PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Gunnar Johnsson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Danny Harper (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Johnsson comes into the arena with Kashmir - Led Zeppelin blaring out of the sound system. Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the ring.

Johnsson
vs
Harper

180 cm
23
180 lbs
8 - 1 - 0

179 cm
20
169 lbs
7 - 2 - 0

Good takedowns
Counter striker
Experienced

BJJ Purple Belt
Brawler
Solid chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the welterweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 8 - 1 - 0, fighting out of London, Gunnar Johnsson!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 7 - 2 - 0, fighting out of London, Danny Harper!
The judges for this bout are Andrew Berry, James Ackerman and Sam Margolis.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Harper slips a straight right by Johnsson.
Johnsson gets cracked with a nice right hand there by Harper.
Harper throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Harper misses with a two punch combination.

Johnsson closes the distance and looks for a trip takedown... aaaand he's got it - Johnsson lands in his opponent's guard.
Johnsson stops Harper from standing up.

Johnsson thinks about going for a leg but decides against it, in order to maintain the position.

Harper pushes Johnsson off and scrambles back to his feet.
Johnsson looks to land a left hand but Harper moved out of range nicely.
Johnsson lands a beauty of a right hand that gets the crowd cheering.
Johnsson throws out a token jab with nothing on it.

Harper gets a takedown into half guard.
Johnsson tries to get to full guard but Harper has control of the leg.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Johnsson is pressing down on Harper's left leg trying to get back to full guard. He's managed it.
Johnsson trying to strike off his back.
Johnsson utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Johnsson striking off his back but it's not causing Harper any problems.
Johnsson 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.
Johnsson working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Harper.
Harper pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Johnsson is keeping the position for now.
Harper trying to control the position from guard on top but Johnsson is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
Johnsson keeps the fight on the outside.
Johnsson slips a jab and a cross from Harper.
Harper throws a right hand that Johnsson ducks under and follows up with a left that Johnsson also avoids with ease.
Harper fails in his attempt to clinch.
Harper tries to close the distance and clinch up against the ropes but Johnsson paws at him with a jab and circles away.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Johnsson throws a hard body shot but it just misses.

Johnsson tries to keep at a distance but Harper has taken the fight into the clinch.
Harper tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Johnsson trying to stall but Harper improves his position.
Harper lands a right hand.
Harper is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Johnsson pulls him back up using the underhooks.

Johnsson decides to pull guard.

Johnsson looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.

Johnsson is looking for a triangle but Harper pushes his legs off easily.

Johnsson isolates an arm and boxes in a triangle. Harper stacks Johnsson on his neck as he steps over and passes to the side. He's now in a much more dominant position where he can look to do some serious damage. Nice move by Harper!
Johnsson is breathing heavily.
Harper lands a nice forearm strike.
Harper scores with punches from side control.
Johnsson tries to slip a leg under to move to half guard but Harper presses down on the leg and jumps into full mount!

That's three minutes gone in the round.

The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Harper is going olschool here, as he tries to force Johnsson to tap using a forearm choke. This isn't 1993 though, so Johnsson shrugs it off.
Harper with a couple of short strikes.
Harper trying to control but Johnsson is having none of it.
Johnsson 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.
Harper wants to get back to his feet.
Harper passes into side control, despite Johnsson's attempt to control the position.
Johnsson manages to get back to half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Johnsson blocking the ground and pound attempt from Harper.
Johnsson works his way to full guard. Good work.
Harper wants to control from the top but Johnsson keeps moving.
Harper passes into half guard under a barage of strikes.
Harper wants to stand but Johnsson has hold of a leg and an arm, so he's trapped for now.
Johnsson is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Harper's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Harper's back!
Johnsson not allowing Harper to control his hands.
Johnsson lands a punch to the side of the head from the back.
Harper wants to escape the position.
Harper trying to control the hands but Johnsson won't let him.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Danny Harper will probably get the nod.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Harper tries to clinch up.
Harper on the wrong end of a nice hook.
Johnsson gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily

and Harper counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
Harper wants to pass the guard but Johnsson is defending well.
Johnsson wants to get back to full guard.
Harper working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
Harper not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Harper lands with a punch from half guard.
Johnsson trying to get back to full guard but Harper takes advantage of the position and moves to full mount!
Harper landing shots from mount.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Harper with the ground and pound from mount.
Harper trying to control but Johnsson is having none of it.
Harper is in the full mount, landing strikes.
Harper tries to control but Johnsson wriggling away.

Harper with some aggressive grappling here. He's looking for submissions here, rather than waiting for the opportunity to counter.
Harper punishing his opponent with strikes.
Johnsson can't escape the position.
Harper landing strikes from the mount and Johnsson is in trouble!
Johnsson working to try and regain half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.
Johnsson is working hard here to advance position.
Harper avoids the attempt from Johnsson to control.
Harper lands with some vicious ground and pound - can Johnsson hang on?
Harper lands a big elbow.
Harper is still in mount, landing shots to his trapped opponent. Johnsson can't stay in a position like this for much longer.
Johnsson tries to hold on but Harper pushes him away.
Johnsson swinging wildly from the bottom but he's not landing.
Harper is in the full mount, landing strikes.
Harper unloading with bombs!
Harper landing shots from mount.
Johnsson really trying hard to get back to half guard here.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Johnsson wants to control but Harper is having none of it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Harper raining down shots from the mount!
Johnsson is trying to escape the mount.
Johnsson is squirming around, avoiding Harper's attempts to control the action.
Johnsson is looking to get to half guard.
Harper is still in mount, landing shots to his trapped opponent. Johnsson can't stay in a position like this for much longer.
Harper avoids the attempt from Johnsson to control.
Harper landing shots from mount.
Johnsson is looking to improve his position but Harper isn't that keen on the idea.
Danny Harper has got the better of the ground game so far.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Harper raining down shots from the mount!
Harper unloading with bombs!
Harper postures up and cracks his opponent a couple of times before moving back into close ground control. Johnsson looks a forlorn figure.
Harper raining down shots from the mount!
Harper takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
Johnsson is wriggling around trying to escape.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Harper is landing with some decent strikes but Johnsson is trying to advance his position so the referee is letting the fight continue.
Johnsson working to try and regain half guard.
Harper landing strikes, looking to finish!
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Danny Harper showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Harper misses with a takedown

and Johnsson decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Harper's guard.
Harper lands a beautiful switch and he's in full mount! That could spell trouble for Johnsson!
The fighters are tangled up in the ropes here. We might need a restart if the fighters can't break free themselves.
Johnsson is working to get back to half guard.
Harper cracks Johnsson with a nasty head shot there - the crowd let out an audible gasp there, as the noise reverberated around the arena.
Harper avoids the attempt from Johnsson to control.
Harper putting on the heat here with some good ground and pound!
Johnsson sneaks a leg under to get to half guard.
Harper is looking to take a break and control but Johnsson is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Johnsson has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Harper is working away from the top position though.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Harper wants to get back to his feet.
Johnsson tries to roll over but Harper keeps him under control.
Harper landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Harper seems to have lost interest with the ground game and is thinking about standing back up.
Johnsson is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Harper passes the guard and advances to mount!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.
Johnsson taking shots to the head.
Johnsson sneaks a leg under to get to half guard.
Harper wants to stand but Johnsson has hold of a leg and an arm, so he's trapped for now.
Johnsson gets full guard.
Johnsson lands a beautiful switch and he's in full mount! That could spell trouble for Harper!
Harper tries to hold on but Johnsson postures up.
Johnsson fails to take his opponent's back.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Johnsson is looking to secure an arm. He's managed it! He's pivoting for an armbar - that looks tight! But Harper has managed to get out of it and now he's in a dominant position. Nice work from Harper!
Harper is looking to stand up but Johnsson won't let him.
Harper loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Harper trying to control but Johnsson is working from the bottom.
Johnsson avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Johnsson manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Harper manages to get himself to full guard.
Johnsson pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Harper is keeping the position for now.
Johnsson working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Harper keeping moving, preventing Johnsson from controlling successfully.
Harper wants to sweep here but Johnsson controlling him for the moment.
Johnsson postures up.
Harper is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.
Harper missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Johnsson is looking to improve his position.
It looks like Harper is going to stand back up.
Johnsson trying to control but Harper postures up.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but Gunnar Johnsson did the better work so I'd imagine he'll take it.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

Johnsson changes levels and drives through with a really nice takedown into side control. Harper looks really pissed at himself for not defending that better.
Harper takes an elbow right on the bridge of the nose and winces in pain.
Harper is putting a lot of effort into getting back to his feet here.

Johnsson is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Harper knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.
Johnsson prevents Harper from escaping the position.
Harper is looking for a sweep.
It's got to the stage where if one of these guys blows hard enough, the other might fall over.
Harper takes a big shot right to the temple there but he's taken it well.

Johnsson wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Harper, who protects the arm well.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Harper tries to improve position but can't.
Harper is trying to buck Johnsson off.
Harper sneaks a leg under to get back to half guard.
Harper has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Johnsson is working away from the top position though.
Harper tries to kick Johnsson off but Johnsson keeps his base steady and stays in half guard.
Johnsson working the head and body with strikes.
Johnsson moves into full mount! Harper won't be happy about that!
Harper is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Johnsson in mount throwing good strikes here, bouncing his opponent's head off the canvas.
Johnsson working the ground and pound effectively.

Johnsson goes for an armbar but Harper turns quickly into his guard - lovely anticipation from Harper.
Harper landing with the ground and pound.
Johnsson working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Harper.
Harper is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Johnsson trying to keep a closed guard but Harper is proving a slippery customer.
Harper missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Harper trying to control but Johnsson is working from the bottom.
Harper stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Johnsson swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Harper wanted to stand there but Johnsson had control of the position.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.

Harper fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Johnsson, pushing him back against the ropes.
Johnsson looking to slow down the pace here.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Harper.
Johnsson makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
A right handed body shot lands from Johnsson.
Johnsson prevents a takedown attempt there.
A short body shot lands from Johnsson as the two fighters clinch.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Harper prevents the takedown attempt.
Harper trying to stall but Johnsson improves his position.
Harper tries for a takedown but Johnsson manages to get underhooks.
Johnsson stalling here - the referee won't stand for too much of that.
Harper takes an elbow to the forehead.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Johnsson.
Johnsson misses with a punch to the body.

Harper successfully pulls guard.
Harper tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Hammerfist, elbow! yells Johnsson's corner. There ya go! There ya go!
Johnsson passes easily into side control. Nice work.
Harper tries to buck Johnsson off but Johnsson is having none of it.

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

Johnsson thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Gunnar Johnsson had his way with Danny Harper in that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. This is the final round!

Harper tries to clinch but fails miserably

and Johnsson counters with a shoot takedown. Harper fights it but they end up in guard.
Johnsson works over Harper with some ground and pound from guard.

Johnsson drops back, looking for a kneebar! Harper looks panicked! The fighters roll across the mat, one looking to finish, one looking to escape. Harper looks to have wriggled free... Yes, he's got his leg free and he's dived into side control! Good work there from Harper!
Johnsson taking a bit of punishment here - Harper scoring with strikes.
Harper is pausing for a moment. What's he doing? It looks like he's clearing his nose. Oh dude! He's shot a load of snot all down Johnsson's shoulder. That is not cool.
Harper trying to control the position but Johnsson is working away.
Johnsson is trying to improve his position.
Harper trying to control the position but Johnsson is working away.
Both of our modern day gladiators look out of it here - an gruelling 5 rounds of action taking it's toll on them, no doubt.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Harper wants to stand but Johnsson is controlling his arm.
Harper working the strikes but Johnsson uses the opportunity to regain half guard.
Johnsson is trying to maintain the position but Harper is very close to passing his half guard.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Johnsson keeps the fight on the outside.
Harper shoots for a double leg takedown but Johnsson sprawls well. He's pushed Harper's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Harper fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
Johnsson slips in close and lands a nice hook before moving back out of range.

Johnsson scores a takedown into full mount!
Harper is bucking up trying to escape but Johnsson cracks him with another couple of good strikes.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Harper sneaks a leg under to get to half guard.

Johnsson is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Harper sees it coming and defends easily.
Johnsson is pressing down on Harper's thigh, looking to free his foot. Harper is holding on for now.

Harper kicks off Johnsson and gets to his feet.
Harper misses with a takedown
and Johnsson counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Gunnar Johnsson has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Danny Harper.
Johnsson scores with a reasonable looking shot to the body. Harper doesn't seem bothered though.
Harper misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Harper fails with a takedown attempt from distance.

Johnsson shoots in for a takedown and gets it. Oh and he's advanced to full mount straight away.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Harper wants to get back to his feet.

Johnsson is working on an americana here. Ooh, that looks pretty nasty! Nope, Harper has managed to escape the submission attempt.
Harper is trying desperately to improve position.
Johnsson tries to control but Harper wriggling away.
Johnsson looking to ground and pound but Harper is blocking nicely.
Harper is trying desperately to improve position.
Harper wants to hold on but Johnsson pushes him away.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Harper is wriggling around trying to escape.
Johnsson raining down shots from the mount!
Johnsson is in the full mount, landing strikes.
The referee warns Harper that he has to improve his position here as he takes two more clean shots to the head.

Johnsson wants to finish this one by submission but Harper is holding onto his waist, trying to prevent any attacks from Johnsson.
Johnsson prevents Harper from getting the reversal.
Johnsson wants to control the pace but Harper is squirming around nicely.

And that's the end of the fight!
Gunnar Johnsson showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Johnsson 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 5 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Andrew Berry scores the fight 47:48
Judge James Ackerman scores the fight 47:48
Judge Sam Margolis scores the fight 46:48

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Danny Harper!
Danny Harper is the new welterweight champion!