PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Jans Schmidt (ranked 2023 p4p, 1540 weight class) and Alphonse Fuguego (ranked 212 p4p, 171 weight class). Alphonse Fuguego has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Schmidt
vs
Fuguego

170 cm
26
140
7 - 2 - 0

165 cm
21
145
3 - 1 - 0

Good wrestling
Solid boxing
Cardio machine

Olympic wrestler
Basic striking
Good gas tank

Brooklyn Apothecary
Brooklyn Threads

FinnFighter Nutrition (Five 160Q supps!)

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 7 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Jans Schmidt!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Alphonse Fuguego!
The judges for this bout are Stewart Dunkirk, George Francis and Wesley Smith.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Fuguego scores with a jab to the body.

Fuguego gets tackled into the cage by Schmidt. Schmidt maintains the clinch.
Fuguego just leaning against Schmidt, taking a breather.
Schmidt misses with a punch on the inside.
Fuguego tries to pull guard but Schmidt forces him back to his feet, against the cage.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Schmidt.
Fuguego stalling here - the referee won't stand for too much of that.
Schmidt misses with a punch on the inside.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Schmidt creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Fuguego avoiding damage.
Schmidt swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Fuguego effectively controlling the action here.
Schmidt dictating the pace here, as the fighters clinch against the cage.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Schmidt swings wildly with an uppercut but Fuguego uses good head movement to avoid it.
Fuguego goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Schmidt scores with a shoulder strike.
Fuguego fails to land with a short punch on the inside.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Fuguego working aggressively here.
A head punch on the inside from Schmidt fails to land.
Schmidt lands with a right to the head.
Schmidt throws a head punch that misses.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.

Fuguego has managed to pull guard. Let's see whether he can work an aggressive guard. It will also be interesting to see what tactics Schmidt uses from the top position.
Fuguego has a closed guard, preventing Schmidt from standing up.
Fuguego manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Schmidt manages to get himself to full guard.

Schmidt is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Fuguego is controlling him.

Fuguego postures up as if he's going to throw some strikes but drops back for an ankle! Schmidt is in big trouble! He looks ready to tap! But no, he's escaped and dives on top of Fuguego, into his guard.

Fuguego looking for a sweep. Not yet Fuguego, not yet.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Schmidt wants to stand but Fuguego has a closed guard, so he can't escape.
Schmidt wants to stand and escape but instead Fuguego has hit a sweep and he's now on top in guard.

A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Fuguego accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Fuguego engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
Fuguego lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
Schmidt wants to stand up but Fuguego is controlling him.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Schmidt is looking to stand back up... there's a bit of a scramble and Fuguego dives into side control.
Schmidt is not content to let Fuguego control the position.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Fuguego connects with a decent looking elbow from side control that caused Schmidt some visible discomfort.
Schmidt being controlled for a moment.

Fuguego tries for an arm triangle. That looks pretty tight to me. Is this one over!?! Possibly, maybe, no Fuguego has let go of the choke. Obviously it wasn't as tight as we thought!

Fuguego looking for an arm triangle but it's way too loose to do anything.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Schmidt wants to get back to his feet.
Fuguego trying to control the position but Schmidt is working away.

Fuguego tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Fuguego tries to score with some ground and pound. Schmidt controls his posture well this time though and the shots don't do any damage.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Alphonse Fuguego will probably get the nod.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Fuguego throws a body shot but no joy.
Fuguego's hands are dropping dangerously low here and Schmidt connects clean with a right hook that sends him down to one knee! Fuguego scrambles back to his feet.

Schmidt moves into the clinch successfully.
Schmidt lands a body punch.
A hook to the body from Fuguego.
Schmidt scores with a shoulder strike.
Fuguego tries to throw a body punch but Schmidt avoids it by throwing Fuguego back against the cage.
Schmidt tries to work over Fuguego's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
I was talking to Schmidt's coach per-fight and he was telling me that they'd been working on the clinch in the runup to this fight.
Schmidt lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Schmidt working some nice short punches in the clinch.
Fuguego misses with a punch on the inside.
Schmidt gets through Fuguego's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Schmidt lands with a short punch from the clinch.
Schmidt swings wildly with an uppercut but Fuguego uses good head movement to avoid it.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Fuguego lands an uppercut.
Schmidt misses with a short punch on the inside.
Fuguego takes a shot to the head.
Schmidt misses with a body punch.
Fuguego misses with a punch to the body.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Schmidt throws a punch but it's blocked by Fuguego.
Good body shot from Schmidt.
Schmidt misses with a body punch.
Schmidt works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
Schmidt throws a punch but it's blocked by Fuguego.
Fuguego blocks a body shot from Schmidt.
Fuguego throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Schmidts head.
Schmidt working aggressively here.
Fuguego on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Fuguego.
Schmidt throws a head punch that misses.
The pace slowing considerably in the clinch, as Fuguego takes a break from that fighting nonsense to think about the finer things in life.
Fuguego goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Fuguego stalling in the clinch but Schmidt improves position.
Fuguego tries to throw a body punch but Schmidt avoids it by throwing Fuguego back against the cage.
Schmidt misses with the head strike.
Schmidt misses with the head strike.
Schmidt lands a body shot in the clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Schmidt fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Schmidt stalling in the clinch but Fuguego improves position.
Schmidt tries a body shot but Fuguego blocks it.
Fuguego digs a right hand underneath Schmidt's ribcage. Schmidt let out a lung full of air as it connected.

Fuguego gets control of Schmidt's arms and successfully pulls guard. Fuguego will no doubt be looking for submissions off his back.
Schmidt has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.
Fuguego has a closed guard, preventing Schmidt from standing up.
Fuguego has Schmidt pulled in close to control his posture.
Schmidt preventing the sweep.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Schmidt is looking to stand up but Fuguego won't let him.
A real slowdown in the pace of the fight for a moment, as Fuguego holds on and takes a little breather.
Schmidt wanted to stand there but Fuguego had control of the position.
The referee is pacing around the two fighters, thinking about a standup.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Fuguego trying to control the position here.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Jans Schmidt seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Fuguego swings for the body but Schmidt moves out of range.
Schmidt moves in looking to clinch but Fuguego pushes him off.
Some bone on bone action there as Schmidt checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Schmidt attempts a counter takedown but Fuguego avoids it well and moves away.
Fuguego with a body punch. A glancing blow.
Schmidt with a jab.

Schmidt pushes Fuguego up against the cage in a clinch.
Fuguego blocking some punches.
Fuguego is stalling here. The referee will be looking to step in if he doesn't pick up the pace.
Fuguego blocking some punches.
Fuguego lands with a short shot to the head.
Fuguego lands an uppercut.
Schmidt working aggressively here.
Fuguego blocks a punch to the side of the head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Fuguego blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Schmidt lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Fuguego backwards.
Schmidt lands a shot to the body.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Fuguego looking to stall.
Schmidt is leaning against Fuguego and scores with a nice uppercut to the body.
Schmidt has a couple of punches blocked by Fuguego.
Still in the clinch, Schmidt scores with a nice short uppercut.
Schmidt lands a hook that snaps the head of Fuguego backwards.
Fuguego is stalling here. The referee will be looking to step in if he doesn't pick up the pace.
Schmidt lands a hook that snaps the head of Fuguego backwards.
Fuguego is pushing Schmidt up against the cage, for a bit of lean and pray action. Action being used the in the loosest possible sense of the word.
Schmidt tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Fuguego throws a head punch that misses.
Schmidt lands with a light punch inside.
Fuguego blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Jans Schmidt dominated that second round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. And we move into the final round!

Schmidt is looking to clinch but Fuguego is avoiding it.
Schmidt wants to clinch.
Schmidt wants to clinch up but Fuguego keeps it at a distance.
Schmidt takes a swing at Fuguego's ribcage but misses.

Fuguego gets tackled into the cage by Schmidt. Schmidt maintains the clinch.
Schmidt misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Fuguego tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Fuguego tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Fuguego trying to stall but Schmidt improves his position.
Schmidt goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Schmidt.
Schmidt lands with a light punch inside.
Fuguego blocks a body shot from Schmidt.
Schmidt working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Schmidt lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Fuguego blocks a punch to the side of the head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Schmidt wants to stall.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Schmidt.
Schmidt is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Fuguego can do to turn this around?
Schmidt misses with a hook from the clinch.
Fuguego's corner are urging him to control the action in the clinch for a moment, rather than mount any serious offense. I'm sure the crowd appreciate those instructions... not.
Come on Fuguego - let's have some action - none of this stalling nonsense.
Fuguego continues to stall. The referee tells him to work or he's going to break them up.
Fuguego misses with a punch to the body.
Schmidt working aggressively here.
A battle for position here, against the cage.
Fuguego can't find room to land a body shot as Schmidt controls the action.
Jans Schmidt has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Schmidt struggles to land a body shot inside as Fuguego controls his hands.
Fuguego is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.
Schmidt misses with a shot to the kidneys.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Fuguego throws a punch but it's blocked by Schmidt.
Fuguego misses with a hook from the clinch.
Fuguego trying to control the position but instead, Schmidt has worked for underhooks and has pushed Fuguego into the cage.
Schmidt gets through Fuguego's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Fuguego misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Fuguego manages to get underhooks and slows down the pace for a moment.
Fuguego misses with a punch on the inside.
Schmidt lands a right hand.
Schmidt lands a right hand.
Schmidt tries a body shot but Fuguego blocks it.
Fuguego tries to pull guard but Schmidt holds him up against the cage and eventually Fuguego drops back down to his feet.
Fuguego misses with a hook to the ribs.
Some stalling of biblical proportions here from Fuguego.
Schmidt working aggressively here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Schmidt doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Schmidt tries to throw a body punch but Fuguego avoids it by throwing Schmidt back against the cage.
Schmidt throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Fuguego trying to control the position but instead, Schmidt has worked for underhooks and has pushed Fuguego into the cage.
Fuguego is trying to stall.
Fuguego slows down the pace here.
Schmidt throws a punch but it's blocked by Fuguego.
The referee calls for Fuguego to work.
The ref breaks the fighters up, due to lack of action by Alphonse Fuguego.

Schmidt gets tackled into the cage by Fuguego. Fuguego maintains the clinch.
Schmidt lands a right hand.
Fuguego struggles to land a body shot inside as Schmidt controls his hands.
Fuguego fails to land with a short punch on the inside.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Schmidt scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Schmidt misses with a hook to the ribs.
Schmidt lands a shoulder strike.
Fuguego blocks a body shot from Schmidt.
Fuguego stalling in the clinch but Schmidt improves position.
Fuguego tries to throw a body punch but Schmidt avoids it by throwing Fuguego back against the cage.
Fuguego fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Schmidt working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Schmidt tries to throw a body punch but Fuguego avoids it by throwing Schmidt back against the cage.
A head punch on the inside from Schmidt fails to land.
Schmidt lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Fuguego misses with a punch to the body.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Schmidt swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Fuguego is working on a leg, looking for a takedown but Schmidt is defending well.
Schmidt trying to control the position but instead, Fuguego has worked for underhooks and has pushed Schmidt into the cage.
Fuguego tries to throw a body punch but Schmidt avoids it by throwing Fuguego back against the cage.
Schmidt makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.

And that's the end of the fight!
Jans Schmidt showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Schmidt has won this one but let's see what the judges have to say. 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 Stewart Dunkirk scores the fight 29:28
Judge George Francis scores the fight 29:28
Judge Wesley Smith scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Jans Schmidt!
Jans Schmidt was full of energy after the big win and talked about how he thinks he can do big things in this sport. The crowd were appreciative of his determination to succeed.