PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Steve Harvey (ranked 3113 p4p, 337 weight class) and Urban Legend (ranked 3140 p4p, 338 weight class). The fight MMA fans around the world have waited their entire lives for!

Harvey
vs
Legend

181 cm
25
166 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

175 cm
25
140 lbs
3 - 0 - 0

Good wrestling
Basic striking
Granite chin

BJJ Purple Belt
Decent boxing
Determined

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 Los Angeles, Steve Harvey!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Urban Legend!
The judges for this bout are Roger Salmon, Micheangelo Fripello and Chris Saunders.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Legend misses with a hook. Harvey ducked under it nicely.
Harvey half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Harvey shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Legend as he avoids it easily.

Harvey shoots in for a takedown and gets it.
Harvey looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
Harvey thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Legend has hold of Harvey's hands but Harvey slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Harvey is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Harvey scoring with strikes to the body and head.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Well, if Harvey 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 one minute gone in the round.
Harvey 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.
Harvey not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Harvey not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Harvey controlling the action here.
Harvey thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Legend's head.
Harvey is pressing down on Legend's thigh, looking to free his foot. Legend is holding on for now.
Harvey scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Harvey in particular looking to stall.
The fighters are battling for position here. Legend manages to regain full guard. Nice work.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Harvey throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Legend is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Harvey has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.
Harvey is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Our spies down at at Jitz MMA inform us that Legend has really been working on his submissions in the buildup to this fight. Will it pay off?
Harvey postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Harvey postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Legend just misses with a punch to the body.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Harvey.
Harvey looks for a takedown but Legend sprawls well.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Steve Harvey. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Legend scores with a reasonable looking shot to the body. Harvey doesn't seem bothered though.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Harvey changes levels and drives through with a really nice takedown into side control. Legend looks really pissed at himself for not defending that better.
Harvey is working Legend over with some ground and pound from side control.
Legend dodges the ground and pound from Harvey.
You can see the frustration on Legend's face as Harvey controls the position.
Legend regains half guard, as Harvey was trying to land strikes.
Harvey controlling the action here.
Harvey drops an elbow to the side of Legend's head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Harvey not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Harvey is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Legend wants to get back to his feet.
Harvey thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Legend's head.
Harvey not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Harvey slows the pace down in half guard.
Harvey drops an elbow to the side of Legend's head.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Harvey content to control rather than advance.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

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

Legend tries to sprawl but Harvey drives through with a takedown into half guard.
Harvey slows the pace down in half guard.
Harvey missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Harvey lands with an elbow from half guard - that looked like it hurt.
Harvey looks to land a strike but Legend avoids it nicely and regains full guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Harvey content to stall in guard here.
Harvey has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
Harvey throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Legend throwing some rather feeble looking strikes off his back.
Harvey sitting in guard here, content to control.
Harvey seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Legend for as long as he can get away with.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.

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.
Harvey throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Legend's waist but Legend gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Harvey off to one side.
Harvey changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Legend tries to avoid it but Harvey manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Legend to the ground. Legend escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.

Harvey closes the distance and after a bit of a stuggle, scores a takedown into Legend's guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Harvey 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.
Harvey continues to stall.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
This is a sustained period of stalling by Harvey.
Harvey content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Harvey's corner is telling him to maintain position.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Harvey accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

Legend has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but Harvey can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.
Harvey is looking to work some ground and pound but Legend has wrist control.
Harvey throwing strikes but missing.
Harvey engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Harvey tries for a takedown but Legend sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.
A countering left hand to the body from Legend misses.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Steve Harvey. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Harvey bobs and weaves into range and then changes levels and scores with a nice takedown into side control.
Harvey working the ground and pound.
Legend tries to get back to his feet but has found himself mounted instead. Damn, that's gotta suck.
Harvey controlling from the full mount.
Harvey lands an elbow that was bordering on illegal but the referee lets it go with a warning.
Harvey controlling the pace for now.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Harvey scores with a couple of good head shots there.
The crowd growing excited in anticipation of a finish here! Right on cue, Harvey cracks his opponent with a massive right hand that draws loud cheers!
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Steve Harvey dominated that second round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. This is the final round!

A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Harvey.
Harvey fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Harvey shoots in looking for a takedown. Legend tries to sprawl out of it but Harvey keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Legend manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Harvey looks to have improved his striking defense since last time we saw him fight.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Steve Harvey. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Harvey tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Legend defends well and Harvey ends up having to push Legend into the cage where they will battle it out in the clinch.

Harvey closes the distance and clinches up, looking for a takedown. He shifts his weight and gets a nice trip into half guard.
Legend is trying to stand up here but Harvey is controlling him well.
Harvey winds up and cracks Legend with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Well, if Harvey 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.
Ground and pound from Harvey.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Harvey keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
Harvey looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Legend with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Harvey slows the pace down in half guard.
Harvey sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Legend defending well though.
Harvey content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
Harvey missing with the ground and pound from half guard.

That's two 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.
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. Harvey connects with a nice short shot to Legend's temple.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Harvey in particular looking to stall.
Legend trying to control from the bottom.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Harvey is looking to land body kicks.

Harvey looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into side control! Oh, that's bad for Legend!
Harvey taking a breather here.
Harvey sitting in side control, looking to soften his opponent up with elbows and hammerfists but Legend is avoiding damage well and looking to escape the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
You can see the frustration on Legend's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Harvey tries to cartwheel into mount but he doesn't manage it.
Legend is trying to escape and get back to his feet.
Harvey happy to just control the position for now.
Harvey working the ground and pound.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Harvey creates some space and throws a big elbow, but Legend sees it coming and moves his head just enough to avoid the strike.
Harvey working the ground and pound but he's contacting the mat, not the fighter.
Urban Legend has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Harvey tries to advance to mount but can't.
Harvey lands a few punches from side control.
Steve Harvey is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Harvey working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.
Legend is trying to escape the position but Harvey is controlling the position.
Steve Harvey overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Harvey lands a decent elbow from side control.
Harvey working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.

Legend is rocked!

And that's the end of the fight!
Steve Harvey showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Harvey, 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 Roger Salmon scores the fight 30:27
Judge Micheangelo Fripello scores the fight 30:27
Judge Chris Saunders scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Steve Harvey!