PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Carlos Garcia (ranked 3833 p4p, 5384 weight class) and Eli Pope (ranked 422 p4p, 518 weight class). Both these guys have really solid chins. Will we see a standup war or will they both decide that a knockout is unlikely and try to win the fight elsewhere?

Garcia
vs
Pope

181 cm
19
162
1 - 1 - 0

176 cm
19
165
1 - 1 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Brawler
Cardio machine

Decent wrestler
Solid Muay Thai
Solid chin

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 1 - 1 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Carlos Garcia!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 1 - 0, fighting out of London, Eli Pope!
The judges for this bout are Timothy Bukovac, Don Winkell and Frank Antenori.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Pope gets a clinch.
Garcia looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Garcia wants to break free but Pope has control.
Pope fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Garcia is trying to break the clinch but Pope is controlling him.
Pope misses with a hook from the clinch.
Garcia wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Pope lands a shoulder strike.
Garcia wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Pope has him pressed against the cage.
Pope keeps control of Garcia as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Garcia has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.
Garcia is trying to break the clinch but Pope has him pressed against the cage.
Pope lands a body shot in the clinch.
A frustrated look appears on Garcia's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Pope struggles to land a body shot inside as Garcia controls his hands.
Pope trying to stall but Garcia improves his position.
Garcia's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Pope swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Garcia looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Pope tries to throw a body punch but Garcia avoids it by throwing Pope back against the cage.
Garcia wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Pope taking a breather.
A head punch on the inside from Pope fails to land.
Pope working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Pope swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Pope looks more muscular than last time we saw him. He must have been on the weights.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Pope tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Pope lands a right hand.
A frustrated look appears on Garcia's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Garcia fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Pope lands with a light punch inside.
Pope lands with a short punch from the clinch.
Garcia is trying to break the clinch but Pope has him pressed against the cage.
Garcia's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Garcia lands an uppercut.
Pope works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
Garcia tries to break free but Pope pushes him back against the cage.
Pope lands a nice shot to the body.
Garcia wants to get back to striking at distance but Pope won't allow it.
Garcia takes a shot to the head.
Garcia wants to break the clinch but can't.
Pope lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Pope scores with a shoulder strike.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Pope doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Garcia blocks an uppercut.
Garcia lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Garcia wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Garcia blocking some punches.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A frustrated look appears on Garcia's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Pope working some nice short punches in the clinch.
Garcia definitely looks more muscular than last time we saw him fight.
Garcia blocks a punch to the side of the head.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Pope creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Pope misses with the head strike.
Pope scores with a shoulder strike.
Garcia wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Pope has him pressed against the cage.
Garcia blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Garcia is looking to break free of the clinch but Pope has double underhooks.
Pope throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Pope lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Garcia backwards.
A frustrated look appears on Garcia's face as he tries to break the clinch.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Garcia.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Pope.
Pope has Garcia pressed against the cage.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Garcia.
Garcia has had enough of the clinch but Pope keeps him there for the moment.
Garcia is trying to force a seperation but Pope has the dominant position.
Pope leaning against his opponent.
Garcia tries to break free but Pope pushes him back against the cage.
Garcia prevents a body shot from Pope.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Pope.
Pope lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Pope misses with the head strike.
Still in the clinch, Pope scores with a nice short uppercut.
Pope misses with a short punch on the inside.
Pope has Garcia pressed against the cage, preventing Garcia from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Pope throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Pope lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Pope lands a hook that snaps the head of Garcia backwards.
Garcia blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Garcia tries to circle away but Pope has him pinned against the cage.
Pope swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Garcia is trying to break the clinch but Pope is controlling him.
Garcia can't break the clinch.
Pope lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Garcia backwards.
Garcia is trying to break the clinch but Pope is controlling him.
Pope lands a left hand that snaps the head of Garcia backwards.
A body shot lands from Pope.
Pope working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Pope lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Pope misses with some punches.
Pope misses with a hook from the clinch.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The fighters are starting to get sweaty, which will make takedowns a bit more tricky.
A nice right hand lands inside from Pope.
Garcia wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Pope wants to stall.
Garcia blocks an uppercut.

Garcia breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Garcia throws out a loose jab but Pope uses good head movement to avoid it.
Garcia lands a jab. Then a cross. Then finally a nice hook to the body. Good work there by Garcia.
Pope ducks under a wild hook from Garcia.
Garcia scores with a nice one two combo and darts back out of range to avoid anything coming in the opposite direction.
Garcia fails to land with a series of punches.
Pope ducks under a wild hook from Garcia.

Pope darts in and clinches Garcia up against the cage.
Garcia blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Pope lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Garcia backwards.
A frustrated look appears on Garcia's face as he tries to break the clinch.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
A head punch on the inside from Garcia fails to land.
Pope gets through Garcia's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Garcia wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Pope misses with some punches.
Pope lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Garcia backwards.
Pope tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Eli Pope dominated that round.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Garcia swinging wildly here.
Left hook, right uppercut from Garcia.
Pope tries to close the distance and clinch but Garcia swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.

Pope darts in and clinches Garcia up against the cage.
Garcia's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Garcia wants to break free but Pope has control.
Garcia is looking to break free of the clinch but Pope has double underhooks.
Pope has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Pope digs a right hand into Garcia's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Garcia's gas tank.
Garcia has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.
Pope is stalling here. The referee will be looking to step in if he doesn't pick up the pace.
Garcia wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Pope has him pressed against the cage.
Garcia has a couple of punches blocked by Pope.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Pope tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Pope scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Pope lands an uppercut.
Pope scores with a shoulder strike.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Pope swings away with an uppercut that misses.
A nice right hand lands inside from Pope.
Pope presses Garcia against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
Garcia is trying to break the clinch but Pope has him pressed against the cage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Garcia is trying to break free.
Pope working some nice short punches in the clinch.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Garcia.
Garcia wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Garcia wants to break the clinch but can't.
Pope working aggressively here.
A head punch on the inside from Pope fails to land.
A frustrated look appears on Garcia's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Garcia prevents a body shot from Pope.
Pope swings wildly with an uppercut but Garcia uses good head movement to avoid it.
Pope can't find room to land a body shot as Garcia controls the action.
Pope tries to work over Garcia's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Garcia is trying to break the clinch but Pope is controlling him.
Pope softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Garcia tries to break the clinch but Pope is controlling the position.
Garcia wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Pope misses with a hook from the clinch.
Pope has Garcia pressed against the cage.
Pope misses with a hook from the clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Garcia working hard to break the clinch.
Garcia blocking some punches.
Pope lands with a left to the head.
Pope gets through Garcia's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Pope fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Garcia is trying to break the clinch but Pope is controlling him.
Garcia has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.
Garcia wants to break free but Pope has control.
Garcia is trying to break the clinch but Pope is controlling him.
Garcia tries to circle away but Pope has him pinned against the cage.
Pope keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Garcia's efforts to push away.
Pope is trying to stall.
Pope has Garcia pressed against the cage, preventing Garcia from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Pope misses with the head strike.
Garcia wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Pope swings wildly with an uppercut but Garcia uses good head movement to avoid it.
Garcia prevents a body shot from Pope.
Garcia is trying to break free.
Pope misses with a short punch on the inside.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Pope swings wildly with an uppercut but Garcia uses good head movement to avoid it.
Pope keeps control of Garcia as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Eli Pope seems to be working more effectively in the clinch in the fight so far.
Garcia tries to break free but Pope pushes him back against the cage.
Garcia blocks a punch to the side of the head.

Garcia escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Garcia throws a series of punches but Pope avoids them all with ease.
Garcia misses with a looping right.
Garcia misses with a jab, cross combination.
Pope tries to counter by closing the distance.
Wow, both these guys are really going for it!
Pope tries to clinch up but Garcia circles away and keeps his distance.
Carlos Garcia is winning the standup battle so far.
Garcia tries to bum rush Pope with a series of wild strikes but Pope uses good footwork to avoid the assault.

Pope darts in and clinches Garcia up against the cage.
Garcia is trying to push Pope away but Pope has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Garcia working hard to break the clinch.
Pope swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Pope misses with the head strike.
The referee calls for Pope to work.
Pope scores with a nice hook to the head.
Garcia blocking some punches.
Garcia blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Garcia lands a right hand.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Pope keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Garcia's efforts to push away.
Garcia tries to break the clinch but Pope is controlling the position.
Garcia is trying to break the clinch but Pope is controlling him.
Pope throws a punch but it's blocked by Garcia.
Pope prevents Garcia from breaking the clinch.
Garcia is trying to break free.
Pope swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Garcia can't break the clinch.
Garcia blocking some punches.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Pope scores with a shot to the side of Garcia's head.
Garcia wants to break free but Pope has control.
Garcia is trying to break free.
Garcia blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Pope tries to work over Garcia's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Pope prevents Garcia from breaking the clinch.
Garcia wants to break the clinch but can't.
Pope working aggressively here.
A short body shot lands from Pope as the two fighters clinch.
Pope misses with a punch on the inside.
A frustrated look appears on Garcia's face as he tries to break the clinch.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Eli Pope showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! This is the final round!

Garcia shuffles to his left behind two crisp jabs. Pope eats them both and turns towards Garcia to reposition himself and eats a stinging right hand-left hook combo.
Garcia gets his head snapped back by a nice shot there.
Pope tries to close the distance and clinch up but Garcia swats him away and circles back towards the center.

Pope rushes Garcia and pushes him back against the cage in a clinch.
Garcia has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.
Pope has a couple of punches blocked by Garcia.
A frustrated look appears on Garcia's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Pope misses with a punch on the inside.
Garcia tries to break the clinch but Pope is controlling the position.
Garcia has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.
Garcia has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.
Pope lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
A head punch on the inside from Pope fails to land.
A head punch on the inside from Pope fails to land.
Garcia blocking some punches.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Pope lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Garcia backwards.
Garcia wants to break the clinch but can't.

Garcia breaks the clinch.
Garcia tries to bum rush Pope with a series of wild strikes but Pope uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Pope tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Pope tries to clinch there but Garcia circles away.
Garcia keeps the fight on the outside.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Pope tries to close the distance and clinch but Garcia swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Garcia lands with an uppercut that bounces Pope off the cage and back into range.
Pope wants to clinch up but Garcia keeps it at a distance.

Pope moves into the clinch successfully.
Pope throws a head punch that misses.
Pope misses with the head strike.
Garcia blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Pope lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Pope throws a head punch that misses.
Pope misses with the head strike.
Pope lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Pope misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Pope pushes Garcia back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
Pope has Garcia pressed against the cage, preventing Garcia from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Nice body punch from Pope.
Pope misses with the head strike.
Pope makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
A battle for position here, against the cage.
Garcia tries to circle away but Pope has him pinned against the cage.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Pope.
Pope lands with a right to the head.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Garcia wants to break free but Pope has control.
Garcia wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Pope lands a left hand that snaps the head of Garcia backwards.
Garcia wants to get back to striking at distance but Pope won't allow it.
Pope misses with a short punch on the inside.
Pope misses with a punch on the inside.
Pope lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Garcia backwards.
Pope working some nice short punches in the clinch.
Pope trying to control the position but instead, Garcia has worked for underhooks and has pushed Pope into the cage.
Pope scores with a nice hook to the head.
Garcia has had enough of the clinch but Pope keeps him there for the moment.
Pope gets through Garcia's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Garcia blocks an uppercut.
Pope working aggressively here.
Garcia has had enough of the clinch but Pope keeps him there for the moment.
Pope working aggressively here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Pope taking a breather.
Garcia wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Pope throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Garcias head.
Garcia is trying to break the clinch but Pope has him pressed against the cage.
Pope makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
Pope has a couple of punches blocked by Garcia.
Pope misses with a body punch.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Pope.
Pope has Garcia pressed against the cage, preventing Garcia from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Garcia blocks an uppercut.
Pope tries to work over Garcia's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Garcia can't break the clinch.
Pope softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Pope throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Garcias head.
Garcia is trying to push Pope away but Pope has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Garcia blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Garcia looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Pope working some nice short punches in the clinch.
Pope lands a shoulder strike.
Garcia is trying to force a seperation but Pope has the dominant position.
Garcia working hard to break the clinch.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Pope prevents Garcia from breaking the clinch.
Garcia is trying to push Pope away but Pope has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Pope tries a body shot but Garcia blocks it.
Garcia tries to circle away but Pope has him pinned against the cage.
Garcia is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Pope softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Pope prevents Garcia from breaking the clinch.
Garcia looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Pope tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Garcia's elbow.
Garcia tries to break free but Pope pushes him back against the cage.
Pope lands with a short punch from the clinch.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Garcia wants to break free but Pope has control.
Pope throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Garcia blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Pope looking to stall.
Garcia blocking some punches.
Carlos Garcia has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Garcia has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.
Still in the clinch, Garcia scores with a nice short uppercut.
Pope lands with a light punch inside.

And that's the end of the fight!
Eli Pope comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Pope winning every round here. Surely the decision will go his way and he'll pick up a well deserved decision victory. 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 Timothy Bukovac scores the fight 27:30
Judge Don Winkell scores the fight 27:30
Judge Frank Antenori scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Eli Pope!
A victorious Eli Pope thanked his army of followers in his post fight interview, telling people to make sure they follow him on Twitter.