PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Ilya Kushnevich (ranked 3103 p4p, 2585 weight class) and Billy Irish (ranked 376 p4p, 324 weight class). Both these guys have really solid chins. Will we see a standup war or will they both decide that a knockout is unlikely and try to win the fight elsewhere?

Kushnevich
vs
Irish

179 cm
22
160
4 - 4 - 0

169 cm
21
155
4 - 2 - 0

Good wrestling
Great low kicks
Granite chin

Good wrestler
Decent boxing
Good gas tank

Conviction
Conquer

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the lightweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 4 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Ilya Kushnevich!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 4 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Billy Irish!
The judges for this bout are Steven Brown, James Glass and Chris Edwards.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Kushnevich misses with a kick to the body.
Kushnevich throws a hook but Irish blocks it.
Kushnevich staying out of range there.
Irish slips under a jab.
Irish keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Kushnevich ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Irish throws a two punch combo that lands nicely.
Kushnevich with a poor takedown
and Irish connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Irish throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Kushnevich thumps Irish with a low kick.
Kushnevich has been talking about how he's improved his wrestling in the run up to the fight so let's see if that's enough to sway the balance.
Kushnevich misses the jab.
Irish throws a good cross that connects.
Kushnevich ducks under a wild hook from Irish.
Kushnevich tried to score with a low kick but Irish checks it.
A looping hook to the body misses from Kushnevich. Irish does a little dance to reset his feet.
Kushnevich connects with a good right hand that stumbles Irish. Irish circles away out of range and recomposes himself.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Irish lands a body shot.
A big right from Irish misses.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Irish shoots for a takedown but Kushnevich saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Irish throws a big shot that misses.
It looked like Kushnevich wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Irish lands an overhand right.
Kushnevich lands with a hook. Irish tried to avoid it but it clipped the top of his head.
A lazy left from Kushnevich finds it's target.
Kushnevich slips a straight right by Irish.
Irish misses the jab.
Irish uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Kushnevich.
Nice defenses there by Kushnevich.
Kushnevich misses with a low kick.
Kushnevich lands a leg kick that knocks Irish off balance momentarily.
Irish throws a front kick aimed at Kushnevich's knee but Kushnevich avoids it well.
Irish ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Irish looks to land a left hand but Kushnevich moved out of range nicely.
Kushnevich connects with a solid leg kick.
Kushnevich throws a body kick, spinning off balance
and Irish counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Kushnevich throws a leg kick which misses Irish's front leg but catches the back leg as Irish tries to avoid it.
Irish might want to mix his strikes up a bit more. He's just going for head shots at the moment and that can become a bit predictable.
Kushnevich misses with a takedown attempt - Irish sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Kushnevich misses with a takedown
and Irish counters with a nice uppercut.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Ilya Kushnevich. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Irish cracks a nice hook into Kushnevich's ribs.
Kushnevich takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Kushnevich avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Kushnevich slips under a jab from Irish.
A slapping body kick lands there for Kushnevich.
A punch combination from Irish misses.
Kushnevich appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Kushnevich scores with a nice strike.
Irish checks a low kick from Kushnevich.
Irish throws the left hand but Kushnevich avoids the punch easily.
Kushnevich throws the left hand but Irish avoids the punch easily.
A slow jab from Irish misses its intended target.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kushnevich ducks under a wild hook from Irish.
Irish throws a shot from downtown. Kushnevich moves away and avoids it.
Irish misses with a looping left.
A telegraphed right hand from Irish misses the target.
Kushnevich lands a leg kick that knocks Irish off balance momentarily.
Kushnevich motions for Irish to come forward. Kushnevich throws a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Irish fails to land the takedown.
Kushnevich scores with the left hand. Irish knows he should have avoided that one.
Irish blocks a head kick by Kushnevich.
Irish misses with an uppercut. Kushnevich saw that one coming.
Kushnevich displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Irish throws out the jab.

Kushnevich shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.
Irish is looking to get full guard. It looks like he might be successful but at the last minute Kushnevich jumps into side control!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kushnevich working the head with strikes.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Irish is trying to control Kushnevich's posture but Kushnevich avoids it.
Irish is trying to get back to half guard.
Irish keeps trying to improve his position.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Kushnevich wants to lay and pray for a moment but Irish keeps working.
Irish taking a bit of punishment here - Kushnevich scoring with strikes.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Irish is not content to let Kushnevich control the position.
Irish sneaks a leg under to get back to half guard.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Ilya Kushnevich will probably get the nod.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare each other down, ready to get back to the action.

Kushnevich slips a jab from Irish.
Irish connects with a body shot.
Kushnevich takes a body punch but keeps moving.
Kushnevich throws a hook but Irish blocks it.
Irish steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Kushnevich.

Kushnevich gets caught on his heels momentarily as he allows Irish to score an easy takedown into full guard.
Kushnevich is pulling down on Irish's head to control his posture.
Kushnevich 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.
Kushnevich tries to land a sweep but no joy.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Irish passes Kushnevich's right leg, so he's now in half guard.
Kushnevich won't allow Irish to pass to mount.
Kushnevich wants to improve his position but Irish is controlling well.
Kushnevich is trying is best to control the position here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kushnevich wants to get back to full guard.
Irish is looking to pass Kushnevich's guard but actually Kushnevich recovers to full guard.
Irish trying to control but Kushnevich is working from the bottom.
Kushnevich is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.

Kushnevich is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Irish trying to control from the bottom.
Ground and pound from Kushnevich.
Ilya Kushnevich overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ground and pound from Kushnevich.
Irish wants to improve his position but Kushnevich is controlling well.
Irish is trying to maintain the position but Kushnevich is very close to passing his half guard.
Kushnevich wants to pass to mount but Irish is defending the position.
Kushnevich working Irish over with strikes.
Kushnevich working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
Kushnevich slips a nice elbow through Irish's hands, connecting with Irish's forehead.
Kushnevich prevents Irish from improving his position.
Kushnevich lands strikes from half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kushnevich working the head and body with strikes.

Irish looking for submissions from an awkward position here.
Still in half guard, Kushnevich seems content to control.
Irish is looking for a sweep. Kushnevich is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Kushnevich is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Kushnevich working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
Irish moves into full guard.
Our spies down at at The Barn inform us that Irish has really been working on his submissions in the buildup to this fight. Will it pay off?
Kushnevich throws a big elbow that misses.
Kushnevich throws a strike but Irish rolls with it and manages to sweep. Now he's in guard on top.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Irish trying to control the position from guard on top but Kushnevich is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Kushnevich tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Kushnevich looking to control.
Kushnevich keeping full guard, as Irish tries to pass.
Kushnevich working a defensive guard here.
Irish looking to pass the guard.
Irish trying to control the position from guard on top but Kushnevich is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Kushnevich trying to control the position.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Ilya Kushnevich will probably get the nod.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

Irish moving in and out of range nicely, whilst landing the scoring shot.

Irish is looking for a takedown here. He's shot in and has managed to get it, finishing up in Kushnevich's half guard.
Kushnevich wants to get back to full guard.
Irish throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Irish wants to free his trapped foot but Kushnevich is holding on for dear life with his legs.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Irish prevents Kushnevich from improving his position.

Irish is trying for a guillotine from the top but the pressure isn't in the right place so Kushnevich is just riding it out for now. Irish eventually gives up the hold.
Irish is keen to just control but Kushnevich is a slippery customer.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Irish is thinking about going for an arm triangle but he can't free his leg.
Kushnevich trying to control here.
Kushnevich is looking to improve his position.
Billy Irish has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

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.
Irish is trying to control. Kushnevich wants to improve his position but can't escape this time.
Irish tries to pass to full mount but Kushnevich defends it.
The referee looks like he's ready to step in and stand the fighters back up.
Irish not landing any meaningful shots this time.

Irish is working for a submission of some sort.
Kushnevich tries to get to full guard but Irish has control of the leg.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up.
Kushnevich avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Kushnevich tries to counter with a takedown but Irish is quick to defend against it.
Kushnevich misses with a straight right.
Kushnevich dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Kushnevich fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Irish has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
Kushnevich tries to score with a leg kick but it misses it's target.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Irish cracks Kushnevich with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.
Kushnevich thuds a mid kick into his opponent's body. That will wear on Irish if he has to take too many more of those.
Kushnevich avoids the body shot from Irish.
Good work by Irish as he checks the leg kick.
A slow jab from Irish misses its intended target.
Kushnevich shapes like he's going to throw a leg kick but settles back down.
Kushnevich uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Irish.
Irish misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Kushnevich.
Kushnevich with a nice calf kick.
Irish will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Irish lands a jab to Kushnevich's midsection.
Kushnevich tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Irish manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
A telegraphed right hand from Irish misses the target.
Irish pushing out the jab but it's not landing.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Irish looks to land a right hand but Kushnevich moved out of range.
Good exchange - Kushnevich coming out on top.
Kushnevich scores with a jab to the body.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Irish dips to his left and cracks Kushnevich with an uppercut!
Irish drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Kushnevich thuds his shin into the meat of Irish's side.
Irish looks to score with a jab to the body but Kushnevich is just out of range.
Irish on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Kushnevich. Kushnevich obviously looking to wear him down.
Irish takes a push kick to the midsection and stumbles backwards.
Irish shoots in but doesn't get the takedown

and Kushnevich counters by moving into the clinch.
Irish takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Irish lands a left hand.
Kushnevich lands a nice looking hook to the body, against the cage.
Kushnevich lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
Kushnevich lands a nice shot to the body.
Kushnevich wants to take the fight to the mat but Irish manages to get underhooks and keep the fight in the clinch.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Ilya Kushnevich.
Well Kushnevich 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 Steven Brown scores the fight 30:27
Judge James Glass scores the fight 30:27
Judge Chris Edwards scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Ilya Kushnevich!
During a confident post fight interview, Ilya Kushnevich thanked all his fans. He seemed very genuine when describing how motivated his fans keep him.