PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Luke Freedman (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and DJ Bravo (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Freedman comes to the cage accompanied by Power . We have two fighters making their debuts here, so let's see who comes out of this one with their first professional victory.

Freedman
vs
Bravo

188 cm
25
205 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

180 cm
18
204 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Basic striking
Good chin

BJJ White Belt
Counter striker
Inexperienced

Rivers Edge Nutrition

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of London, Luke Freedman !
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of London, DJ Bravo!
The judges for this bout are James Atkins, Sam Margolis and James Glass.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Bravo lands with a straight right. Freedman didn't see that one coming.

Freedman gets caught on his heels momentarily as he allows Bravo to score an easy takedown into full guard.
Bravo controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.
Let's hope that Bravo has the urge to step up the pace any second now because for the last 15 or 20 seconds he's just been holding on tight.
Freedman bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Bravo's guard.
Freedman looking to pass the guard.

The ref stands the fighters back up, due to lack of action by DJ Bravo.
Freedman slips a jab and a cross from Bravo.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Freedman shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in full mount! That's better than Freedman was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!
Freedman trying to control but Bravo is having none of it.
Bravo wants to control but Freedman is having none of it.
Bravo really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Freedman . If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.

Freedman is working on an americana here. Ooh, that looks pretty nasty! Nope, Bravo has managed to escape the submission attempt.
Freedman controlling his opponent.
Bravo is working to get back to half guard.
Freedman takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Freedman with the ground and pound from mount.
Bravo 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.
Bravo is in a horrible position here. Freedman smacks him with another shot as he tries to escape the position.
Freedman in mount throwing good strikes here, bouncing his opponent's head off the canvas.
Bravo is working to get back to half guard.
Freedman looking to ground and pound his opponent to a finish here.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Freedman looking to control and managing it successfully.
Freedman looking to control but Bravo is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
Freedman takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Bravo is in a horrible position here. Freedman smacks him with another shot as he tries to escape the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Freedman tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
Freedman lands a couple of nice shots there from mount.
Freedman sitting in mount, just looking to control for the moment.
Bravo is trying to escape the mount.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Freedman cracks Bravo with a nasty head shot there - the crowd let out an audible gasp there, as the noise reverberated around the arena.
Freedman scores with a couple of good head shots there.

Freedman is thinking about an arm triangle here, looking to tighten it up before moving to side control. Bravo can see it coming though and defends well with a couple of strikes to the head and some good arm positioning.
Bravo tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Freedman controlling the position easily from mount.
Bravo is wriggling around trying to escape.
Bravo looks gassed!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Freedman working the ground and pound effectively.
Freedman scores with a couple of good head shots there.
Freedman scores with a couple of good head shots there.
Freedman avoids the attempt from Bravo to control.
Bravo tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Freedman pausing momentarily but resumes with a couple of decent strikes that do a bit of damage.
Freedman lands with some vicious ground and pound - can Bravo hang on?
Freedman trying to control but Bravo is having none of it.
Bravo tries to hold on but Freedman postures up.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Freedman lands a nice shot to the head.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Luke Freedman dominated that round.
That's time! Freedman 's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Freedman tries for a takedown but Bravo circles away easily

and Bravo counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Freedman has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.
Freedman trying to control from the bottom.
Luke Freedman overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Bravo seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.
Freedman wants to improve his position but Bravo is controlling well.
Freedman is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Bravo's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Bravo's back!
You can see the frustration on Bravo's face… He knows he is in trouble unless he improves his position sooner rather than later.
Freedman slows the pace down here. Having a little breather whilst he's in a dominant position, looking to rest and regain some energy, ready to go for the finish.
Bravo is breathing heavily.
Bravo is keeping busy.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Oooh a big shot gets through from Freedman . Many more shots like that and the referee will have to think about stepping in!
Freedman trying desperately to keep hold of the dominant position.
Freedman is working the ground and pound here and the referee is taking a close look at Bravo. He must escape soon or this one will be stopped.
Freedman tries to get the hooks in deep but Bravo pushed the leg off.
Bravo is trying to break free.
Freedman just keeping the dominant position. He can't wait too long though, otherwise the referee will stand them back up.
Bravo is trying to break free.
So, who will make the next big move? In this position it could be crucial.
The referee wants the fighters to be more active or he's going to reset them on the feet.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Bravo is keeping busy.

Luke Freedman has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
Freedman tries for a takedown but Bravo circles away easily
and Bravo counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Bravo is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
A good leg kick by Freedman .
Freedman has his takedown stuffed

and Bravo counters with a nice shoot takedown that brings the fighters to the ground.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Luke Freedman . That's going to take a lot out of him.
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!
Bravo trying to pass the guard. He's being very persistent here but Freedman manages to land a sweep and now he's on top!
Bravo can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Freedman controls the pace.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bravo keeping moving, preventing Freedman from controlling successfully.
Freedman content to stall in guard here.
Freedman trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Bravo can do anything to dispel that myth.
Freedman not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.

The ref stands the fighters back up. Luke Freedman wasn't doing enough on the ground.

Freedman feints and then dives in with a takedown. That was a long way out but the feint bought him enough time to close the distance and complete the takedown. Now we'll play guard for a bit and see who can get the better of that position.
Freedman slips effortlessly into side control - very nice.
Freedman working the ground and pound from side control.
Freedman remains in side control and seems content to stay there. It's a versatile position from which he can work both strikes and submissions, whilst maintaining that control, so maybe he'll sit here for a while.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Freedman cracks Bravo with a big elbow.

Freedman stands up and we're back to a striking position.
Luke Freedman seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Freedman closes the distance and clinches up with Bravo, looking for a takedown. Freedman pushes Bravo against the cage but Bravo circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Freedman will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Freedman throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Bravo's waist but Bravo gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Freedman off to one side.

Bravo feints and as Freedman raises his hands in defense, Bravo changes levels and drives through with a takedown into guard.
Bravo looking to sit in guard and control but Freedman gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Freedman trying to control but Bravo is working from the bottom.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Luke Freedman will probably get the nod.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action! This is the final round!

Freedman shoots and misses

so Bravo counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
Freedman wants to sweep here but Bravo controlling him for the moment.
Freedman can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Bravo controls the pace.
Freedman managing to control the position.
Bravo trying to control but Freedman is working from the bottom.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
Freedman with a lazy takedown attempt
enabling Bravo to counter with a crisp jab.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Freedman with a lazy takedown attempt

and Bravo counters with a nice double leg into side control. Freedman won't be happy with that.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Luke Freedman . That's going to take a lot out of him.
Bravo controlling the position from side mount.
Freedman wants to control but Bravo postures up.
Freedman is not content to let Bravo control the position.
Bravo happy to just control the position for now.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The referee must be thinking about standing these guys back up.
Bravo wants to control but Freedman is keeping him busy.

The ref stands the fighters back up. DJ Bravo was stalling too much, according to the referee.
Freedman throws a head kick that looked like it stung.
Freedman cracks the inside of Bravo's front leg.
Freedman misses with a takedown attempt

and Bravo counters with a takedown into side control.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Freedman regains half guard.
Freedman regains full guard. Nicely done.
Freedman wants to sweep here but Bravo controlling him for the moment.
Bravo is fighting to break Freedman 's control of his arms but Freedman is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bravo wants to pass the guard but Freedman is keeping the position.
Freedman trying to keep a closed guard but Bravo is proving a slippery customer.
Freedman bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Bravo's guard.
Bravo can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Freedman controls the pace.

Luke Freedman has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
Freedman is trying hard to land a takedown here. Bravo sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.

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.
Bravo tries to close the distance and clinch up but Freedman swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Freedman fails with a takedown attempt.
Bravo throws a right and a left that Freedman avoids nicely.
DJ Bravo has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Bravo is looking to clinch.

Freedman has closed the distance and engaged Bravo in a clinch.
Freedman tries to score a body lock takedown but Bravo shows good agility there to stay on his feet.
Bravo wants a takedown but no success here.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Bravo gets underhooks to prevent Freedman 's takedown attempt.
Luke Freedman is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Freedman stops a takedown attempt from Bravo.

And that's the end of the fight!
DJ Bravo comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Freedman 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 James Atkins scores the fight 29:28
Judge Sam Margolis scores the fight 29:28
Judge James Glass scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Luke Freedman !