PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Tadanari Nozawa (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Kareem Kiram (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Tadanari Nozawa has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Nozawa
vs
Kiram

172 cm
24
153 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

170 cm
19
155 lbs
5 - 2 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Counter fighter
Big heart

Decent wrestler
Decent boxing
Knockout power

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 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Tadanari Nozawa!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 5 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Kareem Kiram !
The judges for this bout are Yukihiro Yamamoto, Yuuki Gou and Yasuomi Hirokawa.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Nozawa drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Kiram takes a swing at Nozawa's ribcage but misses.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Nozawa is defended easily by Kiram .
Nozawa falls off balance throwing a combination
and Kiram counters with a left to the body.
Kiram circles away from the clinch attempt.
Kiram lands the left hand.
Nozawa shoots in looking for a takedown. Kiram tries to sprawl out of it but Nozawa keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Kiram manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Nozawa darts in trying to clinch
and Kiram counters with a straight right hand.
Nozawa tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.

Kiram tries to keep at a distance but Nozawa has taken the fight into the clinch.
Nozawa missing with knees to the body.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Nozawa is working on a single leg takedown against the cage. Kiram can't fight it off and eventually Nozawa manages to take the fight to the floor. Kiram looks annoyed but at least he's managed to land in guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.
Nozawa controlling from the top position.
Kiram manages to land a sweep and now he's in mount on top!
Nozawa really trying hard to get back to half guard here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Nozawa wants to hold on but Kiram pushes him away.
Nozawa can't escape the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Nozawa is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
Nozawa is desperately trying to improve his position but Kiram has a good base and remains in mount.
Nozawa regains half guard.
Nozawa wants to get back to his feet.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Tadanari Nozawa.
Kiram cracks a nice hook into Nozawa's ribs.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Nozawa tries to move into range but Kiram moves to the side and lands with a nice right hand.
Kiram connects with a crisp jab.
Nozawa shoots for a double leg takedown but Kiram sprawls well. He's pushed Nozawa's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Tadanari Nozawa. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Nozawa takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Kiram scores with a body shot.
Nozawa takes one to the side of the head.
Nozawa doesn't manage to clinch there - Kiram circles away.
Kareem Kiram seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Nozawa tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Kiram manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Kiram scores with a decent looking hook.
Kiram misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Nozawa.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Kareem Kiram will probably get the nod.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

A jab from Kiram does it's job there.
Kiram dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Nozawa walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.
Kiram swings and misses with a hook to the body.

Nozawa shoots in from a long way out. He's driving through with the takedown attempt and he eventually gets it, landing in Kiram 's guard.
Nozawa trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Nozawa pushes down on Kiram 's leg and manages to get into half guard.
Kiram is looking to improve his position.
Kiram is trying to stand.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Nozawa thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Kiram 's head.
Nozawa trying to control from Kiram 's half guard. Kiram has other ideas though and has regained full guard.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Nozawa slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.
Kiram really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Nozawa. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

The ref stands the fighters back up. Tadanari Nozawa wasn't doing enough on the ground.
Nozawa shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Kiram defends it nicely.
Nozawa wants to clinch up but Kiram keeps it at a distance.
Kiram misses the shot to the body.
Kiram ducks down and throws a hook to the body.
Nozawa tries to clinch but Kiram is having none of it.

Nozawa looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into side control! Oh, that's bad for Kiram !
Nozawa is looking to take a break and control but Kiram is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
The strikes coming from Nozawa are missing the target in this wave of attacks.
Nozawa misses with an attempted head punch from side control.
A lull in the action here as Nozawa stalls from top position.
Nozawa trying to control the action but Kiram is working from the bottom.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Nozawa moving around in side mount but really he's just happy to control for now.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Nozawa creates some space and throws a big elbow, but Kiram sees it coming and moves his head just enough to avoid the strike.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Tadanari Nozawa dominated that second round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! And we move into the final round!

Kiram misses with a body shot

and Nozawa holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.
Kiram lands with a left to the head.
Kiram lands a shoulder strike.
Nozawa is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Kiram can't find room to land a body shot as Nozawa controls the action.
Nozawa is looking for a takedown.
Kiram lands a body shot.
Kiram lands with a short shot to the head.
Kiram wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.
A shot in the inside from Kiram .
Kiram lands a body shot in the clinch.
Kiram throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Nozawas head.
Nozawa prevents Kiram from breaking the clinch.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.

Kiram manages to break the clinch.
Nozawa fails in his attempt to clinch.
Nozawa tries to clinch up
and Kiram counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kiram just misses with a punch to the body.
Kiram clobbers Nozawa with an overhand right that has the crowd gasping. That made a horrendous noise.
Tadanari Nozawa is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Nozawa tries to close the distance and clinch but Kiram swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Kiram fakes low and throws an overhand right that catches Nozawa on the side of the head.
Nozawa avoids the body shot from Kiram .
Kiram lands with a shot to the body.
Nozawa tries to clinch up.
Kiram scores with a jab to the body.
Nozawa misses with a hook
and Kiram counters with a lovely straight right hand!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Nozawa connects with the punch.
A cross from Kiram lands.
Kiram looks to score with a jab to the body but Nozawa is just out of range.
Nozawa avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Kiram keeps the fight on the outside.
Kiram lands a nice looking body shot.
Kiram throws an overhand right that lands on Nozawa's shoulder, as Nozawa tries to avoid the shot.
Nozawa takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Kiram stuns Nozawa with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.

Nozawa moves into the clinch.
Nozawa drops down for a takedown but doesn't get it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Nozawa drops to a knee looking for a takedown but Kiram gets the underhooks and prevents it.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Tadanari Nozawa. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Nozawa misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Kiram .
Nozawa tries to land knees in the clinch but Kiram avoids the damage to the body.

Kiram breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Kiram scores with a reasonable looking shot to the body. Nozawa doesn't seem bothered though.
A jab from Kiram misses.
Kiram scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
Kiram fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Nozawa looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Nozawa takes a shot right to the bread basket.
Kareem Kiram seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Kiram throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kiram lands a right hook to the body.
Kiram is throwing a lot of body shots here, looking to wear down Nozawa rather than just go for the knockout.
Nozawa looks to clinch
letting Kiram counter with a right hand.
Nozawa takes a shot to the body in his stride.
Kiram lands a body shot.
Nice cross by Kiram .
Kiram scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
Nozawa tries to move into range but Kiram moves to the side and lands with a nice right hand.
Kareem Kiram is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Kiram connects with a body shot that sends Nozawa's belly button to the back.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Kiram tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Nozawa was well out of range. Poor timing from Kiram .
Kiram lands a powerful looking uppercut that connected with his opponent's jaw.
Kiram throws a lazy right hand but Nozawa sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.

And that's the end of the fight!
Kareem Kiram comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Kiram 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 3 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Yukihiro Yamamoto scores the fight 28:29
Judge Yuuki Gou scores the fight 29:28
Judge Yasuomi Hirokawa scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by split decision... Kareem Kiram !
Kareem Kiram seemed lost for words in his post fight interview but he remembered to thank his fans and directed everyone to his website.