PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Makao Matsumoto (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Tsubasa J Champ (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Matsumoto kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is Sepultura - Territory . 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.

Matsumoto
vs
J Champ

188 cm
34
210 lbs
23 - 16 - 1

186 cm
32
210 lbs
19 - 8 - 0

Great wrestler
Excellent boxer
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
World class MT
Granite chin

Milwaukee's Best 160
Heisenberg

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 23 - 16 - 1, fighting out of Tokyo, Makao Matsumoto!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 19 - 8 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Tsubasa J Champ!
The judges for this bout are Frank Antenori, and Timothy Bukovac.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Matsumoto throws a body punch but J Champ moves out of range.
J Champ throws a nice head kick!

It looks like Makao Matsumoto has been cut.
Crunch! J Champ slams his shin into Matsumoto's torso.

J Champ lands a big head kick that sends Matsumoto tumbling to the mat! J Champ takes a step backwards and waves Matsumoto back to his feet - he wants the finish!

Matsumoto is rocked!
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
J Champ thumps Matsumoto with a low kick.
Oh Matsumoto is still all over the place! His legs are completely gone! Will he be able to recover?!!
Matsumoto misses the shot to the body.
J Champ misses with a head kick.
Matsumoto swings for the body but J Champ moves out of range.
J Champ feints with a shoulder and throws a nice leg kick to Matsumoto's calf.
Makao Matsumoto seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
J Champ misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Matsumoto seems to have got his legs back now.
J Champ attempts a leg kick but it's missed by a good margin.
Matsumoto misses with an uppercut. J Champ saw that one coming.
J Champ throws a leg kick but Matsumoto sees it coming and checks it nicely.
J Champ wants to land a leg kick but Matsumoto is out of range.
Matsumoto tries for a takedown but J Champ sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Matsumoto avoids the head kick by J Champ.
Matsumoto moves out of range as J Champ throws a body kick.
Tsubasa J Champ is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Matsumoto checks a low kick. Bone on bone - not my idea of a good time.
J Champ's hands are dropping dangerously low here and Matsumoto connects clean with a right hook that sends him down to one knee! J Champ scrambles back to his feet.
J Champ tries to land a leg kick but Matsumoto saw it coming and moves away.
Matsumoto throws a body punch but J Champ moves out of range.
We've been informed that J Champ has been sparring a lot of Muay Thai in the buildup to this fight so let's see if that has an impact on the result.
J Champ misses with a body kick.
Matsumoto shoots in looking for a takedown. J Champ tries to sprawl out of it but Matsumoto keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. J Champ manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
J Champ looks shocked there as he takes a right hand to the temple.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
J Champ throws a right high kick that is partially blocked by Matsumoto.
A nice leg kick lands there from J Champ.
Matsumoto thows a body shot but no joy.
Matsumoto tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but J Champ was well out of range. Poor timing from Matsumoto.
Matsumoto swings for the body but J Champ moves out of range.
J Champ attempts a leg kick but it's missed by a good margin.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Matsumoto thows a body shot but no joy.
A head kick misses from J Champ.
J Champ is looking to chop away at Matsumoto's legs.

Matsumoto shoots in for a takedown and gets it. Let's see what he's got on the mat.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Matsumoto trying to control but J Champ is working from the bottom.
J Champ controlling Matsumoto's posture.
Matsumoto looking to sit in guard and control but J Champ gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.
J Champ preventing the sweep.
J Champ trying to control but Matsumoto is working from the bottom.
J Champ preventing the sweep.
J Champ sitting in guard, not really doing much.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Matsumoto looking to sweep here. No luck so far.

Matsumoto looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.
J Champ wants to get up but he can't break Matsumoto's closed guard. He needs to be careful trying to break the legs open, as he's open to submissions here.

Matsumoto is working actively off his back, looking to secure an arm or perhaps work for a triangle.

Matsumoto is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!

J Champ got a little sloppy there for a moment and Matsumoto has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, J Champ has managed to get both his arms back between Matsumoto's legs - danger averted.
Matsumoto wants to sweep here but J Champ controlling him for the moment.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Tsubasa J Champ dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Makao Matsumoto's cut.
That's time! Matsumoto's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

A shot to the body from Matsumoto misses
and he gets countered with a snapping leg kick.

Matsumoto closes the distance, clinches up and gets a nice trip takedown into side control. Very smooth.
J Champ is positioning himself to get back to half guard.

Matsumoto tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Matsumoto trying to control the position but J Champ is working away.
J Champ tries to get back to half guard but can't.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

Matsumoto thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.

That's one minute gone in the round.
J Champ tries to buck Matsumoto off but Matsumoto is having none of it.
Matsumoto in side control lands a decent elbow.
J Champ is trying to control Matsumoto's posture but Matsumoto avoids it.
Matsumoto in side control, trying to ground and pound but not landing this time.
Matsumoto trying to control the position but J Champ is working away.
J Champ can't do much from the bottom here.
Matsumoto working the strikes but J Champ uses the opportunity to regain half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
J Champ gets back to full guard.
Matsumoto trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
J Champ keeping moving, preventing Matsumoto from controlling successfully.
J Champ looking to control the pace of the fight rather than finish it.
J Champ looking to hit a scissor sweep but Matsumoto is one step ahead there.
Matsumoto trying to control the position from guard on top but J Champ is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Makao Matsumoto has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
J Champ pivots, looking for a leg kick but Matsumoto is out of range and J Champ settles back down.
J Champ throws a leg kick which misses Matsumoto's front leg but catches the back leg as Matsumoto tries to avoid it.
J Champ uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Matsumoto.
Matsumoto shoots for a takedown but J Champ saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Matsumoto looks to have improved his striking defense since last time we saw him fight.
J Champ lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Matsumoto is looking to wear down J Champ with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Matsumoto throws a body punch but J Champ moves out of range.
J Champ wants to land a leg kick but Matsumoto is out of range.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Matsumoto checks a leg kick.
Matsumoto throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Matsumoto keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
Matsumoto shoots in but no luck this time.
J Champ ducks under a wild hook from Matsumoto.

Matsumoto shoots in from a long way out. He's driving through with the takedown attempt and he eventually gets it, landing in J Champ's guard.
J Champ 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.
Makao Matsumoto overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
J Champ is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
The fighters are battling for position here. Matsumoto manages to regain full guard. Nice work.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Makao Matsumoto dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Makao Matsumoto's cut.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! This is the final round!

J Champ connects with a leg kick. Matsumoto looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Matsumoto connects with a hook to the side of his opponent's head.
J Champ takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Matsumoto just misses with a punch to the body.
J Champ throws a half hearted mid kick.
Matsumoto throws a body punch but J Champ moves out of range.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Matsumoto.
J Champ keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.

Matsumoto decides to change it up a bit and drives through with a nice takedown into half guard.
Matsumoto thows a huge punch but J Champ dodges it nicely.

That's one minute gone in the round.
J Champ has hold of Matsumoto's hands but Matsumoto slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
J Champ trying to control from the bottom.
J Champ wants to control the action here but instead Matsumoto manages to pass to full mount!
Matsumoto thowing strikes but they're hitting the gloves, not doing any damage.
Matsumoto working the ground and pound effectively.
Matsumoto wants to control the pace but J Champ is squirming around nicely.
Matsumoto sends his fist crashing into the mat - the crowd let out a collective ooooooh. Let's hope he's not broken it!
Matsumoto lands a big shot there that rocks J Champ but he's holding on and managing to survive for now.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Matsumoto landing strikes, looking to finish!
J Champ is desperately trying to improve his position but Matsumoto has a good base and remains in mount.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
J Champ tries to hold on but Matsumoto postures up.
J Champ is in a horrible position here, under a barrage of strikes, he's managing to avoid any damage.
Matsumoto with shots to the head and body - J Champ looks very uncomfortable down there.
J Champ wants to control but Matsumoto is having none of it.
Matsumoto misses with a head shot.
Matsumoto unloads with some shots from mount but J Champ bucks and avoids them well.
J Champ slips a leg in and gets back to half guard.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Matsumoto connects with a nice short shot to J Champ's temple.
Matsumoto thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed J Champ's head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Matsumoto missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Matsumoto drops an elbow to the side of J Champ's head.

Matsumoto is working for a kimura from half guard. He's really concentrating on the hold and it's allowed J Champ to slip a leg under and get back to full guard.
J Champ tries to land a sweep but no joy.
J Champ trying to keep a closed guard but Matsumoto is proving a slippery customer.
J Champ wants to sweep here but Matsumoto controlling him for the moment.
Matsumoto postures up.
Matsumoto loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Matsumoto passes J Champ's left leg - he's now in half guard.
Matsumoto wants to lay and pray for a moment but J Champ keeps working.
Still in half guard, Matsumoto seems content to control.
J Champ desperately trying to maintain half guard.
Matsumoto 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.
Matsumoto throws a big elbow that misses, also allowing J Champ to regain full guard.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Matsumoto throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Matsumoto is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.

And that's the end of the fight!
Makao Matsumoto showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Matsumoto has won this one but let's see what the judges have to say. 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 29:28
Judge Percy O'Donnell scores the fight 29:28
Judge Timothy Bukovac scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Makao Matsumoto!
During a confident post fight interview, Makao Matsumoto thanked all his fans. He seemed very genuine when describing how motivated his fans keep him.