PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Martin O Neill (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Victor Banuelos (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). O Neill kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is Sing for the moment - Eminem. Both these guys have really solid chins. Will we see a standup war or will they both decide that a knockout is unlikely and try to win the fight elsewhere?

O Neill
vs
Banuelos

180 cm
24
180 lbs
12 - 4 - 0

189 cm
21
185 lbs
5 - 0 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
Solid boxing
Granite chin

Decent wrestler
Lethal high kicks
Granite chin

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 12 - 4 - 0, fighting out of New York, Martin O Neill!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 5 - 0 - 0, fighting out of New York, Victor Banuelos!
The judges for this bout are Eddie Farnsworth, Franklyn Lucas and Dean Styles.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
O Neill throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Banuelos counters with a stiff right hand.
Banuelos thows a body shot but no joy.
O Neill misses with a hook
and Banuelos counters with a left to the body.
O Neill throws a lazy uppercut
and Banuelos counters with a low kick, right behind O Neill 's knee.
O Neill on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Banuelos. Banuelos obviously looking to wear him down.
O Neill throws a poor cross that misses
and Banuelos counters with a kick to the head that grazes his opponent. O Neill is lucky that one didn't land flush.
Like a baseball bat into the meat of his leg there - nice leg kick by Banuelos.
O Neill misses with a hook
and Banuelos counters with a straight right hand.
O Neill misses with a right hand
and Banuelos counters with a leg kick.
O Neill throws an off balance right hand
and Banuelos counters with a straight right hand.
A right-left combo lands from O Neill.
O Neill misses with a lunging right hand
and Banuelos counters with a nice uppercut.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Banuelos.
O Neill misses with a hook
and Banuelos counters with a nice leg kick.
Banuelos lands a nice looking kick to the body. O Neill takes a step back to recover.
O Neill misses with a left hand
and Banuelos counters with a leg kick.

That's one minute gone in the round.
O Neill rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and O Neill takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
O Neill fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
Martin O Neill seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
O Neill rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Banuelos counters with a head kick. That will keep O Neill thinking before he tries any more sloppy attacks!
That kick from Banuelos tenderised O Neill's leg. O Neill is trying to keep his angry face on.
O Neill lands a really nice looking cross but Banuelos seems unphased.
O Neill misses with a lunging right hand
and Banuelos counters with a flying knee. Nice.
Banuelos throws a mid kick that lands with a slap.
O Neill is breathing heavily.
Banuelos lands a leg kick that knocks O Neill off balance momentarily.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Banuelos moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Victor Banuelos is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
O Neill throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Banuelos counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
O Neill swings and misses with a shot to the body
and Banuelos counters with a thumping low kick.
Banuelos connects with a leg kick. O Neill looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Banuelos lands with a cross.
Good leg kick by Banuelos there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Banuelos lands with a cross.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
O Neill misses with a right hand
and Banuelos counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
O Neill throws a right hand that misses
and Banuelos counters with a nice body kick.
O Neill needs to keep his hands up - Banuelos had a free shot at his head there.
O Neill has his head snapped back a nice jab. A little nod from O Neill there as he acknowledges the shot.
O Neill misses with a lunging right hand
and Banuelos counters with an outside leg kick.
O Neill tries to check the leg kick but that clearly hurt him.
Banuelos plants his feet and lands a nice head kick!
O Neill is hobbling a little on that front leg after taking quite a few leg kicks so far in this fight.
O Neill throws a poor cross that misses
and Banuelos counters with an inside leg kick.
Banuelos chopping away at his opponent's legs.
Banuelos looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Banuelos feints and then cracks O Neill's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow O Neill down.
Banuelos is looking to clinch but O Neill is avoiding it.
O Neill is really struggling to find his range with his punches. Banuelos's reach advantage is clearly causing him problems.
O Neill misses with a lunging right hand
and Banuelos counters with a big head kick but O Neill shrugs it off.
Banuelos lands a powerful looking uppercut that connected with his opponent's jaw.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
O Neill swings and misses with a shot to the body
and Banuelos counters with a leg kick.
O Neill is really head hunting here, hardly looking to strike to the body at all.
O Neill steps to his left, right into the path of a big body kick from Banuelos. That one must have hurt.
Banuelos lands a pitter patter jab to the forehead of his opponent.
A nice leg kick lands there from Banuelos.
Banuelos scores with a kick to the midsection.
Banuelos looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Banuelos throws a leg kick which misses O Neill's front leg but catches the back leg as O Neill tries to avoid it.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Banuelos throws a nice inside leg kick.

Banuelos moves into the clinch.
Banuelos stalling against the cage.
O Neill tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
O Neill blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.

O Neill pulls guard.
Banuelos slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

O Neill is looking for a triangle but Banuelos pushes his legs off easily.
Banuelos preventing the sweep.
Banuelos trying to control but O Neill is working from the bottom.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!

OK we're going to have a standup here. Victor Banuelos hasn't been effective enough on the ground and the referee wants a restart.
O Neill throws a lazy uppercut
and Banuelos counters with a head kick. That will keep O Neill thinking before he tries any more sloppy attacks!
O Neill throws a right hand that misses
and Banuelos counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Victor Banuelos dominated that round.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

O Neill misses with a hook
and Banuelos counters with an inside leg kick.
Banuelos tries to clinch but O Neill is having none of it.
O Neill rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Banuelos counters with a low kick, right behind O Neill 's knee.
O Neill stumbles momentarily as he takes a strong leg kick from Banuelos.
Banuelos has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
O Neill rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Banuelos counters with a nice kick to the body.
Banuelos has used his reach advantage pretty well so far tonight.
O Neill keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
O Neill misses with an uppercut
and he gets countered with a snapping leg kick.
O Neill rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Banuelos counters with a kick to the head that grazes his opponent. O Neill is lucky that one didn't land flush.
O Neill is moving around nicely and scores here with a single head shot.
O Neill throws an off balance right hand
and Banuelos counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
O Neill thuds his right hand into Banuelos's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.
O Neill throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Banuelos makes him pay by landing a thudding low kick.
Victor Banuelos seems to be getting the better of the standup.
O Neill rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Banuelos counters with a straight right hand.
O Neill scores with a nice right hand.
O Neill will be looking to protect his midsection after taking some solid kicks to the body.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
O Neill misses with an uppercut
and Banuelos connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.

That's one minute gone in the round.
O Neill misses with a lunging right hand
and Banuelos counters with a low kick, right behind O Neill 's knee.
O Neill swings widly with a right hand
and Banuelos makes him pay by landing a thudding low kick.
O Neill throws an ugly left hook that misses
letting Banuelos counter with a right hand.
Banuelos looks to score with a jab to the body but O Neill is just out of range.
O Neill changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Banuelos tries to avoid it but O Neill manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Banuelos to the ground. Banuelos escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Banuelos throws a low kick but O Neill avoids it.
O Neill misses with an uppercut
and Banuelos counters with a thumping low kick.
O Neill swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Banuelos counters with a nice leg kick.
Banuelos lands a nice looking kick to the body. O Neill takes a step back to recover.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Banuelos plants his feet and lands a nice head kick!
O Neill misses with a left hand
and Banuelos counters with a leg kick.
O Neill throws a right hand that misses
and Banuelos counters with a slapping leg kick.
Banuelos lands a leg kick and bounces back out of range.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
O Neill avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Banuelos moves forwards but O Neill connects with a nice, crisp jab.
A jab from Banuelos finds it's way through O Neill's defenses.
O Neill tries to score a power double leg takedown but Banuelos sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten O Neill somewhat.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
O Neill throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Banuelos counters with a good low kick that O Neill was not able to check.
O Neill throws an off balance right hand
and Banuelos counters with a body kick.
O Neill throws a good cross that connects.
Nice straight punches there by O Neill. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of O Neill.
O Neill misses with a shot to the body
and Banuelos counters with a head kick.
O Neill takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
O Neill on the wrong end of a nice low kick. He's acting like it's no big deal but he doesn't want to take many more of those.
Banuelos thuds a left hand into O Neill's body.
Banuelos attempts a low kick but it misses it's target.
Banuelos tries a head kick but it misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A nice leg kick lands there from Banuelos.
O Neill swings and misses with a shot to the body
and Banuelos counters with a nice leg kick.
Banuelos lands with a thumping leg kick.
O Neill throws an off balance right hand
and Banuelos counters with a low kick, right behind O Neill 's knee.
Banuelos lands with a slapping head kick.
O Neill throws a lazy uppercut
and Banuelos counters with a body kick that brings a smile to the face of both fighters.
Banuelos lands a head kick. O Neill smiles back at him and beckons him forward.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
O Neill swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Banuelos counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Banuelos thumps O Neill with a low kick.
O Neill takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Banuelos buckles his opponent's knee momentarily with a nice leg kick.
Banuelos fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and O Neill has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
Banuelos lands a nice looking kick to the body. O Neill takes a step back to recover.

Banuelos rushes O Neill and pushes him back against the cage in a clinch.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Banuelos works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
Banuelos is trying to wear down his opponent with knees to the body.

Banuelos breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
O Neill rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Banuelos counters with a thumping low kick.
O Neill swings widly with a right hand
and Banuelos counters with a slapping leg kick.
O Neill misses with a hook
and Banuelos counters with a thumping low kick.
Banuelos connects with a solid leg kick.
O Neill throws a right hand that misses
and Banuelos counters with a nice uppercut.
Banuelos lands a jab to O Neill's midsection.
O Neill walks forward, straight into a front kick from Banuelos.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
A solid leg kick lands there for Banuelos.
Banuelos lands a head kick. O Neill smiles back at him and beckons him forward.
Banuelos is looking to slow O Neill down with leg kicks.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Victor Banuelos showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
That's time! Back to the action! The crowd applaud as we get ready to start the final round!

Banuelos scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
Banuelos throws a leg kick which misses O Neill's front leg but catches the back leg as O Neill tries to avoid it.
Crunch! Banuelos slams his shin into O Neill's torso.
O Neill digs a good body shot into Banuelos's ribs.
Banuelos connects with a leg kick. He turned his hip over nicely there.
Banuelos tries to clinch but O Neill is having none of it.
Banuelos stuns O Neill with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.
O Neill stumbles momentarily as he takes a strong leg kick from Banuelos.
Banuelos lands a leg kick and bounces back out of range.
A solid leg kick lands there for Banuelos.
Banuelos scores with a head kick. O Neill tried to block it but didn't get his arm up in time.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!

Banuelos takes the fight into the clinch.
Banuelos tries a knee to the head but O Neill blocks it.
Banuelos has O Neill pressed against the cage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Banuelos tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and O Neill avoids it.
Banuelos with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
Banuelos landing some nice looking knees to the body.
Banuelos misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from O Neill.
Banuelos with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
O Neill tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
O Neill takes a knee right on the jaw!
O Neill on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
O Neill on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.

Banuelos breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.

O Neill scores a takedown into full mount!
O Neill throws some wild stikes that Banuelos manages to avoid easily.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

O Neill is in full mount, looking to secure a guillotine but Banuelos is surviving well by controlling O Neill's body position as best he can.
O Neill prevents Banuelos from getting the reversal.
O Neill with a couple of short strikes.
Banuelos tries to hold on but O Neill pushes him away.
Banuelos is trying to escape the mount.
Banuelos really doesn't want to stay on the ground with O Neill. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
O Neill raining down shots from the mount!
O Neill lands with some vicious ground and pound - can Banuelos hang on?
Poor strikes thrown by O Neill there. More accuracy and less frantic strikes would help!
O Neill punching from mount but Banuelos doing a good job of avoiding damage.
O Neill punishing his opponent with strikes.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Banuelos tries to reverse the position but O Neill maintains control.
Banuelos wants to control but O Neill is having none of it.
Martin O Neill has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's three minutes gone in the round.

O Neill is going oldschool here, as he tries to force Banuelos to tap using a forearm choke. This isn't 1993 though, so Banuelos shrugs it off.
Banuelos holding onto his opponent's waist for dear life, as O Neill tries to land some strikes to get him to release his grip.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
O Neill throwing sloppy strikes here. Perhaps if he tightened up his striking from such a dominant position, he'd be able to finish easier.
Banuelos is trying desperately to improve position.

O Neill working for a submission but Banuelos is keeping him at bay.
O Neill scores with a couple of good head shots there.
O Neill lands a couple of nice shots there from mount.

O Neill working to secure an arm triangle but it's not happening for him just yet.
O Neill with good strikes from the mount here!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Banuelos doing his best to control the position. Can he escape?
Banuelos is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
O Neill punishing his opponent with strikes.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Banuelos can do anything to dispel that myth.
O Neill fakes a shot to the body and cracks his opponent in the head. Nice ground and pound there!
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
O Neill throwing strikes here but Banuelos is writhing around nicely and avoiding any serious damage.
The crowd growing excited in anticipation of a finish here! Right on cue, O Neill cracks his opponent with a massive right hand that draws loud cheers!
Martin O Neill overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Banuelos is working to get back to half guard.
Banuelos taking shots to the head.
O Neill throwing shots from mount but they're not landing.
Both fighters really going for it on the ground here!
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
O Neill misses with a head shot.
O Neill lands a big shot there that rocks Banuelos but he's holding on and managing to survive for now.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
O Neill thuds his fist into the canvas! Oooouch!
O Neill postures up and cracks his opponent a couple of times before moving back into close ground control. Banuelos looks a forlorn figure.

And that's the end of the fight!
Martin O Neill showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Banuelos has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 Eddie Farnsworth scores the fight 26:29
Judge Franklyn Lucas scores the fight 26:29
Judge Dean Styles scores the fight 26:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Victor Banuelos!