Truly great example of bout management from the Portland North American Cup. Someone made comments on the video, and I mostly agree with them, (well done whomever it was!) This is a high level bout, so it can be hard to follow, the thing to watch for is two to three tempos (actions) before the light goes off.
Luigi Mazzone is famous for his LIESS*, which he didn’t pull out until the end of the bout. He’s lost to Bratton before and seemed quite careful and conservative. I’ve never seen him fence from a classic position much. Here is an example of the LIESS in full effect, Luigi having fun and his opponent suffering. Unlike Ben Solomon, I’ve never seen Ben Bratton suffer much, so that bout easily could have gone either way.
*LIESS: Luigi’s Italian Explosive Slinky Style, a very creative and dynamic way of fencing that’s can be hard to read. Based on contrast in tempo, false information and flow of precise techniques.
