PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Leopoldo Griffith (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Santiago Sanchez (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Sanchez has a niggling injury. He would have liked to come in 100% fit but that's not always possible. Both fighters really staring each other down here, as Santiago Sanchez enters the cage!

Griffith
vs
Sanchez

199 cm
18
278 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

180 cm
19
250 lbs
0 - 1 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter fighter
Cuts easily

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Determined

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of London, Leopoldo Griffith!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of London, Santiago Sanchez!
The judges for this bout are Steven Brown, Paul Tew and James Glass.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Sanchez fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Sanchez shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Griffith as he avoids it easily.
Sanchez tries to clinch but Griffith is having none of it.
Griffith tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Sanchez manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.

Griffith moves into range and clinches up with Sanchez.
Sanchez is trying to pull guard but Griffith has him pressed against the cage.
Leopoldo Griffith has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Santiago Sanchez.
Sanchez looks winded!
Griffith has a couple of punches blocked by Sanchez.
Griffith is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Sanchez keeps control of Griffith as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Griffith trying to stall but Sanchez improves his position.
Sanchez fails to pull the fight into his guard.
Griffith throws an elbow that misses.
Griffith tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Griffith leaning his opponent against the cage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Griffith misses with a short punch on the inside.
Griffith is trying to break the clinch but Sanchez has him pressed against the cage.
Griffith wants to take the fight to the mat but Sanchez manages to get underhooks and keep the fight in the clinch.
Griffith tries to break free but Sanchez pushes him back against the cage.

Sanchez successfully pulls guard.
Griffith stays in close to Sanchez's body and controls the position.

Griffith gets to his feet. Sanchez looking to butt scoot but the ref puts an end to that. On your feet son!
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Griffith is defended easily by Sanchez.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Griffith shoots in and gets a takedown into Sanchez's guard.
Griffith controls from within his opponent's guard.
Griffith seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Sanchez for as long as he can get away with.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Griffith has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
Sanchez looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Griffith is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.
Griffith tries to stand but Sanchez is controlling from the bottom.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.

Griffith looks for a takedown. He's got it. We're now in half guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Griffith stands up and beckons Sanchez to join him on the feet.
Sanchez fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Griffith avoids it really well and circles away.

Griffith closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Griffith tries a body shot but Sanchez blocks it.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Leopoldo Griffith dominated that round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Griffith moves out of range of the strikes.
Griffith is looking for a counter combo.
Sanchez tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Griffith paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Sanchez fails with the takedown

and Griffith counters into the clinch. Nicely done.
A left hand lands to the body for Griffith.
Griffith misses with a knee strike.
Griffith is trying to push Sanchez away but Sanchez has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Sanchez dodges an elbow strike from Griffith.
Griffith misses with an elbow strike.
Griffith working aggressively here.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Griffith wants to take the fight to the mat but Sanchez manages to get underhooks and keep the fight in the clinch.
The fighters are starting to get sweaty, which will make takedowns a bit more tricky.
Sanchez wants a takedown but no success here.
Sanchez is breathing heavily.
Griffith is trying to break free.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Sanchez.
Sanchez jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Griffith walks away with a smile on his face. Sanchez gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
Leopoldo Griffith has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Santiago Sanchez.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Griffith decides to change it up a bit and drives through with a nice takedown into half guard.
Griffith with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Griffith is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Griffith is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.
Griffith drops an elbow to the side of Sanchez's head.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Griffith in particular looking to stall.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Griffith misses with a takedown attempt - Sanchez sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Griffith displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Sanchez.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Griffith clinches.
Sanchez blocks a punch to the side of the head.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Griffith.
Sanchez has Griffith pressed against the cage, preventing Griffith from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Sanchez should think about turning a few of those tyres round his middle into muscle if he wants people to take him seriously as an athlete.
Griffith swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Sanchez prevents Griffith from breaking the clinch.
Sanchez keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Griffith's efforts to push away.

Griffith pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Griffith looks for a takedown but Sanchez sprawls well.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A lazy body kick from Sanchez
and Griffith counters with a one-two to the body.

Griffith feints and then dives in with a takedown. That was a long way out but the feint bought him enough time to close the distance and complete the takedown. Now we'll play guard for a bit and see who can get the better of that position.
Sanchez can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Griffith controls the pace.

Griffith got a little sloppy there for a moment and Sanchez has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Griffith has managed to get both his arms back between Sanchez's legs - danger averted.
Griffith controlling from the top position.
We're hearing some news coming in from back stage. It's official - Sanchez has eaten all the pies!
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Griffith continues to stall.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Leopoldo Griffith dominated that second round.
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!

Griffith tries to close the distance and clinch but Sanchez swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Sanchez wants to counter with a clinch but Griffith pushes him away.
Griffith tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Sanchez defends well and Griffith ends up having to push Sanchez into the cage where they will battle it out in the clinch.
Griffith fails to land the takedown.
Sanchez is trying to counter with his kicks.
Sanchez tries a head kick but it misses.
Griffith seem to be loading up, looking for a big counter.
Leopoldo Griffith is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Griffith tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Sanchez defends well and Griffith ends up having to push Sanchez into the cage where they will battle it out in the clinch.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Leopoldo Griffith. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Sanchez misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Griffith.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Griffith moves in looking to clinch but Sanchez pushes him off.
Sanchez shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Griffith sprawls well. Griffith wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Sanchez gets slowly back to his feet.
Sanchez takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Griffith instigates a clinch.
Griffith gets double underhooks to prevent a takedown attempt from Sanchez.
Griffith lands with a light punch inside.
Leopoldo Griffith has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Griffith has Sanchez pressed against the cage, preventing Sanchez from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Griffith lands a body shot in the clinch.
Griffith fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Sanchez blocks an elbow strike from Griffith.
Sanchez blocks an uppercut.
Griffith tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Griffith breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.

Griffith has closed the distance and engaged Sanchez in a clinch.
With the two fighters working up against the cage, Griffith just misses with a elbow thrown towards Sanchez's brow.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Griffith.

Griffith escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Sanchez dives in and grabs Griffith's left leg, looking for a takedown. Griffith pushes down on Sanchez's head and hops out.
Griffith throws a leg kick but Sanchez sees it coming and checks it nicely.

Griffith decides to change it up a bit and drives through with a nice takedown into half guard.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Griffith is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Griffith's ground tactics aren't going to win him many fans. Let's hope he's got fireworks for us if he gets back to his feet because he's not doing much on the ground.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sanchez wants to improve his position but Griffith is controlling well.
Griffith trying to control the pace.
The referee looks like he's ready to step in and stand the fighters back up.

That's four 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.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.

Griffith closes the distance and looks for a trip takedown... aaaand he's got it - Griffith lands in his opponent's guard.
Griffith will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Sanchez is looking to sweep but instead, Griffith has passed into half guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
Leopoldo Griffith showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Griffith has outscored his opponent in every aspect of the fight today. Only a scarily incompetent judge or two will keep him from a well deserved win... 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 Steven Brown scores the fight 30:26
Judge Paul Tew scores the fight 30:27
Judge James Glass scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Leopoldo Griffith!