PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Jonny Joney (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Mercury Hayes (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Mercury Hayes is the more experienced fighter, so let's see if that makes a difference tonight.

Joney
vs
Hayes

193 cm
21
210 lbs
2 - 1 - 0

190 cm
24
208 lbs
1 - 4 - 0

Decent wrestler
Lethal high kicks
Cardio machine

Dangerous GnP
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 2 - 1 - 0, fighting out of New York, Jonny Joney!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 4 - 0, fighting out of New York, Mercury Hayes!
The judges for this bout are Jorge Garcia, John Kavanagh and Columbo Gatti.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Joney throws a push kick but Hayes slaps the foot to one side.
Hayes tries to counter by closing the distance.
Joney ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Hayes moves away.
A low kick from Joney is predictable there
letting Hayes counter with a right hand.
Joney throws a lazy head kick
and Hayes connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Joney misses with a low kick as Hayes jumps back.
Hayes connects with a leg kick. Joney looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Joney with a hook.

It looks like Mercury Hayes has been cut.
Joney throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Joney definitely looks more muscular than last time we saw him fight.
Jonny Joney seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Joney staying out of range there.
Hayes misses with a right hand
and Joney counters with a nice kick to the body.
Joney throws a shot from downtown. Hayes moves away and avoids it.
Hayes with a body punch. A glancing blow.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Joney pushes Hayes away with a front kick.
Joney throws the kick towards the body but Hayes avoids it.
Hayes drops down looking to force a counter takedown but Joney defends it well.
Joney pushes Hayes away with a front kick.
Hayes is trying hard to land a takedown here. Joney sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Joney waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Hayes.
Joney throws a body shot but no joy.
Joney goes for a spinning back kick but it misses.
Joney moves away from the strike by Hayes.
Joney misses with a low kick.
Joney lands with a cross to side of his opponent's head.
Joney connects with a crisp jab.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Joney sizes up Hayes with a pawing jab and scores with a straight right down the middle.
Hayes avoids the head kick by Joney.
A jab from Joney misses.
Joney throws a leg kick that misses.
Hayes with the counter takedown but Joney avoids it easily.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Hayes with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Joney to score with a decent uppercut.
A looping hook to the body misses from Joney. Hayes does a little dance to reset his feet.
A jab from Joney misses.
Joney lands a kick to the ribs of his opponent. Nice work there - in and out in a flash.
Joney pivots, looking for a leg kick but Hayes is out of range and Joney settles back down.
Joney sets himself, and Hayes steps forward looking for the clinch! Joney avoids it this time.
Joney throws an ugly left hook that misses

and Hayes counters with a nice shoot takedown that brings the fighters to the ground.
Hayes throws a big right hand that misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hayes trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Hayes controls the pace of the fight for a moment.
Hayes throws an elbow that misses. Joney uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Hayes's guard. Nice move by Joney!

Hayes is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Hayes trying to control the position.
Joney has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.
Hayes wants to stand and escape but Joney is having none of it.
Joney pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Hayes is keeping the position for now.
Hayes wants to stand and escape but Joney is having none of it.

That's four 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.
Hayes bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Joney's guard.

Hayes is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
Joney working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Hayes.
Hayes throwing strikes but missing.
Hayes working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Hayes pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Joney is keeping the position for now.
Joney is controlling Hayes's posture.
Hayes in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Jonny Joney dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Mercury Hayes's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Joney slips under a jab from Hayes.
Joney takes a body punch but keeps moving.
Joney takes an uppercut right on the jaw but it doesn't phase him.
Joney tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Hayes was well out of range. Poor timing from Joney.
It seemed like Hayes was going to counter with the hook but didn't fully commit to it.
No luck with that takedown attempt from Hayes.
Joney tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Hayes was well out of range. Poor timing from Joney.
It seemed like Hayes was going to counter with the hook but didn't fully commit to it.
Hayes uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Joney.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hayes throws a lazy uppercut
and Joney counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Joney misses with an uppercut.
A slapping leg kick lands for Joney.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Joney throws a body punch but Hayes moves out of range.
Hayes wants to counter with a clinch but Joney pushes him away.
Joney misses with a hook. Hayes ducked under it nicely.
Joney dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Hayes. That did some damage!
Hayes jabs Joney right on the nose. Joney blinks but takes it well.
Joney throws a jab but it's blocked by Hayes.
Joney fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Hayes has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
A lazy body kick from Joney
and Hayes counters with a stiff right hand.
Hayes takes a head kick and keeps coming.
Hayes misses with a takedown attempt
and Joney connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Hayes misses with a looping right.
Hayes might want to mix his strikes up a bit more. He's just going for head shots at the moment and that can become a bit predictable.
Joney fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Hayes manages to avoid it.
Jonny Joney is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Joney misses with a low kick.
Hayes feints the counter takedown.
Hayes avoids a kick to the body.
Hayes slips in close and lands a nice hook before moving back out of range.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Joney throws a lazy right hand but Hayes sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.
Hayes changes levels for a counter takedown but doesn't follow through with his attempt.
Joney throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Joney sets himself, and Hayes steps forward looking for the clinch! Joney avoids it this time.
Joney looks to score with a jab to the body but Hayes is just out of range.
Joney misses with a body shot.
Joney is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Hayes can do to turn this around?
Hayes pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Joney lands with a thumping leg kick.
Joney stuffs the takedown attempt from Hayes. Hayes gets slowly back to his feet.
Jonny Joney has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Mercury Hayes.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hayes lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Joney circles away quickly and effectively.
Joney just misses with a punch to the body.
Hayes tries a counter takedown but it's more of a dummy move, and he uses it to push himself away.
Joney throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Hayes misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Joney ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Hayes moves away.
Hayes drops down looking to force a counter takedown but Joney defends it well.
Hayes defending well as Joney loads up on a big left hand.
Joney throws a hook but Hayes blocks it.
And Hayes tries to counter it with a takedown but Joney pushes his down on his head and steps out.
Joney throws a body kick but he was well out of range there.
Joney looks to land a right hand but Hayes moved out of range.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hayes takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.
Joney misses with a body shot.
Joney throws a push kick but Hayes slaps the foot to one side.
Joney throws an off balance right hand
and Hayes counters with a straight right hand.
Hayes bobs and weaves and unloads with a good uppercut.
Hayes just misses with a punch to the body.
Joney thuds a mid kick into his opponent's body. That will wear on Hayes if he has to take too many more of those.
Joney swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Hayes tries a counter takedown but it's more of a dummy move, and he uses it to push himself away.
Good shot there by Joney.

That has opened up Mercury Hayes's cut even more.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Joney scores with a spinning back kick!
Hayes shoots in for a takedown but Joney shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Jonny Joney dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Mercury Hayes's cut.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action. This is the final round!

Joney misses with a body shot.
Joney throws a hook but Hayes avoids it easily.
Hayes is definitely looking for the counter takedowns here.
Joney throws a leg kick but Hayes sees it coming and moves out of range.
Joney connects with a looping left hand that seems like it dazed Hayes momentarily.
Hayes throws an off balance right hand
and Joney counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Joney scores with the left hand. Hayes knows he should have avoided that one.
Decent striking displayed by Joney there.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hayes throws a lazy uppercut
and Joney counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Hayes blocks a leg kick.
Hayes is definitely looking for the counter takedowns here.
Hayes connects with a lovely right hand, straight down the pipe.
Joney throws a big shot that misses.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Hayes looking to score a takedown here. Joney is defending well but Hayes drives through and ends up in Joney's guard.
Hayes trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Joney avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Hayes is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Hayes wants to control from the top but Joney keeps moving.
Joney knows he needs to get back to his feet asap. He's simply no match for Hayes on the ground.
Hayes throwing strikes but missing.
Hayes throws a big right hand that misses.
Joney utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Hayes landing some decent shots from guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hayes working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Hayes has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
Hayes throws a big right hand that misses.
Hayes in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Hayes accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Hayes with a flurry of punches that miss.
Joney utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Hayes throwing strikes from guard but Joney blocks nicely.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Joney throws a leg kick that misses.
Hayes looks to land a left hand but Joney moved out of range nicely.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Joney misses with a left hand
letting Hayes counter with a right hand.
Joney looks to land a body kick but Hayes moved away.
Nice jab there from Hayes.
An inside leg kick from Joney misses.
Hayes jabs Joney right on the nose. Joney blinks but takes it well.
Joney slips a straight right by Hayes.
Hayes avoids a kick to the body.
Hayes is definitely looking for the counter takedowns here.
Joney misses with a head kick.
Hayes is trying to avoid his opponent's strikes and get into the clinch.
Hayes avoids the body shot from Joney.
Hayes tries a counter takedown but it's more of a dummy move, and he uses it to push himself away.
Joney lands a nice shot that snaps Hayes's head back.

The cut above Mercury Hayes's eye is starting to cause him problems now.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Joney misses with a straight right.
Hayes looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Mercury Hayes has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Joney scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
Joney misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Hayes drops down looking to force a counter takedown but Joney defends it well.
Hayes throws a looping overhand right but Joney ducks down to avoid it.
Joney tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Hayes was well out of range. Poor timing from Joney.
Joney looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Joney throws a sloppy body shot

and Hayes counters by moving into the clinch.
Hayes has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Joney is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
Joney scores with an uppercut up the middle.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Joney creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Jonny Joney is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Hayes has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.
Joney keeps control of Hayes as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.

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 Jonny Joney.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Joney, 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 Jorge Garcia scores the fight 30:27
Judge John Kavanagh scores the fight 30:27
Judge Columbo Gatti scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Jonny Joney!