PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a super heavyweight MMA rules bout between Spinning Fire (ranked 4736 p4p, 0 weight class) and Matt Smithson (ranked 24767 p4p, 0 weight class). Spinning Fire had a look across the cage there at his opponent. He definitely means business

Fire
vs
Smithson

209 cm
18
290 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

200 cm
25
285 lbs
0 - 6 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter fighter
Big heart

BJJ White Belt
Excellent boxer
Heavy handed

One stop shop

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the super heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Spinning Fire!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Matt Smithson!
The judges for this bout are Jack Bonds, and Frank Antenori.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Smithson throws a leg kick that is checked

and Fire counters with a single leg into guard. Smithson didn't expect that.
Smithson looks really tired already! That doesn't bode well for a good, competitive fight!
Fire's corner is telling him to maintain position.
Fire seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Smithson for as long as he can get away with.
Fire distracts Smithson with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Fire stands up over Smithson, holding his feet. He dives back in and lands a decent shot to the head.

It looks like Matt Smithson has been cut.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Fire works over Smithson with some ground and pound from guard.
Fire with a nice head shot there.
Fire lands a couple of decent looking shots.
Smithson being controlled here, momentarily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Fire working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Smithson's head.
Fire controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.
Fire continues to stall.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Fire lands a couple of digs.

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.
Fire is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.
Fire'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.
Fire makes a bit of distance and scores with some ground and pound, still in guard.
Fire 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.
Fire looking to control the position here, rather than advance.
Fire has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
More hug and hope from Fire.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Fire avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Fire changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
Smithson has been working on his striking defense in training and it's paying off as Fire is landing a low percentage of strikes.
Smithson shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Fire pinned against the cage. Fire gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Smithson throws a head kick that misses.
Smithson tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Fire swivels and escapes.
Fire half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Nice takedown defense from Fire. No joy for Smithson on that attempt.
Spinning Fire has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Matt Smithson.
A low kick from Smithson misses

and Fire counters with a takedown into side control.
Fire scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at Smithson to see if he's OK.
Fire in side control, just content to control the action for now.
Smithson takes a big shot right to the temple there but he's taken it well.
Fire scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at Smithson to see if he's OK.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Smithson seems a little lost for a moment, as Fire dominates the positioning.
Fire scores with a couple of short elbows.
Smithson really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Fire. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Fire cracks Smithson with an elbow. That is naaassty.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Spinning Fire dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Matt Smithson's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Fire slaps away a takedown attempt from Smithson, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Smithson looks for a takedown but Fire sprawls well.
Fire attempts a counter takedown but Smithson avoids it well and moves away.
Smithson is looking to clinch.
Smithson gets off balance looking for a body kick

and Fire counters with a single leg into guard. Smithson didn't expect that.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Fire showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Fire lands a couple of decent looking shots.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Fire slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
Smithson is breathing heavily.
Fire is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Fire controlling from the top position.
Fire chips away with some ground and pound.
Hammerfist, elbow! yells Fire's corner. There ya go! There ya go!
Fire content to stall in guard here.

That's two 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.
Fire content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.
Fire showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Fire is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Smithson can do to turn this around?
Fire connects with a couple of short punches.
Fire is stalling in the full guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Smithson is trying to keep Fire in close.
It looks like the ref is thinking about a standup.
Fire is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.
Smithson tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Smithson has his takedown stuffed

and Fire counters with a takedown into side control! That could mean trouble for Smithson!
Spinning Fire has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Matt Smithson.
Fire staying calm.
Fire cracks Smithson with an elbow. That is naaassty.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Fire landing strikes.
Fire controls the position from side control.
Spinning Fire overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Fire lands a knee to the body and follows it up with some ground and pound to the head. That will wear Smithson down.
The referee asks Fire politely if he wouldn't mind getting on with it and actually doing something. Fire prefers to stall for the moment though.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Spinning Fire dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Matt Smithson's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! This is the final round!

Smithson fails with a takedown attempt.
Smithson looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Fire is fending him off so far but Smithson persists. Nope, Fire circles away and we're back to standing.
Fire feinted with a counter takedown.
Smithson fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Fire avoids it really well and circles away.
Fire drops down looking for a counter takedown but Smithson sprawls and moves away.
Spinning Fire has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Matt Smithson.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Fire stuffs the takedown attempt from Smithson. Smithson gets slowly back to his feet.
Fire changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
Matt Smithson seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Smithson fails with a takedown attempt.
Smithson takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Smithson throws a left and a right that both miss

and Fire counters with a nice double leg into side control. Smithson won't be happy with that.
Fire in side control lands a nice looking series of punches and elbows.
Fire working the ground and pound from side control.
Fire scoring with punches and elbows.
Smithson seems a little lost for a moment, as Fire dominates the positioning.
Smithson is not in a great position here, taking some shots.
Fire lands a nice forearm strike.
Fire working the head with strikes.
Fire controlling the position from side mount.
Smithson on the wrong end of some ground and pound.
Spinning Fire is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here.
This is a sustained period of stalling by Fire.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Further stalling from Fire.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Fire cracks Smithson with an elbow. That is naaassty.
Fire happy to just control the position for now.
Fire lands a nice forearm strike.
Fire in side control, just content to control the action for now.
Fire scoring with punches from side control.
Smithson trying to remain calm as Fire controls from the top position.
If it seems like I'm not saying a lot, it's just because Fire is stinking the place up with his stalling.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
We've had a lack of effective grappling in the last minute or so, which could well see a referee standup.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Smithson wants to clinch but Fire slips to the side

and Fire counters with a single leg into guard. Smithson didn't expect that.
Smithson wants to get back to his feet but he's too absorbed in his own little project and Fire manages to pass to side control.

And that's the end of the fight!
Matt Smithson comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Fire has outscored his opponent in every aspect of the fight today. Only a scarily incompetent judge or two will keep him from a well deserved win... 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 Jack Bonds scores the fight 29:28
Judge Percy O'Donnell scores the fight 29:28
Judge Frank Antenori scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Spinning Fire!
A very excited looking Spinning Fire made sure he remembered to thank all the fans both in the arena and on the internet. He said all the coolest people spend all day on MMA websites, which got a big reaction.