PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Cassius Clay (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Evander Hollyfield (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Evander Hollyfield is the more experienced fighter, so let's see if that makes a difference tonight.

Clay
vs
Hollyfield

190 cm
22
208 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

196 cm
18
210 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Dangerous knees
Good gas tank

Crashforce Voodoo Labs
G'n'P Fight gear

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the light heavyweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Cassius Clay!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Evander Hollyfield!
The judges for this bout are Jack Bonds, Frank Antenori and .

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Hollyfield fails in his attempt to clinch.
Nice sprawl there from Clay as Hollyfield shoots in.
Clay throws a right and a left that both miss.
Clay throws a wild combination but nothing lands.

Clay looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into mount! Oh, that's bad for Hollyfield!
Hollyfield working to try and regain half guard.
Hollyfield gets back to half guard.
Hollyfield flails away from the bottom but he's not doing any damage.
Hollyfield trying to hold on to Clay's head to control him but Clay postures up.
Hollyfield is looking to improve his position.
Clay not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Hollyfield has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Clay seems to be looking for submissions.
Clay has decided to stand back up but his arm is trapped. Whilst he's worrying about his arm, Hollyfield works to full guard.
Clay wants to stand but Hollyfield is controlling his posture from full guard.
Hollyfield looking to sweep here. No luck so far.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.
Hollyfield tries to close the distance and clinch up against the ropes but Clay paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Hollyfield misses with a takedown attempt - Clay sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Clay misses with a kick to the body.
Clay swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Hollyfield fails with an attempt to clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
A solid body kick from Hollyfield.
Hollyfield takes a jab right on the kisser.
Clay throws a right hand that Hollyfield ducks under and follows up with a left that Hollyfield also avoids with ease.
No luck for Hollyfield with that takedown attempt.
Cassius Clay has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Evander Hollyfield.
Clay throws a series of punches but Hollyfield moves out of range.
Clay swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Hollyfield slips a jab and a cross from Clay.
Clay misses with a two punch combination.
Clay looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Clay throws a right hand that Hollyfield ducks under and follows up with a left that Hollyfield also avoids with ease.
Clay displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Hollyfield.
Clay looks to land a combination but Hollyfield avoids it well.
Hollyfield showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Clay.
Clay misses with a jab, cross combination.
The fight stays on the outside here - Hollyfield looks like he's thinking about clinching though.

Clay shoots in for a takedown and gets it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Clay throwing shots but Hollyfield is blocking nicely.
Hollyfield looks like he's trying to stand up.
Hollyfield slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.
Hollyfield trying to keep a closed guard but Clay is proving a slippery customer.
Clay wants to stand but Hollyfield has a closed guard, so he can't escape.
Hollyfield throwing some rather feeble looking strikes off his back.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.
Hollyfield 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.
Hollyfield is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.

Well, the referee has seen enough. Neither fighter is active enough on the ground so he's stood them back up.
Hollyfield shoots in for a takedown but Clay shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
Clay throws a series of punches but Hollyfield moves out of range.
Hollyfield throws a right and a left that both miss.
Hollyfield will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
A left and a right from Clay both land. Nice combination.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Clay tries to close the distance and clinch up but Hollyfield swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Clay throws a combination that misses
letting Hollyfield counter with a right hand.
Clay misses with a combination
and Hollyfield counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Cassius Clay will probably get the nod.
That's time! Clay's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Clay falls off balance throwing a combination
and Hollyfield counters with a lovely shot to the body.

Clay shoots in with a lovely double leg takedown. Hollyfield manages to land in full guard to minimise the damage.

Hollyfield working for a triangle but Clay defends it easily.
Clay postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Clay postures up in Hollyfield's guard and throws a big left but Hollyfield blocks it.
Hollyfield 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.
The fighters are trapped in the ropes so we're going to have a reposition here. The ref calls for a break and repositions the fighters in the center of the ring.
Hollyfield trying to keep a closed guard but Clay is proving a slippery customer.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hollyfield lands a beautiful switch and he's in full mount! That could spell trouble for Clay!
Hollyfield sends his fist crashing into the mat - the crowd let out a collective ooooooh. Let's hope he's not broken it!

Hollyfield working for a guillotine from mount but Clay is in no mood to give up.
Clay on his back here. We all know that wrestlers don't like being on their back so let's see if Clay tries to get out of the position.
Hollyfield throwing shots from mount but they're not landing.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.
Clay tries to reverse the position but Hollyfield maintains control.
Hollyfield looking to control but Clay is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
Hollyfield takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
Clay is looking to get to half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Hollyfield stands up from mount. Strange move.
Hollyfield lands with a shot to the body.
A slapping body kick lands there for Hollyfield.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Clay throws a left and a right that both miss
and Hollyfield counters with a low kick, right behind Clay 's knee.
Clay takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Clay throws a combination that misses
and Clay takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Clay misses with a combination

and Hollyfield counters into the clinch. Nicely done.
Clay wants to break the clinch but can't.

Hollyfield decides to pull guard.
Clay stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Hollyfield swivels though and keeps the full guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Clay postures up.

Hollyfield pushes Clay off and gets back to his feet.
Hollyfield closes this distance looking for a takedown but Clay circles away.
Hollyfield wants to clinch.
Horrible takedown by Hollyfield or perhaps it was just good defense by Clay which made him look bad.
Clay throws a left and a right that both miss
and Hollyfield counters with a nice leg kick.
Cassius Clay seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Left hook, right uppercut from Hollyfield.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Evander Hollyfield showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
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.

Clay misses with a double jab
and Hollyfield counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Clay swats away the attempt to clinch by Hollyfield.
Clay misses with a combination
and Hollyfield counters with a nice leg kick.
Hollyfield wants to clinch up but Clay keeps it at a distance.
Hollyfield shoots in for a takedown but Clay shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
Cassius Clay is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Clay falls off balance throwing a combination
and Hollyfield counters with a nice leg kick.
Clay throws a combination that misses
and Hollyfield counters with a left to the body.
Clay takes a nasty kick to the mid section... That should keep him thinking. Does he try and block and risk a head kick landing?
Clay leaves Hollyfield with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
Clay keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
Cassius Clay has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Evander Hollyfield.
Hollyfield shoots in for a double leg but Clay sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
Clay swings wildly with a couple of big hooks

and Hollyfield counters into the clinch. Nicely done.

Hollyfield drags the fight down to the ground.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

That's one minute gone in the round.

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

Hollyfield is looking for a triangle here but Clay uses the submission attempt to pass into side control.

Clay tries for a kimura but Hollyfield is defending well.
Hollyfield is sneaking out the side here. He's bucked Clay off and has taken his back!
Clay has his hands over his head blocking the strikes from Hollyfield.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Hollyfield looking to soften up his opponent with punches.
Clay tries to escape the position.
Hollyfield throwing lazy shots from the back mount that aren't doing any damage.
Hollyfield misses with a punch to the head.
Hollyfield missing with strikes.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Clay covering up well and avoiding damage.
Hollyfield missing with punches from the back.
Hollyfield missing with strikes.
Hollyfield missing with punches from the back.
Hollyfield tries to keep control of the position but Clay is staying busy.

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.
Hollyfield throwing wild punches that miss their target.
Hollyfield is controlling the position but Clay somehow manages to roll and ends up with half guard.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.
Hollyfield fails with the takedown

and Clay decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Hollyfield's guard.
Hollyfield utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Hollyfield tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Clay trying to control the position from guard on top but Hollyfield is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Clay is looking to stand up but Hollyfield won't let him.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Evander Hollyfield really dominated that round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

Hollyfield closes the distance but Clay moves to the side

and Clay counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Hollyfield wants to get back to full guard.
Hollyfield punching from the bottom.
Clay not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Clay seems to have lost interest with the ground game and is thinking about standing back up.
Clay throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Hollyfield slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.
Clay postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Clay has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.
Hollyfield trying to control the position.
It's got to the stage where if one of these guys blows hard enough, the other might fall over.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.

Hollyfield closes the distance and pushes Clay back into the ropes.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Clay wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.

Hollyfield's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Clay throws a right and a left that Hollyfield avoids nicely.
Hollyfield moves in looking to clinch but Clay pushes him off.
Clay throws a left and a right that both miss
and Hollyfield counters with a left and a right that stings Clay.
Hollyfield tries to clinch but Clay is having none of it.
Hollyfield shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Clay sprawls well. Clay wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Hollyfield gets slowly back to his feet.
Clay swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Hollyfield counters with a nice kick to the body.
Clay misses with a double jab
and Hollyfield counters with a nice leg kick.
Hollyfield with a lazy takedown attempt

and Clay counters by clinching up.
Hollyfield slows down the pace here.
Hollyfield prevents Clay from breaking the clinch.

Hollyfield breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Clay scores to the head and body with a nice combination!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Clay swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Clay misses with a double jab
and Hollyfield counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Clay throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped

and Hollyfield counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Hollyfield.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Hollyfield wants to control from the top but Clay keeps moving.
Hollyfield controlling from the top position.
Hollyfield wants to control from the top but Clay keeps moving.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Hollyfield decides to stand up and beckons his opponent to follow.
Hollyfield shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Clay sprawls well. Clay wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Hollyfield gets slowly back to his feet.
Cassius Clay has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Evander Hollyfield.

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.
Nice body kick there by Hollyfield.
Clay swinging wilding here.
Hollyfield fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Clay misses with a combination

and Hollyfield counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Hollyfield thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Evander Hollyfield has got the better of the ground game so far.
Hollyfield uses his free foot to push down on Clay's thigh. Eventually he works his other foot free and he's advanced to mount - this is trouble for Clay.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Clay tries to hold on but Hollyfield pushes him away.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Evander Hollyfield dominated that fourth round.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

Hollyfield shoots for a double leg takedown but Clay sprawls well. He's pushed Hollyfield's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Clay misses with a double jab
and Hollyfield counters with a good, hard body kick but Clay shrugs it off.
No luck with that takedown attempt from Hollyfield.
Clay misses with a series of wild punches.
Clay swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Hollyfield counters with a nice uppercut.
Hollyfield throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Hollyfield shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Clay but Clay pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Cassius Clay has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Evander Hollyfield.
Clay slaps away a takedown attempt from Hollyfield, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Clay falls off balance throwing a combination
and Hollyfield counters with a nice body kick.
Hollyfield is trying hard to land a takedown here. Clay sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Clay misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Both of our modern day gladiators look out of it here - an gruelling 5 rounds of action taking it's toll on them, no doubt.
Hollyfield needs to keep his hands up - Clay had a free shot at his head there.
Clay looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hollyfield showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Clay.
Hollyfield has a takedown stuffed.
Clay throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Hollyfield.
Clay fails to land with a series of punches.
Clay misses with a jab, cross combination.

Hollyfield clinches.
Clay wants to break the clinch but can't.
Clay can't break the clinch.
A frustrated look appears on Clay's face as he tries to break the clinch.

Hollyfield ties up his opponent against the ropes and manages to drag the fight down to the ground. Hollyfield no doubt will be looking to work submissions from his guard.

Clay avoids a guillotine attempt easily.
Clay wanted to stand there but Hollyfield had control of the position.

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.
Hollyfield trying to control the position.
Clay trying to control but Hollyfield is working from the bottom.

Clay got a little sloppy there for a moment and Hollyfield has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Clay has managed to get both his arms back between Hollyfield's legs - danger averted.
Clay loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Clay knows he needs to get back to his feet asap. He's simply no match for Hollyfield on the ground.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hollyfield is trying to keep Clay in close.

Well, the referee has seen enough. Neither fighter is active enough on the ground so he's stood them back up.
Clay swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Hollyfield counters with an outside leg kick.
Hollyfield fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Clay falls off balance throwing a combination
and Hollyfield counters with a nice body kick.
Clay will be looking to protect his midsection after taking some solid kicks to the body.
Hollyfield tries to clinch but Clay moves out of range.

Hollyfield gets a clinch.
Clay stops a takedown attempt from Hollyfield.
Hollyfield lands a body punch.
Clay wants to get back to striking at distance but Hollyfield won't allow it.
Hollyfield is working for a takedown up against the ropes. He can't get it on this occasion though.
Clay has had enough of the clinch but Hollyfield keeps him there for the moment.

Hollyfield pulls Clay into guard.
Clay tries to stand but Hollyfield is controlling from the bottom.
Hollyfield tries to land a sweep but no joy.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hollyfield bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Clay's guard.
Hollyfield controls the pace of the fight for a moment.

Clay working for a triangle but Hollyfield defends it easily.

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

And that's the end of the fight!
Evander Hollyfield comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Hollyfield has outworked and out performed his opponent in all aspects of the game today. He was simply too good and the decision should be no more than a formality. Over to the ring announcer for the scorecards.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 5 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Jack Bonds scores the fight 46:49
Judge Frank Antenori scores the fight 46:49
Judge Suge Night scores the fight 46:49

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Evander Hollyfield!
Evander Hollyfield is the new light heavyweight champion!