PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Jonathan St Pierre (ranked 3192 p4p, 24261 weight class) and Jack Ryker (ranked 402 p4p, 705 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.

St Pierre
vs
Ryker

180 cm
27
179
5 - 4 - 0

169 cm
27
172
2 - 6 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Brawler
Experienced

BJJ Blue Belt
Solid Muay Thai
Knockout power

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 5 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Jonathan St Pierre!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 6 - 0, fighting out of New York, Jack Ryker!
The judges for this bout are Percy O'Donnell, Don Winkell and Timothy Bukovac.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
St Pierre tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Ryker paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Horrible takedown attempt by Ryker or perhaps it was just good defense by St Pierre, which made it look bad.
Ryker misses with a double jab.

St Pierre clinches up against the cage.
Ryker should think about turning a few of those tyres round his middle into muscle if he wants people to take him seriously as an athlete.

Ryker manages to pull guard.
St Pierre is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
St Pierre seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Ryker for as long as he can get away with.
Ryker is trying to control the position from the bottom.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
St Pierre controls from within his opponent's guard.
Ryker is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Ryker looking for a guillotine here but St Pierre defends easily.
St Pierre controls from within his opponent's guard.
If this pace continues, the referee will definitely step in and force a standup.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
A nice leg kick from St Pierre, right into the meat of the thigh.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.
Ryker fails to land the takedown.
St Pierre misses with a head kick.

St Pierre shoots in looking for a single leg takedown. Ryker is trying to defend but St Pierre finishes it well and ends up in half guard. Let's see if he can advance position further.
St Pierre will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
St Pierre not doing much here.
St Pierre continues to stall.
St Pierre drops an elbow to the side of Ryker's head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
St Pierre uses his free foot to push down on Ryker's thigh. Eventually he works his other foot free and he's advanced to mount - this is trouble for Ryker.
Ryker really doesn't want to stay on the ground with St Pierre. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
St Pierre landing strikes from the mount and Ryker is in trouble!
Ryker tries to hold on but St Pierre postures up.
Ryker is working to get back to half guard.
Ryker in a bad spot here, taking shots to the head.
Ryker really wants to buck St Pierre off and get back to his feet.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
A nice elbow there by St Pierre.
Ryker is working to get back to half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

St Pierre jumps to the side looking to secure the arm triangle…. Ooooh, that looks tight… Ryker is gargling but he's managed to escape! Nice work there by Ryker and St Pierre has given up the dominant position trying to land that submission.
St Pierre is pausing for a moment. What's he doing? It looks like he's clearing his nose. Oh dude! He's shot a load of snot all down Ryker's shoulder. That is not cool.
St Pierre looks to be in better condition than last time we saw him fight. Obviously he's been working hard on his cardio.

St Pierre goes for an armbar here - this could be all over! But no, Ryker has escaped beautifully and is now on top in side control! Oh, that's unlucky for St Pierre but great work by Ryker.
St Pierre struggling a bit here.
St Pierre manages to get one leg in to regain half guard.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Ryker throws a strike but St Pierre avoids it easily and moves to full guard.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Ryker being controlled here momentarily.
Ryker trying to stand up but can't free himself from St Pierre's guard.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Jonathan St Pierre dominated that round.
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.

A low kick from Ryker is predictable there

and St Pierre counters with a nice double leg into guard.
St Pierre passes easily into side control. Nice work.
Ryker is trying to get back to half guard.
St Pierre controls the position.
St Pierre wants to lay and pray for a moment but Ryker keeps working.
St Pierre slows the pace down.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Ryker tries to bench press St Pierre off him but St Pierre keeps the position.
Ryker looks to move to half guard but instead St Pierre has passed into mount! Damn!
Ryker is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.

That's one minute gone in the round.
St Pierre controlling the pace for now.
Ryker is trying to reverse the position but instead St Pierre has taken his back - oops!
St Pierre controlling from the back.

Ryker showing good submission defense here.
I really don't envy Ryker right now.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

St Pierre working for the choke.
St Pierre biding his time, looking for the opening.
St Pierre scores with a nice shot to the head of his opponent. Ryker is looking for a way out.
St Pierre is controlling his opponent, waiting for an opportunity to finish.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
St Pierre has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
St Pierre is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Ryker can do to turn this around?
St Pierre loading up with punches from the back mount - how long can Ryker hold on?
Ryker trying to control the hands but St Pierre won't let him.

St Pierre is staying calm and holding on to the back position, whilst working on a rear naked choke. Ryker is defending well though. St Pierre let's go of the attempt for now.
St Pierre is not going to allow Ryker to sit and survive in this position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ryker is very frustrated here, being controlled quite effectively by St Pierre.
St Pierre gets his hooks in and is throwing strikes.
St Pierre softening up his opponent with strikes here.
St Pierre has the hooks sunk in and you can see the will to fight slowly draining out of Ryker's body.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
St Pierre lands an elbow to the side of the head.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Jonathan St Pierre dominated that second round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action. This is the final round!

Ryker tries to clinch but fails miserably
and St Pierre counters with a low kick, right behind Ryker 's knee.
St Pierre throws a head kick that half lands.

It looks like Jack Ryker has been cut.
Ryker fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but St Pierre avoids it really well and circles away.
Jonathan St Pierre seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
St Pierre tries to clinch but Ryker is having none of it.
St Pierre tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Ryker tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but St Pierre paws at him with a jab and circles away.
St Pierre throws a head kick that misses.
Ryker tries to counter by closing the distance.
Ryker checks a low kick from St Pierre.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Ryker tries to clinch up but St Pierre circles away and keeps his distance.
Ryker tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. St Pierre manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
St Pierre tries a head kick but it misses.
St Pierre misses with a head kick.
Ryker tries a low kick but St Pierre avoids it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
St Pierre dives in for a single leg takedown but Ryker sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.

Ryker is fighting off a takedown attempt but St Pierre is just too persistent for him and manages to trip Ryker to the mat. Ryker regains guard as soon as the fighters hit the mat.
Ryker being controlled here, momentarily.

St Pierre drops back for a leg! It's a sloppy attempt though and St Pierre jumps back into guard quickly, to retain the dominant position.
St Pierre slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
St Pierre trying to control the position from guard on top but Ryker is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
St Pierre distracts Ryker with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
St Pierre stays in close to Ryker's body and controls the position.

Ryker working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. St Pierre doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. St Pierre manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
St Pierre content to stall in guard here.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
St Pierre fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Nice takedown defense from St Pierre. No joy for Ryker on that attempt.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from St Pierre.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Jonathan St Pierre. That's going to take a lot out of him.
St Pierre pulls out of a head kick attempt.
St Pierre with a lazy takedown attempt
and Ryker counters with a nice jab to the body that keeps St Pierre thinking.
St Pierre scoring well with a low kick there.
St Pierre moves forwards but Ryker connects with a nice, crisp jab.
Jonathan St Pierre is winning the standup battle so far.
St Pierre lands a head kick. Ryker smiles back at him and beckons him forward.
Ryker keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
Ryker slaps away a takedown attempt from St Pierre, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Jack Ryker is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
St Pierre stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and St Pierre wants it to stay on the feet.
St Pierre misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
St Pierre shoots for a takedown but Ryker saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
St Pierre throws a body kick that sends a sickening thudding noise reverberating around the arena.
Jonathan St Pierre is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

St Pierre moves into the clinch.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Ryker tries for a takedown but St Pierre manages to get underhooks.
St Pierre blocks the elbow strike.
Ryker tries to pull guard but St Pierre holds him up against the cage and eventually Ryker drops back down to his feet.
St Pierre has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Ryker is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Ryker throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Ryker can't break the clinch.
Jack Ryker has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

St Pierre tightens his grip and picks Ryker up, before dumping him to the ground. Ryker manages to land in guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
Jonathan St Pierre showed his dominance in that final round.
Well St Pierre 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 Percy O'Donnell scores the fight 30:26
Judge Don Winkell scores the fight 30:26
Judge Timothy Bukovac scores the fight 30:26

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Jonathan St Pierre!
Jonathan St Pierre thanked the fans post fight for their support.