PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Rob Tate (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Luke Holder (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Rob Tate could well score a knockout today. He has the power to get to Luke Holder's chin.

Tate
vs
Holder

185 cm
23
192 lbs
12 - 3 - 0

185 cm
22
196 lbs
9 - 2 - 0

Good wrestling
Excellent boxer
KO power

BJJ Purple Belt
Excellent MT
Powerful

Vandal Fight Boutique (prices $8 - $30)
Vandal Fight Boutique (prices $8 - $30)

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the middleweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 12 - 3 - 0, fighting out of New York, Rob Tate!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 9 - 2 - 0, fighting out of New York, Luke Holder!
The judges for this bout are Alyssa Summers, Eddie Farnsworth and Franklyn Lucas.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Holder connects with a solid leg kick.
Tate doesn't succeed with the takedown
and Holder counters with a body kick that stops Tate in his tracks momentarily.
A slapping leg kick lands for Holder.
Holder wants to clinch.
Tate shoots and misses
and Holder counters with a nice body kick.
Both fighters are looking to counter, which isn't making for the most exciting fight in the world.
Holder throws a nice outside leg kick.
Holder looking to land some kicks to the body here.
Holder fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Tate looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Tate swats away the attempt to clinch by Holder.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tate displaying good standup as he scores with a three punch combination.
Holder tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Tate paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Tate rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Holder moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Holder tries to clinch up.
Holder tries to close the distance and clinch but Tate swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Holder tries to clinch but Tate is having none of it.
Tate keeps the fight on the outside.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Holder tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Holder pushes Tate away with a front kick.
Tate circles away from the clinch attempt.
Tate displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Holder throws out the jab.
Holder tries to clinch but Tate is having none of it.
Luke Holder seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Tate has his takedown stuffed
and Holder counters with a slapping leg kick.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Rob Tate. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Holder lands with a kick to the temple. Tate shrugs as if to say "is that all you've got?"
Luke Holder is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Holder is looking to take this fight into the clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Holder connects with a solid leg kick.
Tate thows a leg kick but Holder checks it
and Holder counters with a nice body kick.
Tate with a poor takedown
and Holder counters with a leg kick.
Tate is breathing heavily.

Excellent takedown into side control there by Tate.
Holder is sneaking out the side here. He's bucked Tate off and has taken his back!
I really don't envy Tate right now.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tate is keeping busy.
Holder controlling the position well here. Tate rolled but Holder kept the hooks locked in and stayed in the dominant position.
A lull in the action here.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Tate is very frustrated here, being controlled quite effectively by Holder.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Luke Holder dominated that round.
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.

Tate fails with the takedown
and Holder counters with a low kick, right behind Tate 's knee.
Holder thumps Tate with a low kick.
Tate tries for a takedown but Holder circles away easily
and Holder counters with a nice body kick.
Tate with a lazy takedown attempt
and Holder makes him pay by landing a thudding low kick.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Rob Tate. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Holder scores with a push kick.
Tate will be looking to protect his midsection after taking some solid kicks to the body.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Holder thows a body kick. Tate tries to catch it but that hurt him.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
The fight stays on the outside here - Holder looks like he's thinking about clinching though.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A chopping leg kick lands by Holder.
Holder throws a feint and then finishes with a kick to the body.
Holder lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Holder lands a leg kick that knocks Tate off balance momentarily.
A low kick from Tate is predictable there
and Holder counters with a good, hard body kick but Tate shrugs it off.
Holder throws a front kick that sends Tate stumbling back into the cage.
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!
A decent looking body kick lands there for Holder.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Boom, another hit is landed. "You're gunna get knocked out" taunts Holder, as that shot connected.
Holder connects with a solid leg kick.
Holder explodes with a nice body kick and back out of range. Nice work.
Tate has a nice red mark on his side after a thudding body kick by Holder.
Holder scores with a hook.
Holder moves in looking to clinch but Tate pushes him off.
Holder fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Tate manages to avoid it.
Holder dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Tate. That did some damage!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Tate tries for a takedown but Holder circles away easily
and Holder counters with a leg kick that reverborates around the arena.
Luke Holder seems to be getting the better of the standup.
That's a knee to de groin and it's over and out! Tate crumples to the ground after an illegal strike from Holder - the referee stops the clock and Tate gets 5 minutes to recover from that one. "I'm sorry" says Holder. Tate manages to get back to his feet and the fight resumes.
Holder looks to land a combination. Tate sees it coming but can only parry a couple of the shots.
Holder explodes with a nice body kick and back out of range. Nice work.
Holder throws a head kick that connects with a bit of head and a bit of hand.

It looks like Rob Tate has been cut.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Holder thuds his shin into the meat of Tate's side.
Holder moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Holder tries to clinch up but Tate circles away and keeps his distance.
Tate shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Holder counters with a nice leg kick.
Nice body punch from Holder.
Holder wants to clinch.
Holder throws a feint and then finishes with a kick to the body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Luke Holder showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Rob Tate'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.

Decent striking displayed by Holder there.
Holder misses with a lunging right hand
and Tate counters with a left and a right that stings Holder.
Holder fails in his attempt to clinch.
Tate fails with the takedown
and Holder counters with a body kick.
Tate misses the shot to the body.
Tate misses with a takedown
and Holder counters nicely by changing levels and landing a hook to the body.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Holder lunges at Tate with a hook that half lands and is half blocked by Tate's hand.
Tate shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Holder counters with a thumping low kick.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Rob Tate. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Tate tries for a takedown but Holder circles away easily
and Holder makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
An inside leg kick lands from Holder.
Holder tries to clinch there but Tate circles away.
Tate fails with the takedown
and Holder makes him pay by landing a thudding low kick.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Holder is looking to clinch.
Tate fails with the takedown
and Holder counters with a nice low kick that buckles Tate's knee momentarily.
Tate takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Tate shoots and misses
and Holder counters with a nice body kick.
Tate has his takedown stuffed
and Holder counters with a slapping leg kick.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Holder chopping away at his opponent's legs.
Holder tries to clinch but Tate moves out of range.
Good leg kick by Holder there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Holder fails in his attempt to clinch.
Tate rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Holder counters with a stiff right hand.
Tate tries for a takedown but Holder circles away easily
and Holder counters nicely by changing levels and landing a hook to the body.
Holder tries to clinch there but Tate circles away.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Holder with a body punch. A glancing blow.
Tate on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
Holder will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Holder lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Holder is looking to clinch but Tate is avoiding it.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Tate takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Holder tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in the close the distance. Tate manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Luke Holder really dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Rob Tate's cut.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Holder throws a body kick but he was well out of range there.
Tate takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
Tate throws a sloppy head kick
and Holder makes the exchange count by landing a cracking kick to the body. Tate really felt that one!
Holder just misses with a punch to the body.
Holder throws a nice inside leg kick.
A slapping body kick lands there for Holder.
Holder connects with a leg kick. Tate looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Holder thuds his shin into the meat of Tate's side.
It's got to the stage where if one of these guys blows hard enough, the other might fall over.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Holder wants to clinch up but Tate keeps it at a distance.
Tate shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Holder counters with a low kick, right behind Tate 's knee.
Holder lands a leg kick that knocks Tate off balance momentarily.
Nice body kick from Holder.
Tate takes a kick to the body and keeps moving.

Holder pushes Tate up against the cage in a clinch.
Holder is pushing Tate up against the cage, for a bit of lean and pray action. Action being used the in the loosest possible sense of the word.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Tate takes an elbow to the temple.
Holder leaning against his opponent.
Tate is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Holder pulls him back up using the underhooks.
Tate tries for a takedown. No joy.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Rob Tate. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Holder lands an elbow that stopped Tate in his tracks for a moment.
Holder creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Tate's defenses.
Tate tries for a takedown. No joy.
Holder lands a nice elbow.
Holder prevents the takedown attempt.
Holder misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Tate.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Holder gets underhooks to prevent Tate's takedown attempt.
Holder lands a nice elbow from the clinch.
Holder is stalling here. The referee will be looking to step in if he doesn't pick up the pace.
Tate has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Holder is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
Tate drops to a knee looking for a takedown but Holder gets the underhooks and prevents it.
Tate drops to a knee looking for a takedown but Holder gets the underhooks and prevents it.
Tate changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Holder fights it off and pushes away nicely.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.
Holder throws a quick inside leg kick.
Tate throws a combination that misses
and Holder counters with a leg kick that reverborates around the arena.
Tate shoots and misses
and Holder counters with a body kick that stops Tate in his tracks momentarily.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Tate steps to his left, right into the path of a big body kick from Holder. That one must have hurt.
Holder is moving around nicely and scores here with a single head shot.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Luke Holder dominated that fourth round.
The cut man is working on Rob Tate's cut.
That's time! Back to the action! This is the final round!

Tate chopped to the floor by a nice leg kick but he springs right back up before Holder can pounce on him.
Holder fails with an attempt to clinch.
Holder thuds a mid kick into his opponent's body. That will wear on Tate if he has to take too many more of those.

Holder darts in and clinches Tate up against the cage.
Come on Holder - let's have some action - none of this stalling nonsense.
Holder receives a warning from the referee for stalling.
Holder misses with an elbow over the top.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Holder creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Tate's defenses.
Holder lands an elbow just above Tate 's eye.
Holder is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Tate is defending well for now.
Tate is trying to drag Holder to the mat but Holder just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
Holder gets underhooks to prevent Tate's takedown attempt.
Holder lands a damaging elbow.
Nice elbow from Holder.
Holder has Tate pressed against the cage.
Tate goes for a takedown attempt but Holder pushes him away and we're back to fighting at a distance.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Rob Tate. That's going to take a lot out of him.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Holder is looking to slow Tate down with leg kicks.
Holder is throwing a lot of body shots here, looking to wear down Tate rather than just go for the knockout.
Tate tries for a takedown but Holder circles away easily
and Holder counters with a slapping leg kick.
Tate takes a kick to the body and keeps moving.
Holder has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Tate tries for a takedown but Holder circles away easily
and Holder counters with a leg kick that reverborates around the arena.
Both of our modern day gladiators look out of it here - an gruelling 5 rounds of action taking it's toll on them, no doubt.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Tate tries for a takedown but Holder circles away easily
and Tate takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.

Rob Tate's cut is getting worse.
Holder wants to clinch up but Tate keeps it at a distance.

Holder gets in close and instigates a clinch.
Holder taking a breather.
Holder misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Tate.
Holder tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Tate avoids it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tate is trying to drag Holder to the mat but Holder just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
Holder misses with an elbow strike.
Tate drops to a knee looking for a takedown but Holder gets the underhooks and prevents it.
Tate has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Holder is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
Luke Holder is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Holder trying to land knees to the body.
Holder stalls.
Rob Tate has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Holder lands an elbow inside.

And that's the end of the fight!
Luke Holder comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Holder winning every round here. Surely the decision will go his way and he'll pick up a well deserved decision victory. Over to the ring announcer for the scorecards.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 5 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Alyssa Summers scores the fight 43:50
Judge Eddie Farnsworth scores the fight 43:50
Judge Franklyn Lucas scores the fight 42:50

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Luke Holder! Luke Holder retains his middleweight title!