PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Leeson Newton (ranked 4418 p4p, 5751 weight class) and Arthit Kittisak (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Leeson Newton has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Newton
vs
Kittisak

180 cm
18
160
0 - 0 - 0

180 cm
25
154
3 - 5 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Brawler
Good chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Solid Muay Thai
Knockout power

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the lightweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of London, Leeson Newton!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 5 - 0, fighting out of London, Arthit Kittisak!
The judges for this bout are Chris Edwards, Andrew Berry and Phil Schofield.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Newton misses with a straight right.
Kittisak looks really tired already! That doesn't bode well for a good, competitive fight!
Newton tries to clinch but Kittisak moves out of range.
Kittisak throws a right hand that Newton ducks under and follows up with a left that Newton also avoids with ease.
Newton misses with a head kick.
Newton takes a jab right on the kisser.
Kittisak displaying good standup as he scores with a three punch combination.
Kittisak throws a right and a left that both miss.
Newton throws a head kick but Kittisak moves out of range.
Kittisak swats away the attempt to clinch by Newton.
Newton fails with an attempt to clinch.
Kittisak looks to land a combination but Newton avoids it well.
Newton appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Kittisak throws a right hand that Newton ducks under and follows up with a left that Newton also avoids with ease.
Kittisak keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
Newton fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Newton throws a series of punches but Kittisak moves out of range.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kittisak lands with a head kick! That's gotta hurt.
Nice sprawl there from Kittisak as Newton shoots in.
No joy there for Kittisak, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Newton misses with a low kick.
Newton tries to close the distance and clinch but Kittisak swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Arthit Kittisak is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Newton throws a body kick that misses.
Kittisak is loading up here, looking for a big counter of his own.
Newton slips under a jab from Kittisak.

Newton moves into range and clinches up with Kittisak.
Kittisak has Newton pressed against the cage, preventing Newton from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Kittisak stops a takedown attempt from Newton.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Leeson Newton. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Newton turns his back and goes for a hip toss. It's a bit messy but it gets the job done and Newton manages to end up in side control.
Kittisak is pushing Newton's head away, looking to escape. Newton manages to hold on to the position though.

Newton is looking for a kimura. He might have it! No, Kittisak has escaped the position, nice work there.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Newton controls the position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kittisak is trying to stand back up. He's worked his way up against the cage but Newton has just dragged him back down to the mat.
Newton tries to stand but Kittisak is controlling his head.
Kittisak trying to remain calm as Newton controls from the top position.
Newton trying to control the action but Kittisak is working from the bottom.
Kittisak wants to get back to his feet.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Newton wants to lay and pray for a moment but Kittisak keeps working.
Newton is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Kittisak is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.
Kittisak gives up the full mount - oops, sloppy defensive grappling there!
Newton tries to control but Kittisak wriggling away.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.

That's four 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.

Newton is going oldschool here, as he tries to force Kittisak to tap using a forearm choke. This isn't 1993 though, so Kittisak shrugs it off.
Newton won't let Kittisak get back to his feet... He wants to keep the fight where it is for now.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Newton fakes a shot to the body and cracks his opponent in the head. Nice ground and pound there!
Kittisak is trying to stand up.
Newton looking to control but Kittisak is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
The crowd growing excited in anticipation of a finish here! Right on cue, Newton cracks his opponent with a massive right hand that draws loud cheers!
Newton thowing shots but they're missing.
Kittisak's corner are shouting for him to stand up but that's bad cornering - how is he meant to stand up when he's mounted? He should be looking to improve his position on the ground before trying to stand back up.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Leeson Newton will probably get the nod.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Newton throws a push kick but Kittisak slaps the foot to one side.
We've been informed that Kittisak has been working hard on his conditioning in the buildup to the fight.
Kittisak misses the shot to the body.
Newton went nuts there looking for a big combo counter but none of the flurry connected.

Newton shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in side control! That's better than Newton was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!
Kittisak is not content to let Newton control the position.

Newton is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Kittisak knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.
Kittisak is trying to get back to his feet.
Kittisak is breathing heavily.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Newton cracks Kittisak with a big elbow.
Kittisak is trying to buck Newton off.
Kittisak trying to remain calm as Newton controls from the top position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Newton seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Kittisak for as long as he can get away with.
Kittisak is trying to escape and get back to his feet.
Newton is looking to take a break and control but Kittisak is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Kittisak is trying to escape and get back to his feet.

Newton looking for an arm triangle but it's way too loose to do anything.
Leeson Newton overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Newton has knee on belly and now moves to full mount! Trouble for Kittisak!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.
Newton takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.

Kittisak bucks Newton off and manages to get back to his feet!
Newton throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Kittisak wants to counter the offense by Newton and move into the clinch position.
Newton tries to close the distance and clinch but Kittisak swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.

Newton shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.
Kittisak tries to push off, looking to stand up, but Newton manages to move to mount!
Kittisak is really trying hard to get back to his feet.
Newton trying to control but Kittisak is having none of it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Newton lands a big shot there that rocks Kittisak but he's holding on and managing to survive for now.
Newton controlling the pace for now.
Newton lands with some strikes.
Newton trying to control but Kittisak is having none of it.

Kittisak somehow manages to escape the mount and get back to his feet!
Leeson Newton is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Newton tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Kittisak paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Newton shoots in looking for a takedown but Kittisak manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Newton's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Kittisak flicks out a counter leg kick but Newton steps away.
Newton on the wrong end of a nice low kick. He's acting like it's no big deal but he doesn't want to take many more of those.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kittisak throws a series of punches but Newton avoids them all with ease.
It looked like Newton was looking amped, ready to throw a big counter but didn't commit.
Kittisak slaps away a takedown attempt from Newton, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Danga de danga de dang - Kittisak scores with a four punch combination!
Arthit Kittisak seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Newton lands with a two punch combination before moving back out of range.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Kittisak shuffles to his left behind two crisp jabs. Newton eats them both and turns towards Kittisak to reposition himself and eats a stinging right hand-left hook combo.
Kittisak fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Newton has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
Kittisak pushes forward with a 1-2 combination that forces Newton back to the cage. Kittisak follows up with a solid lead hook to the liver.
Newton dives in for a single leg takedown but Kittisak sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Leeson Newton. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Newton pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Sloppy strikes from Kittisak. Those never looked like landing.
Newton tries to clinch up.
Kittisak let fly with a counter punch to the body but it didn't land.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

A close second round but Arthit Kittisak will probably get the nod - 10:9.
That's time! Newton's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight. This is the final round!

Newton takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
Kittisak throws a series of punches but Newton avoids them all with ease.
Kittisak tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Newton tries to close the distance and clinch up but Kittisak swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Kittisak circles away from the clinch attempt.
Newton misses with a wild body shot.

Newton dives in and scores a takedown into Kittisak's guard.
Newton sitting in guard, not really doing much.
Kittisak keeping moving, preventing Newton from controlling successfully.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Newton stops Kittisak from standing up.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Newton lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
Newton trying to control the position from guard on top but Kittisak is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Newton is really struggling to control Kittisak but he's trying to hold on to the position.
Newton postures up in Kittisak's guard and throws a big left but Kittisak blocks it.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Newton pushes down on Kittisak's leg and manages to get into half guard.
Newton not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Kittisak keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Newton sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Kittisak defending well though.
Newton takes a deep breath and rests his weight momentarily on top of his opponent, to control the position.
Kittisak scrambles, trying to get to his feet, but Newton manages to mount him!
Newton controlling from mount.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kittisak is trying to escape but when you're mounted that's not too easy.
Newton looking to control and managing it successfully.
Newton lands a couple of good shots and Kittisak has given up his back, trying to escape the position!
Newton trying to control.
Kittisak covers up after taking a massive shot to the side of the head.
Newton keeps control of the position easily here as Kittisak tries to buck him off.
Newton throwing sloppy strikes.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kittisak is trying to get back to his feet but he's not managed it yet.
Newton throws a big right hand but he misses and hits the mat. Ouch.
Kittisak wants to get back to his feet.
Newton controls the action.
Kittisak trying to get back to his feet but Newton is in full control for now.
Newton trying to control.
I would not like to be Kittisak right now.

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.
Kittisak wants to get back to his feet.

Kittisak defends a rear naked choke attempt by controlling one of Newton's arms.
Kittisak is trying to get back to his feet but Newton has full control of the position and if anything, Kittisak has just worked his way into a worse spot.

Newton working for the choke.
Kittisak wants to get back to his feet.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.

Kittisak is trying escape back to his feet. He turns into his opponent's guard and eventually finds his way back to his feet.
Kittisak with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.

And that's the end of the fight!
Leeson Newton showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Newton 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 Chris Edwards scores the fight 29:28
Judge Andrew Berry scores the fight 29:28
Judge Phil Schofield scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Leeson Newton!