PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Carlos Correia (ranked 6130 p4p, 25344 weight class) and Arthur Solomons (ranked 699 p4p, 0 weight class). These two fighters really are very evenly matched on the feet - it will be fascinating to see who can assert themselves in that aspect of the fight.

Correia
vs
Solomons

186 cm
20
180
0 - 1 - 0

188 cm
19
195
0 - 2 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Granite chin

BJJ White Belt
Brawler
Determined

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Carlos Correia!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Arthur Solomons!
The judges for this bout are Tiny Johnson, Wesley Smith and George Francis.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Solomons feints a jab promting Correia to slip. Solomons then demonstrates his capabilities by jabbing again. Correia slips again and ducks right into an uppercut.

It looks like Carlos Correia has been cut.
Correia closes the distance looking to clinch

and Solomons counters with a nice shoot takedown that brings the fighters to the ground.
Solomons showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Solomons stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Correia swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Solomons slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Solomons trying to control but Correia is working from the bottom.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Solomons throwing strikes from guard but Correia blocks nicely.
The referee looks like he's ready to step in and stand the fighters back up.
Solomons keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of Correia's head.
Solomons must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Solomons won't allow Correia to sweep him here.
Correia is breathing heavily.
Solomons working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Correia's head.
Solomons controls from within his opponent's guard.
Solomons slips effortlessly into side control - very nice.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Solomons wants to control but Correia is keeping him busy.
Solomons working the ground and pound but Correia is defending the strikes.
Correia is trying to escape the position but Solomons is controlling the position.
Solomons is putting a hurting on Correia here, landing some big shots from side control.
Solomons moving around in side mount but really he's just happy to control for now.
Solomons is looking to take a break and control but Correia is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Solomons tries to move into full mount but can't pass Correia's legs.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Solomons content to control the pace. The referee will try and keep them active though.

Solomons tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Sloppy strikes there by Solomons.
Correia is not content to let Solomons control the position.

Solomons thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.

That's four 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.
Solomons in side control, just content to control the action for now.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Arthur Solomons dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Carlos Correia's cut.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action.

Correia is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Danga de danga de dang - Solomons scores with a four punch combination!

Solomons clinches.
Solomons has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Correia avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.
Solomons has dropped down and is looking to force the takedown but it's defended by Correia after a bit of a struggle.
Solomons lands with a light punch inside.

Solomons wants the takedown. Correia is fighting it off but Solomons persists and manages to bring the fight to the ground, ending up in Correia's guard against the cage.
Solomons working some strikes from top position.
Solomons pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Correia is keeping the position for now.
Correia keeping moving, preventing Solomons from controlling successfully.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Solomons is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Correia looking for a sweep. Not yet Correia, not yet.
Solomons not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Solomons with a flurry of punches that miss.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.
Solomons sneaks a leg through and gets to half guard. That was like a knife through butter how easily he passed Correia's guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Solomons wants to pass the guard but Correia is defending well.
Solomons looks over to his corner - he wants some instructions but his corner are not responding.

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.
Correia is staying active underneath Solomons, who seems content to just control the action from this position.
Solomons performing his best blanket impression for a moment.
Solomons wants to free his trapped foot but Correia is holding on for dear life with his legs.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up.
Solomons shoots in looking for a takedown. Correia tries to sprawl out of it but Solomons keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Correia manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Carlos Correia has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Arthur Solomons.
Correia wants to clinch but Solomons slips to the side

and Solomons counters with a shoot takedown. Correia fights it but they end up in guard.
Solomons tries to free his leg and advance position but Correia is retaining full guard.
Solomons slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Solomons working from the guard for now, landing some ground and pound.
Solomons trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Correia is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Solomons showing good wrestling skills to control the position.

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.
Solomons's corner are shouting for him to control the position and he seems happy to oblige.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Left hook, right uppercut from Solomons.
Correia shoots in but doesn't get the takedown

and Solomons counters with a shoot takedown. Correia fights it but they end up in guard.
Solomons wants to pass the guard but Correia is keeping the position.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Solomons working from the guard for now, landing some ground and pound.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Arthur Solomons showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Carlos Correia's cut.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! So, we enter the final round. Let's see if either fighter can bring us a finish, or whether we're going to the judges scorecards.

Solomons lands a two punch combo.
Solomons misses with the combination.
Correia feinted with a counter takedown.
Solomons scores with a reasonable looking shot to the body. Correia doesn't seem bothered though.
Correia shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Solomons pinned against the cage. Solomons gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Solomons unleashes a big counter combination but Correia bobs and weaves and avoids any damage.
Correia shoots in looking for a takedown but Solomons manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Correia's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Solomons lands a body shot.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Solomons jabs Correia right on the nose. Correia blinks but takes it well.

Correia tries to keep at a distance but Solomons has taken the fight into the clinch.
Correia tries to work over Solomons's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

Solomons is working on a single leg takedown against the cage. Correia can't fight it off and eventually Solomons manages to take the fight to the floor. Correia looks annoyed but at least he's managed to land in guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Solomons looking to pass the guard.
Solomons scoring with some ground and pound.

Solomons thinks about going for a leg but decides against it, in order to maintain the position.
Solomons is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Solomons is in close to Correia's body, working some short punches and elbows.
Solomons trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.

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.
Solomons looking to control the position here, rather than advance.
Solomons chips away with some ground and pound.
Correia tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Solomons trying to control but Correia is working from the bottom.
The referee is pacing around the two fighters, thinking about a standup.
Solomons controlling from the top position.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Solomons fails to land with a series of punches.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Correia wants to clinch but Solomons slips to the side

and Solomons counters with a shoot takedown. Correia fights it but they end up in guard.
Solomons won't allow Correia to get back to his feet.
Solomons tries to free his leg and advance position but Correia is retaining full guard.
Solomons landing some decent shots from guard.
Correia wants to get back to his feet but Solomons is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Solomons postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Correia controls Solomons momentarily but Solomons frees himself.
The referee wants the fighters to be more active or he's going to reset them on the feet.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Solomons trying to control but Correia is working from the bottom.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Arthur Solomons seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Solomons's corner calls for a 1, 2 combination and Solomons duly obliges.
Carlos Correia seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Correia displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Solomons.
Solomons will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.

Correia darts in and clinches Solomons up against the cage.

Solomons lands a nice trip takedown into half guard.

Correia has one foot on Solomons's thigh - he pushes off and manages to get back to his feet.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Solomons misses the jab.
Carlos Correia has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Arthur Solomons is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Correia swinging wildly here.
Solomons is definitely looking for the counter takedowns here.

And that's the end of the fight!
Arthur Solomons comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Solomons has outworked and out performed his opponent in all aspects of the game today. He was simply too good and the decision should be no more than a formality. 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 Tiny Johnson scores the fight 27:30
Judge Wesley Smith scores the fight 27:30
Judge George Francis scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Arthur Solomons!