PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Pawel Tokarczuk (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Carlos Strikes (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Carlos Strikes has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Tokarczuk
vs
Strikes

179 cm
27
182 lbs
17 - 10 - 0

186 cm
30
180 lbs
24 - 20 - 1

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Insanely flexible

BJJ Brown Belt
Excellent MT
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 17 - 10 - 0, fighting out of London, Pawel Tokarczuk!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 24 - 20 - 1, fighting out of London, Carlos Strikes!
The judges for this bout are James Ackerman, William Gold and Andrew Berry.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Strikes takes a push kick to the midsection and stumbles backwards.

Strikes gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
Tokarczuk lands with a light punch inside.

It looks like Carlos Strikes has been cut.
Tokarczuk scores with a shot to the side of Strikes's head.
Tokarczuk misses with a knee to the head.
Tokarczuk is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Strikes gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.
Tokarczuk lands a shoulder strike.
Tokarczuk misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Tokarczuk looking to slow down the pace here.
Tokarczuk will no doubt start fighting again in a minute but for now he's just having a little rest, leaning Strikes up against the cage.
Strikes's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Tokarczuk lands a hook to the side of the head.
Strikes looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Strikes doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Tokarczuk scores with a shoulder strike.

Strikes pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!

Strikes forces Tokarczuk back against the cage and clinches.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tokarczuk stalling against the cage.
Tokarczuk lands a right hand that snaps the head of Strikes backwards.
Strikes blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Tokarczuk throws a head punch that misses.
Tokarczuk avoiding damage.
Tokarczuk landing some nice looking knees to the body.
Tokarczuk digs a right hand underneath Strikes's ribcage. Strikes let out a lung full of air as it connected.
Tokarczuk misses with a knee to the head.
Nice body punch from Tokarczuk.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Tokarczuk lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
Strikes managing to block the knees to the body from Tokarczuk.
Strikes is looking to break free of the clinch but Tokarczuk has double underhooks.
Tokarczuk goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Tokarczuk lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Tokarczuk misses with a knee to the head.
Strikes wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Strikes looks to throw an elbow but misses.
Strikes is trying to force a seperation but Tokarczuk has the dominant position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Strikes looking to stall.
Tokarczuk lands with a left to the head.
Tokarczuk's corner are urging him to control the action in the clinch for a moment, rather than mount any serious offense. I'm sure the crowd appreciate those instructions... not.
Strikes is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Tokarczuk is keeping busy.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Tokarczuk.
Strikes blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Tokarczuk taking a breather.
Tokarczuk stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
Strikes pushes Tokarczuk back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
Tokarczuk scores with a hook to the body.
Tokarczuk tries a knee to the head but Strikes blocks it.
Tokarczuk stalling in the clinch.
Strikes tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Tokarczuk avoids it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Strikes misses with a body punch.
Tokarczuk misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Strikes on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Tokarczuk with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Strikes is trying to maintain a safe position but Tokarczuk gets an underhook and turns Strikes into the cage.
Tokarczuk looking to throw knees to the head but Strikes is blocking nicely.
The referee is keeping an eye on Strikes - much more stalling and he will separate the fighters.

Strikes's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
This fight brought to you by 5M nutrition - it's mmmmm tasty. Nice jab by Tokarczuk.
Tokarczuk slips a jab and a cross from Strikes.
Tokarczuk throws a sloppy head kick
and Strikes counters with a stiff right hand.
Tokarczuk doesn't manage to clinch there - Strikes circles away.
Tokarczuk blocks a head kick by Strikes.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Strikes misses with a jab, cross combination.

Tokarczuk drives through and clinches with Strikes against the cage.
Strikes trying to land knees to the body.
Tokarczuk with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Tokarczuk misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Strikes.
Tokarczuk is trying to pull guard but Strikes turns him against the cage and we stay in the clinch.
Strikes looking to stall.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Tokarczuk tries to work over Strikes's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Nice body punch from Strikes.
Strikes is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Strikes wants to break the clinch but can't.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Strikes is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Tokarczuk is keeping busy.
Tokarczuk digs a right hand into Strikes's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Strikes's gas tank.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Pawel Tokarczuk dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Carlos Strikes's cut.
That's time! Back to the action!

Strikes moves into the clinch successfully.
Tokarczuk trying to control the position but instead, Strikes has worked for underhooks and has pushed Tokarczuk into the cage.
Tokarczuk lands an uppercut.
Tokarczuk lands a body punch - he's looking to wear down Strikes.
Strikes managing to block the knees to the body from Tokarczuk.
Tokarczuk using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Strikes has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Tokarczuk works on Strikes's body with a couple of short punches.
The fighters are going at a pretty good pace and they're both starting to sweat now.
Tokarczuk lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Tokarczuk lands a left hand that snaps the head of Strikes backwards.

Strikes pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Tokarczuk tries to check the leg kick but that clearly hurt him.
A leg kick checked by Tokarczuk.
Tokarczuk throws a hook but Strikes blocks it.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Tokarczuk throws a sloppy head kick and Strikes moves out of range easily.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Tokarczuk drives through and clinches with Strikes against the cage.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Tokarczuk.
Tokarczuk tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Strikes is trying to stall.
Tokarczuk scores with a hook to the body.
Tokarczuk lands a shot to the body.
Strikes is breathing heavily.
Tokarczuk with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Tokarczuk.
Strikes's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Strikes on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Tokarczuk presses Strikes against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Strikes tries to land knees in the clinch but Tokarczuk avoids the damage to the body.

Tokarczuk pulls guard effortlessly.

Tokarczuk looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.
Tokarczuk not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Tokarczuk looking for submissions off his back, moving his hips, looking for an opening.

Tokarczuk is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Strikes defends well.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Tokarczuk has a butterfly guard looking to sweep but Strikes has passed into side control.

Strikes decides to stand back up. Strikes steps back and let's Tokarczuk get back to his feet.

Strikes closes the distance and pushes Tokarczuk back into the cage.

Tokarczuk jumps guard and drags Strikes to the mat. He's obviously going to be looking for submissions off his back.
Tokarczuk looking for a sweep. Not yet Tokarczuk, not yet.

Tokarczuk has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but Strikes can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.
Strikes wants to control from the top but Tokarczuk keeps moving.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Tokarczuk trying to control the position.

Tokarczuk working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Strikes doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Strikes manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Strikes engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.

Tokarczuk has his foot on Strikes's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Strikes works his way back into a safe position though.

Tokarczuk pushes Strikes off and gets back to his feet.
Tokarczuk throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Strikes blocks a jab.
Tokarczuk throws out a loose jab but Strikes uses good head movement to avoid it.
Strikes throws a head kick but Tokarczuk moves out of range.
Carlos Strikes is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Tokarczuk tries to score with a leg kick but it misses it's target.

Strikes forces Tokarczuk back against the cage and clinches.
Tokarczuk throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Tokarczuk tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Tokarczuk softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Strikes misses with a punch to the body.
Tokarczuk lands with a right to the head.
A body shot lands from Tokarczuk.

Tokarczuk successfully pulls guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Pawel Tokarczuk dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Carlos Strikes's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. So, we enter the final round. Let's see if either fighter can bring us a finish, or whether we're going to the judges scorecards.

Strikes rushes Tokarczuk and presses him up against the cage.
Tokarczuk digs a right hand underneath Strikes's ribcage. Strikes let out a lung full of air as it connected.
A frustrated look appears on Strikes's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Tokarczuk is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Strikes can do to turn this around?
Tokarczuk throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Strikess head.
Tokarczuk is trying to maintain a safe position but Strikes gets an underhook and turns Tokarczuk into the cage.
A battle for position here, against the cage.

Strikes breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Tokarczuk scores with a head kick.

Strikes has taken the fight to the clinch.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
A knee to the head by Tokarczuk.
A short left from Tokarczuk.

Tokarczuk pulls guard effortlessly.

Tokarczuk had isolated an arm as going for a kimura. Strikes defends it easily.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

Strikes stands up from guard. Let's bang!

That's one minute gone in the round.
A slapping leg kick lands for Tokarczuk.
Strikes takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Tokarczuk throws a body kick but he was well out of range there.
Strikes throws a left and a right that both miss
and Tokarczuk counters with a big head kick but Strikes shrugs it off.
Tokarczuk scoring well with a low kick there.

Strikes gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.

Strikes manages to break the clinch.
Tokarczuk takes a head kick and keeps coming.
Tokarczuk scores with a jab to the jaw.

Strikes clinches up with Tokarczuk and pushes him back against the cage.
Tokarczuk unloads a knee to the mid-section.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
A quick uppercut on the inside from Tokarczuk.
A short left from Tokarczuk.
Tokarczuk tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Strikes avoids it.
Tokarczuk lands with a right to the head.
Tokarczuk gets through Strikes's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Tokarczuk with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Strikes tries to break the clinch but Tokarczuk is controlling the position.

Tokarczuk drags the fight down to the ground.
Strikes trying to control the position from guard on top but Tokarczuk is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Tokarczuk escapes his hips to the side and looks to be working for an armbar. Strikes gives him a little smile and shakes his head. No chance.
Tokarczuk lands a beautiful switch and he's in full mount! That could spell trouble for Strikes!
Strikes takes a big shot to the head but keeps on trying to improve his position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Tokarczuk looking to finish Strikes with some ground and pound. This is bad for Strikes!
Tokarczuk looking to finish Strikes with some ground and pound. This is bad for Strikes!
Strikes is in a horrible position here. Tokarczuk smacks him with another shot as he tries to escape the position.
Tokarczuk has his opponent pinned against the cage, landing some nasty ground and pound that is really making a bit of a mess out of Strikes's face.
Carlos Strikes has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Tokarczuk raining down hammerfists from mount.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
BOOM! Tokarczuk connects with a massive shot to the dome!

Strikes is rocked!
Tokarczuk looking to control but Strikes is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
Strikes is still in real trouble! Can Tokarczuk finish him?
Tokarczuk landing shots from mount.
Tokarczuk 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.
Tokarczuk raining down shots from the mount!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Strikes takes a big shot to the head but keeps on trying to improve his position.
Tokarczuk unloads with some shots from mount but Strikes bucks and avoids them well.
Strikes seems to have recovered his senses.
Strikes is in all sorts of trouble here.
Tokarczuk landing strikes, looking to finish!
Tokarczuk lands with some strikes.
Pawel Tokarczuk is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Tokarczuk controlling his opponent.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!

And that's the end of the fight!
Pawel Tokarczuk showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Tokarczuk 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 Ackerman scores the fight 30:27
Judge William Gold scores the fight 30:27
Judge Andrew Berry scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Pawel Tokarczuk!
An out of breath and clearly excited Pawel Tokarczuk thanked GTI - 1337 sponsors VERSUS for their help and support (and free stuff they sent him).