PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Mark Henderson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Zeale McCullough (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). We have two fighters making their debuts here, so let's see who comes out of this one with their first professional victory.

Henderson
vs
McCullough

180 cm
25
205 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

205 cm
19
205 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

Good wrestling
Counter striker
Good chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Basic striking
Solid 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 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Mark Henderson!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Zeale McCullough!
The judges for this bout are Yukihiro Yamamoto, Shigeki Sano and Shigeki Fujiwara.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
McCullough swinging wildly here.
Some wild striking there from McCullough.
No luck with that takedown attempt from Henderson.
McCullough stalks Henderson and leaps in with a furious combination of punches. Uppercuts and crosses smash into Henderson's face. Henderson staggers backwards, shaken.
McCullough fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
McCullough misses with a double jab.

Henderson scores with a nice takedown into half guard. Let's see what he's got on the ground.
We could do with one of the fighters taking the initiative a bit more on the ground - they're both waiting to capitalize on a mistake.
The referee must be thinking about standing these guys back up.
Henderson working over McCullough with some ground and pound. McCullough looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Henderson throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
McCullough taking some punishment here, with Henderson in his half guard.
McCullough is looking to control Henderson's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can McCullough avoid being mounted?
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Henderson working McCullough over with strikes.
McCullough moves his hips nicely and gets into full guard.
McCullough is trying to keep Henderson in close.

That's one minute gone in the round.
McCullough keeping moving, preventing Henderson from controlling successfully.
McCullough wants to sweep here but Henderson controlling him for the moment.
Henderson postures up.
Henderson connects with a couple of short punches.
Henderson 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.
Henderson keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of McCullough's head.
Henderson is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
McCullough working a defensive guard here.
Henderson's corner is telling him to maintain position.
Henderson is working McCullough over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Henderson postures up and scores with a shot to the body and a follow up elbow to the head.
Henderson controlling from the top position.
Henderson scores with a decent looking elbow strike.
Henderson throwing strikes but missing.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
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!
Henderson postures up and lands a big shot to McCullough's brow.
McCullough keeping moving, preventing Henderson from controlling successfully.
Henderson postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
McCullough trying to keep a closed guard but Henderson is proving a slippery customer.
Henderson landing some decent shots from guard.
Henderson with a flurry of punches that miss.
McCullough keeping moving, preventing Henderson from controlling successfully.
Henderson working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of McCullough's head.
Henderson engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
Henderson postures up and lands a big shot to McCullough's brow.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
McCullough looking for a sweep. Not yet McCullough, not yet.
McCullough working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Henderson.
McCullough really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Henderson. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Henderson tries to free his leg and advance position but McCullough is retaining full guard.
Henderson is working McCullough over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
McCullough can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Henderson controls the pace.
Henderson trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Henderson working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of McCullough's head.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Henderson lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
McCullough working a defensive guard here.
McCullough is a painfully thin specimen of a man. You do wonder whether a good body kick would snap him clean in two.
Henderson slips effortlessly into side control - very nice.
Henderson working the ground and pound.
Henderson working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Henderson landing strikes.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Henderson scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at McCullough to see if he's OK.
Henderson lands a decent elbow from side control.
McCullough is working to avoid the ground and pound but Henderson connects with a decent elbow.
Henderson lands some shots froms side control.
Henderson landing strikes.
Henderson passes to full mount! That's big trouble for McCullough!
McCullough looks gassed!
McCullough is looking to get to half guard.
Henderson breaks from McCullough's wrist control and lands an elbow.
Henderson connects with a couple of good shots from mount.
Henderson avoids the attempt from McCullough to control.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Henderson working away from the top, dropping strikes.
Henderson raining down hammerfists from mount.
Henderson scores with a couple of good head shots there.
Henderson lands a couple of nice shots there from mount.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Mark Henderson dominated that round.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action.

McCullough looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
McCullough is looking to clinch.
McCullough throws a nice looking combination but Henderson bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.

McCullough tries to sprawl but Henderson drives through with a takedown into half guard.
Henderson trying to control the action but McCullough is working from the bottom.

Henderson is looking for an arm triangle, whilst trying to pass to side control. McCullough doesn't seem that keen to cooperate though. No luck this time Henderson.
Henderson could do with losing a few pounds - he looks very soft around the mid section, to put it politely.
Henderson is thwarting McCullough's attempts to control the position.
McCullough is looking to improve his position.
Nice strikes from Henderson there.
McCullough is looking to improve his position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
McCullough has hold of Henderson's hands but Henderson slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
McCullough on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Nice strikes from Henderson there.
Henderson thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Henderson lands with a punch from half guard.
Ground and pound from Henderson.
McCullough is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Henderson scores with a couple of nice shots.
Henderson is controlling the pace.
Henderson working McCullough over with strikes.
McCullough taking some punishment here, with Henderson in his half guard.
Mark Henderson overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Henderson looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
McCullough is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Henderson scores with a couple of nice shots.
Henderson scores with a couple of good hammerfists.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Henderson wants to control but McCullough is keeping him busy.
McCullough is trying to control but can't.
Henderson working McCullough over with strikes.
McCullough is looking to control Henderson's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can McCullough avoid being mounted?
McCullough is breathing heavily.
Henderson lands with a punch from half guard.
Henderson is taking a breather. McCullough says something to him but it's hard to make out. Perhaps he's telling him to get on with it and actually do something.
Henderson lands with a punch from half guard.
Henderson content to control rather than advance.
Henderson not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Henderson in particular looking to stall.
We've had a lack of effective grappling in the last minute or so, which could well see a referee standup.
McCullough has hold of Henderson's hands but Henderson slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Ground and pound from Henderson.
Henderson lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
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. Henderson connects with a nice short shot to McCullough's temple.
McCullough trying to hold on to Henderson's head to control him but Henderson postures up.
Henderson wants to lay and pray for a moment but McCullough keeps working.

Henderson is trying a forearm choke… I don't think that's going to do much at this level of the game.
Ground and pound from Henderson.
Henderson wants to free his trapped foot but McCullough is holding on for dear life with his legs.
Nice strikes from Henderson there.
Henderson not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Henderson throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Henderson lands with an elbow from half guard - that looked like it hurt.
Henderson is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that McCullough can do to turn this around?
McCullough on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
McCullough is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Henderson's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Henderson's back!
McCullough tries to get the hooks in deep but Henderson pushed the leg off.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
McCullough thows a strike but Henderson uses the opportunity to reverse the position! Great move by Henderson as he ends up in McCullough 's guard!
Henderson trying to control the position from guard on top but McCullough is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Henderson won't allow McCullough to get back to his feet.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
McCullough not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
McCullough wants to sweep here but Henderson controlling him for the moment.
Henderson is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Mark Henderson dominated that second 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. This is the final round!

Henderson slips a jab and a cross from McCullough.

Henderson closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. McCullough quickly recovers to half guard.
Henderson lands with an elbow from half guard - that looked like it hurt.
McCullough taking some punishment here, with Henderson in his half guard.
McCullough trying to control but Henderson postures up.
Henderson prevents McCullough from improving his position.
McCullough is looking to get full guard. It looks like he might be successful but at the last minute Henderson jumps into side control!
You can see the frustration on McCullough's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
McCullough takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Check out the look on Henderson's face as he threw that strike - that's one determined fighter!

That's one minute gone in the round.
McCullough taking punishment in the form of punches.
McCullough is working to avoid the ground and pound but Henderson connects with a decent elbow.
Henderson controls the position from side control.
Henderson is putting a hurting on McCullough here, landing some big shots from side control.
Henderson scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at McCullough to see if he's OK.
Henderson scoring with punches and elbows.
McCullough is trying to get back to half guard.
McCullough prevents Henderson from improving position.
Henderson grinds an elbow into McCullough's temple.
Henderson just content to control the position.
Henderson scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at McCullough to see if he's OK.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
McCullough is working to avoid the ground and pound but Henderson connects with a decent elbow.
McCullough being controlled for a moment.
Henderson in side control lands a nice looking series of punches and elbows.
Henderson looks up at the clock and then as McCullough takes his cue and looks up at the clock too, Henderson smacks him right in the chops with a big elbow! How rude!
McCullough taking punishment in the form of punches.
Henderson is maintaining the dominant position - no doubt McCullough will start to get frustrated soon if he's not already.
McCullough tries to work a leg under to get back to half guard but Henderson wriggles his own leg back out and remains in side control.
Henderson lands a knee to the body and a forearm to the face.
Henderson working the head with strikes.
McCullough on the wrong end of some ground and pound.
Henderson lands a few punches from side control.
Henderson working the body and head with strikes.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Henderson is working McCullough over with some ground and pound from side control.
McCullough is positioning himself to get back to half guard.
Henderson lands a knee to the body and a forearm to the face.
Henderson is looking to take a break and control but McCullough is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Henderson cracks McCullough with an elbow. That is naaassty.
Henderson working the body and head with strikes.
Henderson lands a knee to the body and follows it up with some ground and pound to the head. That will wear McCullough down.
Henderson cracks McCullough with a big right hand but McCullough just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.
Henderson connects with a decent looking elbow from side control that caused McCullough some visible discomfort.
Henderson scores with punches from side control.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Henderson cracks McCullough with a big elbow.

Henderson working hard here to secure a kimura but he's not really in the right position for it.
Zeale McCullough has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Henderson controls the position.
Henderson cracks McCullough with a big right hand but McCullough just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.
Henderson grinds an elbow into McCullough's temple.
Henderson working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.
Henderson working the body and head with strikes.
McCullough taking a bit of punishment here - Henderson scoring with strikes.

McCullough is rocked!
Henderson cracks McCullough with an elbow. That is naaassty.
McCullough is still in real trouble! Can Henderson finish him?
Henderson wants to lay and pray for a moment but McCullough keeps working.
Henderson is working McCullough over with some ground and pound from side control.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
McCullough is looking for a sweep.
McCullough seems to have recovered his senses.
Henderson lands some shots froms side control.
Mark Henderson is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Henderson scoring with punches and elbows.
McCullough is trying to strike from the bottom but Henderson has passed into full mount.

And that's the end of the fight!
Mark Henderson showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Henderson, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 Yukihiro Yamamoto scores the fight 30:27
Judge Shigeki Sano scores the fight 30:27
Judge Shigeki Fujiwara scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Mark Henderson!
A relieved looking Mark Henderson thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.