PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Joshua Drake (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Victor Volz (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Volz is bouncing up and down as he enters the arena, backed by Anthem of Courage. Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Drake
vs
Volz

198 cm
22
260 lbs
4 - 0 - 0

186 cm
23
245 lbs
3 - 0 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Solid boxing
Very strong

BJJ Blue Belt
Decent boxing
Powerful

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 4 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Joshua Drake!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Victor Volz!
The judges for this bout are Matti Vanhoillinen, Anni Minnemäki and Roosa Järviläinen.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Volz lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Drake circles away quickly and effectively.
Volz goes to the watering hole and comes back with a big thumbs up from the judges as he scores a three punch combo.

It looks like Joshua Drake has been cut.
Nice sprawl there from Volz as Drake shoots in.
Volz misses with a series of wild punches.
Drake drops his hands momentarily and Volz takes advantage with a crisp shot to the head.
Volz looks to land a left hand but Drake moved out of range nicely.
Drake defending well as Volz loads up on a big left hand.
Drake scores with a nice strike.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Drake slips a jab from Volz.
Drake thows a body shot but no joy.
Victor Volz seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Volz misses with a jab, cross combination.
Volz misses with a two punch combination.
Drake fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Volz looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Volz misses with a body punch
and Drake counters with a three punch combo that has Volz backing up. Volz nods at Drake to acknowledge the strikes.
Volz throws a combination that misses
and Drake counters with a nice uppercut.
Volz swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Drake counters with a left to the body.
Volz looks gassed!
Drake tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Volz swings wildly with a couple of big hooks

and Drake counters with a shoot takedown. Volz fights it but they end up in guard.

Volz is rocked!
Drake is looking to stand up but Volz won't let him.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

Drake thinks about going for a leg but decides against it, in order to maintain the position.
Drake wanted to stand there but Volz had control of the position.
Drake passes into half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
It looks like Drake is going to stand back up.
Drake is taking a breather. Volz says something to him but it's hard to make out. Perhaps he's telling him to get on with it and actually do something.
Drake trying to control from Volz's half guard. Volz has other ideas though and has regained full guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Drake trying to control but Volz is working from the bottom.
Drakeis looking to pass into half guard but Volz pushes him away with his feet and jumps on top - now Volz is in guard.
Drake is striking from the bottom but Volz uses the opportunity to pass into half guard.
Drake slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.
Volz won't allow Drake to get back to his feet.
Drake will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Volz is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
Volz tries to stand but Drake is controlling from the bottom.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Volz controlling from the top position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Joshua Drake dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Joshua Drake's cut.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action.

Volz swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Drake counters with a straight right hand.
Volz lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as Drake backs up against the cage.
Volz misses with a combination

and Drake counters with a big uppercut that knocks Volz off his feet! Drake dives into side control looking to finish!
Volz is still in real trouble! Can Drake finish him?
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Volz parries the strikes from Drake easily there. Drake is wary of posturing up too much because it might enable Volz to escape.
Volz seems to have recovered his senses.
Volz defending against the ground and pound.
Volz managing to avoid any damage from the strikes thrown by Drake.

Drake has had enough of the ground for now and decides to stand.
Volz misses with a telegraphed body shot
and Drake counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Drake shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Volz as he avoids it easily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Volz avoids a punch combination nicely.
A combination from Volz does no damage.
Left hook, right uppercut from Volz.
A combination from Volz does no damage.
Joshua Drake is winning the standup battle so far.
Volz swings wildly with a couple of big hooks

so Drake counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
Volz wants to control here, rather than go for any submissions from the bottom. At least for now.
Volz is breathing heavily.
Drake trying to stand up but can't free himself from Volz's guard.
Drake throws and elbow that misses. Volz uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Drake's guard. Nice move by Volz!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Volz prevents Drake from getting back to his feet.
Drake is trying to control the position but Volz postures up.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Drake wants to get back to his feet but Volz is in a dominant position and won't allow it.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Volz misses with a double jab.
Volz swinging wilding here.
Drake wants to clinch up but Volz keeps it at a distance.
Volz moves into range and connects with a jab.
Volz throws a series of punches but Drake avoids them all with ease.
Volz throws a left and a right that both miss

and Drake counters with a nice double leg into guard.
Drake trying to control but Volz is working from the bottom.
Drake would like to get this fight back to the feet but can't get free from the closed guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Drake trying to control the position from guard on top but Volz is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Drake trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Volz looking to control the pace of the fight rather than finish it.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Joshua Drake dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Joshua Drake's cut.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! This is the final round!

Drake looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Volz avoids the body shot from Drake.
Volz swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Volz throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Drake.
Volz throws a combination that misses

and Drake counters with a leg kick then a big left hand that sends Volz down! Drake is looking to finish but Volz is intelligently defending himself.
Drake controlling from the top position.
Volz has a closed guard, preventing Drake from standing up.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Drake stops Volz from standing up.
Drake would like to get this fight back to the feet but can't get free from the closed guard.
Volz controlling Drake's posture.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.
Drake thows a big elbow that misses.
Volz avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.
Volz falls off balance throwing a combination
and Drake counters nicely by changing levels and landing a hook to the body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Volz throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Volz misses with a jab, cross combination.
Volz misses with the combination.
Volz lands a with a good body shot.
Volz misses with a double jab.
Volz throws a series of punches but Drake moves out of range.
Drake throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Danga de danga de dang - Volz scores with a four punch combination!
Volz scores with a one two! Drake had his feet all tangled up there and couldn't avoid the strikes.
Volz fails to land with a series of punches.
Drake fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Volz manages to avoid it.
Volz jabs Drake right on the nose. Drake blinks but takes it well.
Volz throws a left and a right that both miss
and Drake counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.
Drake throws a head kick but Volz moves out of range.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Volz misses with a two punch combination.
Drake keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Joshua Drake is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Drake scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Drake is looking to wear down Volz with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Volz takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Drake slips a jab and a cross from Volz.
Volz throws a left and a right that both miss

and Drake counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
This has been an exciting period of action!

Drake decides he's had enough of the ground and stands up.
Volz misses with a combination
and Drake counters with a straight right hand.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Volz misses with a combination
and Drake counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.
Volz throws a left and a right that both miss

and Drake counters with a shoot takedown. Volz fights it but they end up in guard.
Victor Volz has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Joshua Drake is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Drake trying to control the position from guard on top but Volz is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

And that's the end of the fight!
Joshua Drake showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Drake 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 Matti Vanhoillinen scores the fight 30:27
Judge Anni Minnemäki scores the fight 30:27
Judge Roosa Järviläinen scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Joshua Drake!