PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Stephen Chen (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Mertsi Lindeman (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Stephen Chen has a significant reach advantage - let's see if he can make it count.

Chen
vs
Lindeman

168 cm
18
140 lbs
1 - 4 - 0

155 cm
18
130 lbs
0 - 1 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Good chin

BJJ White Belt
Brawler
Solid chin

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 1 - 4 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Stephen Chen!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Mertsi Lindeman!
The judges for this bout are Peter Branson, Dirk Anderson and Winston Alpacca.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Chen shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Lindeman but Lindeman pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Lindeman looks really tired already! That doesn't bode well for a good, competitive fight!
Chen shoots in for a double leg but Lindeman sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
Chen shoots in for a double leg but Lindeman sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Stephen Chen. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Lindeman shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Chen counters with an inside leg kick.
Chen lands with a thumping leg kick.
A slapping body kick lands there for Chen.

Chen clinches with his opponent.

Chen breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Lindeman looks more muscular than last time we saw him. He must have been on the weights.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Lindeman takes one to the side of the head.
Lindeman jabs Chen right on the nose. Chen blinks but takes it well.
Chen throws a series of punches but Lindeman avoids them all with ease.
Chen tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Lindeman defends well and Chen ends up having to push Lindeman into the cage where they will battle it out in the clinch.
Lindeman is trying to drag Chen to the mat but Chen just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Chen successfully pulls guard.
Chen pulls Lindeman in close to prevent any damage.
Lindeman stopping the sweep attempt from Chen.
Chen will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.

Chen has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but Lindeman can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.
Chen is pulling down on Lindeman's head to control his posture.

Chen is edging up against the cage. He's using the cage to get back to his feet. Nice work there - the fighters are clinched.

Chen pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.

Chen moves into the clinch.
Chen changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Lindeman fights it off and pushes away nicely.
Lindeman has his head slapped from side to side by a 3 punch combination. That must have hurt him.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Chen clinches up with Lindeman and pushes him back against the cage.
Chen tries to score a body lock takedown but Lindeman shows good agility there to stay on his feet.
A head punch on the inside from Lindeman fails to land.

Chen ties up his opponent against the cage and manages to drag the fight down to the ground. Chen no doubt will be looking to work submissions from his guard.
Lindeman stopping the sweep attempt from Chen.
Chen manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Lindeman manages to get himself to full guard.

Lindeman preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Chen engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
Chen has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Chen slips nicely into half guard.
Chen sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Lindeman defending well though.

Chen stands up from half guard... He's had enough of that ground malarky for the time being.
Lindeman stumbles momentarily as he takes a strong leg kick from Chen.
Chen shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Lindeman but Lindeman pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Chen dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Stephen Chen dominated that round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Chen tries to score a power double leg takedown but Lindeman sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten Chen somewhat.
Chen stuffs the takedown.
Chen lands a jab followed by a nice looking cross.
Chen shoots in for a takedown but Lindeman shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
Chen shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Lindeman as he avoids it easily.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Stephen Chen. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Chen takes the fight into the clinch.
Some stalling of biblical proportions here from Chen.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Chen has dropped down and is looking to force the takedown but it's defended by Lindeman after a bit of a struggle.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Chen gets double underhooks to prevent a takedown attempt from Lindeman.

Chen pulls guard.
Lindeman is looking to pass into half guard but Chen pushes him away with his feet and jumps on top - now Chen is in guard.

Chen 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.

Chen gets to his feet - Lindeman follows without any prompting.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Chen shoots in for a double leg but Lindeman sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
Nice takedown defense from Lindeman. No joy for Chen on that attempt.
Chen fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Lindeman avoids it really well and circles away.
Stephen Chen is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.

Chen shoots in for a takedown and gets it. Let's see what he's got on the mat.
Chen's corner is telling him to maintain position.
Chen passes Lindeman's left leg - he's now in half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Chen is working hard to pass the guard. He's done it - he's now in full mount! Trouble for Lindeman!
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Lindeman is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
Chen controlling his opponent.
Lindeman wants to hold on but Chen pushes him away.
Chen tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
Chen sends his fist crashing into the mat - the crowd let out a collective ooooooh. Let's hope he's not broken it!
Chen is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Lindeman can do to turn this around?

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Chen sitting in mount, just looking to control for the moment.
This is a sustained period of stalling by Chen.

Chen is going oldschool here, as he tries to force Lindeman to tap using a forearm choke. This isn't 1993 though, so Lindeman shrugs it off.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Chen takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Stephen Chen dominated that second round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business. This is the final round!

Lindeman slaps away a takedown attempt from Chen, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Chen throws a head kick that connects with a bit of head and a bit of hand.
Lindeman tries to clinch up but Chen circles away and keeps his distance.
Chen misses with a takedown attempt - Lindeman sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Lindeman misses with a double jab.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Chen misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Stephen Chen. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Chen rushes Lindeman and presses him up against the cage.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

Chen pulls guard successfully.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Chen lands a beautiful sweep and he's now moved into his opponent's guard.

Lindeman throws a couple of shots from the bottom but they don't land.
Chen not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Chen postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Chen slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
Stephen Chen overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
My god... these two guys really need to pick up the pace or everyone will leave to go get a beer.
Chen throwing strikes from guard but Lindeman blocks nicely.
Chen is pushing down on Lindeman's leg trying to pass to half guard. Lindeman is fighting to maintain full guard but Chen has managed to sneak the leg through.
The referee calls for the fighters to work.
Chen thows a huge punch but Lindeman dodges it nicely.

Chen is working for a submission of some sort.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Chen is working for submissions here but there's nothing on.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.

Chen takes the fight into the clinch.

Chen manages to pull guard. Let's see whether he can land a sub off his back.
Chen looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Lindeman has decided he wants to stand but the closed guard of Chen is proving hard to escape from.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Chen is doing well to control the posture of his opponent and prevent any damage.

Chen has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but Lindeman can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.
Chen manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Lindeman manages to get himself to full guard.

Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Chen controlling from the top position.

And that's the end of the fight!
Stephen Chen showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Chen has outscored his opponent in every aspect of the fight today. Only a scarily incompetent judge or two will keep him from a well deserved win... 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 Peter Branson scores the fight 30:27
Judge Dirk Anderson scores the fight 30:27
Judge Winston Alpacca scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Stephen Chen!