PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Krabis Kropelis (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Carlos Rodriguez (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Man, I cannot wait for this one!

Kropelis
vs
Rodriguez

174 cm
18
145 lbs
3 - 1 - 0

175 cm
18
157 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Counter fighter
Cuts easily

BJJ Brown Belt
Brawler
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 3 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Krabis Kropelis!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Carlos Rodriguez !
The judges for this bout are Leandro Rodrigues, Daniel Cesar and Alexandre Firmino.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Jab, cross, leg kick. Nice combination by Rodriguez !

It looks like Krabis Kropelis has been cut.
Kropelis on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Rodriguez . Rodriguez obviously looking to wear him down.
Rodriguez throws a lazy head kick

and Kropelis holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.

Kropelis successfully pulls guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Rodriguez tries to free his leg and advance position but Kropelis is retaining full guard.
Rodriguez wants to control from the top but Kropelis keeps moving.
Rodriguez throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Kropelis works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Kropelis looking to control the pace of the fight rather than finish it.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Rodriguez pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Kropelis is keeping the position for now.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kropelis wants to sweep here but Rodriguez controlling him for the moment.
Kropelis is pulling down on Rodriguez 's head. It's preventing any offense from Rodriguez , at least for the moment.

That's one minute gone in the round.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Rodriguez shoots in looking for a takedown. Kropelis tries to sprawl out of it but Rodriguez keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Kropelis manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Rodriguez throws a low kick but Kropelis avoids it.

Kropelis shoots in looking for a single leg takedown. Rodriguez is trying to defend but Kropelis finishes it well and ends up in half guard. Let's see if he can advance position further.
Kropelis is thwarting Rodriguez 's attempts to control the position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kropelis prevents Rodriguez from improving his position.

Rodriguez looking to force a kimura from the bottom here. He's concentrating on that move too much though and Kropelis pushes past his half guard into mount!
Rodriguez swinging wildly from the bottom but he's not landing.
Kropelis content just to control the position here.
Kropelis looks to be in better condition than last time we saw him fight. Obviously he's been working hard on his cardio.
Rodriguez has given up his back here.
Kropelis controls the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kropelis not allowing Rodriguez to control his hands.
Good control from Kropelis.
Rodriguez wants to control his opponent's hands but Kropelis gets his hands free.
Good control from Kropelis.
Rodriguez wants to escape the position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
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.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Krabis Kropelis will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Krabis Kropelis's cut.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Rodriguez gets caught flat footed, as Kropelis shoots in with a quick takedown into guard.
Kropelis stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Rodriguez swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Rodriguez controls Kropelis momentarily but Kropelis frees himself.

Rodriguez working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Kropelis doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Kropelis manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kropelis content to stall in guard here.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Rodriguez working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Kropelis doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Kropelis manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Kropelis has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.

Rodriguez had isolated an arm as going for a kimura. Kropelis defends it easily.
Kropelis is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Rodriguez trying to keep a closed guard but Kropelis is proving a slippery customer.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Kropelis not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
The referee must be thinking about standing these guys back up.
Rodriguez working a defensive guard here.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Sloppy strikes from Rodriguez . Those never looked like landing.

Kropelis 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.
Kropelis advances position into side control!
Kropelis working away.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
The referee tells the fighters to keep busy.
Kropelis is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Rodriguez can do to turn this around?
Rodriguez can't do much from the bottom here.
Kropelis slows the pace down.
Rodriguez wants to control but Kropelis postures up.

That's four 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.
Kropelis is moving around in side control but his primary objective seems to be to maintain the position.
You can see the frustration on Rodriguez 's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.

Kropelis fakes a strike and closes the distance, dragging Rodriguez to the ground. Kropelis is now in Rodriguez 's guard.

Kropelis avoids a guillotine attempt easily.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Kropelis sneaks a leg through and gets to half guard. That was like a knife through butter how easily he passed Rodriguez 's guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Krabis Kropelis dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Krabis Kropelis's cut.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action. So, we enter the final round. Let's see if either fighter can bring us a finish, or whether we're going to the judges scorecards.

Rodriguez changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Kropelis tries to avoid it but Rodriguez manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Kropelis to the ground. Kropelis escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
As Rodriguez backs away, Kropelis returns fire with a leg kick that just misses.
Rodriguez misses with a telegraphed body shot

and Kropelis counters by moving into the clinch.

Kropelis has hold of one of Rodriguez 's legs. Rodriguez is fighting the takedown attempt but Kropelis gets the trip and lands the takedown into guard.

Rodriguez has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but Kropelis can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.
Rodriguez is trying to keep Kropelis in close.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kropelis slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Rodriguez looking for submissions off his back, moving his hips, looking for an opening.
Rodriguez 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.
Kropelis slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the 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.

Kropelis shoots in from a long way out. He's driving through with the takedown attempt and he eventually gets it, landing in Rodriguez 's guard.

Kropelis is sitting in close to Rodriguez 's body. Rodriguez has gone for a guillotine from the bottom. Oh damn, that looks pretty tight! Kropelis is panicking - it looks like this one could be all over! Yes, Kropelis is tapping! That was a very nice submission by Rodriguez .

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2:31 of round 3, we have a winner by way of Submission (Guillotine). Carlos Rodriguez !