BFT-486: PRIDE Never Die! 19 PBP Commentary

Undercard bout

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Manu Tuilagi (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Dane Brigglett (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Dane Brigglett will no doubt be looking to use his reach advantage to good effect.

Tuilagi
vs
Brigglett

174 cm
37
183 lbs
29 - 14 - 0

199 cm
44
199 lbs
23 - 24 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
Decent elbows
Insanely flexible

BJJ Purple Belt
Excellent boxer
Heavy handed

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 2 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 29 - 14 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Manu Tuilagi!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 23 - 24 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Dane Brigglett!
The judges for this bout are Ron Honeybunn, Hugh Johnson and Chris Dean.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
A low kick from Brigglett is predictable there

and Tuilagi counters with a single leg into guard. Brigglett didn't expect that.
Tuilagi working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Brigglett's head.
Brigglett keeping moving, preventing Tuilagi from controlling successfully.
Tuilagi is stalling in the full guard.
Tuilagi missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Tuilagi 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.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Tuilagi in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Tuilagi controls the pace of the fight for a moment.
Tuilagi scoring with punches to the head and body.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tuilagi controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.
Tuilagi trying to control the position from guard on top but Brigglett is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Tuilagi postures up in Brigglett's guard and throws a big left but Brigglett blocks it.
Tuilagi scoring with some ground and pound.
Tuilagi throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Brigglett works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Tuilagi content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.
Tuilagi wants to control from the top but Brigglett keeps moving.
Tuilagi preventing the sweep.
Tuilagi controls the pace of the fight for a moment.
Tuilagi wants to control from the top but Brigglett keeps moving.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Tuilagi throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Tuilagi trying to control the position from guard on top but Brigglett is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Tuilagi is working Brigglett over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Tuilagi postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Tuilagi with a flurry of punches that miss.
Tuilagi scoring with some ground and pound.
Tuilagi forces his way into half guard.
Tuilagi trying to control the pace.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
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. Tuilagi connects with a nice short shot to Brigglett's temple.
Tuilagi landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Tuilagi thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Tuilagi working over Brigglett with some ground and pound. Brigglett looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.

Tuilagi is looking for a kimura here.
Tuilagi controlling the action here.
Tuilagi is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ground and pound from Tuilagi.

Brigglett is defending against the submission attempts here by Tuilagi.
Tuilagi looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Brigglett with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Tuilagi wants to control but Brigglett is keeping him busy.
Tuilagi scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Tuilagi is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Tuilagi keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
Tuilagi not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Tuilagi not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
The fighters are trapped in the ropes so we're going to have a reposition here. The ref calls for a break and repositions the fighters in the center of the ring.

That's five minutes gone in the round.
Tuilagi looks over to his corner - he wants some instructions but his corner are not responding.
Tuilagi working over Brigglett with some ground and pound. Brigglett looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
The fighters are tangled up in the ropes here. We might need a restart if the fighters can't break free themselves.
Tuilagi lands strikes from half guard.
Ground and pound from Tuilagi.
Tuilagi is looking to take a break and control but Brigglett is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Tuilagi looks to land a strike but Brigglett avoids it nicely and regains full guard.
Tuilagi is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
Brigglett really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Tuilagi. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Tuilagi trying to control the position from guard on top but Brigglett is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

That's six minutes gone in the round.
Tuilagi controlling from the top position.
Tuilagi is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Tuilagi pushing down on Brigglett's thigh, trying to pass to half guard. He's managed it... Nice work.
Tuilagi winds up and cracks Brigglett with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Tuilagi seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Brigglett is trying to get back to full guard.
Tuilagi slips a nice elbow through Brigglett's hands, connecting with Brigglett's forehead.
Tuilagi is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.
Tuilagi wants to control but Brigglett is keeping him busy.

That's seven minutes gone in the round.
Brigglett is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Tuilagi scores with a couple of nice shots.
Tuilagi looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Brigglett with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Nice strikes from Tuilagi there.
Tuilagi looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Brigglett with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Tuilagi looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.
Tuilagi keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
Tuilagi passes the guard and advances to mount!
Tuilagi looking to ground and pound his opponent to a finish here.
Brigglett looks winded!

That's eight minutes gone in the round.
Tuilagi controlling the pace for now.
Tuilagi landing strikes from the mount and Brigglett is in trouble!
Tuilagi can't quite control the action as he would like just now, as Brigglett is looking to escape.
Tuilagi lands with some vicious ground and pound - can Brigglett hang on?
Tuilagi scoring with some good ground and pound from mount here. Will he manage to finish Brigglett?
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!
Tuilagi looking to control but Brigglett is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
A nice elbow there by Tuilagi.
Tuilagi lands with some strikes.

Brigglett is rocked!
Tuilagi scoring with strikes but Brigglett is staying in there.
Brigglett is still in real trouble! Can Tuilagi finish him?

That's nine minutes gone in the round.
Tuilagi in mount throwing good strikes here, bouncing his opponent's head off the canvas.
Tuilagi tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
Brigglett seems to have recovered his senses.
Tuilagi fakes a shot to the body and cracks his opponent in the head. Nice ground and pound there!
Tuilagi controlling from the full mount.
Tuilagi wants to control the pace but Brigglett is squirming around nicely.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Tuilagi lands a nice shot to the head.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Manu Tuilagi dominated that round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! And we move into the final round!

Brigglett misses the shot to the body.
Brigglett takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Brigglett has tried to improve his agility in the runup to this fight.
Brigglett looks to score with a jab to the body but Tuilagi is just out of range.
Tuilagi connects with a jab.
Tuilagi keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Brigglett.
Tuilagi moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Brigglett thows a leg kick but Tuilagi checks it

and Tuilagi counters with a takedown into side control! That could mean trouble for Brigglett!
Tuilagi tries to land with some ground and pound but misses.
Tuilagi landing with strikes to the head and body from side control.
Tuilagi looks up at the clock and then as Brigglett takes his cue and looks up at the clock too, Tuilagi smacks him right in the chops with a big elbow! How rude!
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!
Tuilagi wants to control but Brigglett is keeping him busy.
Brigglett is breathing heavily.
Brigglett managing to avoid any damage from the strikes thrown by Tuilagi.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tuilagi tries to advance to mount but Brigglett denies him.
Tuilagi working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.
Tuilagi landing strikes.
Brigglett takes a big shot right to the temple there but he's taken it well.
Tuilagi lands a knee to the body and a forearm to the face.
Tuilagi is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Brigglett can do to turn this around?
Tuilagi working the head and body with strikes.
Brigglett is working to avoid the ground and pound but Tuilagi connects with a decent elbow.
Tuilagi lands a knee to the body and follows it up with some ground and pound to the head. That will wear Brigglett down.
Tuilagi advances to mount.
Tuilagi controlling the position easily from mount.
Whack. That's a big, big shot from Tuilagi! Brigglett is out cold! This one is all over!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2:56 of round 2, we have a winner by way of KO (Strikes). Manu Tuilagi!
After the big win, Manu Tuilagi made sure to do all the important stuff like thanking his sponsors HERITAGE Threads and telling the interviewer how much he loves him.

C
A

C
B

energy
A | B

hype
A | B

pop
A | B

mgr
A | B

FIGHT
RATING
43%

Co-main event

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Keiko Lynn (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Kingsley Nasir (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Lynn
vs
Nasir

189 cm
44
187 lbs
27 - 24 - 0

185 cm
36
182 lbs
13 - 11 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Excellent boxer
KO power

Good wrestler
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 2 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 27 - 24 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Keiko Lynn!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 13 - 11 - 0, fighting out of New York, Kingsley Nasir!
The judges for this bout are Summer Carpenter, Ben Watson and John Mangel.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Nasir tries a head kick but it misses.
Nasir slips under a jab.
Lynn misses with a hook.
Good leg kick by Lynn there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Lynn misses with a two punch combination.
Nasir was about to counter that last move with a leg kick but changes his mind.
Nasir on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
A swing and a miss from Lynn.

Nasir tries to keep at a distance but Lynn has taken the fight into the clinch.
Lynn managing to block the knees to the body from Nasir.

Nasir pulls guard.

Lynn got a little sloppy there for a moment and Nasir has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Lynn has managed to get both his arms back between Nasir's legs - danger averted.
Nasir looking for a sweep. Not yet Nasir, not yet.

Nasir is working actively from the bottom, looking for submissions. He's escaped his hips to the side and he's going for an armbar! Lynn has his hands clasped together but Nasir extends and breaks Lynn's desperate grasp, forcing a tap out due to armbar! Nice BJJ displayed there by Nasir.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 1:58 of round 1, we have a winner by way of Submission (Armbar). Kingsley Nasir!
After winning the bout, Kingsley Nasir thanked all his fans and promised he'd do even better in his next fight. The crowd seemed to love his humility.
Keiko Lynn was interviewed post fight and said 'I want to apologize to all my fans! I went to the strip club last night and I still have a f*****g hangover...plus...My huge penis threw me off balance a few times during the fight, I may tape it to my leg next fight.'.

C
A

C
B

energy
A | B

hype
A | B

pop
A | B

mgr
A | B

FIGHT
RATING
84%

Main event

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Russell Lynn (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Antero Rokka (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Rokka has chosen Twilight Guardians - Out of Our Hands as his entrance music. Russell Lynn had a look across the ring there at his opponent. He definitely means business

Lynn
vs
Rokka

194 cm
41
189 lbs
11 - 7 - 0

188 cm
37
197 lbs
34 - 22 - 0

Good wrestling
World class boxer
KO power

Good wrestler
World class MT
Good gas tank

Sydney Fight Gear

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 2 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 11 - 7 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Russell Lynn!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 34 - 22 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Antero Rokka!
The judges for this bout are Francis DeMontford, Chris Dean and John Mangel.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Rokka misses with an attempted mid kick.
Lynn has been working on his boxing with his coaches at K.O. Koala's in the buildup to the fight.
Lynn swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Rokka.

Rokka clinches up with Lynn and pushes him back against the ropes.

Rokka breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Lynn throws a right hand that Rokka ducks under and follows up with a left that Rokka also avoids with ease.
Rokka scores with a straight right hand, right through his opponent's guard.
Rokka swinging wildly here.
Rokka scores with a nice one two combo and darts back out of range to avoid anything coming in the opposite direction.
Rokka misses with an uppercut.
A little feinted left hand from Lynn on the counter but he doesn't commit to it.
Lynn throws a quick inside leg kick.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Lynn stumbles momentarily as he takes a strong leg kick from Rokka.
Rokka takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
Lynn moves away from the strike by Rokka.
Lynn is looking for a counter combo.
Rokka pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Lynn throws a poor cross that misses
and Rokka counters with a straight right hand.

Rokka catches Lynn napping and connects with a big right hand that sends Lynn to the canvas!

Lynn is rocked!
Rokka gets to his feet and stands over Lynn, holding his ankles. He dives in with a big left hand that connects! Lynn felt that one! Rokka unloads more punches and elbows and this one is over! The ref has dived in to save Lynn from any more punishment!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 1:57 of round 1, we have a winner by way of TKO (Strikes). Antero Rokka!
After the fight, Antero Rokka was humble in paying tribute to his opponent but made it clear he wants to go on to bigger and better things. It seemed to go down well with the crowd who cheered him loudly.