PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between SergiO Ortiz (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Stelios Xenos (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Ortiz comes to the cage accompanied by DMX - X Gon' Give It To Ya. Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Ortiz
vs
Xenos

188 cm
35
200 lbs
40 - 19 - 0

187 cm
32
194 lbs
28 - 11 - 0

Good wrestling
Excellent boxer
Cardio machine

BJJ Purple Belt
Good kicks
Determined

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 40 - 19 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, SergiO Ortiz!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 28 - 11 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Stelios Xenos!
The judges for this bout are Emerson Jorge, Thiago Cunha and Daniel Cesar.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Ouch! a nice leg kick from Xenos, right into the meat.
Ortiz shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Xenos as he jumps to the side.
Ortiz checks a leg kick nicely.
Ortiz lands a slapping body shot.
Xenos throws a leg kick that misses.
Xenos looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Ortiz lands with an overhand left.
Xenos chopped to the floor by a nice leg kick but he springs right back up before Ortiz can pounce on him.
Ortiz moves out of range of the body kick from Xenos.
Ortiz scores with a decent looking hook.
SergiO Ortiz seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Xenos throws a body kick but he was well out of range there.
Xenos tries to score with an inside leg kick but telegraphs it and Ortiz is able to avoid easily.
Ortiz throws a looping overhand right but Xenos ducks down to avoid it.
Xenos looking to throw a kick but he's pulled out of it.
Xenos tries to land a leg kick but Ortiz saw it coming and moves away.
Well, he's not going to score with shots like that. A lazy body kick attempt from Ortiz.
Ortiz chopped to the floor by a nice leg kick but he springs right back up before Xenos can pounce on him.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Xenos takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
A slow jab from Xenos misses its intended target.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Xenos lands a nice looking body shot.
Xenos throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Xenos looks to land a left hand but Ortiz moved out of range nicely.
Ortiz fakes with a right hand and throws a good leg kick, right into the thigh. That had to hurt Xenos.
Xenos throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Ortiz lands with a nice body punch.
Ortiz throws a couple of head shots and lands with the final one - a decent hook, which struck Xenos on the side of the head.
Xenos throws a leg kick which misses Ortiz's front leg but catches the back leg as Ortiz tries to avoid it.
Ortiz misses with an attempted mid kick.

Ortiz shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in side control! That's better than Ortiz was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Ortiz working away.
Xenos is trying to improve his position.
An elbow from Ortiz crashes against the mat.
Ortiz throws a knee to the body but it doesn't do much damage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ortiz in the domination position with Xenos hanging on.
You can see the frustration on Xenos's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Ortiz remains in side control and seems content to stay there. It's a versatile position from which he can work both strikes and submissions, whilst maintaining that control, so maybe he'll sit here for a while.
Xenos tries to improve position but can't.
Ortiz trying to control the position but Xenos is working away.
Ortiz working the ground and pound but he's contacting the mat, not the fighter.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Xenos is working to avoid the ground and pound but Ortiz connects with a decent elbow.
Xenos on the wrong end of some ground and pound.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Xenos is trying to get back to half guard. He's pushing on Ortiz's leg. He's managed it. Nice work.
Xenos is not content to let Ortiz control the position.
Ortiz throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Xenos avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Ortiz.
Xenos trying to control from the bottom.
Ortiz trying to control from half guard but Xenos is working away.
The fighters are going at a pretty good pace and they're both starting to sweat now.
Xenos manages to get to full guard.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Ortiz accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Xenos is trying to keep Ortiz in close.
Ortiz postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Ortiz postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Xenos trying to keep a closed guard but Ortiz is proving a slippery customer.
Ortiz looking to sit in guard and control but Xenos gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.
Ortiz lands a beautiful switch and he's in full mount! That could spell trouble for Xenos!
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Ortiz lands an elbow that was bordering on illegal but the referee lets it go with a warning.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Xenos is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

SergiO Ortiz dominated that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Ortiz moves into the clinch.
Ortiz blocks an uppercut.

Ortiz's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
A slapping leg kick lands for Xenos.
SergiO Ortiz is winning the standup battle so far.
Xenos tries a head kick but it misses.
Xenos throws a body kick but he was well out of range there.
Ortiz avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Xenos misses with a series of wild punches.
Ortiz dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Ortiz avoids the head kick by Xenos.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Ortiz is defended easily by Xenos.
A solid leg kick lands there for Ortiz.
Ortiz is moving around nicely and scores here with a single head shot.
Ortiz throws a series of strikes that have Xenos backpedaling.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Ortiz scores with a leg kick.
We've been told by Ortiz's head coaches at RAM that he's been working on his takedown defense in preparation for this fight.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Xenos shakes his hands off, looking to compose himself, but takes a jab to the jaw whilst he does it.
Xenos tries to score with a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Ortiz scores with a punch to the head.
Xenos avoids a punch combination nicely.
Ortiz throws a combination. Xenos tries to block but a couple of punches get through.

Ortiz gets the takedown into side control.
Ortiz 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.
Ortiz controls the position.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Xenos tries to bench press Ortiz off him but Ortiz keeps the position.
Ortiz lands some shots froms side control.
Ortiz cracks Xenos with a big elbow.

Ortiz tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Xenos is not in a great position here, taking some shots.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ortiz trying to control the action but Xenos is working from the bottom.
You can see the frustration on Xenos's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Ortiz throwing shots but missing, from side control.
Ortiz controls the position from side control.
Xenos tries to work a leg under to get back to half guard but Ortiz wriggles his own leg back out and remains in side control.
Xenos parries the strikes from Ortiz easily there. Ortiz is wary of posturing up too much because it might enable Xenos to escape.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Xenos takes a couple of big shots there - the referee warns him that he has to defend himself better.
Ortiz landing a few strikes.
SergiO Ortiz overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Xenos seems a little lost for a moment, as Ortiz dominates the positioning.
Ortiz working the ground and pound.
Ortiz tries to land with some ground and pound but misses.
Ortiz working the ground and pound but Xenos is defending the strikes.
Xenos is not in a great position here, taking some shots.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Ortiz landing a few strikes.
Xenos on the wrong end of some ground and pound.

Xenos is rocked!
Xenos is looking for a sweep.
Ortiz trying to control the position but Xenos is working away.
Ortiz is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Xenos can do to turn this around?
Ortiz lands a knee to the body and a forearm to the face.
Xenos is still in real trouble! Can Ortiz finish him?

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ortiz working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.
Ortiz trying to control the position but Xenos is working away.
Xenos seems to have recovered his senses.
Xenos is looking to reverse the position.
Ortiz landing strikes.
Ortiz cracks Xenos with a big right hand but Xenos just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.
Ortiz with the ground and pound but Xenos regains half guard under the barage of strikes.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Xenos is trying to control but can't.
Xenos is trying to avoid being dragged into an even worse position than he's already in but Ortiz is staying active.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Well, if Ortiz is going to just lie there, perhaps we should talk about what we're having for dinner tonight… I'm having a ham and pineapple pizza… Yum. Can't wait.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

SergiO Ortiz dominated that second round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. This is the final round!

A good leg kick by Ortiz.

Ortiz dives in and scores a takedown into Xenos's guard.
Xenos wants to sweep here but Ortiz controlling him for the moment.
Xenos has momentary wrist control but Ortiz slips an elbow through the middle.
Ortiz missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Ortiz trying to control but Xenos is working from the bottom.
Ortiz makes a bit of distance and scores with some ground and pound, still in guard.
Ortiz trying to control the position from guard on top but Xenos is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Ortiz is really struggling to control Xenos but he's trying to hold on to the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Ortiz keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of Xenos's head.
Xenos controls Ortiz momentarily but Ortiz frees himself.
Xenos tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Xenos utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Ortiz is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Ortiz lands a couple of decent looking shots.
Ortiz scoring with punches to the head and body.
SergiO Ortiz is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ortiz is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.
Xenos looks to throw a body kick

and Ortiz moves into the clinch.
The pace slowing considerably in the clinch, as Xenos takes a break from that fighting nonsense to think about the finer things in life.
Ortiz stalling here - the referee won't stand for too much of that.

Ortiz's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Xenos tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Xenos slaps away a takedown attempt from Ortiz, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Xenos misses with a low kick.
Ortiz throws a one two combo.
Xenos blocks a head kick by Ortiz.
Ortiz lands with a cross to side of his opponent's head.
Ortiz lands with an overhand left.
Xenos tries to clinch up.
Ortiz tries to bum rush Xenos with a series of wild strikes but Xenos uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Ortiz moves out of range of the body kick from Xenos.
Ortiz throws the kick towards the body but Xenos avoids it.
Ortiz scores with a leg kick.
Xenos misses with a straight left.
Ortiz on the wrong end of a kick to the body.
Xenos throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped

and Ortiz moves into the clinch.
Xenos is working hard here but doesn't seem to be able to control effectively, up against the cage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Xenos throws an elbow that misses.
Xenos swings wildly with an uppercut but Ortiz uses good head movement to avoid it.
A battle for position here, against the cage.
Stelios Xenos has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.

Xenos's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Nice body kick there by Xenos.
Xenos takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
A chopping leg kick lands by Xenos.

And that's the end of the fight!
SergiO Ortiz showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Ortiz 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 Emerson Jorge scores the fight 30:27
Judge Thiago Cunha scores the fight 30:27
Judge Daniel Cesar scores the fight 30:27

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