PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Gabilondo Soler (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Moishe Kaplan (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). These two fighters really are very evenly matched on the feet - it will be fascinating to see who can assert themselves in that aspect of the fight.

Soler
vs
Kaplan

170 cm
24
176 lbs
6 - 3 - 0

177 cm
23
180 lbs
10 - 4 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Solid boxing
Very strong

BJJ Blue Belt
Decent boxing
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 6 - 3 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Gabilondo Soler!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 10 - 4 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Moishe Kaplan!
The judges for this bout are Aleksei Zolotukhin, Viktor Lagutenko and Illya Tyunina.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Soler closes the distance and pushes Kaplan back into the cage.
Soler is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.
Soler goes for a takedown in the clinch but Kaplan prevents it.

Kaplan breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
A slow jab from Kaplan misses its intended target.
Kaplan jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Kaplan misses the jab.
Kaplan thows a left - swing and a miss!

Kaplan drops Soler with a beautiful combination! Soler stares up at his opponent, who ushers him back to his feet - Kaplan is looking for the KO!
A punch combination from Kaplan misses.
Soler displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Kaplan throws out the jab.
Soler changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Kaplan tries to avoid it but Soler manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Kaplan to the ground. Kaplan escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Gabilondo Soler. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Kaplan misses with a few strikes there.
A big left from Kaplan misses.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Soler showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Kaplan.
Kaplan avoids the clinch attempt nicely.

Soler shoots in for a takedown from distance. He catches Kaplan napping and manages to drive through into side control!
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Kaplan is looking to regain half guard here but Soler keeps moving and retains side control.
Kaplan is trying to buck Soler off.

Soler tries for a kimura but Kaplan is defending well.
Soler misses with an attempted head punch from side control.
Soler 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.
Soler advances to mount.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Kaplan can do anything to dispel that myth.
Kaplan flailing away with punches but nothing is landing.
Soler looking to ground and pound his opponent to a finish here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kaplan really trying hard to get back to half guard here.
Soler controlling from mount.
Kaplan really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Soler. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Kaplan is bucking up trying to escape but Soler cracks him with another couple of good strikes.
Kaplan has given up his back here. Will Soler look for the submission or keep pounding away?
Kaplan trying to control but he's just got himself in more trouble.
Soler slows the pace down here. Having a little breather whilst he's in a dominant position, looking to rest and regain some energy, ready to go for the finish.
Kaplan just trying to survive but Soler is wriggling into a better position, looking to finish.
Kaplan holding both Soler 's hands and preventing any damage.
Soler lands an elbow to the side of the head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kaplan rolls and manages to get back to half guard. Nicely done.

Soler is looking for an arm triangle, whilst trying to pass to side control. Kaplan doesn't seem that keen to cooperate though. No luck this time Soler.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Soler wants to take a breather but Kaplan is having none of it.
Soler is working hard to pass the guard. He's done it - he's now in full mount! Trouble for Kaplan!
Kaplan can't escape the position.

Soler working for a submission but Kaplan is keeping him at bay.
Soler takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
Kaplan working to try and regain half guard.
Kaplan is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Soler in mount throwing good strikes here, bouncing his opponent's head off the canvas.

Soler working for a guillotine from mount but Kaplan is in no mood to give up.
Soler looking to control but Kaplan is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
Kaplan is trying to escape the mount but Soler keeps good control and instead manages to take Kaplan's back.

Soler working for the choke.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
I really don't envy Kaplan right now.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Kaplan has the hand control, trying to stop the rear naked choke.

Soler has his opponent's back and is working for the choke.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Gabilondo Soler dominated that round.
That's time! Back to the action!

Soler shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Kaplan but Kaplan pushes him off and we're back to square one.

Kaplan gets taken down but at least he's managed to land in guard.
Soler is looking to work some ground and pound but Kaplan has wrist control.
Kaplan working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Soler.
Kaplan wants to stand but Soler is controlling the position.
Soler throws a big right hand that misses.
Kaplan thows some rabbit punches from the bottom but they don't do any damage.
Kaplan trying to keep a closed guard but Soler is proving a slippery customer.
Soler won't allow Kaplan to sweep him here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kaplan striking off his back but it's not causing Soler any problems.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
No luck for Soler with that takedown attempt.
Soler fails with the takedown.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Gabilondo Soler. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Soler tries to clinch up but Kaplan circles away and keeps his distance.
Kaplan throws a jab when Soler was well out of range.
Moishe Kaplan is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Kaplan throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Soler sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Soler wants to clinch.
Soler defending well as Kaplan loads up on a big left hand.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.

Soler shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Soler showed some decent athleticism there.
Kaplan is staying active underneath Soler, who seems content to just control the action from this position.

Soler is looking for a kimura here.
Gabilondo Soler overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Soler thows a huge punch but Kaplan dodges it nicely.
Soler uses his free foot to push down on Kaplan's thigh. Eventually he works his other foot free and he's advanced to mount - this is trouble for Kaplan.
Soler landing strikes, looking to finish!
Kaplan is in all sorts of trouble here.
Kaplan wants to control but Soler is having none of it.
Soler tries to control but Kaplan wriggling away.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Soler looking for a guillotine from mount but Kaplan is having none of it.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Soler sends his fist crashing into the mat - the crowd let out a collective ooooooh. Let's hope he's not broken it!
Soler landing punches.
Kaplan really trying hard to get back to half guard here.
Soler can't quite control the action as he would like just now, as Kaplan is looking to escape.

Soler looking for a guillotine from mount but Kaplan is having none of it.
Kaplan tries to reverse the position but Soler maintains control.

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.
Kaplan really wants to buck Soler off and get back to his feet.
Soler wants to control the pace but Kaplan is squirming around nicely.

Soler working for a guillotine from mount but Kaplan is in no mood to give up.
Kaplan is in all sorts of trouble here.
Soler fakes a shot to the body and cracks his opponent in the head. Nice ground and pound there!
Kaplan is wriggling around trying to escape.
Kaplan throwing hammer fists to the chest of Soler. What's that going to do exactly?
Soler landing shots from mount.
Soler pushing the pace here, looking to move to his opponents back and work for a finish.

Soler with some aggressive grappling here. He's looking for submissions here, rather than waiting for the opportunity to counter.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Gabilondo Soler dominated that second round.
That's time! Soler's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight. So, we enter the final round. Let's see if either fighter can bring us a finish, or whether we're going to the judges scorecards.

Kaplan throws a looping overhand right but Soler ducks down to avoid it.
Kaplan thows a left - swing and a miss!
Soler changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Kaplan tries to avoid it but Soler manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Kaplan to the ground. Kaplan escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Kaplan fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Soler looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Soler showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Kaplan.
Soler tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Kaplan paws at him with a jab and circles away.

Soler throws the overhand right but ducks down into a quick takedown attempt. Kaplan was covering up waiting for the punch and Soler finishes the takedown easily into guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Kaplan throwing his legs up looking for a triangle.
Kaplan takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Soler advances position into side control!
Soler is staying tight to Kaplan's torso, preventing him from escaping.
Kaplan is looking for a sweep.
Soler is looking to take a break and control but Kaplan is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Soler throws a knee to the body but it doesn't do much damage.
Gabilondo Soler is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Kaplan is looking for a sweep.
A lull in the action here.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.
A big left from Kaplan misses.

Soler shoots in for a takedown from distance. He catches Kaplan napping and manages to drive through into side control!
Kaplan is looking for a sweep.
Kaplan pushes Soler away and creates a bit of space to escape. He's almost out here... but no, Soler gets a good hold of his legs and remains firmly in side control.
Soler is pausing for a moment. What's he doing? It looks like he's clearing his nose. Oh dude! He's shot a load of snot all down Kaplan's shoulder. That is not cool.
Soler seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Kaplan for as long as he can get away with.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Soler has knee on belly and moves into mount.
Kaplan wants to control but Soler is having none of it.
Soler controlling the position easily from mount.
Kaplan is looking to get back to his feet - it's going to be hard from this position.
Soler content just to control the position here.
Kaplan tries to reverse the position but Soler maintains control.
Soler blocks Kaplan's feeble attempts to strike from the bottom.
Soler controlling his opponent.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Kaplan swinging wildly from the bottom but he's not landing.
Soler takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.

The referee stands the fighters back up. Gabilondo Soler just wasn't active enough from the dominant position.

Soler closes the distance and scores a nice trip takedown into half guard. Kaplan did well to prevent Soler getting side control.
Kaplan looks like he's trying to stand up.
Moishe Kaplan has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Soler in particular looking to stall.

And that's the end of the fight!
Gabilondo Soler showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Soler, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 Aleksei Zolotukhin scores the fight 30:27
Judge Viktor Lagutenko scores the fight 30:27
Judge Illya Tyunina scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Gabilondo Soler!