PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Rayder Garner (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Classic Man (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both these fighters are unbeaten, so somebody's 0 has got to go!Classic Man will no doubt be trying to keep this one on the feet, where he has a distinct advantage.

Garner
vs
Man

176 cm
30
215 lbs
9 - 0 - 1

205 cm
19
250 lbs
6 - 0 - 0

Good wrestling
Counter fighter
Granite chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Basic striking
Good gas tank

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the heavyweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 9 - 0 - 1, fighting out of Montreal, Rayder Garner!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 6 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Classic Man!
The judges for this bout are Alec Ball, Robert Douchet and Dillan Fox.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Garner displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Man throws out the jab.
Man misses with a head kick.

Man gets caught flat footed, as Garner shoots in with a quick takedown into guard.
Garner slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.
Garner is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Garner wants to control from the top but Man keeps moving.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Man can do anything to dispel that myth.
Garner passes Man's right leg, so he's now in half guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Man has his hands clasped together around Garner's back. He's all about the action.
Garner 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.
Garner is taking a breather. Man says something to him but it's hard to make out. Perhaps he's telling him to get on with it and actually do something.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Garner missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Garner trying to control the pace.
Garner throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Garner content to control rather than advance.
Man really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Garner. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.
Man wants to get back to his feet.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.

Garner scores with a takedown into Man's guard.
Garner won't allow Man to get back to his feet.
Garner lands a couple of digs.
Man can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Garner controls the pace.
Man has a closed guard, preventing anything of note from happening. Perhaps he's looking to stall.
Garner trying to control but Man is working from the bottom.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Garner is stalling in the full guard.
Garner content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.
Man being controlled here, momentarily.
Garner trying to control but Man is working from the bottom.
Garner is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.

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.
Man throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Garner takes one to the chin there.

Garner closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. Man quickly recovers to half guard.

Garner is trying to work for a kimura but Man is defending well.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Garner trying to mount his opponent but Man defends it.
Man tries to kick Garner off but Garner keeps his base steady and stays in half guard.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Garner thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Man's head.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Rayder Garner dominated that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Man dips down and scores with a jab to the body.

Man tries to sprawl but Garner drives through with a takedown into half guard.
Garner not doing much here.
Garner passes to side control.
Man prevents Garner from improving position.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
An elbow from Garner crashes against the mat.
Check out the look on Garner's face as he threw that strike - that's one determined fighter!
You can see the frustration on Man's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Garner is looking to take a break and control but Man is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Garner scoring with punches from side control.
Garner is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Man can do to turn this around?

Garner looking for an arm triangle but it's way too loose to do anything.
Garner 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.
Garner working the ground and pound but Man is defending the strikes.
Garner working away.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.
Man seems a little lost for a moment, as Garner dominates the positioning.
Garner throws a strike aimed at the side of Man's head but Man avoids it well.
Garner moves into full mount!
Garner raining down hammerfists from mount.
Garner controlling from the full mount.
Man tries to hold on but Garner pushes him away.
Garner lands with some vicious ground and pound - can Man hang on?
Garner controlling from the full mount.
Garner'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.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Man is desperately trying to improve his position but Garner has a good base and remains in mount.
Garner scoring with strikes but Man is staying in there.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Garner has his opponent pinned against the cage, landing some nasty ground and pound that is really making a bit of a mess out of Man's face.
Garner lands a nice shot to the head.
Garner controlling the position easily from mount.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Garner with the ground and pound from mount.
Garner punishing his opponent with strikes.
Man is trying to escape the mount.
Garner is in the full mount, landing strikes.

Garner is working on an americana here. Ooh, that looks pretty nasty! Nope, Man has managed to escape the submission attempt.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Garner with the ground and pound from mount.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Rayder Garner dominated that second round.
That's time! Back to the action!

Danga de danga de dang - Man scores with a four punch combination!
Man throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
As Man looks to move away, Garner throws a big counter combo but Man just gets out of the way.
Man wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
Man lands a powerful looking uppercut that connected with his opponent's jaw.
Man jabs at Garner's body.
Garner gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
and Man counters with a nice jab to the body that keeps Garner thinking.
Man is throwing a lot of body shots here, looking to wear down Garner rather than just go for the knockout.
Man moves out of range of the strikes.
Garner on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
Garner walks into a stiff left hand from Man.
Man throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Garner on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Man digs a good body shot into Garner's ribs.
Garner avoids a low kick by using good footwork.
Garner drops down looking for a counter takedown but Man sprawls and moves away.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Man throws a sloppy head kick and Garner moves out of range easily.
Some wild striking there from Man.
Garner blocks a low kick nicely.
Man fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Garner looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Garner dives in for a single leg takedown but Man sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.
Man throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
Garner dives in and grabs Man's left leg, looking for a takedown. Man pushes down on Garner's head and hops out.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Rayder Garner. That's going to take a lot out of him.
No luck for Garner with that takedown attempt.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Man ducks down and throws a hook to the body.
Man's coach down at Cozad MMA Las Vegas was telling us pre-fight that they have been working on Man's balance. Obviously they view that as a key factor in the outcome of this fight.
Nice shot lands for Man.
Classic Man seems to be getting the better of the standup.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Garner blocks a head kick by Man.
Garner takes one on the chin but keeps coming.
Garner moves out of range of the leg kick from Man.
Man fakes a jab and throws a low kick but Garner checks it well.
Garner half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.

Garner gets the takedown into side control.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Man takes a couple of big shots there - the referee warns him that he has to defend himself better.

Garner tries for an arm triangle. That looks pretty tight to me. Is this one over!?! Possibly, maybe, no Garner has let go of the choke. Obviously it wasn't as tight as we thought!
Garner 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.

Garner wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Man, who protects the arm well.
Garner is putting a hurting on Man here, landing some big shots from side control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Man tries to improve position but can't.
Garner 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.

Garner tries for a kimura but Man is defending well.
Garner looks up at the clock and then as Man takes his cue and looks up at the clock too, Garner smacks him right in the chops with a big elbow! How rude!
Man managing to avoid any damage from the strikes thrown by Garner.
Garner lands some shots froms side control.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
My god... these two guys really need to pick up the pace or everyone will leave to go get a beer.
Garner remains in side control and seems content to stay there. It's a versatile position from which he can work both strikes and submissions, whilst maintaining that control, so maybe he'll sit here for a while.
Garner cracks Man with a big elbow.
Man tries to buck Garner off but Garner is having none of it.
Garner fails to land a wild elbow strike.
Man avoids any damage from the ground and pound of Garner.
Man stops Garner from passing to mount.
Man managing to avoid any damage from the strikes thrown by Garner.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Classic Man really dominated that round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Garner will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Classic Man is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Man with a nice cross.
Man fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Garner manages to avoid it.
Man swings away with a leg kick that misses.
Man throws a low kick, looking for Garner's leg but Garner calmly moves out of range.
Man is looking to chop away at Garner's legs.
Man misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Garner.
Garner with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Man to score with a decent uppercut.
Garner has his hands up protecting his head but a hook from Man finds it's way round the side to connect with Garner's head.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Garner throws a body punch but Man moves out of range.
Garner closes the distance and clinches up with Man, looking for a takedown. Garner pushes Man against the cage but Man circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Man scores with a jab to the body.
Man connects with a body shot that sends Garner's belly button to the back.
Man connects with a nice looking jab.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Garner takes one on the chin but seems OK.
Classic Man is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Man defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Garner.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Rayder Garner. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Man displaying good standup as he scores with a three punch combination.
Man comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.
Man lands a jab followed by a nice looking cross.
Man swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Classic Man seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

Garner gets the takedown into side control.
It's got to the stage where if one of these guys blows hard enough, the other might fall over.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Man tries to bench press Garner off him but Garner keeps the position.
Garner wants to lay and pray for a moment but Man keeps working.
You can see the frustration on Man's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Garner slows the pace down.
Garner is looking to take a break and control but Man is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Man wants to escape from the position here - easier said than done!
Rayder Garner overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Garner landing strikes.
The referee asks Garner politely if he wouldn't mind getting on with it and actually doing something. Garner prefers to stall for the moment though.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Man tries to improve position but can't.
Man taking a bit of punishment here - Garner scoring with strikes.
Garner misses with an attempted head punch from side control.
Garner in side control lands a decent elbow.
Man manages to land a sweep and he's now on top! Lovely Jiu Jitsu!
Garner trying to control here.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Garner is looking to improve his position.
Garner is working hard here to advance position.
Man is trying to control the action in half guard but Garner is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
Man wants to stand but his hand is trapped. Garner uses the opportunity to regain full guard.
Garner looking for a sweep. Not yet Garner, not yet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Classic Man dominated that fourth round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

Garner checks a low kick. Bone on bone - not my idea of a good time.
Man throws out a leg kick but Garner moves out of range and Man only half commits.
Man dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Man ducks down and throws a hook to the body.
Garner fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
Man thows a leg kick but Garner checks it

and Garner counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Garner.
Man trying to control the position.
Garner is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Man wants to sweep here but Garner controlling him for the moment.
Man keeping moving, preventing Garner from controlling successfully.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Garner not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Man scores with a shot to the body.
Man misses with a body kick.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.
Man punishes Garner's body with a nice straight punch.
Man is using his reach advantage to land shots from outside his opponent's range.
Garner takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
Man misses with a low kick as Garner jumps back.
Man misses the shot to the body.
Garner fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Both of our modern day gladiators look out of it here - a gruelling 5 rounds of action taking it's toll on them, no doubt.
Man tests Garner's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Man lands with a cross.
Man lands with a good body shot.
Garner shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
A countering left hand to the body from Man misses.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Rayder Garner. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Man tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Garner appears to be looking for a counter takedown.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Man delivers a nice body kick.
A low kick from Man is predictable there

and Garner counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Garner perhaps working for something from half guard, or maybe not. It looks like he's just sitting there.
Man wants to improve his position but Garner is controlling well.
Garner not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Garner seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Man does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Man wants to improve his position but Garner is controlling well.
Garner not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Garner throwing shots but Man is blocking nicely.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.
Man scores with a jab to the body.
Man throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Garner changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
Man throws a series of strikes that have Garner backpedaling.
Man misses with a series of wild punches.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Garner takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
Garner dives in for a single leg takedown but Man sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.
Man throws a front kick aimed at Garner's knee but Garner avoids it well.
Garner misses with a wild body shot.
Man steps in looking to counter with the mid kick but it doesn't connect.
Man lands a leg kick and bounces back out of range.

And that's the end of the fight!
Classic Man comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Man has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. Over to the ring announcer for the scorecards.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 5 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Alec Ball scores the fight 47:48
Judge Robert Douchet scores the fight 47:48
Judge Dillan Fox scores the fight 47:48

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Classic Man!
Classic Man is the new heavyweight champion!
During a confident post fight interview, Classic Man thanked all his fans. He seemed very genuine when describing how motivated his fans keep him.