PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Abdulmalek Al Saadoun (ranked 4045 p4p, 0 weight class) and Francisco Marquez (ranked 4419 p4p, 0 weight class). Abdulmalek Al Saadoun has the edge in experience - let's see if he can make that count tonight.

Al Saadoun
vs
Marquez

176 cm
25
156 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

182 cm
25
157 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

Good wrestling
Brawler
Good in bed

BJJ Purple Belt
Excellent boxer
Tends to cut

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 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Abdulmalek Al Saadoun!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Francisco Marquez!
The judges for this bout are Daniel Franklin, Michael Johnstone and Bart Greer.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Marquez shoots in for a double leg but Al Saadoun sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
Marquez shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Al Saadoun sprawls well. Al Saadoun wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Marquez gets slowly back to his feet.
Marquez uses good footwork to get in and out and land a nice right hand before Al Saadoun has time to react.

Marquez closes the distance and clinches.
Al Saadoun is defending well against a takedown attempt.
Abdulmalek Al Saadoun has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Francisco Marquez.
Al Saadoun is defending well against a takedown attempt.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Al Saadoun has dropped down and is looking to force the takedown but it's defended by Marquez after a bit of a struggle.
Marquez is trying to force a seperation but Al Saadoun has the dominant position.

Al Saadoun breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.

Marquez gets caught flat footed, as Al Saadoun shoots in with a quick takedown into guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Marquez trying to control the position.
Marquez working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Al Saadoun.
Al Saadoun tries to free his leg and advance position but Marquez is retaining full guard.
Marquez is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now Marquez is on top in guard.

Al Saadoun keeping moving, preventing Marquez from controlling successfully.
Al Saadoun is doing well to control the posture of his opponent and prevent any damage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.
Marquez working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Marquez passes Al Saadoun's right leg, so he's now in half guard.
Marquez stops Al Saadoun from getting back to his feet.
Al Saadoun is trying to control but can't.
Marquez is looking to pass the guard... He's managed it - he's now in full mount!
Al Saadoun tries to hold on but Marquez postures up.
Al Saadoun is working to get back to half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Marquez looking to control but Al Saadoun is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
Marquez throwing strikes here but Al Saadoun is writhing around nicely and avoiding any serious damage.
Marquez wants to control the pace but Al Saadoun is squirming around nicely.
Al Saadoun wants to control but Marquez is having none of it.
Al Saadoun can't escape the position.
Marquez can't quite control the action as he would like just now, as Al Saadoun is looking to escape.

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.
Al Saadoun is working to get back to half guard.
Al Saadoun on his back here. We all know that wrestlers don't like being on their back so let's see if Al Saadoun tries to get out of the position.

Marquez with some aggressive grappling here. He's looking for submissions here, rather than waiting for the opportunity to counter.
Al Saadoun is trying desperately to improve position.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Marquez throwing sloppy strikes here. Perhaps if he tightened up his striking from such a dominant position, he'd be able to finish easier.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

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

Excellent takedown into side control there by Al Saadoun.
Marquez managing to avoid any damage from the strikes thrown by Al Saadoun.
An elbow from Al Saadoun crashes against the mat.
Al Saadoun is pausing for a moment. What's he doing? It looks like he's clearing his nose. Oh dude! He's shot a load of snot all down Marquez's shoulder. That is not cool.
You can see the frustration on Marquez's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
We've been hearing that Al Saadoun has been drilling a lot of ground and pound in training, so let's see if he get the finish.
Marquez sneaks back into half guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Nice strikes from Al Saadoun there.
Al Saadoun trying to control the action but Marquez is working from the bottom.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Al Saadoun stops Marquez from getting back to his feet.

Al Saadoun stands up from half guard... He's had enough of that ground malarky for the time being.
Abdulmalek Al Saadoun is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Marquez lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Marquez tries a head kick but it misses.
Marquez thuds his right hand into Al Saadoun's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.
Marquez circles away from the clinch attempt
and Marquez counters with a big head kick but Al Saadoun shrugs it off.
Marquez shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Al Saadoun defends it nicely.
Al Saadoun appears to be looking for a counter takedown.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Al Saadoun misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Marquez looks to land a combination but Al Saadoun avoids it well.
Al Saadoun shoots for a double leg takedown but Marquez sprawls well. He's pushed Al Saadoun's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

Al Saadoun shoots in from a long way out. He's driving through with the takedown attempt and he eventually gets it, landing in Marquez's guard.
Marquez looking to hit a scissor sweep but Al Saadoun is one step ahead there.
Marquez looking to control.
Al Saadoun in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Al Saadoun engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Marquez trying to control the position.
Al Saadoun wants to stand but Marquez has a closed guard, so he can't escape.
If this pace continues, the referee will definitely step in and force a standup.
Marquez striking off his back but it's not causing Al Saadoun any problems.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Marquez with a poor takedown
and Al Saadoun counters with a series of strikes. Marquez will be more careful next time no doubt.
Al Saadoun throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Marquez counters with a nice jab to the body that keeps Al Saadoun thinking.
Al Saadoun dives in for a single leg takedown but Marquez sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Marquez is trying hard to land a takedown here. Al Saadoun sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Abdulmalek Al Saadoun has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Francisco Marquez.
Marquez has a takedown stuffed.
Marquez shoots in for a double leg but Al Saadoun sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
Al Saadoun moves out of range of the body kick from Marquez.
Al Saadoun is trying to close the distance and clinch up, after that failed offence from Marquez.

Marquez closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.

Al Saadoun pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Al Saadoun shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Marquez counters with a one-two to the body.
Marquez fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Al Saadoun avoids it really well and circles away.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close second round but Francisco Marquez will probably get the nod - 10:9.
That's time! Back to the action! This is the final round!

Marquez shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Al Saadoun sprawls well. Al Saadoun wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Marquez gets slowly back to his feet.

Al Saadoun closes the distance and after a bit of a stuggle, scores a takedown into Marquez's guard.
Al Saadoun trying to control but Marquez is working from the bottom.
Al Saadoun's corner is telling him to maintain position.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Marquez is trying to control the position but Al Saadoun postures up.

Marquez is throwing his legs up, looking for submissions. Al Saadoun is aware though and is defending well.
Abdulmalek Al Saadoun overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Marquez working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Al Saadoun doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Al Saadoun manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Al Saadoun working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Marquez's head.
Al Saadoun stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Marquez swivels though and keeps the full guard.
It looks like the ref is thinking about a standup.
Al Saadoun missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Al Saadoun seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Francisco Marquez seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Marquez slaps away a takedown attempt from Al Saadoun, before circling back to the center of the mat.

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.
Marquez misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.

Al Saadoun closes the distance and clinches up, looking for a takedown. He shifts his weight and gets a nice trip into half guard.
Al Saadoun wants to take a breather but Marquez is having none of it.
Al Saadoun seems to have lost interest with the ground game and is thinking about standing back up.
Marquez is trying to control but Al Saadoun manages to pass to mount!
Marquez is desperately trying to improve his position but Al Saadoun has a good base and remains in mount.
Al Saadoun looking to control but Marquez is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Al Saadoun thowing strikes but they're hitting the gloves, not doing any damage.
Marquez tries to hold on but Al Saadoun postures up.
Marquez is working to get back to half guard.
BOOM! Al Saadoun connects with a massive shot to the dome!
Marquez is desperately trying to improve his position but Al Saadoun has a good base and remains in mount.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Al Saadoun throwing sloppy strikes here. Perhaps if he tightened up his striking from such a dominant position, he'd be able to finish easier.
Al Saadoun controlling his opponent.
Al Saadoun trying to control but he's not successful this time.
Al Saadoun throws a wild left hand from mount and Marquez manages to wriggle his way back to half guard.
Al Saadoun thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Abdulmalek Al Saadoun has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Francisco Marquez is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Al Saadoun lands with a punch from half guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
Abdulmalek Al Saadoun showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Marquez 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 3 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Daniel Franklin scores the fight 28:29
Judge Michael Johnstone scores the fight 28:29
Judge Bart Greer scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by split decision... Francisco Marquez!