PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Klaus Hander (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Craig Charyak (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Charyak is bobbing his head along to his entrance song: Guns and Roses- Welcome to the Jungle. The key to victory for Klaus Hander has got to be keeping the fight on the feet.

Hander
vs
Charyak

191 cm
22
275 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

190 cm
22
250 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

BJJ Brown Belt
Counter striker
Good chin

BJJ Purple Belt
Basic striking
Tends to cut

Goodness You Nutrition

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 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Klaus Hander!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Craig Charyak!
The judges for this bout are Ivan Kurochkin, Valeri Chadov and Viktor Lagutenko.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Charyak stuffs the takedown attempt from Hander. Hander gets slowly back to his feet.
Hander shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Charyak as he jumps to the side.
Hander fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Klaus Hander. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Charyak fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Hander is looking to clinch.
No joy there for Charyak, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Charyak misses with a straight left.
Hander lands an overhand right.

It looks like Craig Charyak has been cut.
Horrible takedown by Hander or perhaps it was just good defense by Charyak which made him look bad.

Charyak scores with a nice takedown into half guard. Let's see what he's got on the ground.
Both fighters really going for it on the ground here!
Hander tries to strike from the bottom but it doesn't land.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Charyak working Hander over with strikes.
Charyak is taking a breather. Hander 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.
Hander tries to roll over but Charyak keeps him under control.

That's one minute gone in the round.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Charyak lands a nice short elbow.
Charyak content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
Hander is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Hander is refusing to be controlled, as Charyak sits in half guard.
Charyak content to control rather than advance.
Charyak trying to control from half guard but Hander is working away.
Charyak thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Hander's head.
Hander is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Hander is refusing to be controlled, as Charyak sits in half guard.

Well, the referee has seen enough. Neither fighter is active enough on the ground so he's stood them back up.
Charyak throws an off balance right hand
and Hander counters with a left to the body.

Charyak drives through and clinches with Hander against the cage.
Charyak misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Hander.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Charyak is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.

Charyak breaks the clinch.
Charyak looks to land a right hand but Hander moved out of range.
Charyak throws a right and a left that both miss.
Craig Charyak seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

Charyak darts in and clinches Hander up against the cage.
Charyak misses with a punch to the body.
Charyak scores with a hook to the body.
Hander is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.
Charyak is leaning against Hander and scores with a nice uppercut to the body.
A bit of stalling here from Charyak.
Charyak misses with a hook to the ribs.
Some stalling of biblical proportions here from Charyak.
Charyak tries to land knees in the clinch but Hander avoids the damage to the body.

Charyak breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Hander shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Charyak pinned against the cage. Charyak gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Hander is breathing heavily.
Hander pulls out of a head kick attempt.

Charyak clinches.
A right handed body shot lands from Charyak.
Charyak lands a body shot in the clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Charyak manages to get underhooks and slows down the pace for a moment.

Hander is fighting off a takedown attempt but Charyak is just too persistent for him and manages to trip Hander to the mat. Hander regains guard as soon as the fighters hit the mat.
Hander manages to land a sweep and now he's in mount on top!
Charyak really trying hard to get back to half guard here.
Hander can't quite control the action as he would like just now, as Charyak is looking to escape.
Hander moves to the back position.

Hander looking for the choke from the back.
Charyak wants to control his opponent's hands but Hander gets his hands free.
Charyak turns into Hander and is now in his guard.
Hander is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.
Hander is keen to just control but Charyak is a slippery customer.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Charyak wants to control but Hander is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Charyak keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Hander is tying to control. Charyak wants to improve his position but can't escape this time.

Hander looking for a kimura but he'll have to free his other leg if he wants to finish that. Perhaps he's just using it as a distraction technique.

Charyak is defending against the submission attempts here by Hander.
Hander prevents Charyak from improving his position.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Hander shoots and misses

and Charyak counters with a nice single leg takedown and he's in Hander's guard now.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for leaving it all in the cage!
Hander is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Charyak throws a big right hand that misses.
Charyak trying to control but Hander is working from the bottom.
Hander is trying to keep Charyak in close.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Craig Charyak dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Craig Charyak's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Hander throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Charyak's waist but Charyak gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Hander off to one side.
Hander misses with a takedown attempt

and Charyak counters with a shoot takedown. Hander fights it but they end up in guard.

Hander is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
Charyak wants to control from the top but Hander keeps moving.
Charyak pushing down on Hander's thigh, trying to pass to half guard. He's managed it... Nice work.
Charyak is looking to pass the guard... He's managed it - he's now in full mount!
Charyak looking to control and managing it successfully.
Charyak connects with a couple of good shots from mount.
The referee warns Hander that he has to improve his position here as he takes two more clean shots to the head.
Charyak lands with some strikes.
Hander is trying desperately to improve position.
Charyak breaks from Hander's wrist control and lands an elbow.
Charyak controlling his opponent.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Charyak is landing with some decent strikes but Hander is trying to advance his position so the referee is letting the fight continue.
Charyak in mount throwing good strikes here, bouncing his opponent's head off the canvas.
Hander working to try and regain half guard.
Charyak pausing momentarily but resumes with a couple of decent strikes that do a bit of damage.
Charyak working away from the top, dropping strikes.
Charyak controlling the pace for now.
Charyak has his opponent pinned against the cage, landing some nasty ground and pound that is really making a bit of a mess out of Hander's face.
Charyak content just to control the position here.
Charyak is landing with some decent strikes but Hander is trying to advance his position so the referee is letting the fight continue.
Charyak controlling his opponent.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd growing excited in anticipation of a finish here! Right on cue, Charyak cracks his opponent with a massive right hand that draws loud cheers!
Charyak sitting in mount, just looking to control for the moment.
Craig Charyak has got the better of the ground game so far.
Charyak with the ground and pound from mount.
Hander is squirming around, avoiding Charyak's attempts to control the action.
Charyak pausing momentarily but resumes with a couple of decent strikes that do a bit of damage.
Charyak wants to control the pace but Hander is squirming around nicely.
Hander keeping his composure momentarily, calmly looking to get back to half guard.
Charyak content just to control the position here.
Hander tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Charyak controlling from the full mount.

Despite being in the dominant position, Craig Charyak just isn't active enough and the referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Charyak fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Hander manages to avoid it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hander fails with the takedown

and Charyak counters by moving into the clinch. Good anticipation by Charyak.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Klaus Hander. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Charyak content to slow the pace in the clinch.
Charyak is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.
Hander is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.
Hander wants a takedown.
The step up in weight doesn't seem to be a problem for Charyak. He's performing admirably here against the bigger man.
Hander blocks a body shot from Charyak.
Hander goes for a takedown in the clinch but Charyak prevents it.
Charyak is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.
Charyak misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Hander misses with a punch on the inside.

Charyak has hold of one of Hander's legs. Hander is fighting the takedown attempt but Charyak gets the trip and lands the takedown into guard.
Hander keeping moving, preventing Charyak from controlling successfully.
Hander is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.
Hander throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.

Hander seems to be looking for submissions.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Hander looking for a kimura but he'll have to free his other leg if he wants to finish that. Perhaps he's just using it as a distraction technique.
Charyak missing with punches from the bottom.

Hander is looking for a kimura here.
Charyak wants to control but Hander is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Hander is keen to just control but Charyak is a slippery customer.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Charyak controlling the position for now.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Charyak trying to control here.
Charyak preventing any damage for now, controlling his opponent's head.
Charyak slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Craig Charyak showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Craig Charyak's cut.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action. This is the final round!

A big left from Charyak misses.

Charyak takes the fight into the clinch.

Charyak breaks the clinch.
Hander misses with a takedown

and Charyak counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
Hander tries to roll over but Charyak keeps him under control.
Well, if Charyak is going to just lie there, perhaps we should talk about what we're having for dinner tonight… I'm having a ham and pineapple pizza… Yum. Can't wait.
Hander is refusing to be controlled, as Charyak sits in half guard.
Hander is looking to improve his position.
Charyak missing with the ground and pound from half guard.

Hander looking to work for a kimura from the bottom.
Charyak takes a deep breath and rests his weight momentarily on top of his opponent, to control the position.
Charyak takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Hander is looking to sinch up a gullotine here but Charyak pulls his head out easily.
Charyak prevents Hander from improving his position.

Well, the referee has seen enough. Neither fighter is active enough on the ground so he's stood them back up.
Charyak rushes in with a sloppy looking punch

and Hander counters with a single leg into guard. Charyak didn't expect that.
Hander preventing the sweep.
Hander missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Charyak keeping full guard, as Hander tries to pass.
Hander postures up.
Hander passes Charyak's left leg - he's now in half guard.
Charyak is refusing to be controlled, as Hander sits in half guard.
Hander blocks the strikes from Charyak.
Hander frees up his trapped foot and advances to mount.
Charyak throwing punches from his back but nothing is landing.
Charyak is squirming around, avoiding Hander's attempts to control the action.
Hander throwing shots from mount but they're not landing.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Charyak wants to control but Hander is having none of it.
Charyak really trying hard to get back to half guard here.
Charyak is squirming around, avoiding Hander's attempts to control the action.
Hander prevents Charyak from getting the reversal.

Hander with some aggressive grappling here. He's looking for submissions here, rather than waiting for the opportunity to counter.
Charyak blocking the ground and pound.
Charyak slips a leg in and gets back to half guard.
Charyak is in trouble now - Hander has advanced to mount!
Hander trying to control but Charyak is having none of it.
Hander throwing sloppy strikes, which aren't doing any damage.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Hander jumps to side control looking for an arm triangle but Charyak manages to avoid the submission attempt.
Charyak manages to land a sweep and he's now on top! Lovely Jiu Jitsu!
Hander punching from the bottom.
Hander slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.

Hander looking for submissions off his back, moving his hips, looking for an opening.
Charyak is in close to Hander's body, working some short punches and elbows.
Hander lands a beautiful switch and he's in full mount! That could spell trouble for Charyak!
Charyak keeping his composure momentarily, calmly looking to get back to half guard.
Poor strikes thrown by Hander there. More accuracy and less frantic strikes would help!
Charyak tries to hold on but Hander pushes him away.
Charyak keeping his composure momentarily, calmly looking to get back to half guard.

Hander is thinking about an arm triangle here, looking to tighten it up before moving to side control. Charyak can see it coming though and defends well with a couple of strikes to the head and some good arm positioning.
Klaus Hander has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Charyak tries to hold on but Hander pushes him away.
Hander mounts Charyak! Really nice guard pass there!
Charyak wriggling around on the bottom manages to avoid the strikes thrown by Hander.
Hander wants to stand but Hander is holding on to him, trying to stop him posturing up.
Charyak is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
Poor strikes thrown by Hander there. More accuracy and less frantic strikes would help!
Hander thowing shots but they're missing.
Charyak tries to hold on but Hander postures up.
Charyak is desperately trying to improve his position but Hander has a good base and remains in mount.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Hander throwing sloppy strikes, which aren't doing any damage.

Hander with some aggressive grappling here. He's looking for submissions here, rather than waiting for the opportunity to counter.
Charyak throwing punches from his back but nothing is landing.
Charyak is looking to improve his position but Hander isn't that keen on the idea.

And that's the end of the fight!
Klaus Hander showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Charyak 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 Ivan Kurochkin scores the fight 28:29
Judge Valeri Chadov scores the fight 28:29
Judge Viktor Lagutenko scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Craig Charyak!