PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Matt Cooke (ranked 1358 p4p, 2030 weight class) and Jonathan Boaler (ranked 184 p4p, 271 weight class). Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Cooke
vs
Boaler

185 cm
41
210
39 - 18 - 3

190 cm
30
212
14 - 10 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Granite chin

Good wrestler
Excellent MT
Good gas tank

Voodoo Nutrition

HARDCORE
Hardcore Alchemy

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the light heavyweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 39 - 18 - 3, fighting out of St Petersburg, Matt Cooke!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 14 - 10 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Jonathan Boaler!
The judges for this bout are Dillan Fox, Steve Smith and Alec Ball.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Boaler misses with a right hand
and Cooke counters with a leg kick.
Cooke pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
We can't be sure of the tactics at this early stage but we have heard that Boaler has been working on his takedowns a lot in the buildup to the fight and we can only assume he's going to look to take this to the mat.
Boaler throws out a loose jab but Cooke uses good head movement to avoid it.
Boaler avoids the body shot from Cooke.
Boaler changes levels for a counter takedown but doesn't follow through with his attempt.
Cooke thumps Boaler with a low kick.
Boaler throws a big shot that misses.
Cooke takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
Boaler misses with a jab to the body
and Cooke counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Boaler shoots in looking for a takedown. Cooke tries to sprawl out of it but Boaler keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Cooke manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
It looked like Cooke wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Boaler blocks a leg kick.
Matt Cooke is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Cooke scores with a big left there. The judges will like that one.
Cooke lands with a right hand.
Cooke waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Boaler.
Boaler feints the counter takedown.
Cooke throws a low kick, looking for Boaler's leg but Boaler calmly moves out of range.

Boaler rushes Cooke and presses him up against the cage.
Cooke misses with a hook from the clinch.
Boaler jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Cooke walks away with a smile on his face. Boaler gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.

Cooke tries to keep at a distance but Boaler has taken the fight into the clinch.
Cooke throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Boalers head.
Boaler tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Cooke just stands there and leans against the cage.
Matt Cooke has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Jonathan Boaler.
Boaler tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
A nice left hand lands by Cooke.
Boaler is trying to pull guard but Cooke has him pressed against the cage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Cooke lands a nice looking hook to the body, against the cage.
Cooke lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
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!

Cooke escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Nice body punch from Cooke.
Boaler blocks a head kick by Cooke.

The fight moves into the clinch position.

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

Boaler takes the fight into the clinch.
Boaler tries to pull guard but Cooke forces him back to his feet, against the cage.
Boaler is trying to pull guard but Cooke has him pressed against the cage.
Boaler jumps guard but Cooke stands there with Boaler around his waist. Boaler gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Boaler tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Cooke smiles and moves away.
Boaler takes a big uppercut there. He seems a bit wobbly but no, he's OK.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Cooke throws a right high kick that is partially blocked by Boaler.
Cooke misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Cooke is looking to chop away at Boaler's legs.
Boaler tries a counter takedown but it's more of a dummy move, and he uses it to push himself away.
Nice body kick there by Cooke.
Cooke looks to be in better condition than last time we saw him fight. Obviously he's been working hard on his cardio.
Cooke ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Cooke misses with a leg kick

and Boaler counters with a shoot takedown. Cooke fights it but they end up in guard.
We could do with one of the fighters taking the initiative a bit more on the ground - they're both waiting to capitalize on a mistake.
Boaler trying to control the position from guard on top but Cooke is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Cooke keeping full guard, as Boaler tries to pass.

Boaler drops back for a leg! It's a sloppy attempt though and Boaler jumps back into guard quickly, to retain the dominant position.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Boaler trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Cooke trying to control the position here.
Boaler trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Cooke pulls Boaler in close to his closed guard and prevents Boaler from doing any damage or advancing position.
Boaler slips effortlessly into side control - very nice.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

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

Boaler closes the distance and clinches.
Boaler is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the cage enables Cooke to keep the fight standing.
Cooke lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Cooke digs a right hand underneath Boaler's ribcage. Boaler let out a lung full of air as it connected.
Boaler is trying to pull guard but Cooke has him pressed against the cage.
Boaler is trying to pull guard but Cooke has him pressed against the cage.
Matt Cooke has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Jonathan Boaler.
Boaler blocks a body shot from Cooke.
Boaler tries to pull guard but Cooke holds him up against the cage and eventually Boaler drops back down to his feet.
Cooke is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Boaler can do to turn this around?
Cooke tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Boaler is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the cage enables Cooke to keep the fight standing.
Cooke lands a shoulder strike.
Matt Cooke has scored more points in the clinch so far.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Boaler tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Cooke smiles and moves away.
A punch combination from Cooke misses.
Cooke throws a head kick that Boaler semi-blocks.
A punch combination from Boaler misses.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Boaler gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.

Boaler has managed to pull guard. Let's see whether he can work an aggressive guard. It will also be interesting to see what tactics Cooke uses from the top position.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Cooke's corner is telling him to maintain position.
Cooke has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
Cooke pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Boaler is keeping the position for now.

Boaler is actively looking for submissions from his back. He's worked himself a little space on the bottom and seems to be going for a triangle. No, he's switched into an armbar! That was slick! Cooke rolls with it to try and escape but Boaler cranks on the arm and Cooke is forced to tap out! This one is aaaaaaaaall over!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2:57 of round 2, we have a winner by way of Submission (Armbar). Jonathan Boaler!
Jonathan Boaler is the new light heavyweight champion!
A loyal slave to those sponsorship dollars, Jonathan Boaler made sure he mentioned MKFC , along with how happy he was to win his fight.