PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Ralph Hignett (ranked 23929 p4p, 5065 weight class) and Thongthailek Sitsongrit (ranked 467 p4p, 424 weight class). Hignett comes to the cage accompanied by Right Above It. Ralph Hignett has the edge in experience - let's see if he can make that count tonight.

Hignett
vs
Sitsongrit

183 cm
21
145
1 - 1 - 0

176 cm
19
156
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Basic striking
Granite chin

BJJ White Belt
Excellent MT
Powerful

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 1 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Ralph Hignett !
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Thongthailek Sitsongrit !
The judges for this bout are Chad Campbell, Reed Andrews and Columbo Gatti.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Sitsongrit shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Hignett defends it nicely.
Sitsongrit with a poor takedown

and Hignett counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
Sitsongrit is looking to improve his position.
Hignett not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Hignett landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Hignett sitting and controlling from the half guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hignett is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hignett lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
Hignett throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Hignett missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Hignett sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Sitsongrit defending well though.
Sitsongrit has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Hignett is working away from the top position though.
Hignett 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.
Hignett wants to free his trapped foot but Sitsongrit is holding on for dear life with his legs.
Hignett takes a deep breath and rests his weight momentarily on top of his opponent, to control the position.
Hignett prevents Sitsongrit from improving his position.
Hignett really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.

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.
Hignett tries to stand but can't do so whilst Sitsongrit controls his leg.
Hignett is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.
Sitsongrit is looking to control Hignett 's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Sitsongrit avoid being mounted?

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Sitsongrit fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Ralph Hignett has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Thongthailek Sitsongrit .
Sitsongrit misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
Hignett fails in his attempt to clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hignett fails with a takedown attempt from distance.

The fight moves into the clinch position.
Hignett tries to score a body lock takedown but Sitsongrit shows good agility there to stay on his feet.
Hignett wants to take the fight to the mat but Sitsongrit manages to get underhooks and keep the fight in the clinch.
Hignett leaning his opponent against the cage.
Sitsongrit jumps guard but Hignett stands there with Sitsongrit around his waist. Sitsongrit gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
The fighters are going at a pretty good pace and they're both starting to sweat now.
Hignett is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the cage enables Sitsongrit to keep the fight standing.
Sitsongrit 's corner are urging him to control the action in the clinch for a moment, rather than mount any serious offense. I'm sure the crowd appreciate those instructions... not.

Sitsongrit manages to pull guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hignett trying to control but Sitsongrit is working from the bottom.
Hignett keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of Sitsongrit 's head.

Sitsongrit is working actively off his back, looking to secure an arm or perhaps work for a triangle.
Hignett wants to control from the top but Sitsongrit keeps moving.
Hignett 's corner is telling him to maintain position.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Sitsongrit is looking to sweep but instead, Hignett has passed into half guard.
Sitsongrit wants to improve his position but Hignett is controlling well.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Ralph Hignett dominated that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Hignett shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Sitsongrit sprawls well. Sitsongrit wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Hignett gets slowly back to his feet.
Hignett fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
Sitsongrit shoots in for a takedown but Hignett shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
Sitsongrit is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Horrible takedown attempt by Sitsongrit or perhaps it was just good defense by Hignett , which made it look bad.
Sitsongrit shoots in but Hignett avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Ralph Hignett has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Thongthailek Sitsongrit .
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Excellent takedown into side control there by Hignett .
Sitsongrit seems a little lost for a moment, as Hignett dominates the positioning.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sitsongrit tries to buck Hignett off but Hignett is having none of it.

Hignett tries for a kimura but Sitsongrit is defending well.
Sitsongrit is not content to let Hignett control the position.
Sitsongrit can't do much from the bottom here.
Sitsongrit holding on.
Sitsongrit is trying to buck Hignett off.

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.
The strikes coming from Hignett are missing the target in this wave of attacks.
Hignett is working Sitsongrit over with some ground and pound from side control.

Hignett stands up and we're back to a striking position.
Hignett misses the body punch

and Sitsongrit moves into the clinch.
Sitsongrit goes for a takedown in the clinch but Hignett prevents it.
Sitsongrit wants a takedown.
Sitsongrit is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Hignett gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.
Hignett is looking to take this one to the mat.
Hignett drops down for a takedown but doesn't get it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hignett drops down for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Hignett tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Sitsongrit smiles and moves away.
Hignett is looking to clinch but Sitsongrit is avoiding it.
Sitsongrit has his takedown stuffed

and Hignett moves into the clinch.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.
Hignett prevents the takedown attempt.
Hignett wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Sitsongrit fails to pull guard.

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.
Sitsongrit drops to a knee looking for a takedown but Hignett gets the underhooks and prevents it.
A head punch on the inside from Hignett fails to land.
Sitsongrit controlling the action here for a moment.
Sitsongrit jumps guard but Hignett turns him against the cage and keeps the fight standing.
Sitsongrit tries to score a body lock takedown but Hignett shows good agility there to stay on his feet.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Hignett tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Hignett prevents a takedown attempt there.
Hignett is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Sitsongrit can do to turn this around?
Hignett misses with an elbow over the top.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Ralph Hignett dominated that second round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. This is the final round!

Sitsongrit will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Sitsongrit shoots for a double leg takedown but Hignett sprawls well. He's pushed Sitsongrit 's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Hignett is trying to close the distance and clinch up, after that failed offence from Sitsongrit .
Horrible takedown attempt by Sitsongrit or perhaps it was just good defense by Hignett , which made it look bad.
It looked like Hignett was trying to counter with a body shot coming off that last attack from Sitsongrit .
Ralph Hignett has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Thongthailek Sitsongrit .
Sitsongrit tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Sitsongrit fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
Sitsongrit tries to clinch but Hignett is having none of it.
Hignett tries to counter by moving into the clinch but Sitsongrit manages to circle out of the way.
Sitsongrit stuffs the takedown.

Hignett scores a trip takedown into side control. Nice.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hignett is looking to take a break and control but Sitsongrit is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sitsongrit is letting Hignett control him for a moment.
Hignett trying to control the position but Sitsongrit is working away.
Ralph Hignett overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Hignett staying calm.
Sitsongrit takes an elbow right on the bridge of the nose and winces in pain.
Hignett tries to get to his feet but he's trapped momentarily.
Sitsongrit really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Hignett . If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.

Hignett looking for an arm triangle but it's way too loose to do anything.
Hignett working the head with strikes.
Hignett scoring with punches from side control.
You can see the frustration on Sitsongrit 's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Hignett tries to score with some ground and pound. Sitsongrit controls his posture well this time though and the shots don't do any damage.
Hignett trying to control the position but Sitsongrit is working away.
Hignett creates a bit of distance and throws down some hard shots.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Hignett stands up and beckons Sitsongrit to his feet.
Hignett takes a kick to the body and keeps moving.

Hignett gets tackled into the cage by Sitsongrit . Sitsongrit maintains the clinch.

Sitsongrit breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Hignett shoots in looking for a takedown. Sitsongrit tries to sprawl out of it but Hignett keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Sitsongrit manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Sitsongrit tries to clinch up but Hignett circles away and keeps his distance.
Hignett keeps the fight on the outside.
Hignett drops down looking for a counter takedown but Sitsongrit sprawls and moves away.
Sitsongrit shoots for a double leg takedown but Hignett sprawls well. He's pushed Sitsongrit 's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Sitsongrit gets taken down but at least he's managed to land in guard.
Hignett wants to control from the top but Sitsongrit keeps moving.
Hignett stays in close to Sitsongrit 's body and controls the position.

Hignett is holding a leg here, probably looking for an ankle lock - he drops back and goes for it! Sitsongrit is in trouble! Is it all over??? No! Sitsongrit has escaped and now he's on top!

The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Hignett wants to stand but Sitsongrit is controlling the position.

And that's the end of the fight!
Ralph Hignett showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Hignett , winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 Chad Campbell scores the fight 30:27
Judge Reed Andrews scores the fight 30:27
Judge Columbo Gatti scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Ralph Hignett !