PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Dante Fertit (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Baki Hanma (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Fertit kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is Roots Bloody Roots. 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.

Fertit
vs
Hanma

195 cm
22
273 lbs
6 - 1 - 0

184 cm
28
213 lbs
11 - 8 - 0

BJJ Brown Belt
Solid boxing
Very quick

BJJ Purple Belt
Decent boxing
Powerful

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 6 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Dante Fertit!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 11 - 8 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Baki Hanma!
The judges for this bout are Stewart Dunkirk, Wesley Smith and George Francis.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Hanma throws a leg kick but Fertit checks it.
Hanma getting the better of the striking in that exchange.

It looks like Dante Fertit has been cut.
Fertit moves away from the strike by Hanma.
Fertit keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Fertit showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Hanma.
Fertit shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Hanma pinned against the cage. Hanma gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.

Hanma gets taken down but at least he's managed to land in guard.
Fertit pushes down on Hanma's leg and manages to get into half guard.
Fertit is keen to just control but Hanma is a slippery customer.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Hanma is defending against the submission attempts here by Fertit.
Hanma has hold of Fertit's hands but Fertit slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Hanma is pressing down on Fertit's left leg trying to get back to full guard. He's managed it.
Fertit working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Hanma tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Fertit throwing strikes from guard but Hanma blocks nicely.
Fertit 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.

Hanma wriggles free and stands up.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hanma missing with a left hand there. Fertit was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Fertit moves out of range of the strikes.
Fertit is looking to clinch.

Hanma tries to keep at a distance but Fertit has taken the fight into the clinch.
Fertit has Hanma pressed up against the cage and is working for takedown. Hanma manages to improve position though and keeps the fight standing.
Fertit is working hard here but doesn't seem to be able to control effectively, up against the cage.

Hanma manages to break the clinch.

Fertit has taken the fight to the clinch.
Hanma wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Fertit goes for a takedown attempt but Hanma pushes him away and we're back to fighting at a distance.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Dante Fertit. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Hanma throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Fertit.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Fertit checks a leg kick.

Hanma has closed the distance and engaged Fertit in a clinch.
Hanma is looking to break free of the clinch but Fertit has double underhooks.
Hanma with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.

Hanma pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
A punch combination from Hanma misses.
Hanma throws a nice outside leg kick.
Hanma closes the distance looking to clinch

so Fertit counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
Fertit stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Hanma swivels though and keeps the full guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hanma keeping moving, preventing Fertit from controlling successfully.
Fertit stopping the sweep attempt from Hanma.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Hanma utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Hanma keeping moving, preventing Fertit from controlling successfully.
Fertit slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
The referee is pacing around the two fighters - he looks like he's thinking about a standup.

Dante Fertit has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
Hanma darts in trying to clinch

and Fertit counters with a takedown into full mount! That could mean trouble for Hanma!
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Dante Fertit dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Dante Fertit'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.

Hanma tries to clinch up
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
and Fertit counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.

Hanma has taken the fight to the clinch.
Hanma is trying to break free.
Fertit misses with a short punch on the inside.
Fertit wants a takedown but no success here.
Hanma has had enough of the clinch but Fertit keeps him there for the moment.

Hanma escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Fertit will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Fertit tries to clinch up.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hanma misses with a double jab.
Fertit tries for a takedown but Hanma sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Dante Fertit. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Hanma misses with a double jab.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hanma stuffs the takedown.
Fertit moves out of range of the body kick.
Hanma finds nothing but air with that leg kick attempt.

Hanma lands a left and a right that send Fertit crashing to the mat, dazed. Hanma thinks about following him to the mat but decides to wave him back up to his feet!

Fertit is rocked!
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Fertit dives in and grabs Hanma's left leg, looking for a takedown. Hanma pushes down on Fertit's head and hops out.
Fertit shoots for a takedown but Hanma saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Hanma slaps away a takedown attempt from Fertit, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Hanma tries to bum rush Fertit with a series of wild strikes but Fertit uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Hanma scores with a shot to the body.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Hanma moves into the clinch successfully.
Hanma tries to break free but Fertit pushes him back against the cage.

Fertit breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Hanma wants to clinch.
Hanma dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Fertit. That did some damage!
Fertit walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.

Hanma lands a big head kick that sends Fertit tumbling to the mat! Hanma takes a step backwards and waves Fertit back to his feet - he wants the finish!
Oh Fertit is still all over the place! His legs are completely gone! Will he be able to recover?!!
Fertit stumbles momentarily as he takes a strong leg kick from Hanma.
Fertit seems to have got his legs back now.
Hanma wants to clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

The fight moves into the clinch position.

Hanma breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Baki Hanma seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Hanma throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Hanma looks to clinch

and Fertit decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Hanma's guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Fertit is working Hanma over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Hanma controls Fertit momentarily but Fertit frees himself.

Hanma is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
Fertit showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Fertit will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Fertit works a leg free and moves into half guard.
Fertit trying to advance position but Hanma counters by regaining guard.
Fertit slips effortlessly into side control - very nice.
Hanma regains half guard.

Fertit is looking for a kimura. It's pretty deep but Hanma still has the half guard so he's probably OK. Oh, Hanma has exploded into a beautiful escape there and after a quick scramble, he's ended up in side control on top! Nice work!
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Fertit regains half guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Baki Hanma showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Dante Fertit's cut.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! This is the final round!

Hanma attempts a low kick but it misses it's target.
Hanma closes the distance but Fertit moves to the side

and Fertit counters with a takedown into full mount! That could mean trouble for Hanma!
Fertit wants to control the pace but Hanma is squirming around nicely.
Hanma is wriggling around trying to escape.
Hanma regains half guard.
Fertit stops Hanma from getting back to his feet.

Fertit is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Hanma is looking to improve his position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hanma is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.
Hanma blocking the ground and pound attempt from Fertit.
Fertit is keen to just control but Hanma is a slippery customer.
Fertit is stalling here. Hanma is in no mood to hang around though. He's locked up a kimura from the bottom! Fertit seems to be keeping calm but he's forced to roll out of the hold and Hanma has ended up in side control on the top. Nice work.
Fertit is sneaking out the side here. He's bucked Hanma off and has taken his back!
Fertit scores with a nice shot to the head of his opponent. Hanma is looking for a way out.
Fertit loading up with punches from the back mount - how long can Hanma hold on?

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Fertit softening up his opponent with strikes here.

Fertit has his hand under the chin of his opponent looking for the choke. He's nearly got it! This one could be all over! But no, Hanma has freed his hand and lives to survive another… well, another couple of seconds at least!
Hanma covers up after taking a massive shot to the side of the head.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Hanma breaks Fertit's hooks off and manages to turn into his guard.
Fertit is looking to sweep but instead, Hanma has passed into half guard.
Hanma thows a huge punch but Fertit dodges it nicely.

Hanma is looking for an arm triangle, whilst trying to pass to side control. Fertit doesn't seem that keen to cooperate though. No luck this time Hanma.
Hanma takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hanma working to pass to mount. He's got his hand pressing down on Fertit's thigh. Fertit counters though and makes it back to full guard.
Hanma stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Fertit swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Hanma trying to control but Fertit is working from the bottom.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.
Fertit wants to sweep here but Hanma controlling him for the moment.
Dante Fertit overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Hanma trying to move into half guard but instead Fertit has managed to sweep!
Hanma looking for a sweep. Not yet Hanma, not yet.
Hanma keeping moving, preventing Fertit from controlling successfully.
The step up in weight doesn't seem to be a problem for Hanma. He's performing admirably here against the bigger man.
Fertit stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Hanma swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Fertit trying to control the position from guard on top but Hanma is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

And that's the end of the fight!
Dante Fertit showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Fertit 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 Wesley Smith scores the fight 29:28
Judge George Francis scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Dante Fertit!