PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Shinsuke Mitsurugi (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Harrison Yates (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Mitsurugi comes to the cage accompanied by The Rising Sun. Harrison Yates has the eye of the tiger tonight.

Mitsurugi
vs
Yates

182 cm
31
186 lbs
11 - 2 - 0

187 cm
33
199 lbs
22 - 8 - 1

Good wrestling
World class MT
Insanely flexible

Excellent grappler
World class MT
Good gas tank

Aspire Clothing
Aspire Nutrition

Aspire Clothing
House of Valor

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 11 - 2 - 0, fighting out of London, Shinsuke Mitsurugi!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 22 - 8 - 1, fighting out of New York, Harrison Yates!
The judges for this bout are Paul Tew, William Gold and Phil Schofield.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Yates scores with a straight right hand, right through his opponent's guard.
Yates looks to land a right hand but Mitsurugi moved out of range.
Yates throws a right hand that Mitsurugi ducks under and follows up with a left that Mitsurugi also avoids with ease.
Mitsurugi takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Yates throws a head kick that misses
enabling Mitsurugi to counter with a crisp jab.
Yates moves into range and connects with a jab.
Harrison Yates seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Mitsurugi misses with a leg kick.
A slapping leg kick lands for Yates.
Mitsurugi avoids the head kick by Yates.
Mitsurugi throws a body punch but Yates moves out of range.
Mitsurugi lands a powerful looking uppercut that connected with his opponent's jaw.
Yates misses with a hook.
Yates falls off balance throwing a combination
and Mitsurugi counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
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!
A head kick misses from Yates.
We've been informed that Yates 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.
Yates misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Mitsurugi defending well as Yates loads up on a big left hand.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Yates fails in his attempt to clinch.
Sloppy strikes from Yates. Those never looked like landing.
Yates swinging wildly here.
It looked like Mitsurugi was trying to counter with a body shot coming off that last attack from Yates.

Mitsurugi closes the distance and clinches.
Mitsurugi goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Yates lands a nice looking hook to the body, against the cage.
Mitsurugi blocking some punches.
Yates creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Mitsurugi's defenses.
Mitsurugi working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
A nice right hand lands inside from Mitsurugi.
Mitsurugi misses with a shot to the kidneys.
A head punch on the inside from Yates fails to land.
Yates crunches a lovely knee into Mitsurugi's ribcage.
Yates fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Yates misses with a hook to the ribs.
Mitsurugi tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
A head punch on the inside from Yates fails to land.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Mitsurugi misses with the head strike.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Mitsurugi misses with some punches.
A shot in the inside from Yates.
Yates lands a knee to the head.

It looks like Shinsuke Mitsurugi has been cut.
Mitsurugi lands with a light punch inside.
Mitsurugi blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Yates misses with the head strike.
Mitsurugi lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Mitsurugi's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Mitsurugi misses with a punch to the body.
Yates has a couple of punches blocked by Mitsurugi.
Yates misses with a knee to the head.
Yates misses with a shot to the kidneys.

Mitsurugi breaks from the clinch.
The fighters circling - Yates throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Mitsurugi displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Yates throws out the jab.
Mitsurugi looks to throw the jab but Yates is out of range.
Mitsurugi misses with a low kick.
Yates appeared to try and counter that last move with a leg kick.
Yates throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Yates misses with an attempted mid kick.
Yates misses with a lunging right hand
and Mitsurugi counters with a straight punch to the midsection.
Mitsurugi misses with a lunging right hand
and Yates cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.

Yates closes the distance and pushes Mitsurugi back into the cage.
Mitsurugi misses with the head strike.
Mitsurugi lands a right hand.
Mitsurugi cracks Yates with a nice body shot.
Mitsurugi makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
Mitsurugi throws a head punch that misses.
Yates throws a head punch that misses.
Mitsurugi working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Yates tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Mitsurugi tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Mitsurugi digs a right hand into Yates's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Yates's gas tank.
Mitsurugi working some nice short punches in the 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!
A head punch on the inside from Mitsurugi fails to land.
Mitsurugi lands with a short shot to the head.
Yates scores a nice knee to the body.
Mitsurugi misses with a hook from the clinch.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Yates tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Mitsurugi blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Mitsurugi throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Yates looks winded!
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Mitsurugi creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Mitsurugi lands with a light punch inside.
Yates swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Mitsurugi lands a right hand.
Yates's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Yates throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.

Mitsurugi breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Yates tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Mitsurugi blocks a low kick nicely.
Mitsurugi misses with an uppercut.
Mitsurugi throws a leg kick which misses Yates's front leg but catches the back leg as Yates tries to avoid it.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Mitsurugi throws a low kick but it's checked well by Yates.
Nice defenses there by Yates.
Yates throws a body punch but Mitsurugi moves out of range.
It looked like Mitsurugi wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
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 Shinsuke Mitsurugi will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Shinsuke Mitsurugi'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.

Yates throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Yates tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Mitsurugi fakes a jab and throws a low kick but Yates checks it well.
Yates throws a head kick that misses.
Mitsurugi works his jab well there, keeping his opponent at a distance.
Yates throws a couple of head shots and lands with the final one - a decent hook, which struck Mitsurugi on the side of the head.
Mitsurugi takes a head kick and keeps coming.
Mitsurugi is looking to clinch.
Yates scores with a head kick. Mitsurugi tried to block it but didn't get his arm up in time.
Mitsurugi scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Yates slips under a jab from Mitsurugi.
Yates keeps Mitsurugi at a distance using the push kick.
Mitsurugi moves away from the strike by Yates.
Mitsurugi dodges the punch combination from Yates.
Mitsurugi is looking to counter with head kicks.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Mitsurugi throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Yates counters with a straight right hand.
Good shot there by Mitsurugi.
Mitsurugi uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Yates.
Mitsurugi feinted there with a counter leg kick.
Mitsurugi takes an uppercut right on the jaw but it doesn't phase him.
Mitsurugi tried to score with a low kick but Yates checks it.
Mitsurugi scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
Yates lands an overhand right.
Yates tries a low kick but Mitsurugi avoids it.
Yates takes a step towards his opponent and connects with a left hand, before circling away.
Yates tests Mitsurugi's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Yates lands with a slapping head kick.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Mitsurugi misses with a wild body shot.
The fighters are starting to get sweaty, which will make takedowns a bit more tricky.
Mitsurugi with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Yates to score with a decent uppercut.
Mitsurugi tries a head kick but it misses.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Mitsurugi misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Yates.
Mitsurugi lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.
Yates moves away from the strike by Mitsurugi.
Yates looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Yates lands with a right hand.
A good leg kick by Mitsurugi.
Mitsurugi takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Yates cracks Mitsurugi with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.
Yates moves into range and throws a combination. A nice jab followed by a hook to the body.
Mitsurugi circles away from the clinch attempt.
Yates takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
Yates moves out of range of the strikes.
Jab from Yates.
Mitsurugi with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Yates to score with a decent uppercut.
Yates throws a body punch but Mitsurugi moves out of range.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Mitsurugi ducks down and throws a hook to the body.
Yates throws an overhand right that lands on Mitsurugi's shoulder, as Mitsurugi tries to avoid the shot.
Mitsurugi lands with a straight right. Yates didn't see that one coming.
Yates throws a body punch but Mitsurugi moves out of range.
Mitsurugi is looking to counter punch.
Mitsurugi uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Yates.
Yates moves his head to the side to avoid a jab but walks straight into a cross.
Yates lunges at Mitsurugi with a hook that half lands and is half blocked by Mitsurugi's hand.
Mitsurugi misses with a straight left.
Yates tries to score with a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Yates lands a body shot.
Yates throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Yates misses with a body shot.
Mitsurugi ducks right into an uppercut from Yates.
Yates throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Mitsurugi tried to counter with a leg kick but Yates avoided it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Mitsurugi fakes with the hands and throws a leg kick but Yates is out of range.
Mitsurugi clobbers Yates with an overhand right that has the crowd gasping. That made a horrendous noise.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Some bone on bone action there as Yates checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Yates goes to the watering hole and comes back with a big thumbs up from the judges as he scores a three punch combo.
A swing and a miss from Yates.
Yates tries a head kick but it misses.
Yates on the wrong end of an overhand right that came out of nowhere.

Yates is rocked!
Mitsurugi on the wrong end of an overhand right that came out of nowhere.
Mitsurugi throws a wild body kick that Yates sees coming a mile off.
Yates just misses with a punch to the body.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Yates looking to land some kicks to the body here.
Mitsurugi tries a low kick but Yates avoids it.
Yates is clearly looking to counter with head kicks.
A big right from Mitsurugi misses.
Mitsurugi moves out of the way of the counter high kick fromYates.
Yates misses with an attempted mid kick.
An attempted straight right counter from Mitsurugi misses the target.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Harrison Yates showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Shinsuke Mitsurugi'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. And we move into the final round!

Nice uppercut there from Yates.
Mitsurugi changes levels and scores with a jab to the body.
Yates throws a sloppy head kick and Mitsurugi moves out of range easily.
Mitsurugi appeared to be looking to counter that last move with a leg kick.
Harrison Yates seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Yates keeps his opponent at a distance with a nice jab.
Yates throws a sloppy head kick and Mitsurugi moves out of range easily.
Yates tries to check a leg kick but that clearly hurt him.
Yates throws a shot from downtown. Mitsurugi moves away and avoids it.
Mitsurugi rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Yates makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Mitsurugi uses good footwork to get in and out and land a nice right hand before Yates has time to react.
Mitsurugi is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Yates.
Yates throws a solid leg kick but Mitsurugi takes the impact on his shin and smiles at Yates.
Mitsurugi lands a pitter patter jab to the forehead of his opponent.
Yates is still on wobbly legs! Can Mitsurugi finish him?
Mitsurugi moves out of range of the leg kick from Yates.
Mitsurugi tries to clinch but Yates is having none of it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Mitsurugi cracks Yates with a big right hand that sees him stumbling back against the cage! Yates falls to his knees and Mitsurugi doesn't need a second invitatation - he rushes in and fires off several unanswered shots that force the referee to stop the fight! This one is all over!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 1:06 of round 3, we have a winner by way of TKO (Strikes). Shinsuke Mitsurugi!
Shinsuke Mitsurugi was full of energy after the big win and talked about how he thinks he can do big things in this sport. The crowd were appreciative of his determination to succeed.