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PBP Commentary |
Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Tatsuya Kawajiri (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Gordon Freeman (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). These two fighters really are very evenly matched on the feet - it will be fascinating to see who can assert themselves in that aspect of the fight.
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| 172 cm
27
155 lbs
5 - 3 - 0 |
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170 cm
29
149 lbs
15 - 4 - 0 |
Good wrestling
World class boxer
Insanely flexible |
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Olympic wrestler
Lethal high kicks
Good gas tank |
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Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of
5 - 3 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Tatsuya Kawajiri!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of
15 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Gordon Freeman!
The judges for this bout are Daniel Bishop, James Glass and James Ackerman.
The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Freeman ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Kawajiri misses with a kick to the body.
Freeman tries to clinch up.
Kawajiri on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Freeman. Freeman obviously looking to wear him down.
Freeman throws a leg kick but Kawajiri sees it coming and moves out of range.
Kawajiri fakes low and throws an overhand right that catches Freeman on the side of the head.
Freeman shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Kawajiri defends it nicely.
Freeman is trying hard to land a takedown here. Kawajiri sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Kawajiri throws the kick towards the body but Freeman avoids it.
Jab from Freeman.
Kawajiri scores with a shot to the body.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Kawajiri throws the left hand but Freeman avoids the punch easily.
Kawajiri misses with an attempted mid kick.
Kawajiri connects with a body shot that sends Freeman's belly button to the back.
Freeman looks to land a combination but Kawajiri avoids it well.
Freeman cracks Kawajiri with an open hand slap.
Freeman moves into range and connects with a jab.
Freeman shoots in for a double leg but Kawajiri sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
Tatsuya Kawajiri has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Gordon Freeman.
Freeman on the wrong end of a nice jab.
Kawajiri slips under a jab from Freeman.
Freeman doesn't manage to clinch there - Kawajiri circles away.
Horrible takedown by Freeman or perhaps it was just good defense by Kawajiri which made him look bad.
Freeman scores with the left hand. Kawajiri knows he should have avoided that one.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kawajiri tries to score with a low kick but Freeman moves his leg out of the way.
Freeman shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Kawajiri as he jumps to the side.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Freeman throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Kawajiri sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Kawajiri throws a half hearted mid kick.
Kawajiri blocks a jab.
Freeman shoots in but no luck this time.
Kawajiri scores with a shot to the body.
Freeman moves out of range of the body kick.
Kawajiri fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Freeman has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Freeman bobs and weaves into range and then changes levels and scores with a nice takedown into side control.
The referee must be thinking about standing these guys back up.
Kawajiri gets one leg under and gets the fight to half guard.
Freeman thows a huge punch but Kawajiri dodges it nicely.
Kawajiri wants to get back to full guard.
Kawajiri is in a tricky position. We've heard reports from his gym mates at Rings Russia that he's been drilling escapes, so let's see if he can get back to his feet.
Freeman content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
Kawajiri is holding on to half guard well.
Freeman missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Freeman is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Freeman is trying to control the action in half guard but Kawajiri is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Freeman stalling.
Freeman has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
The ref stands the fighters back up, due to lack of action by Gordon Freeman.
Kawajiri attempts a leg kick but it's missed by a good margin.
Freeman throws a body kick, spinning off balance
and Kawajiri makes him pay by landing a thudding low kick.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Freeman thuds a left hand into Kawajiri's body.
Freeman tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Kawajiri defends well and Freeman ends up having to push Kawajiri into the cage where they will battle it out in the clinch.
Freeman can't find room to land a body shot as Kawajiri controls the action.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
A head punch on the inside from Kawajiri fails to land.
Kawajiri is stalling here. The referee will be looking to step in if he doesn't pick up the pace.
Kawajiri misses with a hook from the clinch.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
A close round but Gordon Freeman will probably get the nod.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!
Kawajiri slips a jab and a cross from Freeman.
Freeman changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Kawajiri tries to avoid it but Freeman manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Kawajiri to the ground. Kawajiri escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Kawajiri gets taken down but at least he's managed to land in guard.
Kawajiri is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Freeman throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Kawajiri keeping moving, preventing Freeman from controlling successfully.
Kawajiri can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Freeman controls the pace.
Kawajiri is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Freeman is controlling him.
That's one minute gone in the round.
The ref stands the fighters back up. Gordon Freeman was stalling too much, according to the referee.
Kawajiri has a nice red mark on his side after a thudding body kick by Freeman.
Kawajiri scores with a leg kick.
Freeman tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Kawajiri defends well and Freeman ends up having to push Kawajiri into the cage where they will battle it out in the clinch.
Freeman swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Freeman is trying to drag Kawajiri to the mat but Kawajiri just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
Tatsuya Kawajiri has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Gordon Freeman.
Freeman doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Kawajiri blocks an uppercut.
Freeman is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kawajiri digs a right hand into Freeman's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Freeman's gas tank.
Kawajiri is trying to push Freeman away but Freeman has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Kawajiri trying to control the position but instead, Freeman has worked for underhooks and has pushed Kawajiri into the cage.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Kawajiri.
Freeman misses with a body punch.
Kawajiri breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Freeman fails with a takedown attempt.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kawajiri moves out of range as Freeman strikes.
Kawajiri throws a half hearted mid kick.
Freeman stumbles momentarily as he takes a strong leg kick from Kawajiri.
Freeman lands with a cross to side of his opponent's head.
Kawajiri jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Kawajiri lands the left hand.
A cross from Kawajiri lands.
Kawajiri misses with a kick to the body.
Freeman staying out of range there.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kawajiri missing with a left hand there. Freeman was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Kawajiri feints and then cracks Freeman's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Freeman down.
Kawajiri paws at his opponent with the jab and then lunges in with a straight, right on the button.
Freeman misses with a wild body shot.
Freeman lands with a cross.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Freeman looks to throw the jab but Kawajiri is out of range.
Freeman misses with a straight left.
Tatsuya Kawajiri is winning the standup battle so far.
Freeman throws a hook but Kawajiri avoids it easily.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
A looping hook to the body misses from Kawajiri. Freeman does a little dance to reset his feet.
Freeman staying out of range there.
Freeman shoots in for a takedown but Kawajiri shows good takedown defense.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
A close second round but Gordon Freeman will probably get the nod - 10:9.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!
Freeman lands a powerful looking uppercut that connected with his opponent's jaw.
Freeman cracks a nice hook into Kawajiri's ribs.
Kawajiri blocks the body kick.
Kawajiri throws a body punch but Freeman moves out of range.
A low kick from Kawajiri misses
and Freeman counters with a nice double leg into side control. Kawajiri won't be happy with that.
Freeman in side control lands a decent elbow.
Kawajiri is looking for a sweep.
Freeman trying to control the action but Kawajiri is working from the bottom.
Kawajiri can't do much from the bottom here.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Kawajiri tries to improve position but can't.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Freeman working away.
Kawajiri is looking for a sweep.
Freeman tries to score with some ground and pound. Kawajiri controls his posture well this time though and the shots don't do any damage.
Freeman throwing strikes but missing, from side control.
Kawajiri wants to control but Freeman postures up.
What's Kawajiri going to do here then? He's in a bit of a pickle.
Freeman working the ground and pound but Kawajiri is defending the strikes.
Freeman postures up a little and throws a couple of hammerfists but they don't connect properly.
Kawajiri is looking for a sweep.
Kawajiri wants to control but Freeman postures up.
Tatsuya Kawajiri has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kawajiri avoids any damage from the ground and pound of Freeman.
Freeman in side control, throwing shots but Kawajiri defends.
In the pre-fight buildup videos we saw Freeman working his ground and pound in the gym. He isn't landing a great percentage of his ground strikes so far though.
Kawajiri tries to improve position but can't.
Kawajiri is not content to let Freeman control the position.
Gordon Freeman has got the better of the ground game so far.
Freeman creates some space and throws a big elbow, but Kawajiri sees it coming and moves his head just enough to avoid the strike.
You can see the frustration on Kawajiri's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Kawajiri is letting Freeman control him for a moment.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kawajiri takes a big shot right to the temple there but he's taken it well.
Who's going to make the next move?
Freeman misses with an attempted head punch from side control.
Freeman scoring with punches and elbows.
Freeman fails to land a wild elbow strike.
Kawajiri is not content to let Freeman control the position.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kawajiri struggling a bit here.
Freeman tries to land with some ground and pound but misses.
Kawajiri struggling a bit here.
Kawajiri is looking for a sweep.
Freeman tries to land with some ground and pound but misses.
Kawajiri misses with a strike from the bottom.
Freeman lands a few punches from side control.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Kawajiri manages to get back to half guard.
Freeman is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Kawajiri actively working from the bottom here.
And that's the end of the fight!
Gordon Freeman comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Freeman winning every round here. Surely the decision will go his way and he'll pick up a well deserved decision victory. 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 Daniel Bishop scores the fight 27:30
Judge James Glass scores the fight 27:30
Judge James Ackerman scores the fight 27:30
In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Gordon Freeman!
During a confident post fight interview, Gordon Freeman thanked all his fans. He seemed very genuine when describing how motivated his fans keep him.
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| S |
C
A |
G |
S |
C
B |
G |
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S |
C |
G |
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energy
A | B |
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hype
A | B |
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pop
A | B |
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mgr
A | B |
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FIGHT
RATING
62% |
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