PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Dmonray Malapitan (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Daniel Strauss (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Malapitan comes to the cage accompanied by My Time is Now. Strauss has chosen Shutterbugg - Big Boi Feat. Cutty as his entrance music. 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.

Malapitan
vs
Strauss

180 cm
32
140 lbs
15 - 14 - 0

162 cm
31
142 lbs
14 - 6 - 0

BJJ Brown Belt
Solid boxing
Very quick

BJJ Purple Belt
Excellent boxer
Powerful

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 15 - 14 - 0, fighting out of New York, Dmonray Malapitan!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 14 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Daniel Strauss!
The judges for this bout are Anthony Taglia, Russell Pearce and Reed Andrews.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Strauss throws a hook but Malapitan blocks it.
Strauss is looking to clinch but Malapitan is avoiding it.
Malapitan avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Strauss tries to grapple but his opponent circles
and Malapitan counters with a good, hard body kick but Strauss shrugs it off.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Strauss throws a lazy uppercut
and Malapitan makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Strauss fails in his attempt to clinch.
A swing and a miss from Strauss.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Strauss stooping low to avoid any incoming strikes and then lunges in with an uppercut come cross that lands flush.

It looks like Dmonray Malapitan has been cut.
Strauss tries to close the distance and clinch up but Malapitan swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Strauss fails in his attempt to clinch.
Malapitan takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.

Malapitan is rocked!
Strauss swings widly with a right hand

and Malapitan counters with a nice double leg into side control. Strauss won't be happy with that.
Malapitan cracks Strauss with a big right hand but Strauss just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.

Malapitan is trying to land an Americana. He has the arm isolated but Strauss is keeping cool and he's avoided the danger for now.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Strauss is not content to let Malapitan control the position.
Malapitan in side control, throwing shots but Strauss defends.
Malapitan will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Strauss takes an elbow right on the bridge of the nose and winces in pain.
Malapitan throws an elbow but Strauss slips to the side and avoids it well.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Malapitan controlling from side mount.

Malapitan is looking for a kimura. He might have it! No, Strauss has escaped the position, nice work there.
Malapitan tries to advance to mount but Strauss denies him.
Malapitan trying to control the action but Strauss is working from the bottom.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Malapitan tries to advance to mount but Strauss denies him.
Malapitan misses with an attempted head punch from side control.
The strikes coming from Malapitan are missing the target in this wave of attacks.
Strauss wants to control but Malapitan postures up.
Malapitan is chipping away with strikes.
Malapitan working the head with strikes.

Malapitan looking for an arm triangle but it's way too loose to do anything.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Malapitan working the ground and pound but he's contacting the mat, not the fighter.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Dmonray Malapitan dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Dmonray Malapitan's cut.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Strauss tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Strauss throws a lazy right hand but Malapitan sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.
Strauss throws a looping overhand right but Malapitan ducks down to avoid it.
Strauss tries to clinch but Malapitan moves away

and Malapitan counters with a nice double leg into side control. Strauss won't be happy with that.
Malapitan creates some space and throws a big elbow, but Strauss sees it coming and moves his head just enough to avoid the strike.
Malapitan controls the position.
Malapitan in side control, throwing shots but Strauss defends.
Malapitan really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.
Malapitan creates some space and throws a big elbow, but Strauss sees it coming and moves his head just enough to avoid the strike.
Malapitan 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.
Strauss defending against the ground and pound.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sloppy strikes there by Malapitan.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

Malapitan swings around for an armbar but Strauss sees it coming a mile off and turns beautifully into Malapitan's guard.
Malapitan is trying to control the position but Strauss postures up.
Strauss must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.

The ref stands the fighters back up. Dmonray Malapitan wasn't doing enough on the ground.
Strauss tries to close the distance and clinch but Malapitan swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Daniel Strauss is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Strauss throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
Strauss is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Malapitan.
Strauss scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
Malapitan circles away from the clinch attempt.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Strauss lands the left hand.
Strauss works the jab nicely.
Oh Malapitan is still all over the place! His legs are completely gone! Will he be able to recover?!!
Strauss swings widly with a right hand
and Malapitan counters with a stiff right hand.
Malapitan seems to have got his legs back now.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Strauss tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in the close the distance. Malapitan manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Strauss throws a right hand that misses

and Malapitan counters with a takedown into side control.
The strikes coming from Malapitan are missing the target in this wave of attacks.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Malapitan misses with a strike but at least he's keeping busy, looking to cause some damage - that will still help him when it comes to the judges scorecards.
Malapitan looking to punish the body of his opponent here but Strauss is avoiding damage well.
Strauss really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Malapitan. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Strauss dodges the ground and pound from Malapitan.
Malapitan tries to move to mount but Strauss blocks the move with his legs.
Malapitan throws an elbow but Strauss slips to the side and avoids it well.

Malapitan is trying to get an arm triangle but Strauss is defending well.
Malapitan lands a nice forearm strike.
Malapitan wants to control but Strauss is keeping him busy.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Malapitan in side control, throwing shots but Strauss defends.
Strauss trying to remain calm as Malapitan controls from the top position.
Malapitan moves into full mount!
Strauss wriggling around on the bottom manages to avoid the strikes thrown by Malapitan.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Strauss is trying to escape the mount.
Malapitan thuds his fist into the canvas! Oooouch!
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Strauss has worked his way to half guard, taking advantage of Malapitan's lack of action.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Dmonray Malapitan dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Dmonray Malapitan's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! This is the final round!

Strauss pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Strauss missing with a left hand there. Malapitan was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Strauss tries to clinch there but Malapitan circles away.
Strauss wants to clinch up but Malapitan keeps it at a distance.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Strauss tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Malapitan was well out of range. Poor timing from Strauss.
Strauss tries to close the distance and clinch but Malapitan swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Strauss lands with a hook. Malapitan tried to avoid it but it clipped the top of his head.
Strauss throws a poor cross that misses
and Malapitan counters with a big head kick but Strauss shrugs it off.
Strauss lands a nice looking body shot.
Malapitan takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Strauss throws a good cross that connects.
Malapitan uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Strauss.
Daniel Strauss has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The fighters circling - Strauss throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Daniel Strauss seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Strauss throws a shot from downtown. Malapitan moves away and avoids it.
A slow jab from Strauss misses its intended target.
Strauss lands with a cross to side of his opponent's head.
A swing and a miss from Strauss.

Strauss drives through and clinches with Malapitan against the cage.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Strauss cracks Malapitan with a nice body shot.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Strauss lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Malapitan backwards.
Strauss lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Malapitan backwards.
Malapitan has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Strauss avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.
Strauss misses with an elbow over the top.
Strauss swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Strauss misses with a punch on the inside.
Strauss lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Strauss scores with a shoulder strike.
Strauss is defending well against a takedown attempt.
Strauss tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Strauss misses with a hook from the clinch.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Strauss pushes Malapitan back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
Malapitan has dropped down and is looking to force the takedown but it's defended by Strauss after a bit of a struggle.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Dmonray Malapitan. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Strauss works on Malapitan's body with a couple of short punches.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Strauss misses with the head strike.
Malapitan blocks an uppercut.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Malapitan.
Strauss throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Strauss throws an elbow but it misses.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Strauss lands a shoulder strike.
A head punch on the inside from Strauss fails to land.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Malapitan blocks a body shot from Strauss.
Strauss lands a hook that snaps the head of Malapitan backwards.

And that's the end of the fight!
Daniel Strauss comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Malapitan 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 Anthony Taglia scores the fight 29:28
Judge Russell Pearce scores the fight 29:28
Judge Reed Andrews scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Dmonray Malapitan!