PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Randy Rice (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Cory Steel (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Rice kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is Aston Martin Music. The crowd seem to be enjoying Steel's choice of entrance music: Immortal Technique-Point of no return. Cory Steel has the power to score a knockout today if he connects clean with Randy Rice's chin.

Rice
vs
Steel

200 cm
22
215 lbs
6 - 3 - 0

184 cm
28
212 lbs
11 - 9 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Excellent boxer
Very strong

BJJ Purple Belt
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

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 6 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Randy Rice!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 11 - 9 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Cory Steel!
The judges for this bout are , Timothy Bukovac and Frank Antenori.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Steel throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Rice cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Steel jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Steel swinging wildly here.
Steel lands a nice shot to the body.
Rice throws a series of punches but Steel moves out of range.
Steel cracks Rice with a nice right hand that draws applause from the crowd.

It looks like Randy Rice has been cut.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Rice throws a nice looking combination but Steel bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Steel closes this distance looking for a takedown but Rice circles away.
Steel takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.
Rice closes the distance and lands a one-two.
A left lands for Steel.
Steel ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Rice moves away.
Rice throws a right and a left that Steel avoids nicely.
Steel blocks a jab.
No joy there for Steel, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Rice lands with an overhand left.
Steel throws a right hand that misses
letting Rice counter with a right hand.
Rice misses with a double jab
and Steel counters with a straight right hand.
A looping hook to the body misses from Steel. Rice does a little dance to reset his feet.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A right-left combo lands from Rice.

It looks like Cory Steel has been cut.
Rice cracks Steel with a hook to the jaw. Both fighters smile at eachother and high-five before getting back down to business.
Steel misses with a takedown attempt - Rice sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Randy Rice is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Steel with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Rice to score with a decent uppercut.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Rice throws a hook but Steel avoids it easily.
Rice moves into range and throws a combination. A nice jab followed by a hook to the body.
Steel looks gassed!
Rice ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Steel moves away.
Rice fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Steel looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Steel ducks under a wild hook from Rice.
Steel closes the distance and takes a jab right on the nose as he does so.
Jab, cross, leg kick. Nice combination by Rice!
Rice cracks Steel with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.
Rice digs a good hook to Steel's body.
Steel showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Rice.
Rice fakes low and throws an overhand right that catches Steel on the side of the head.
A jab from Rice misses.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Rice misses with a straight left.
Rice misses with a wild combination.
Steel misses with an uppercut.
Rice ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Rice lands with a good body shot.
Steel slips a straight right by Rice.
Steel misses with a left hand
and Rice counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Rice misses with a jab, cross combination.
Rice connects with a lovely right hand, straight down the pipe.
Steel misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Rice.
Rice throws a right and a left that Steel avoids nicely.
Steel throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Rice counters with a three punch combo that has Steel backing up. Steel nods at Rice to acknowledge the strikes.
Steel will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Sloppy strikes from Rice. Those never looked like landing.
Rice rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Steel moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Rice is using his height advantage well here, landing a good percentage of his punches.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Steel misses with a jab, cross combination.
Steel shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Rice pinned against the cage. Rice gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Randy Rice has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Cory Steel.
Rice lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as Steel backs up against the cage.
Steel looks shocked there as he takes a right hand to the temple.
Rice fails to land with a series of punches.
Wow, both these guys are really going for it!
Steel takes a shot to the nose. Hopefully that hasn't broken it.
Steel misses with a left hand
and Rice counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Rice thuds his right hand into Steel's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Steel throws an off balance right hand
and Rice counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.
Rice looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Steel misses with a two punch combination.
Steel has a takedown stuffed.
Rice throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Steel.
Rice is using his reach advantage well here, landing the more effective single shots from range.
Steel fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Rice manages to avoid it.
Rice throws a hook but Steel blocks it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Rice lands a glancing blow to the side of Steel's head.
Rice is working the combinations to good effect here.
Rice fails to land with a series of punches.
Steel thows a body shot but no joy.
Rice lands a jab to the nose.
Steel falls off balance throwing a combination
and Rice connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Nice uppercut lands for Rice. That snapped Steel's head back.
Rice ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Steel will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Rice scores with a body shot.
Rice lands three nice shots there - that looked like it hurt!
Rice feints a straight left to the body, then turns around with a flashy move and hits Steels jaw with a dramatic spinning back fist!
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Rice lands a nice looking body shot.
Rice is really peppering his opponent's head with punches.
Rice swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Rice throws a right and a left that both miss.
Steel is trying desperately to land a takedown but Rice is having absolutely none of it. This is turning into a bit of a nightmare for Steel.
Steel takes a body punch but keeps moving.
Rice throws a two punch combo that lands nicely.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Randy Rice dominated that round.
Both fighters have cut men working on them during the interval.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

No luck for Steel with that takedown attempt.
Rice misses with a double jab

and Steel counters with a nice single leg takedown and he's in Rice's guard now.
Rice keeping full guard, as Steel tries to pass.
Steel throws and elbow that misses. Rice uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Steel's guard. Nice move by Rice!
Steel is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Rice is looking to work some ground and pound but Steel has wrist control.
Rice wants to pass the guard but Steel is keeping the position.
A real slowdown in the pace of the fight for a moment, as Steel holds on and takes a little breather.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Steel is breathing heavily.
Steel is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Steel is trying to control the position but Rice postures up.
Steel avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Steel is trying to keep Rice in close.

Cory Steel has forced the referee to step in and restart the fight on the feet.
Steel swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Rice.
Steel misses with a hook. Rice ducked under it nicely.
Rice shuffles to his left behind two crisp jabs. Steel eats them both and turns towards Rice to reposition himself and eats a stinging right hand-left hook combo.
Steel slips a jab from Rice.
Steel shoots in looking for a takedown but Rice manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Steel's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
No joy there for Rice, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Steel sizes up Rice with a pawing jab and scores with a straight right down the middle.
Steel throws a right and a left that both miss.

Steel closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. Rice quickly recovers to half guard.
Rice looks like he's trying to stand up.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Rice is trying to get back to full guard.
Steel not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Rice is trying to stand.
Rice trying desperately to get back to his feet here but he's not having any joy at all. He's going to tire himself out if he's not careful.
Rice is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Steel scores with a couple of nice shots.
Steel throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Steel takes a deep breath and rests his weight momentarily on top of his opponent, to control the position.
Rice is staying active underneath Steel, who seems content to just control the action from this position.
Steel not landing any meaningful shots this time.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Steel blocks the strikes from Rice.
Rice looks like he's trying to stand up.
Rice has hold of Steel's hands but Steel slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Steel connects with a nice short shot to Rice's temple.

Steel is thinking about going for an arm triangle but he can't free his leg.
Steel tries to pass to full mount but Rice defends it.
Steel looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Rice with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Rice looks like he's trying to stand up.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Steel tries to pass to full mount but Rice defends it.

Steel is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Rice sees it coming and defends easily.
Rice is trying to get back to full guard.
Steel has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.

Steel is trying a forearm choke… I don't think that's going to do much at this level of the game.
Steel passes the guard and advances to mount!
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Cory Steel showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
Both fighters have cut men working on them during the interval.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action! This is the final round!

Steel on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
Rice on the wrong end of an overhand right that came out of nowhere.
Rice lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Steel circles away quickly and effectively.
Rice throws a jab when Steel was well out of range.
Rice thuds his right hand into Steel's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.
Rice tries to bum rush Steel with a series of wild strikes but Steel uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Rice throws a right hand that Steel ducks under and follows up with a left that Steel also avoids with ease.
A slow jab from Steel misses its intended target.
Steel throws an off balance right hand
and Rice counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Steel throws a hook but Rice avoids it easily.

Steel throws a loose over hand right and dives in with a double leg takedown. Rice tries to sprawl but it's too late and the fighters hit the mat. Steel is in Rice's guard.
Rice will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Rice tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Steel keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of Rice's head.
Rice keeping moving, preventing Steel from controlling successfully.
Steel wants to pass the guard but Rice is keeping the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Steel is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.

Steel drops back looking for a leg! Rice is in trouble here! The fighters roll with the hold and Rice manages to kick Steel off! Steel jumps back into Rice's guard.
Steel trying to control but Rice is working from the bottom.

That's two 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.
Rice is looking to stand up but Steel isn't so interested in that idea.

Steel stands and steps away. Rice gets to his feet too and we're back to the striking game.
A big right from Steel misses.
Steel misses with a lunging right hand
letting Rice counter with a right hand.
Steel works over Rice's head and body with a nice combination.
Rice lands a jab to the nose.
Steel has a pretty nasty looking mouse under his right eye.
Rice tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Steel was well out of range. Poor timing from Rice.
Rice throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Steel counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.

Randy Rice's cut is getting worse.
Steel fails with a takedown attempt.
Nice sprawl there from Rice as Steel shoots in.
Rice scores with a body shot.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Rice connects with a body shot.
Jab, jab by Rice - just one landing.
Some wild striking there from Rice.
Rice scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
A punch lands to the side of Steel 's head but he takes it in his stride.
Steel shoots in and drives through. Rice sprawls well.
Randy Rice has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Cory Steel.
Rice connects with a right hand. Steel shakes it off.
Rice tests Steel's chin there with a solid looking shot.
No joy there for Rice, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Rice throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Rice waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Steel.
Steel shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Rice as he jumps to the side.
Rice lands with a two punch combination before moving back out of range.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Rice uses good footwork to get in and out and land a nice right hand before Steel has time to react.
Steel throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Rice counters with a series of strikes. Steel will be more careful next time no doubt.
Rice scores with a nice looking left hook and follows it up with an uppercut!
A shot to the body from Steel misses
and Rice counters with a three punch combo that has Steel backing up. Steel nods at Rice to acknowledge the strikes.
Sloppy strikes from Rice. Those never looked like landing.
Steel throws a wild combination but nothing lands.

Steel shoots in for a takedown from distance. He catches Rice napping and manages to drive through into side control!
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Rice is trying to improve his position.

Steel tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Rice tries to get back to half guard but can't.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Randy Rice.
I think Rice 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 Percy O'Donnell scores the fight 28:29
Judge Timothy Bukovac scores the fight 28:29
Judge Frank Antenori scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by split decision... Cory Steel!