PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Wilem Tell (ranked 4247 p4p, 6582 weight class) and Zimba Zimbawa (ranked 513 p4p, 644 weight class). Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Tell
vs
Zimbawa

190 cm
25
212
1 - 1 - 0

193 cm
19
205
3 - 4 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Counter fighter
KO power

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter fighter
Determined

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 1 - 1 - 0, fighting out of London, Wilem Tell!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 4 - 0, fighting out of London, Zimba Zimbawa!
The judges for this bout are Andrew Berry, Paul Tew and Steven Brown.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Zimbawa tries to close the distance and clinch but Tell swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Tell misses with a takedown
and Zimbawa counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Tell dives in for a single leg takedown but Zimbawa sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.
It seemed like Zimbawa was going to counter with the hook but didn't fully commit to it.
Zimbawa is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Tell gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.
Zimbawa tries to pull guard but Tell won't allow it.
Zimbawa wants a takedown.
Wilem Tell has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Zimba Zimbawa.
Zimbawa changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Tell fights it off and pushes away nicely.
Zimbawa scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Zimbawa swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Tell.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A punch combination from Tell misses.
Tell throws a nice looking combination but Zimbawa bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.

Tell clinches up with Zimbawa and pushes him back against the cage.
Tell is trying to pull guard but Zimbawa has him pressed against the cage.
Tell is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Zimbawa gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.
We've been hearing reports that Tell has been drilling takedowns in recent sessions so let's see if that has an impact on the result of this fight.
The pace slowing considerably in the clinch, as Tell takes a break from that fighting nonsense to think about the finer things in life.
Zimbawa struggles to land a body shot inside as Tell controls his hands.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.

Tell pulls guard effortlessly.
Zimbawa makes a bit of distance and scores with some ground and pound, still in guard.
Zimbawa trying to control but Tell is working from the bottom.
Zimbawa throwing strikes from guard but Tell blocks nicely.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Tell keeping moving, preventing Zimbawa from controlling successfully.
Zimbawa scores with a decent looking elbow strike.

Tell has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but Zimbawa can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.
Tell keeping moving, preventing Zimbawa from controlling successfully.
Tell working a defensive guard here.
Tell lands a beautiful sweep and he's now moved into his opponent's guard.

Zimbawa tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Zimbawa avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Zimbawa wants to sweep but no luck.
Zimbawa working a defensive guard here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Tell wants to control from the top but Zimbawa keeps moving.
Zimbawa working a defensive guard here.

Zimbawa has his foot on Tell's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Tell works his way back into a safe position though.

Zimbawa is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Tell defends well.
Tell trying to control the position from guard on top but Zimbawa is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.
Tell throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Zimbawa works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Tell is fighting to break Zimbawa's control of his arms but Zimbawa is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.
The referee must be thinking about standing these guys back up.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Tell sitting in guard, not really doing much.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.
Tell shoots in but no luck this time.
Zimbawa looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Horrible takedown attempt by Tell or perhaps it was just good defense by Zimbawa, which made it look bad.
Zimbawa looked like he wanted to counter with a punch but didn't throw it.
Zimbawa misses with a low kick as Tell jumps back.
Tell tries to counter by clinching up but Zimbawa breaks away and moves out of range.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Zimbawa scores with a nice one two combo and darts back out of range to avoid anything coming in the opposite direction.
Wilem Tell seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Zimbawa tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Tell paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Tell slaps away a takedown attempt from Zimbawa, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Tell swung with a counter right hand that didn't connect.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Zimba Zimbawa will probably get the nod.
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.

Zimbawa shoots in but Tell avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Tell throwing a counter right hand but Zimbawa manages to avoid it.

Zimbawa gets tackled into the cage by Tell. Tell maintains the clinch.
Tell just leaning against Zimbawa, taking a breather.
Tell can't get the takedown.
Tell wants to get back to striking at distance but Zimbawa won't allow it.

Tell jumps guard and drags Zimbawa to the mat. He's obviously going to be looking for submissions off his back.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Zimbawa distracts Tell with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Zimbawa postures up.

Zimbawa got a little sloppy there for a moment and Tell has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Zimbawa has managed to get both his arms back between Tell's legs - danger averted.
Zimbawa makes a bit of distance and scores with some ground and pound, still in guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tell looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Zimbawa trying to control but Tell is working from the bottom.
Zimbawa throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Zimbawa postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Zimbawa with a flurry of punches that miss.

Zimbawa has gone for a leg lock! Tell slips out almost immediately though and dives into Zimbawa's guard.

Zimbawa looking to hit a scissor sweep but Tell is one step ahead there.
Tell throwing strikes but missing.
Zimbawa trying to control the position here.
Tell postures up.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Zimbawa is working actively off his back, looking to secure an arm or perhaps work for a triangle.
Tell controls the pace of the fight for a moment.
Tell throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Zimbawa works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Zimbawa utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Tell scoring with some ground and pound.
Tell showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Zimbawa utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Zimbawa has momentary wrist control but Tell slips an elbow through the middle.

Zimbawa has his foot on Tell's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Tell works his way back into a safe position though.
Zimbawa is controlling Tell's posture.
Zimbawa keeping moving, preventing Tell from controlling successfully.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Tell missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.

Tell avoids a guillotine attempt easily.
Tell landing with the ground and pound.
Tell scoring with some ground and pound.

It looks like Zimba Zimbawa has been cut.
Tell trying to control the position from guard on top but Zimbawa is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Tell 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.
Zimbawa wants to sweep here but Tell controlling him for the moment.
Tell is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Zimbawa can do to turn this around?
Tell working some strikes from top position.
Zimbawa avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tell showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Zimbawa looking to control.
Zimbawa is pulling down on Tell's head to control his posture.
Zimbawa is trying to keep Tell in close.
The referee wants the fighters to be more active or he's going to reset them on the feet.
Tell preventing the sweep.
Wilem Tell overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Tell trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Zimbawa 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.
Zimbawa looking to control.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Wilem Tell dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Zimba Zimbawa's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! This is the final round!

Tell scores with a takedown into Zimbawa's guard.
Tell postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Tell missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Tell accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Zimbawa trying to control the position.

Zimbawa is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Tell defends well.

Zimbawa is working actively off his back, looking to secure an arm or perhaps work for a triangle.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Tell drops back for a leg! It's a sloppy attempt though and Tell jumps back into guard quickly, to retain the dominant position.
Tell postures up.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tell working some strikes from top position.
Zimbawa controls Tell momentarily but Tell frees himself.
Tell content to stall in guard here.
Tell trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Tell is looking to work some ground and pound but Zimbawa has wrist control.
Tell throwing strikes from guard but Zimbawa blocks nicely.
Tell postures up in Zimbawa's guard and throws a big left but Zimbawa blocks it.
Tell throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Tell has decided he wants to stand but the closed guard of Zimbawa is proving hard to escape from.

Zimbawa had isolated an arm as going for a kimura. Tell defends it easily.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
My god... these two guys really need to pick up the pace or everyone will leave to go get a beer.
Tell lands a couple of elbows.
Tell trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Tell missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Zimbawa has control of Tell's left arm, preventing Tell from doing any damage.
Tell throwing strikes but missing.
Tell missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Tell trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Tell postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Zimbawa working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Tell.
Zimbawa working a defensive guard here.

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

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Zimbawa throws a right and a left that Tell avoids nicely.

Tell shoots in and bounces Zimbawa off the cage to secure the takedown into guard.
Zimbawa 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.
Zimbawa trying to keep a closed guard but Tell is proving a slippery customer.
Tell engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
Wilem Tell is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Tell seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Zimbawa for as long as he can get away with.
Zimba Zimbawa has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tell throws a big right hand that misses.
Zimbawa is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
We must be close to a standup if these guys don't pick up the pace.
Tell sitting in guard here, content to control.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Zimbawa fakes a jab and throws a low kick but Tell checks it well.
Tell shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Zimbawa as he avoids it easily.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Zimbawa shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Tell as he jumps to the side.

And that's the end of the fight!
Wilem Tell showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Tell has won this one but let's see what the judges have to say. 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 Andrew Berry scores the fight for Wilem Tell!
Judge Paul Tew scores the fight for Wilem Tell!
Judge Steven Brown scores the fight for Wilem Tell!

Wilem Tell wins by unanimous decision!
Wilem Tell 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.