PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Pablo Escobarre (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Brian Hardy (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Escobarre's entrance music is Xzibit- Alcoholic . A fine choice. Buckle up people - heeeeeeeeeere we go!

Escobarre
vs
Hardy

185 cm
22
182 lbs
5 - 0 - 0

195 cm
20
187 lbs
7 - 2 - 0

BJJ Brown Belt
Solid boxing
Very strong

Decent wrestler
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

Sun-Tzu
GREEN!160

Mohito Fightwear
GREEN!160

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 5 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Pablo Escobarre!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 7 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Brian Hardy!
The judges for this bout are William Gold, James Glass and Chris Edwards.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Escobarre throws an overhand right that lands on Hardy's shoulder, as Hardy tries to avoid the shot.
Hardy throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Escobarre.
Escobarre showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Hardy.
Hardy misses with a series of wild punches.
Hardy slaps away a takedown attempt from Escobarre, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Hardy throws a jab when Escobarre was well out of range.
Hardy connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.
Escobarre is looking to clinch but Hardy is avoiding it.
Hardy is loading up here, looking for a big counter of his own.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hardy avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Escobarre loads up on a big right hand but Hardy slips the punch.
Hardy looks to land a right hand but Escobarre moved out of range.
Escobarre misses with a looping left.
Escobarre scores with a shot to the body.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hardy lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as Escobarre backs up against the cage.

It looks like Pablo Escobarre has been cut.
Hardy stuffs the takedown.
Escobarre throws out a loose jab but Hardy uses good head movement to avoid it.
Escobarre waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Hardy.
Hardy throws out a counter right but Escobarre avoids it with no problem.
Hardy's coach down at LOD: Ground Zero was telling us pre-fight that they have been working on Hardy's balance. Obviously they view that as a key factor in the outcome of this fight.
Hardy throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Escobarre is looking to counter the offense by Hardy and move into the clinch.
Escobarre fails with an attempt to clinch.
Decent striking displayed by Escobarre there.
Escobarre looks to have improved his striking defense since last time we saw him fight.
Escobarre just misses with a punch to the body.
Hardy throws a looping overhand right but Escobarre ducks down to avoid it.
Escobarre tries to counter by moving into the clinch but Hardy manages to circle out of the way.
Hardy moves into range and throws a lovely three punch combination.
A punch combination from Hardy misses.
Escobarre misses with a jab to the body
and Hardy counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Escobarre throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Hardy counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Hardy throws a right hand that Escobarre ducks under and follows up with a left that Escobarre also avoids with ease.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A nice combination there by Hardy.
Hardy tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Escobarre was well out of range. Poor timing from Hardy.
Hardy swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Hardy lands a head shot.
Escobarre swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Hardy takes a swing at Escobarre's ribcage but misses.
Escobarre wants to take advantage of his opponent's missed offense by moving into the clinch.
Brian Hardy is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Escobarre looks to land a left hand but Hardy moved out of range nicely.
Escobarre waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Hardy.
Hardy misses with an uppercut.
A looping hook to the body misses from Hardy. Escobarre does a little dance to reset his feet.
Escobarre slips a jab and a cross from Hardy.
A swing and a miss from Hardy.
Escobarre cracks Hardy with a hook to the jaw. Both fighters smile at eachother and high-five before getting back down to business.
Hardy will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Escobarre thows a left - swing and a miss!
Escobarre is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Hardy throws a right hand that Escobarre ducks under and follows up with a left that Escobarre also avoids with ease.
Hardy misses the jab.
Escobarre misses with a hook. Hardy ducked under it nicely.
Escobarre's jab looks to have found its range, popping Hardy under the eye.
Escobarre misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Pablo Escobarre. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Escobarre throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Escobarre takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Hardy slips under a jab from Escobarre.
A little jabbing left from Hardy on the counter but it doesn't find it's target.
A telegraphed right hand from Escobarre misses the target.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Hardy! But no joy.
Escobarre rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Hardy counters with a three punch combo that has Escobarre backing up. Escobarre nods at Hardy to acknowledge the strikes.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hardy waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Escobarre.
Hardy throws a right hand that Escobarre ducks under and follows up with a left that Escobarre also avoids with ease.
Escobarre tries to counter with a takedown but Hardy is quick to defend against it.

Escobarre has Hardy up against the cage in a clinch.
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!

Escobarre pulls guard successfully.

Escobarre working for a triangle but Hardy defends it easily.

Escobarre is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
Hardy tries to stand but Escobarre is controlling from the bottom.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Brian Hardy dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Pablo Escobarre's cut.
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.

Left hook, right uppercut from Hardy.
Escobarre throws a hook to the side of Hardy's head but Hardy sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
Hardy lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Escobarre circles away quickly and effectively.
Escobarre tries to counter by moving into the clinch but Hardy manages to circle out of the way.
Hardy slips a jab from Escobarre.
Hardy swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Hardy leaves Escobarre with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
Escobarre keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Escobarre throws an off balance right hand
and Hardy counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.
Escobarre takes a big uppercut there. He seems a bit wobbly but no, he's OK.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Escobarre shoots in for a takedown but Hardy shows good takedown defense.
Escobarre is really head hunting here, hardly looking to strike to the body at all.
Escobarre fakes low and throws an overhand right that catches Hardy on the side of the head.
Hardy has been the more effective fighter overall so far.

Escobarre moves into the clinch successfully.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Escobarre.
Hardy blocks a couple of punches on the inside.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Hardy pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Escobarre has his head slapped from side to side by a 3 punch combination. That must have hurt him.
Escobarre misses with a right hand

and Hardy counters with a crisp one two that drops Escobarre! Hardy thinks about following him to the mat for a moment but instead steps back and waves Escobarre to his feet! Escobarre is in big trouble!

Escobarre is rocked!
Hardy throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Escobarre.
Oh Escobarre is still all over the place! His legs are completely gone! Will he be able to recover?!!
Hardy bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Hardy throws a body shot but no joy.
Hardy misses with a hook. Escobarre ducked under it nicely.
Escobarre lunges at Hardy with a hook that half lands and is half blocked by Hardy's hand.
Hardy swings for the body but Escobarre moves out of range.
Escobarre seems to have got his legs back now.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Hardy ducks under a wild hook from Escobarre.
Brian Hardy seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Escobarre misses with a hook.
Escobarre missing with a left hand there. Hardy was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Escobarre throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
A big left from Escobarre misses.
Hardy blocks a jab.
A nice combination there by Hardy.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Escobarre misses with a hook. Hardy ducked under it nicely.
A swing and a miss from Hardy.
Hardy throws a hook to the side of Escobarre's head but Escobarre sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
Escobarre tries to counter by clinching up but Hardy breaks away and moves out of range.
Hardy is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Escobarre.
Escobarre half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Hardy misses with a hook. Escobarre ducked under it nicely.
Escobarre is looking to counter the offense by Hardy and move into the clinch.
Escobarre misses with a looping right.
Hardy throws a combination that misses

and Escobarre counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Escobarre trying to pass the guard but Hardy defending well.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Hardy keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Hardy can do anything to dispel that myth.
Hardy wants to get back to his feet.
Escobarre throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Escobarre seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Hardy does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Hardy is looking to escape.
Escobarre is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Escobarre is looking to take a break and control but Hardy is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Escobarre looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.
Hardy is trying to stand.
Escobarre passes to full mount!
Escobarre looking to control but Hardy is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
Hardy is looking to get back to his feet - it's going to be hard from this position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Escobarre looking for an armbar but decides to keep the dominant position instead.
Escobarre misses with a series of strikes from mount. He'll no doubt be working on his ground and pound when he gets back to the gym.
Hardy is trying to stand.
Escobarre throwing sloppy strikes here. Perhaps if he tightened up his striking from such a dominant position, he'd be able to finish easier.
Escobarre looking to ground and pound but Hardy is blocking nicely.
Hardy is squirming around, avoiding Escobarre's attempts to control the action.
Hardy wriggling around on the bottom manages to avoid the strikes thrown by Escobarre.
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 Pablo Escobarre will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Pablo Escobarre's cut.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Hardy throws a shot to the body.
A left lands for Escobarre.
A big left from Hardy misses.
Escobarre throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Hardy cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Hardy missing with a left hand there. Escobarre was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Hardy misses with a series of wild punches.
Escobarre tests Hardy's chin there with a solid looking shot.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hardy connects with a body shot that sends Escobarre's belly button to the back.
Escobarre keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Hardy.
Escobarre drops down looking for a counter takedown but Hardy sprawls and moves away.
Hardy cracks Escobarre with a right hand to the side of the head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Escobarre takes a shot right to the bread basket.
Hardy works over Escobarre's head and body with a nice combination.
Escobarre sizes up Hardy with a pawing jab and scores with a straight right down the middle.
Escobarre displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Hardy throws out the jab.
A telegraphed right hand from Hardy misses the target.
Escobarre swings widly with a right hand
and Hardy connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Hardy looks to throw the jab but Escobarre is out of range.
Escobarre throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Hardy counters with a nice jab to the body that keeps Escobarre thinking.
Hardy moves out of range as Escobarre strikes.
Hardy appears to be waiting to throw a counter punch to the body.
Escobarre throws a right hand that misses
and Hardy cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Escobarre looks to land a left hand but Hardy moved out of range nicely.
Hardy swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
Escobarre moves out of range of the strikes.
Good standup being displayed there by Hardy as he connects with a hook.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Escobarre gets cracked there but stands up to it.
Hardy throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Escobarre sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Hardy takes one on the button.
Escobarre connects with a slap. Keep your fist closed son.
Escobarre just misses with a punch to the body.
Hardy slips a straight right by Escobarre.
Hardy connects with a slap. Keep your fist closed son.
Hardy ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Hardy throws a poor cross that misses

and Escobarre moves into the clinch.

Hardy escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Escobarre shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Hardy looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Brian Hardy is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Escobarre waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Hardy.
Hardy takes a punch to the jaw and another one to the bread basket.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hardy misses with a double jab.

Escobarre fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Hardy, pushing him back against the cage.
Escobarre misses with some punches.

Hardy has Escobarre pressed up against the cage. He's trying to work for a single leg takedown. Hardy pulls back from the cage and twists to the side, sending Escobarre tumbling to the mat - Hardy dives into Escobarre's guard.
Escobarre has a closed guard, preventing Hardy from standing up.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Escobarre not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Escobarre bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Hardy's guard.

Hardy utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Escobarre passes Hardy's left leg - he's now in half guard.
Escobarre 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.
Hardy is staying active underneath Escobarre, who seems content to just control the action from this position.

Escobarre seems to be working for a kimura but Hardy defends the submission attempt.
Hardy wants to get back to his feet.

Escobarre is looking for a kimura here.
Hardy blocking the ground and pound attempt from Escobarre.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Brian Hardy really dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Pablo Escobarre's cut.
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.

Escobarre doesn't react quick enough there as he takes a shot to the body.
Escobarre misses with a takedown attempt
and Hardy counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
The fighters circling - Escobarre throws out the jab but it was never going to land.

Escobarre has managed to clinch.

Hardy escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Escobarre avoids the body shot from Hardy.
Hardy stuffs the takedown attempt from Escobarre. Escobarre gets slowly back to his feet.
Hardy catches Escobarre with a nice straight right. He seems pissed - ooooh, it's on now! On like donkey kong!
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hardy lands a jab to the nose.
Escobarre misses with a hook. Hardy ducked under it nicely.
Nice cross by Hardy.
Escobarre throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hardy throws a body shot but no joy.
Escobarre appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Hardy throws a big shot that misses.
Escobarre slips a straight right by Hardy.
Hardy throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Escobarre sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Escobarre tries to counter by moving into the clinch but Hardy manages to circle out of the way.
Escobarre ducks under a wild hook from Hardy.
Some wild striking there from Hardy.
Escobarre rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
letting Hardy counter with a right hand.
Hardy slips under a jab from Escobarre.
Hardy avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
The fight stays on the outside here - Escobarre looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Escobarre tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Hardy manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The fighters circling - Hardy throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Hardy swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Hardy misses with an uppercut.
Escobarre doesn't manage to clinch there - Hardy circles away.
The fight stays on the outside here - Escobarre looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Escobarre throws an off balance right hand
and Hardy counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Escobarre misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Pablo Escobarre. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Hardy misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
A swing and a miss from Escobarre.
Hardy misses with the combination.
Escobarre attempts a counter takedown but Hardy avoids it well and moves away.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Escobarre dodges the punch combination from Hardy.
Escobarre thows a left - swing and a miss!
Hardy looked like he wanted to counter with a punch but didn't throw it.
Escobarre thuds his right hand into Hardy's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.
Escobarre wants to clinch.
Hardy throws a jab when Escobarre was well out of range.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Escobarre is defended easily by Hardy.
A combination from Hardy does no damage.
Escobarre is looking to counter the offense by Hardy and move into the clinch.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Escobarre lands a right hook to the body.
Hardy tries to bum rush Escobarre with a series of wild strikes but Escobarre uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Escobarre pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Escobarre takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Hardy avoids the body shot from Escobarre.
Escobarre throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Hardy sees it coming and avoids it easily.
A little jabbing left from Hardy on the counter but it doesn't find it's target.
Escobarre is looking to clinch but Hardy is avoiding it.
Hardy swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
Hardy changes levels and scores with a jab to the body.
Hardy pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Hardy listening to his corner there, landing a nice uppercut.
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!
Hardy fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Escobarre avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Brian Hardy dominated that fourth round.
The cut man is working on Pablo Escobarre's cut.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

Escobarre looks to throw the jab but Hardy is out of range.
Hardy throws a counter combo.
Hardy swinging wildly here.
Escobarre looks like he's developed a pretty tasty lump over his left eye. He'll need to avoid taking much more damage to that.
Hardy misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Escobarre doesn't succeed with the takedown
and Hardy counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.

Escobarre closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.

Hardy jumps guard.
Hardy wants to get back to his feet but Escobarre is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Escobarre trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Escobarre wants to control from the top but Hardy keeps moving.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hardy wants to stand but Escobarre is controlling the position.

Hardy manages to escape and get back to his feet.
Escobarre misses the jab.
Escobarre shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Escobarre tries to clinch there but Hardy circles away.
Nice shot by Hardy.
Escobarre tries to clinch there but Hardy circles away.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Hardy! But no joy.
Hardy throws a nice looking combination but Escobarre bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Escobarre tries for a takedown but Hardy circles away easily
enabling Hardy to counter with a crisp jab.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Pablo Escobarre. That's going to take a lot out of him.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Escobarre throws out a loose jab but Hardy uses good head movement to avoid it.
Hardy takes a swing at Escobarre's ribcage but misses.
Hardy ducks under a wild hook from Escobarre.
Escobarre is looking to clinch.
Hardy avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Hardy scores with a punch to the gut of his opponent.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Escobarre is defended easily by Hardy.
Both of our modern day gladiators look out of it here - a gruelling 5 rounds of action taking it's toll on them, no doubt.
Escobarre misses with a straight right.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Escobarre misses with an uppercut
and Hardy counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.
Hardy thows a left - swing and a miss!
As Hardy tries to get set, Escobarre tries to push him back and clinch up but Hardy manages to avoid the attempt.
Pablo Escobarre has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hardy throws a body punch but Escobarre moves out of range.

Escobarre gets in close and instigates a clinch.
Escobarre is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Hardy gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.

Hardy pulls guard.
Escobarre tries to free his leg and advance position but Hardy is retaining full guard.
Hardy is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Escobarre wants to control from the top but Hardy keeps moving.
Hardy wants to get back to his feet but Escobarre is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Hardy keeping full guard, as Escobarre tries to pass.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Escobarre throws an elbow that misses. Hardy uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Escobarre's guard. Nice move by Hardy!

Hardy really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Escobarre. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Hardy tries to stand but Escobarre is controlling from the bottom.
Escobarre has a butterfly guard looking to sweep but Hardy has passed into side control.

Hardy stands up and we're back to a striking position.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Hardy throws a hook but Escobarre avoids it easily.
Escobarre attempts a counter takedown but Hardy avoids it well and moves away.
Hardy scores with a body shot.
Brian Hardy is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
A big right from Escobarre misses.

And that's the end of the fight!
Brian Hardy comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Hardy has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 William Gold scores the fight 45:50
Judge James Glass scores the fight 46:50
Judge Chris Edwards scores the fight 46:49

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