moves back out of range.
No luck for Kairuz with that takedown attempt.
Faber missing with a left hand there. Kairuz was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Faber is using his reach advantage to land shots from outside his opponent's range.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kairuz shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Faber sprawls well. Faber wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Kairuz gets slowly back to his feet.
Faber misses with a hook

and Kairuz counters with a takedown into side control.
The referee tells the fighters to keep busy.
Faber on the wrong end of some ground and pound.
Kairuz content to control the pace. The referee will try and keep them active though.
Faber can't do much from the bottom here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kairuz lands a nice forearm strike.
Kairuz controlling from side mount.
Kairuz cracks Faber with a big right hand but Faber just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.
Kairuz happy to just control the position for now.
Further stalling from Kairuz.

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.
Kairuz in side control lands a decent elbow.
Faber being controlled for a moment.
Kairuz prevents Faber from escaping the position.
Kairuz creates a bit of distance and throws down some hard shots.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Faber is not in a great position here, taking some shots.
Kairuz scores with punches from side control.
Faber is absolutely dripping with sweat - he looks exhausted.
Faber being controlled for a moment.
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 Michael Kairuz will probably get the nod.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action! This is the final round!

Kairuz has a takedown stuffed.
Kairuz throws a chopping leg kick but Faber manages to avoid taking any serious damage.
Kairuz fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
Faber let fly with a counter punch to the body but it didn't land.
Faber throws a hook to the side of Kairuz's head but Kairuz sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
Kairuz tries to counter by moving into the clinch but Faber manages to circle out of the way.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
No luck for Kairuz with that takedown attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Michael Kairuz. That's going to take a lot out of him.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kairuz tries for a takedown but Faber circles away easily
and Faber counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.

Kairuz bobs and weaves into range and then changes levels and scores with a nice takedown into side control.
Faber takes an elbow right on the bridge of the nose and winces in pain.
Kairuz scores with punches from side control.
Kairuz is staying tight to Faber's torso, preventing him from escaping.
Check out the look on Kairuz's face as he threw that strike - that's one determined fighter!

Kairuz has hold of Faber's arm here. He's working for an Americana. It looks like he might have it! Faber tries to escape but he's just digging himself in deeper - Kairuz cranks the arm and Faber screams in pain! The ref makes a decision and ends the fight before the tap - no complains from Faber, who is just happy to have his arm attached to his body.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2:55 of round 5, we have a winner by way of Submission (Americana). Michael Kairuz!
Michael Kairuz retains his featherweight title!