PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Jack Daniels (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Under Taker (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). These two fighters really are very evenly matched on the feet - it will be fascinating to see who can assert themselves in that aspect of the fight.

Daniels
vs
Taker

185 cm
18
170 lbs
0 - 1 - 0

190 cm
18
170 lbs
1 - 1 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Solid boxing
Cuts easily

BJJ White Belt
Good kicks
Tends to cut

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the welterweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Jack Daniels!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Under Taker!
The judges for this bout are Gwen Towbar, Tiny Johnson and Wesley Smith.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Taker leaves Daniels with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
Taker tries to clinch but Daniels moves out of range.
Daniels shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Taker as he jumps to the side.
Taker has his takedown stuffed

and Daniels counters with a shoot takedown. Taker fights it but they end up in guard.
Taker manages to land a sweep and now he's in mount on top!
Taker is a painfully thin specimen of a man. You do wonder whether a good body kick would snap him clean in two.
Daniels is desperately trying to improve his position but Taker has a good base and remains in mount.
Taker wants to control the pace but Daniels is squirming around nicely.
Taker fakes a shot to the body and cracks his opponent in the head. Nice ground and pound there!
Daniels is squirming around, avoiding Taker's attempts to control the action.
Taker blocks Daniels's feeble attempts to strike from the bottom.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Daniels is wriggling around trying to escape.
Taker misses with a head shot.
Taker tries to control but Daniels wriggling away.
Taker controlling the pace for now.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Daniels looking to escape from mount but he's given up his back!
Daniels trying to control the action but Taker just sinks the hooks in.

That's two 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.
Taker misses with punches from the back.
Taker has the hooks in. Daniels is trying to push off one leg but he has to do so cautiously to avoid being submitted.
Daniels trying to control but not successfully.
Taker lands with a big left hand that may well have hurt his opponent. Can Daniels hold on?!
The crowd hopeful of a finish here - Taker's supporters are on their feet, screaming for him to go for the rear naked choke.
Daniels trying to control but not successfully.
Taker controls the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Daniels rolls and manages to get back to half guard. Nicely done.
Taker has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
Taker prevents Daniels from standing back up.
Daniels trying to control from the bottom.
Taker is trying to control the action in half guard but Daniels is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
The referee is pacing around the two fighters - he looks like he's thinking about a standup.
Taker prevents Daniels from improving his position.

Daniels makes some distance and scrambles quickly back to his feet. Nice work!
Daniels with a poor takedown

and Taker counters with a single leg into guard. Daniels didn't expect that.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Jack Daniels. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Taker stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Daniels swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Daniels wants to sweep here but Taker controlling him for the moment.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Daniels keeping moving, preventing Taker from controlling successfully.
Taker pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Daniels is keeping the position for now.

Daniels looks to be working for a triangle here. Oh, it looks like he might have it! Taker has picked Daniels up and slammed him! Daniels can't keep hold of the triangle and Taker manages to pass to side control!
Daniels manages to land a sweep and he's now on top! Lovely Jiu Jitsu!
Taker is looking for a sweep. Daniels is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Under Taker dominated that round.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Taker feints and then dives in with a takedown. That was a long way out but the feint bought him enough time to close the distance and complete the takedown. Now we'll play guard for a bit and see who can get the better of that position.
Taker throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Taker won't allow Daniels to get back to his feet.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now Daniels is on top in guard.

Daniels got a little sloppy there for a moment and Taker has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Daniels has managed to get both his arms back between Taker's legs - danger averted.
Daniels trying to control but Taker is working from the bottom.
Daniels controls from within his opponent's guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Taker wants to sweep but no luck.

We're going to have a standup here because Jack Daniels wasn't active enough for the referee's liking.

Taker scores a trip takedown into side control. Nice.
Daniels is trying to get back to half guard. He's pushing on Taker's leg. He's managed it. Nice work.
Taker is breathing heavily.
Daniels is pressing down on Taker's left leg trying to get back to full guard. He's managed it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Daniels wants to sweep here but Taker controlling him for the moment.
Taker is pushing down on Daniels's leg trying to pass to half guard. Daniels is fighting to maintain full guard but Taker has managed to sneak the leg through.
Under Taker has got the better of the ground game so far.
Daniels has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Taker is working away from the top position though.
Daniels works his way to full guard. Good work.
Daniels trying to control the position here.
Daniels looking to control but Taker passes into half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Taker tries to pass the half guard into mount. Daniels knows what he's doing though and prevents the attempt.
Taker content to control rather than advance.
Daniels has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Taker is working away from the top position though.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.
Daniels gets full guard.

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.

Taker has gone for a leg lock! Daniels slips out almost immediately though and dives into Taker's guard.
Taker looking for a sweep. Not yet Taker, not yet.
Daniels is fighting to break Taker's control of his arms but Taker is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.
Daniels is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Daniels trying to control but Taker is working from the bottom.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close second round but Under Taker will probably get the nod - 10:9.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Taker tries to clinch there but Daniels circles away.

Daniels clinches with his opponent.
Taker wants to break the clinch but can't.
Taker looking to stall.
Daniels changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Taker fights it off and pushes away nicely.

Taker drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.
Taker won't allow Daniels to sweep him here.
Daniels manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Taker manages to get himself to full guard.
Daniels trying to stand up but can't free himself from Taker's guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Taker 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.
Taker takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.

Taker is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Daniels defends well.
Taker keeping moving, preventing Daniels from controlling successfully.

Daniels stands and steps away. Taker gets to his feet too and we're back to the striking game.
Taker doesn't react quick enough there as he takes a shot to the body.
Daniels scores with a nice looking left hook and follows it up with an uppercut!

It looks like Under Taker has been cut.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Daniels.

Daniels closes the distance and clinches up, looking for a takedown. He shifts his weight and gets a nice trip into half guard.
Daniels keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
Taker is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Daniels sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Taker defending well though.
Taker is trying to stand.

Daniels is trying for a guillotine from the top but the pressure isn't in the right place so Taker is just riding it out for now. Daniels eventually gives up the hold.
Taker is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Daniels looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.

Daniels decides to stand up.
Daniels misses with a combination

and Taker counters with a nice single leg takedown and he's in Daniels's guard now.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Taker advances to half guard.
Daniels has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Taker is working away from the top position though.
Daniels wants to get back to his feet.
Daniels is looking to control Taker's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Daniels avoid being mounted?
Daniels works his way to full guard. Good work.
Taker won't allow Daniels to sweep him here.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Taker passes Daniels's left leg - he's now in half guard.
Daniels is trying to control but can't.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but Jack Daniels did the better work so I'd imagine he'll take it.
The cut man is working on Under Taker's cut.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

Taker throws a body kick that misses.
Taker looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Daniels is fending him off so far but Taker persists. Nope, Daniels circles away and we're back to standing.

Daniels closes the distance and pushes Taker back into the cage.
Daniels blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Taker jumps guard but Daniels stands there with Taker around his waist. Taker gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.

Daniels breaks from the clinch.

Daniels closes the distance and clinches up, looking for a takedown. He shifts his weight and gets a nice trip into half guard.
Taker has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Daniels is working away from the top position though.
Daniels stalling.
Daniels wants to lay and pray for a moment but Taker keeps working.
Taker is absolutely dripping with sweat - he looks exhausted.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Daniels is really struggling to control Taker but he's trying to hold on to the position.
Taker moves into full guard.
Daniels tries to free his leg and advance position but Taker is retaining full guard.

Jack Daniels has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
Taker misses with a takedown

and Daniels counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Jack Daniels has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Under Taker.
Daniels is figuring out what he wants to do next.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Daniels is thwarting Taker's attempts to control the position.
Daniels controlling the pace.
Taker is trying to maintain the position but Daniels is very close to passing his half guard.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
Daniels shoots in for a double leg but Taker sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Daniels shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.
Taker is staying active underneath Daniels, who seems content to just control the action from this position.
Taker is looking to improve his position.
Daniels with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.
Taker tries to get to full guard but Daniels has control of the leg.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
We must be close to a standup if these guys don't pick up the pace.
Daniels is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
Nice strikes from Daniels there.
Taker on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Taker is trying to stand.
Daniels wants to take a breather but Taker is having none of it.

Daniels seems to be looking for submissions.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Jack Daniels had his way with Under Taker in that round.
The cut man is working on Under Taker's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! The crowd applaud as we get ready to start the final round!

Daniels is looking for a takedown here. He's shot in and has managed to get it, finishing up in Taker's half guard.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Daniels in particular looking to stall.

Daniels is looking for a kimura but Taker is holding onto that half guard position, so it's hard for Daniels to get the leverage.
Taker is trying to get back to full guard.
Taker slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.
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.
Daniels pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Taker is keeping the position for now.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Taker trying to keep a closed guard but Daniels is proving a slippery customer.

Daniels drops back for a leg but he's not going to get it - he lets go and Taker dives on top into guard.
Daniels throwing some rather feeble looking strikes off his back.
Daniels looking to sweep using the butterfly guard but Taker puts pay to that idea as he passes nicely into half guard.
Daniels taking some punishment here, with Taker in his half guard.
Taker working over Daniels with some ground and pound. Daniels looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.

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.
Daniels is staying active underneath Taker, who seems content to just control the action from this position.
Daniels trying to control here.
Taker stops Daniels from getting back to his feet.
Taker is figuring out what he wants to do next.
The referee is pacing around the two fighters - he looks like he's thinking about a standup.
Daniels is looking to control Taker's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Daniels avoid being mounted?

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

and Taker counters with a nice double leg into side control. Daniels won't be happy with that.
You can see the frustration on Daniels's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Daniels is sneaking out the side here. He's bucked Taker off and has taken his back!

Daniels looking for the choke but no joy.
Daniels tries to get the hooks in deep but Taker pushed the leg off.
You can see the frustration on Taker's face… He knows he is in trouble unless he improves his position sooner rather than later.

Taker defending nicely against the rear naked choke attempt.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Daniels has the hooks sunk in and you can see the will to fight slowly draining out of Taker's body.
Taker looking to stop the rear naked choke attempt by controlling the hands.
Taker takes a big shot to the side of the head.
Daniels is throwing punches to the body, looking to soften Taker up.

And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Under Taker.
I think Taker 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 5 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Gwen Towbar scores the fight 48:48
Judge Tiny Johnson scores the fight 47:48
Judge Wesley Smith scores the fight 48:48

The fight is ruled a majority draw!
Oh dear, what a disastrous situation! The belt remains unclaimed and both fighters go home unhappy!