PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Boris Hutchinson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Lyoto Rapide (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Hutchinson
vs
Rapide

155 cm
18
193 lbs
1 - 2 - 0

184 cm
21
184 lbs
3 - 3 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter fighter
Hates pizza

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
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 1 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Boris Hutchinson!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Lyoto Rapide!
The judges for this bout are Frank Antenori, Jack Bonds and Don Winkell.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Rapide shoots in for a takedown and gets it. Let's see what he's got on the mat.
Rapide has decided he wants to stand but the closed guard of Hutchinson is proving hard to escape from.
Hutchinson pulls Rapide in to control the position.
Rapide trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Rapide seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.
Rapide must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Rapide preventing the sweep.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.

Rapide looking to score a takedown here. Hutchinson is defending well but Rapide drives through and ends up in Hutchinson's guard.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Rapide accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rapide trying to control but Hutchinson is working from the bottom.
Hutchinson manages to land a sweep and now he's in mount on top!
Hutchinson tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
Hutchinson has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
Hutchinson avoids the attempt from Rapide to control.
Hutchinson really is a fat lump.
Hutchinson controlling the position easily from mount.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Rapide is working to get back to half guard.
Hutchinson won't let Rapide get back to his feet... He wants to keep the fight where it is for now.
Hutchinson avoids the attempt from Rapide to control.
Hutchinson sitting in mount, just looking to control for the moment.
Rapide tries to hold on but Hutchinson pushes him away.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
The referee wants the fighters to be more active or he's going to reset them on the feet.
Rapide keeping his composure momentarily, calmly looking to get back to half guard.
Hutchinson controlling the position easily from mount.
Rapide is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
Rapide is trying to get to the cage to help him get back to his feet.
Rapide sneaks a leg back under and regains half guard and is working straight away to try and get back to guard. He hasn't managed just yet though.
Hutchinson looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Rapide with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Hutchinson controlling the action here.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Rapide punching from the bottom.
Hutchinson controlling the pace.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Boris Hutchinson.
Rapide throws a combination that misses

and Hutchinson counters by moving into the clinch. Good anticipation by Hutchinson.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.

Rapide has managed to pull guard. Let's see whether he can work an aggressive guard. It will also be interesting to see what tactics Hutchinson uses from the top position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Lyoto Rapide will probably get the nod.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Rapide drives through with a takedown into Hutchinson's guard. Let's see what he can do from the top position.
Hutchinson pulls Rapide in to control the position.
Rapide won't allow Hutchinson to sweep him here.
Hutchinson keeping moving, preventing Rapide from controlling successfully.
Rapide throwing strikes from guard but Hutchinson blocks nicely.
Hutchinson tries to land a sweep but no joy.
It looks like the ref is thinking about a standup.
Rapide trying to control but Hutchinson is working from the bottom.
Lyoto Rapide has got the better of the ground game so far.

The ref stands the fighters back up, due to lack of action by Lyoto Rapide.
Rapide wants to slow Hutchinson down by chopping away at his legs.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Rapide gets the takedown into side control.
Rapide trying to control the position but Hutchinson is working away.
Hutchinson wants to control but Rapide postures up.

Rapide tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Hutchinson is not content to let Rapide control the position.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hutchinson manages to get one leg in to regain half guard.
Hutchinson is looking for a sweep. Rapide is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Hutchinson is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Rapide's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Rapide's back!
Hutchinson keeps control of the position easily here as Rapide tries to buck him off.
Hutchinson gets his hands free as Rapide looks to control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hutchinson tries to keep control of the position but Rapide is staying busy.
Rapide trying to control the action but Hutchinson just sinks the hooks in.
Rapide has the hand control, trying to stop the rear naked choke.
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.
Hutchinson is hanging on to Rapide's back as he tries to escape.
Hutchinson connects with a series of strikes and the referee is calling for Rapide to escape the position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Rapide rolls, trying to escape but Hutchinson keeps control of the position.
Rapide is very frustrated here, being controlled quite effectively by Hutchinson.
Rapide has his hands over his head blocking the strikes from Hutchinson.
Rapide is really stuck here.
Hutchinson is looking cool and calm here, just waiting for a good opportunity to attack and finish the fight from this dominant position.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Rapide can't escape the position.
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 Boris Hutchinson will probably get the nod.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action. This is the final round!

Rapide gets a double leg takedown into Hutchinson's guard.
Hutchinson trying to keep a closed guard but Rapide is proving a slippery customer.
Rapide is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Rapide tries to stand but Hutchinson is controlling from the bottom.
Rapide trying to pass the guard. He's being very persistent here but Hutchinson manages to land a sweep and now he's on top!

Rapide has his foot on Hutchinson's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Hutchinson works his way back into a safe position though.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hutchinson postures up and lands a big shot to Rapide's brow.
Hutchinson seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.
Hutchinson wants to control from the top but Rapide keeps moving.
Rapide looking for a sweep. Not yet Rapide, not yet.
Rapide is pulling down on Hutchinson's head. It's preventing any offense from Hutchinson, at least for the moment.
Hutchinson trying to control but Rapide is working from the bottom.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
It looks like the ref is thinking about a standup.
Hutchinson controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.

Lyoto Rapide has forced the referee to step in and restart the fight on the feet.
Rapide throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
No joy there for Hutchinson, who threw a few shots but didn't land.

Rapide closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Hutchinson to the mat! Hutchinson manages to get full guard.
Rapide content to stall in guard here.
Rapide takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Rapide with a flurry of punches that miss.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hutchinson looking for a sweep. Not yet Hutchinson, not yet.

Rapide decides he's had enough of playing guard and decides to stand. Come on Hutchinson, up you get!

Rapide clinches.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.

Rapide gets a trip takedown into half guard.
Rapide wants to stand up but Hutchinson has a hold of him and won't allow it.
Hutchinson works his way to full guard. Good work.
Hutchinson controlling the position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hutchinson 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.
Hutchinson is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Hutchinson tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Rapide trying to control the position from guard on top but Hutchinson is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Rapide throwing strikes from guard but Hutchinson blocks nicely.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.

The ref stands the fighters back up because Boris Hutchinson just wasn't active enough.
Hutchinson tries to clinch there but Rapide circles away.

And that's the end of the fight!
Lyoto Rapide comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Rapide has outworked and out performed his opponent in all aspects of the game today. He was simply too good and the decision should be no more than a formality. 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 Frank Antenori scores the fight 27:30
Judge Jack Bonds scores the fight 28:30
Judge Don Winkell scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Lyoto Rapide!