PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between E Pha Balise To (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Slado Borodko (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Slado Borodko has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Pha Balise To
vs
Borodko

169 cm
25
134 lbs
1 - 2 - 0

150 cm
25
145 lbs
1 - 1 - 0

BJJ Brown Belt
Brawler
Big heart

Decent wrestler
Brawler
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 1 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Hilo, E Pha Balise To!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Hilo, Slado Borodko!
The judges for this bout are Paul Gruel, Micheangelo Fripello and Chris Saunders.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Balise To shoots and misses

and Borodko counters into the clinch. Nicely done.
Balise To can't get the takedown.
Balise To can't break the clinch.
Borodko leaning his opponent against the cage.
Balise To jumps guard but Borodko stands there with Balise To around his waist. Balise To gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for E Pha Balise To. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Balise To fails to pull the fight into his guard.
A bit of stalling here from Borodko.
Balise To is trying to pull guard but Borodko turns him against the cage and we stay in the clinch.
Balise To tries to pull guard but Borodko won't allow it.
Balise To is trying to break free.
Balise To tries to stall but Borodko uses the opportunity to gain a better position.

Borodko has Balise To pressed up against the cage. He's trying to work for a single leg takedown. Borodko pulls back from the cage and twists to the side, sending Balise To tumbling to the mat - Borodko dives into Balise To's guard.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.
Borodko won't allow Balise To to get back to his feet.
Borodko must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Borodko cracks Balise To with a solid left hand.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Borodko content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.
Balise To wants to stand but Borodko is controlling the position.
Borodko is looking to stand up but Balise To won't let him.
Balise To is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Borodko is controlling him.
Borodko engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
Borodko stops Balise To from standing up.
Borodko looking to pass the guard.
Borodko passes easily into side control. Nice work.
Borodko working the head with strikes.
Balise To is trying to escape and get back to his feet.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Borodko staying calm.
Balise To is trying to get back to his feet.
Borodko tries to advance to mount but can't.
Borodko is staying tight to Balise To's torso, preventing him from escaping.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Balise To takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.
Balise To is pushing Borodko's head away, looking to escape. Borodko manages to hold on to the position though.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Balise To prevents Borodko from moving into mount.
Balise To is looking to work his way out of this bad position but Borodko is controlling him well.
Balise To takes a big shot right to the temple there but he's taken it well.
Balise To is being controlled here.
Balise To is pushing Borodko's head away, looking to escape. Borodko manages to hold on to the position though.
Borodko tries to move to mount but Balise To blocks the move with his legs.

Borodko has had enough of the ground for now and decides to stand.
Balise To doesn't succeed with the takedown

and Borodko counters by moving into the clinch.

Borodko pulls guard.
Borodko keeping full guard, as Balise To tries to pass.
Borodko has a closed guard, preventing anything of note from happening. Perhaps he's looking to stall.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Balise To trying to control but Borodko is working from the bottom.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
The referee looks like he's ready to step in and stand the fighters back up.
Balise To will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.

We're going to have a standup here because E Pha Balise To wasn't active enough for the referee's liking.
Balise To has his takedown stuffed

and Borodko counters with a takedown into side control.
Borodko prevents Balise To from escaping the position.
Balise To tries to get back to his feet but has found himself mounted instead. Damn, that's gotta suck.
Balise To is breathing heavily.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Balise To's corner are shouting for him to stand up but that's bad cornering - how is he meant to stand up when he's mounted? He should be looking to improve his position on the ground before trying to stand back up.
Borodko really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Balise To. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Borodko controlling from mount.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Slado Borodko dominated that round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Balise To misses with a takedown

and Borodko counters by moving into the clinch.
Balise To is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Borodko pulls him back up using the underhooks.
Balise To wants a takedown.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for E Pha Balise To. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Borodko manages to pull guard.
Borodko wants to sweep here but Balise To controlling him for the moment.
Borodko seems keen to control Balise To's posture.
Borodko is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Borodko trying to strike off his back.
Balise To stops Borodko from standing up.
Slado Borodko has got the better of the ground game so far.
Balise To pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Borodko is keeping the position for now.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Balise To drops back looking for a heel hook - he quickly realises he's not going to get it but Borodko manages to dive on top of him before he can escape and now Balise To has Borodko in his guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Borodko is standing up over Balise To. Balise To looks to escape but Borodko dives into side control.
Balise To pushes Borodko away and creates a bit of space to escape. He's almost out here... but no, Borodko gets a good hold of his legs and remains firmly in side control.
Borodko just content to control the position.
Balise To is trying to buck Borodko off.
Balise To trying to remain calm as Borodko controls from the top position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Balise To is working hard to escape and get back to his feet. After a battle for position, Borodko asserts his dominance and retains side control.

Borodko is looking for a kimura. He might have it! No, Balise To has escaped the position, nice work there.
Borodko prevents Balise To from escaping the position.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Borodko in side control, just content to control the action for now.
Balise To tries to wriggle free to get back to his feet but he's given up his back! Oops.
Borodko trying to secure his dominant position for a moment - making sure Balise To doesn't escape.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Balise To holding both Borodko 's hands and preventing any damage.
Borodko is throwing punches to the body, looking to soften Balise To up.
Balise To has the hand control, trying to stop the rear naked choke.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Borodko biding his time, looking for the opening.
Balise To is trying to stand back up.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Borodko controlling the position well here. Balise To rolled but Borodko kept the hooks locked in and stayed in the dominant position.
Balise To is trying to get back to his feet but Borodko has full control of the position and if anything, Balise To has just worked his way into a worse spot.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.

Balise To showing good submission defense here.
Borodko is punishing Balise To with some ground and pound.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Slado Borodko showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, 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.

Balise To shoots and misses

and Borodko moves into the clinch.

Borodko lands a takedown into guard.
Borodko would like to get this fight back to the feet but can't get free from the closed guard.
Balise To wants to get back to his feet but Borodko passes into half guard.
Borodko works his way into side control.
Balise To tries to wriggle free to get back to his feet but he's given up his back! Oops.
You know, I was talking to some of our celebrities at ringside tonight and they were split right down the middle on who was going to win this fight.

Balise To manages to escape to his feet.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Excellent takedown into side control there by Borodko.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Borodko slows the pace down.
Balise To is trying to escape and get back to his feet.
Borodko tries to move to mount but Balise To blocks the move with his legs.
Borodko prevents Balise To from escaping the position.
Balise To trying desperately to get back to his feet here but he's not having any joy at all. He's going to tire himself out if he's not careful.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Balise To trying to remain calm as Borodko controls from the top position.
Borodko creates a bit of distance and throws down some hard shots.
Balise To is trying to stand back up. He's worked his way up against the cage but Borodko has just dragged him back down to the mat.
Borodko wants to stand but Balise To has his arm trapped.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Balise To is putting a lot of effort into getting back to his feet here.
You can see the frustration on Balise To's face as Borodko controls the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Balise To tries to wriggle free to get back to his feet but he's given up his back! Oops.

Borodko looking to break Balise To's wrist control so he can sink in the choke. Balise To remaining controlled and patient though - he really has to keep calm otherwise Borodko will wrap this one up with the rear naked choke!
Borodko lands with a big left hand that may well have hurt his opponent. Can Balise To hold on?!
Balise To is trying to get back to his feet but Borodko has full control of the position and if anything, Balise To has just worked his way into a worse spot.

Borodko looking to break Balise To's wrist control so he can sink in the choke. Balise To remaining controlled and patient though - he really has to keep calm otherwise Borodko will wrap this one up with the rear naked choke!
Oooh a big shot gets through from Borodko. Many more shots like that and the referee will have to think about stepping in!
Balise To is very frustrated here, being controlled quite effectively by Borodko.
Balise To wants to get back to his feet.

Borodko has his opponent's back and is working for the choke.
Balise To wants to get back to his feet.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Borodko slows the pace down here. Having a little breather whilst he's in a dominant position, looking to rest and regain some energy, ready to go for the finish.
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.
Balise To looking to stop the rear naked choke attempt by controlling the hands.
E Pha Balise To has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Slado Borodko is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Borodko controls the action.

And that's the end of the fight!
Slado Borodko comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Borodko 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 Paul Gruel scores the fight 27:30
Judge Micheangelo Fripello scores the fight 27:30
Judge Chris Saunders scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Slado Borodko!