PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a super heavyweight MMA rules bout between Philippe Merchant (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Matt Westworth (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). I can't wait for this one - let's get the fighter introductions out of the way and get this one started!

Merchant
vs
Westworth

185 cm
20
220 lbs
6 - 1 - 0

205 cm
28
255 lbs
7 - 5 - 0

Powerful takedowns
Basic striking
Very quick

BJJ Blue Belt
Excellent boxer
Knockout power

Sydney BEAST Clothing

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the super heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 6 - 1 - 0, fighting out of London, Philippe Merchant!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 7 - 5 - 0, fighting out of London, Matt Westworth!
The judges for this bout are James Ackerman, Donald Grub and Andrew Berry.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Merchant shoots in for a takedown but Westworth shows good takedown defense.
Westworth misses with a body shot.
Westworth looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Merchant misses with a body shot.
Westworth scores with a crisp jab that stopped Merchant in his tracks.
Westworth cracks Merchant with a hook to the jaw. Both fighters smile at eachother and high-five before getting back down to business.
Westworth connects with a body shot.
Merchant is trying hard to land a takedown here. Westworth sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Merchant misses the shot to the body.
Merchant takes a swing at Westworth's ribcage but misses.
Westworth pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Westworth throws the left hand but Merchant avoids the punch easily.
A big left from Merchant misses.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A combination from Westworth does no damage.
Westworth misses with a series of wild punches.
Westworth fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Merchant manages to avoid it.
Westworth misses with a wild combination.
Westworth scores with a big left there. The judges will like that one.
Merchant drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Westworth fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
A big left from Westworth misses.
Merchant misses with a right hand
and Westworth counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Nice body punch from Merchant.
Merchant with a lazy takedown attempt
and Westworth counters with a nice body shot.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Philippe Merchant. That's going to take a lot out of him.
A looping hook to the body misses from Merchant. Westworth does a little dance to reset his feet.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Merchant is defended easily by Westworth.
Merchant misses the shot to the body.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Merchant looks to score with a jab to the body but Westworth is just out of range.
Westworth tries a low kick but Merchant avoids it.
Merchant defending well as Westworth loads up on a big left hand.
Merchant lands a jab.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Westworth cracks Merchant with a right hand to the side of the head.
Merchant swings and misses with a shot to the body
and Westworth counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.
Merchant swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Westworth connects with a single shot there.
Merchant swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Merchant misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
Matt Westworth is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Merchant throws a front kick aimed at Westworth's knee but Westworth avoids it well.
Westworth works the jab nicely.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
A looping hook to the body misses from Merchant. Westworth does a little dance to reset his feet.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Merchant uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Westworth.
Westworth throws a shot from downtown. Merchant moves away and avoids it.
Westworth getting the better of the striking in that exchange.
Merchant looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Westworth is fending him off so far but Merchant persists. Nope, Westworth circles away and we're back to standing.
Merchant throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Westworth is landing a lot of head punches in this opening round! Merchant had better start moving his head a bit unless he wants his face to turn into pâté.
Good shot there by Westworth.
Merchant on the wrong end of a decent looking cross there.
This is turning into a torrid day at the office for Merchant. He's trying desperately to land a takedown but he's failing miserably and getting slapped silly on the feet to compound his misery.
Merchant looks to score with a jab to the body but Westworth is just out of range.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Merchant fails with the takedown.
A looping hook to the body misses from Westworth. Merchant does a little dance to reset his feet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Matt Westworth dominated that round.
That's time! Merchant's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Merchant misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
Merchant jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Matt Westworth seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Merchant drops his hands momentarily and Westworth takes advantage with a crisp shot to the head.
Westworth has used his reach advantage pretty well so far tonight.
Merchant has his hands up protecting his head but a hook from Westworth finds it's way round the side to connect with Merchant's head.
Merchant fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Westworth manages to avoid it.

Merchant decides to change it up a bit and drives through with a nice takedown into half guard.
The referee looks like he's ready to step in and stand the fighters back up.

Merchant seems to be working for a kimura but Westworth defends the submission attempt.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

Merchant is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Merchant is pressing down on Westworth's thigh, looking to free his foot. Westworth is holding on for now.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Merchant is working for a kimura but Westworth is defending it quite comfortably.

Merchant is trying a forearm choke… I don't think that's going to do much at this level of the game.

Merchant is looking for a kimura here.
Westworth gets back to full guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Westworth is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Merchant wants to control from the top but Westworth keeps moving.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Westworth trying to keep a closed guard but Merchant is proving a slippery customer.
Merchant wants to control from the top but Westworth keeps moving.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Merchant misses with a hook to the body
and Westworth counters with a stiff right hand.
Merchant misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Westworth.
Merchant throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Westworth's waist but Westworth gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Merchant off to one side.
Merchant misses with a right hand
and Westworth cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Westworth looks to throw the jab but Merchant is out of range.
A big right from Westworth misses.
Merchant throws a predictable looking body shot
and Westworth connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Westworth throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Westworth throws a series of punches but Merchant avoids them all with ease.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Some wild striking there from Westworth.
Merchant misses the shot to the body.
Merchant misses with a kick to the body.
Merchant misses with a wild body shot.
Merchant misses with a jab to the body
and Westworth counters nicely by changing levels and landing a hook to the body.
Merchant scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Merchant misses with a hook
letting Westworth counter with a right hand.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Westworth uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Merchant.
Merchant is looking to wear down Westworth with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Merchant swings for the body but Westworth moves out of range.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Philippe Merchant 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. This is the final round!

Westworth moves into range and throws a combination. A nice jab followed by a hook to the body.
Merchant tries to work over Westworth's front leg with a kick but Westworth checks it.
Philippe Merchant seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Westworth lands with a nice combination. Merchant backs away looking to recover.

Merchant is rocked!
A swing and a miss from Merchant.
Westworth catches Merchant with a right, a left, a right. It's raining punches and Merchant forgot an umbrella! Another punch and he's down. This one is over!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 0:30 of round 3, we have a winner by way of KO (Punches). Matt Westworth!
Matt Westworth decided to go for the less than humble approach in his post fight interview, telling everyone how he is going to conquer the world. The crowd seemed to like it when really that sort of approach could have gone either way.