PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Tommy Lotus (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Benny Phillips (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Lotus comes to the cage accompanied by Eye of the tiger. The crowd giving both fighters a great reception on their way into the arena. That's good to see.

Lotus
vs
Phillips

186 cm
33
183 lbs
22 - 31 - 2

181 cm
31
174 lbs
19 - 23 - 0

Good wrestling
World class boxer
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
World class boxer
Good gas tank

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 22 - 31 - 2, fighting out of London, Tommy Lotus!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 19 - 23 - 0, fighting out of London, Benny Phillips!
The judges for this bout are Chris Edwards, Andrew Berry and Richard Clark.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Phillips misses with the combination.
Phillips throws a series of punches but Lotus moves out of range.
Phillips swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Benny Phillips seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Lotus closes the distance and clinches up with Phillips, looking for a takedown. Lotus pushes Phillips against the cage but Phillips circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Phillips ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Lotus moves away.
Phillips fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Phillips just misses with a punch to the body.
Phillips just misses with a punch to the body.
Phillips throws a poor cross that misses
and Lotus counters with a one-two to the body.
Phillips misses with a body shot

and Lotus counters with a takedown into side control! That could mean trouble for Phillips!
Lotus wants to control but Phillips is keeping him busy.

Lotus decides to stand up, so the ref orders Phillips to his feet.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Phillips throws a right hand that Lotus ducks under and follows up with a left that Lotus also avoids with ease.
Phillips misses with an uppercut
and Lotus counters with a series of strikes. Phillips will be more careful next time no doubt.
Good shot there by Phillips.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Lotus fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Phillips throws a series of punches but Lotus moves out of range.
The fight stays on the outside here - Lotus looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Phillips throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Phillips connects with a crisp jab.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Lotus is defended easily by Phillips.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Tommy Lotus. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Lotus takes a punch to the jaw and another one to the bread basket.
Phillips does a little shimmy and throws a leg kick. The leg kick missed by a considerable margin though, making him look a little bit silly for doing the shimmy.
Phillips connects with a body shot.
Phillips throws a body punch but Lotus moves out of range.
Phillips misses with a combination
letting Lotus counter with a right hand.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Phillips walks into a stiff left hand from Lotus.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Phillips misses with a combination
and Lotus counters with a left to the body.
Lotus shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Phillips pinned against the cage. Phillips gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Phillips looks to land a combination but Lotus avoids it well.
Nice sprawl there from Phillips as Lotus shoots in.
Lotus slips a jab from Phillips.
Lotus comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.
Phillips misses with a jab to the body
and Lotus counters with a right hand to the body.
Phillips tries to bum rush Lotus with a series of wild strikes but Lotus uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Benny Phillips is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Phillips misses with a low kick.
Lotus showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Phillips.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Lotus changes levels and drives through with a really nice takedown into side control. Phillips looks really pissed at himself for not defending that better.
Phillips is not content to let Lotus control the position.

Phillips explodes and escapes back to his feet! Nice escape there!
Phillips throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Phillips moves forwards but Lotus connects with a nice, crisp jab.
Phillips bobs and weaves and throws out a fast jab that snaps Lotus's head backwards.
Phillips scores with a punch to the gut of his opponent.
Lotus fails with a takedown attempt from distance.

Lotus shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Lotus showed some decent athleticism there.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Lotus trying to mount his opponent but Phillips defends it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Phillips is trying to stand.
Lotus looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.

Phillips is defending against the submission attempts here by Lotus.
Lotus is thwarting Phillips's attempts to control the position.
Phillips is doing well to control the position and prevent Lotus from advancing to side control.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Lotus prevents Phillips from improving his position.
Phillips is not content to let Lotus control the position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Tommy Lotus will probably get the nod.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Lotus takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Phillips throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Lotus.
Phillips has his head snapped back a nice jab. A little nod from Phillips there as he acknowledges the shot.
Phillips takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.
Phillips fails to land with a series of punches.
Lotus misses with a double jab.
Lotus lands a straight punch to the body, keeping Phillips at a distance.
Phillips throws a combination that misses

and Lotus counters with a nice double leg into guard.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Lotus is looking to stand up but Phillips won't let him.
Phillips pulls Lotus in to control the position.
Phillips controls Lotus momentarily but Lotus frees himself.
Lotus preventing the sweep.
Lotus trying to control the position from guard on top but Phillips is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
The referee must be thinking about standing these guys back up.

Well, the referee has seen enough. Neither fighter is active enough on the ground so he's stood them back up.
Lotus lands with a hook. Phillips tried to avoid it but it clipped the top of his head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Phillips misses with a straight left.
Nice takedown defense from Phillips. No joy for Lotus on that attempt.
Lotus pushes forward with a 1-2 combination that forces Phillips back to the cage. Lotus follows up with a solid lead hook to the liver.
Tommy Lotus is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Phillips connects with a right hand. Lotus shakes it off.
Nice shot by Phillips.
Phillips throws a head kick that misses.
Phillips misses with a double jab

and Lotus counters with a nice single leg takedown and he's in Phillips's guard now.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Lotus would like to get this fight back to the feet but can't get free from the closed guard.
Lotus trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Phillips wants to stand up but Lotus is controlling him.
Lotus wants to get up but he can't break Phillips's closed guard. He needs to be careful trying to break the legs open, as he's open to submissions here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Lotus tries to free his leg and advance position but Phillips is retaining full guard.
Phillips managing to control the position.
The referee looks like he's ready to step in and stand the fighters back up.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
Phillips pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Phillips leaves Lotus with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
Phillips looks to throw the jab but Lotus is out of range.
Benny Phillips seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Lotus avoids a punch combination nicely.
Phillips ducks down and throws a hook to the body.
Lotus dodges the punch combination from Phillips.
Lotus avoids a lazy jab quite easily.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Phillips misses with a hook
and Lotus counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Phillips throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Phillips throws a right and a left that both miss.
Lotus displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Phillips throws out the jab.

Lotus closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Phillips to the mat! Phillips manages to get full guard.
Lotus advances to half guard.

Lotus is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Phillips sees it coming and defends easily.

Lotus looking for a kimura but he'll have to free his other leg if he wants to finish that. Perhaps he's just using it as a distraction technique.
Phillips has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Lotus is working away from the top position though.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Phillips is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Lotus seems to have lost interest with the ground game and is thinking about standing back up.
Phillips is staying active underneath Lotus, who seems content to just control the action from this position.
This has been an exciting period of action!
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.
Phillips trying to control from the bottom.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!

We're going to have a standup here because Tommy Lotus wasn't active enough for the referee's liking.
Phillips throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Phillips scores with a jab.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Tommy Lotus dominated that second 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. 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.

Phillips catches Lotus with a nice straight right. He seems pissed - ooooh, it's on now! On like donkey kong!
A combination from Phillips does no damage.
Phillips misses with a double jab
and Lotus counters with a two punch combo.
Phillips misses with a combination
and Lotus counters with a nice uppercut.
Lotus throws a right and a left that both miss.
Phillips misses with a shot to the body

and Lotus counters with a single leg into guard. Phillips didn't expect that.
Phillips is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Lotus is controlling him.
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!
Lotus passes easily into side control. Nice work.
Phillips takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.

Lotus decides to stand up, so the ref orders Phillips to his feet.
Lotus takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Lotus throws a series of punches but Phillips moves out of range.
Lotus throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Phillips stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Phillips wants it to stay on the feet.
Phillips throws a left and a right that both miss

and Lotus counters with a shoot takedown. Phillips fights it but they end up in guard.
Phillips is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Lotus trying to control the position from guard on top but Phillips is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Lotus pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Phillips is keeping the position for now.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.
Lotus trying to control but Phillips is working from the bottom.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

We're going to have a standup here because Tommy Lotus wasn't active enough for the referee's liking.
Phillips throws a right hand that misses
and Lotus counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Phillips pulls out of a head kick attempt.
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!
Lotus tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Phillips comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.
Lotus fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Phillips avoids it really well and circles away.
Lotus moves out of range as Phillips strikes.
Lotus closes the distance and takes a jab right on the nose as he does so.
Phillips scores with a body shot.
Phillips throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Phillips stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Phillips wants it to stay on the feet.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Tommy Lotus. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Lotus with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Phillips to score with a decent uppercut.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Lotus ducks right into an uppercut from Phillips.
Phillips throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Some wild striking there from Phillips.
A looping hook to the body misses from Phillips. Lotus does a little dance to reset his feet.

Lotus fakes a strike and closes the distance, dragging Phillips to the ground. Lotus is now in Phillips's guard.
Phillips is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Lotus is controlling him.
Phillips keeping moving, preventing Lotus from controlling successfully.
Phillips is trying to keep Lotus in close.
Lotus stopping the sweep attempt from Phillips.
Lotus works a leg free and moves into half guard.
Benny Phillips has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Lotus passes to full mount!
Phillips is trying to escape the mount.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Lotus works his way to his opponent's back.

Phillips showing good submission defense here.
Lotus is riding his opponent, not letting Phillips buck him off.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Lotus trying to control momentarily.

Lotus working for a RNC but it's not happening just yet.

And that's the end of the fight!
Tommy Lotus showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Lotus, 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 Chris Edwards scores the fight 29:28
Judge Andrew Berry scores the fight 30:27
Judge Richard Clark scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Tommy Lotus!
After winning the bout, Tommy Lotus thanked all his fans and promised he'd do even better in his next fight. The crowd seemed to love his humility.