PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Tuck Hardy (ranked 4464 p4p, 23440 weight class) and StepOn Struve (ranked 444 p4p, 0 weight class). StepOn Struve acknowledges the crowd's support as he enters the cage.

Hardy
vs
Struve

192 cm
23
230
0 - 0 - 0

213 cm
18
265
0 - 2 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Solid Muay Thai
Big heart

BJJ White Belt
Good kicks
Solid chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of New York, Tuck Hardy!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 2 - 0, fighting out of New York, StepOn Struve!
The judges for this bout are Eddie Farnsworth, Bruno Lombardi and Anthony Taglia.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Struve cracks Hardy with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.

Hardy fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Struve, pushing him back against the cage.

Hardy breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Hardy gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
and Struve cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.

Hardy clinches up against the cage.

Hardy manages to pull guard. Let's see whether he can land a sub off his back.
Struve has decided he wants to stand but the closed guard of Hardy is proving hard to escape from.
Struve trying to control but Hardy is working from the bottom.
Struve really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Hardy. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Hardy striking off his back but it's not causing Struve any problems.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hardy is avoiding any damage by keeping wrist control.
Hardy throws a couple of weedy looking strikes off his back.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hardy is pulling down on Struve's head to control his posture.
Hardy bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Struve's guard.

Hardy preventing the sweep.
Struve trying to keep a closed guard but Hardy is proving a slippery customer.

Hardy gets to his feet. Struve looking to butt scoot but the ref puts an end to that. On your feet son!
Hardy will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Struve looks to throw the jab but Hardy is out of range.
Hardy tries for a takedown but Struve circles away easily
and Struve counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Tuck Hardy. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Struve looks to land a left hand but Hardy moved out of range nicely.
Hardy tries to counter by moving into the clinch but Struve manages to circle out of the way.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Struve throws a combination. Hardy tries to block but a couple of punches get through.
Nice defenses there by Hardy.
Horrible takedown attempt by Hardy or perhaps it was just good defense by Struve, which made it look bad.
Hardy takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Struve fails to land with a series of punches.
StepOn Struve seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Hardy misses with a leg kick
and Hardy takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Hardy staying out of range there.
Struve throws a right and a left that both miss.
Hardy tries to counter by clinching up but Struve breaks away and moves out of range.
Hardy takes a head kick and shrugs it off.
Hardy fails with a takedown attempt.
StepOn Struve is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hardy misses with a few strikes there.
Hardy staying out of range there.
A jab from Struve does it's job there.
Struve looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
A chopping leg kick lands by Struve.

Hardy gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
Stalling in the clinch from Hardy.

Hardy pulls Struve into guard.
Struve wants to control from the top but Hardy keeps moving.
Hardy tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Struve trying to control the position from guard on top but Hardy is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Struve slips nicely into half guard, despite the strikes coming from Hardy.
Struve is keen to just control but Hardy is a slippery customer.
Hardy controlling the position well.
Struve wants to get back to his feet.

Hardy actively working from the bottom here.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

StepOn Struve dominated that round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Hardy takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
Struve swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Hardy.
Struve throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Hardy looks frustrated there after his takedown attempt is stuffed easily.
Struve swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Hardy.
Struve has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Struve lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Hardy circles away quickly and effectively.
Hardy fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
Struve has used his reach advantage pretty well so far tonight.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hardy moves out of range of the strikes.
Struve defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Hardy.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Tuck Hardy. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Hardy has managed to clinch.

Hardy's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.

That's one minute gone in the round.
No joy there for Struve, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Hardy shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Struve sprawls well. Struve wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Hardy gets slowly back to his feet.
Struve is loading up here, looking for a big counter of his own.
Struve pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Hardy on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Struve. Struve obviously looking to wear him down.
StepOn Struve seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Good shot there by Struve.
Struve clobbers Hardy with an overhand right that has the crowd gasping. That made a horrendous noise.
Hardy shoots in but no luck this time.

Hardy moves into the clinch.
Hardy blocking some punches.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Struve.
Hardy lands a body punch - he's looking to wear down Struve.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hardy keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Struve's efforts to push away.
Struve tries to stall but Hardy uses the opportunity to gain a better position.

Hardy pulls Struve into guard.
Hardy is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.

The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Hardy not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Hardy wants to pass the guard but Struve is defending well.
Still in half guard, Hardy seems content to control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Struve keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Struve works his way to full guard. Good work.
Hardy is stalling in the full guard.
Struve wants to sweep here but Hardy controlling him for the moment.
Hardy passes Struve's right leg, so he's now in half guard.

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.
Hardy with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.

Hardy is trying to work for a kimura. This could be trouble! No, Struve has managed to free his arm - good work.
Hardy passes the guard and advances to mount!
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

StepOn Struve showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! This is the final round!

Struve tried to score with a low kick but Hardy checks it.

Hardy closes the distance and looks for a trip takedown... aaaand he's got it - Hardy lands in his opponent's guard.
Hardy passes Struve's right leg, so he's now in half guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Well, if Hardy is going to just lie there, perhaps we should talk about what we're having for dinner tonight… I'm having a ham and pineapple pizza… Yum. Can't wait.

Hardy stands up and beckons Struve to join him on the feet.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Struve gets tackled into the cage by Hardy. Hardy maintains the clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Struve can't break the clinch.

Hardy escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Struve slips a straight right by Hardy.
Struve throws a lazy right hand but Hardy sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.

Hardy looking to score a takedown here. Struve is defending well but Hardy drives through and ends up in Struve's guard.
Hardy cracks Struve with a solid left hand.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Hardy showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Struve can't keep his opponent in guard - Hardy advances to half guard, no doubt looking to mount.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Struve is trying to maintain the position but Hardy is very close to passing his half guard.
Hardy content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
Struve is trying to control but can't.
Tuck Hardy overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
The referee calls for the fighters to work.
Hardy passes into side control, despite Struve's attempt to control the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hardy is maintaining the dominant position - no doubt Struve will start to get frustrated soon if he's not already.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.

Hardy thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
The sound of bone on bone echoes around the arena as Hardy checks a leg kick.
Struve scores with a kick to the body.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Hardy misses with a takedown
and Struve counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Struve is using his reach advantage to land shots from outside his opponent's range.
Hardy has a nice red mark on his side after a thudding body kick by Struve.
Tuck Hardy has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
StepOn Struve is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Struve catches Hardy with a nice straight right. He seems pissed - ooooh, it's on now! On like donkey kong!

And that's the end of the fight!
Tuck Hardy showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Struve 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 3 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Eddie Farnsworth scores the fight 28:29
Judge Bruno Lombardi scores the fight 28:29
Judge Anthony Taglia scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... StepOn Struve!
During a confident post fight interview, StepOn Struve thanked all his fans. He seemed very genuine when describing how motivated his fans keep him.