PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Dan Sergeant (ranked 22172 p4p, 597 weight class) and Pietro De Negri (ranked 6605 p4p, 512 weight class). I can't wait for this one - let's get the fighter introductions out of the way and get this one started!

Sergeant
vs
De Negri

175 cm
29
139 lbs
8 - 8 - 0

169 cm
27
150 lbs
3 - 1 - 0

Decent wrestler
Brawler
Good chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Determined

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 8 - 8 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Dan Sergeant!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Pietro De Negri!
The judges for this bout are Paulo Santos, Daniel Cesar and Leandro Rodrigues.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
De Negri is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Sergeant drops down looking for a counter takedown but De Negri sprawls and moves away.
De Negri looks frustrated there after his takedown attempt is stuffed easily.
Sergeant just misses with a punch to the body.
De Negri throws a nice looking combination but Sergeant bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Sergeant drops down looking for a counter takedown but De Negri sprawls and moves away.
De Negri is pinned up against the cage taking some big shots here. The referee is looking closely deciding whether he should stop the fight.

De Negri gets caught on his heels momentarily as he allows Sergeant to score an easy takedown into full guard.

De Negri looking for submissions from the bottom but instead Sergeant passes into side control.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Sergeant tries to cartwheel into mount but he doesn't manage it.
Sergeant is moving around in side control but his primary objective seems to be to maintain the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
De Negri is looking for a sweep.
Sergeant scores with punches from side control.
You can see the frustration on De Negri's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
A lull in the action here.

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.
De Negri tries to buck Sergeant off but Sergeant is having none of it.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
De Negri manages to get one leg in to regain half guard.

Sergeant is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Sergeant is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
Sergeant passes to side control.
De Negri struggling a bit here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
De Negri is positioning himself to get back to half guard.
Sergeant staying calm.
De Negri prevents Sergeant from improving position.
De Negri gets one leg under and gets the fight to half guard.
Sergeant working De Negri over with strikes.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.
Sergeant prevents De Negri from improving his position.
Sergeant is taking a breather. De Negri says something to him but it's hard to make out. Perhaps he's telling him to get on with it and actually do something.
De Negri is trying to stand up here but Sergeant is controlling him well.
De Negri missing with punches from the bottom.
De Negri tries to kick Sergeant off but Sergeant keeps his base steady and stays in half guard.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
De Negri shoots in for a takedown but Sergeant shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
De Negri leaves Sergeant with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
De Negri swings for the body but Sergeant moves out of range.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Dan Sergeant dominated that round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

De Negri tries a head kick but it misses.
Dan Sergeant seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
De Negri fails with a takedown attempt from distance.

Sergeant scores with a takedown into De Negri's guard.
De Negri wants to sweep but no luck.
Sergeant stays in close to De Negri's body and controls the position.
De Negri managing to control the position.
Sergeant 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.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

De Negri is throwing his legs up, looking for submissions. Sergeant is aware though and is defending well.
De Negri keeping moving, preventing Sergeant from controlling successfully.

That's one minute gone in the round.
De Negri not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
The referee is asking the fighters to pick up the pace.
Sergeant with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
De Negri trying to keep a closed guard but Sergeant is proving a slippery customer.
Sergeant content to stall in guard here.
Sergeant trying to control the position from guard on top but De Negri is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

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

Sergeant shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.

De Negri looking for submissions from an awkward position here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
De Negri trying to keep hold of his opponent's head but Sergeant manages to pass to mount!
Sergeant content just to control the position here.
De Negri 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.
De Negri wants to control but Sergeant is keeping busy and won't allow it.
De Negri wants to stand back up but Sergeant manages to pass into side control.
Sergeant happy to just control the position for now.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
De Negri is sneaking out the side here. He's bucked Sergeant off and has taken his back!
Sergeant is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that De Negri can do to turn this around?
Sergeant is trying to break free.
Sergeant wants to control his opponent's hands but De Negri gets his hands free.
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.
De Negri throwing lazy shots from the back mount that aren't doing any damage.
De Negri doesn't have the hooks in and Sergeant manages to turn into his guard.
Sergeant is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
De Negri wants to sweep here but Sergeant controlling him for the moment.
Sergeant wants to control from the top but De Negri keeps moving.
Sergeant is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Sergeant trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
De Negri throws some sloppy strikes off his back.
De Negri looking to hit a scissor sweep but Sergeant is one step ahead there.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Dan Sergeant dominated that second round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! This is the final round!

De Negri darts in trying to clinch

and Sergeant counters with a shoot takedown. De Negri fights it but they end up in guard.
De Negri not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
De Negri wants to sweep here but Sergeant controlling him for the moment.
De Negri has control of Sergeant's left arm, preventing Sergeant from doing any damage.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Sergeant sitting in guard here, content to control.
Sergeant trying to control the position from guard on top but De Negri is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

That's one minute gone in the round.
The referee wants the fighters to be more active or he's going to reset them on the feet.
Sergeant not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.

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

Sergeant throws the overhand right but ducks down into a quick takedown attempt. De Negri was covering up waiting for the punch and Sergeant finishes the takedown easily into guard.
Sergeant stopping the sweep attempt from De Negri.
Dan Sergeant overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
De Negri lands a beautiful sweep and he's now moved into his opponent's guard.

Sergeant wants to control here, rather than go for any submissions from the bottom. At least for now.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
De Negri wants to control from the top but Sergeant keeps moving.
Sergeant is pulling down on De Negri's head. It's preventing any offense from De Negri, at least for the moment.

Sergeant is working actively off his back, looking to secure an arm or perhaps work for a triangle.
De Negri would like to get this fight back to the feet but can't get free from the closed guard.
Sergeant is pulling down on De Negri's head. It's preventing any offense from De Negri, at least for the moment.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
De Negri is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Sergeant wants to control here, rather than go for any submissions from the bottom. At least for now.
Sergeant continues to stall.
Sergeant controls De Negri momentarily but De Negri frees himself.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
De Negri throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Sergeant's waist but Sergeant gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing De Negri off to one side.
De Negri throws a nice looking combination but Sergeant bobs and weaves to avoid 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.

Sergeant closes the distance and looks for a trip takedown... aaaand he's got it - Sergeant lands in his opponent's guard.

De Negri pushes Sergeant off for just long enough to get back to his feet. Very athletic spring there.
De Negri misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
De Negri tries to clinch but Sergeant moves away

and Sergeant counters with a shoot takedown. De Negri fights it but they end up in guard.
Sergeant is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.

De Negri is looking for a triangle but Sergeant pushes his legs off easily.
De Negri takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
De Negri looking to control.
Pietro De Negri has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Dan Sergeant is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

Sergeant drops back, looking for a kneebar! De Negri looks panicked! The fighters roll across the mat, one looking to finish, one looking to escape. De Negri looks to have wriggled free... Yes, he's got his leg free and he's dived into side control! Good work there from De Negri!

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Dan Sergeant.
Well Sergeant 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 Paulo Santos scores the fight 30:27
Judge Daniel Cesar scores the fight 30:28
Judge Leandro Rodrigues scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Dan Sergeant!