PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Lee Struthers (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Vitaliy Sitkin (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). This should be fireworks!

Struthers
vs
Sitkin

186 cm
21
169 lbs
0 - 1 - 0

183 cm
23
154 lbs
2 - 1 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Excellent boxer
Very strong

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter striker
Determined

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 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Lee Struthers!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 1 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Vitaliy Sitkin!
The judges for this bout are Dmitry Maklakov, Vladimir Khabensky and Aleksandr Martynov.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Sitkin doesn't manage to clinch there - Struthers circles away.
Struthers misses with a series of wild punches.
Struthers throws a series of punches but Sitkin moves out of range.
Struthers lands with a hook. Sitkin tried to avoid it but it clipped the top of his head.
Struthers looks to land a combination but Sitkin avoids it well.
Struthers fails to land with a series of punches.

Sitkin clinches.

Sitkin has dropped down and is working for a takedown. Struthers is trying to keep an underhook but Sitkin manages to get the takedown into half guard.
Struthers is trying to stand.
Sitkin thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Struthers's head.
Sitkin wants to control but Struthers is keeping him busy.
Sitkin throwing shots but Struthers is blocking nicely.

Struthers pushes Sitkin off and gets back to his feet.

Struthers closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Struthers gets underhooks to prevent Sitkin's takedown attempt.

Struthers breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Sitkin defending well as Struthers loads up on a big left hand.
Sitkin swinging wildly here.
Struthers misses with a combination
and Sitkin counters with a straight punch to the midsection.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Struthers fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Sitkin moves his head to the side to avoid a jab but walks straight into a cross.
Sitkin ducks under a wild hook from Struthers.
Sitkin throws a right and a left that both miss.
Boom, another hit is landed. "You're gunna get knocked out" taunts Struthers, as that shot connected.

Struthers fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Sitkin, pushing him back against the cage.
Struthers scores with a hook to the body.
Sitkin is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Struthers pulls him back up using the underhooks.

Struthers breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Struthers cracks Sitkin with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.
Sitkin blocks a jab.
Sitkin throws out a loose jab but Struthers uses good head movement to avoid it.
Struthers lands a slapping body shot.
Struthers misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Struthers is breathing heavily.
Struthers swings and misses with a hook to the body.
A left and a right from Struthers both land. Nice combination.
Struthers lands an overhand right.
A combination from Struthers does no damage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Good shot there by Sitkin.
Struthers keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Sitkin.
Lee Struthers is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Sitkin wants to clinch.

Sitkin clinches with his opponent.
Sitkin fails to pull guard.
Lee Struthers has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Vitaliy Sitkin.

Struthers escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Struthers tests Sitkin's chin there with a solid looking shot.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Struthers looks to score with a jab to the body but Sitkin is just out of range.

Sitkin moves into the clinch.
Nice body punch from Struthers - that landed with a thud.
Sitkin has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Struthers is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
Struthers digs a right hand into Sitkin's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Sitkin's gas tank.
Struthers prevents a takedown attempt there.

Struthers manages to break the clinch.
Struthers throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Sitkin stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Struthers scores with a three punch combo!
Struthers's corner calls for a 1-2. Struthers obliges with the 1 part as he scores the single shot and moves back out of range.
Struthers moves into range and throws a lovely three punch combination.
Struthers lands a jab-cross combination.
Struthers lands a beauty of a right hand that gets the crowd cheering.
Struthers lands a jab followed by a nice looking cross.
Jab, cross, leg kick. Nice combination by Struthers!
Struthers uses good footwork to get in and out and land a nice right hand before Sitkin has time to react.
Sitkin is a painfully thin specimen of a man. You do wonder whether a good body kick would snap him clean in two.
Struthers dips to his left and cracks Sitkin with an uppercut!
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Struthers lands with a two punch combination before moving back out of range.
Struthers lands a glancing blow to the side of Sitkin's head.
Struthers throws a left and a right that both miss

and Sitkin counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
Struthers wants to get back to his feet.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Struthers makes some distance and scrambles quickly back to his feet. Nice work!
Struthers is working the combinations to good effect here.

Struthers closes the distance and pushes Sitkin back into the cage.

Struthers breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Struthers stooping low to avoid any incoming strikes and then lunges in with an uppercut come cross that lands flush.
Struthers fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Sitkin manages to avoid it.

Sitkin shoots in looking for a single leg takedown. Struthers is trying to defend but Sitkin finishes it well and ends up in half guard. Let's see if he can advance position further.
Sitkin is looking to take a break and control but Struthers is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.

Struthers kicks Sitkin off and gets back to his feet.
Lee Struthers seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!

Struthers pushes Sitkin up against the cage in a clinch.

Struthers breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Lee Struthers dominated that round.
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.

Struthers swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Sitkin takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.
Struthers stalks Sitkin and leaps in with a furious combination of punches. Uppercuts and crosses smash into Sitkin's face. Sitkin staggers backwards, shaken.
Some wild striking there from Sitkin.

Sitkin clinches.

Struthers escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Struthers fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Struthers throws a right hand that Sitkin ducks under and follows up with a left that Sitkin also avoids with ease.
Sitkin fails with a takedown attempt.
Struthers throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Struthers closes the distance and lands a one-two.
Sitkin shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Struthers pinned against the cage. Struthers gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Good exchange - Struthers coming out on top.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Struthers rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Sitkin moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Jab from Struthers.
Sitkin walks straight into an uppercut. Luckily it didn't land flush.
Nice body punch from Struthers.
Struthers lands the left hand.
Lee Struthers is winning the standup battle so far.

Struthers closes the distance and clinches.

Struthers breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Sitkin fails with an attempt to clinch.
Struthers moves into range and throws a combination. A nice jab followed by a hook to the body.
Sitkin has a pretty nasty looking mouse under his right eye.
Struthers will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Sitkin uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Struthers.
Sitkin tries to close the distance and clinch up but Struthers swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Lee Struthers is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Struthers throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped

and Sitkin holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.

Struthers breaks the clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Struthers throws a jab when Sitkin was well out of range.
Struthers tries to clinch up.
Sitkin tries to clinch but Struthers moves out of range.
Struthers lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Sitkin circles away quickly and effectively.
Sitkin avoids a punch combination nicely.
No joy there for Struthers, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Sitkin is defended easily by Struthers.
Lee Struthers has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Vitaliy Sitkin.
Struthers stuffs the takedown attempt from Sitkin. Sitkin gets slowly back to his feet.

Struthers moves into range and clinches up with Sitkin.

Struthers's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Struthers throws a right and a left that both miss.
A combination from Struthers does no damage.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sitkin fails to land the takedown.
Struthers cracks Sitkin with an open hand slap.
Struthers lands a beauty of a right hand that gets the crowd cheering.
Sitkin doesn't manage to clinch there - Struthers circles away.

Struthers pushes Sitkin up against the cage in a clinch.

Struthers breaks from the clinch.

Sitkin drives through with a really nice takedown into side control.
Struthers is putting a lot of effort into getting back to his feet here.

Struthers sneaks out the side door and pushes Sitkin away - he's back to his feet. The crowd show their appreciation for the escape.

Struthers pushes Sitkin up against the cage in a clinch.
Struthers's corner are urging him to control the action in the clinch for a moment, rather than mount any serious offense. I'm sure the crowd appreciate those instructions... not.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Struthers breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Struthers takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
The crowd cheers as Struthers lands an impressive looking overhand right. Sitkin doesn't seem phased though.
Struthers scores to the head and body with a nice combination!
Struthers misses with a two punch combination.
A nice leg kick lands there from Sitkin.
Struthers throws a series of punches but Sitkin avoids them all with ease.
Sitkin throws a head kick that misses.

Struthers closes the distance and clinches.

Struthers breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Sitkin takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Struthers tries to close the distance and clinch but Sitkin swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Struthers loads up on a big right hand but Sitkin slips the punch.
Struthers tries to clinch up

and Sitkin counters by clinching up.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Lee Struthers dominated that second round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action. 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.

The fight stays on the outside here - Sitkin looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Sitkin is looking to clinch.
Struthers lands with a shot to the body.
Struthers looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Struthers misses with a wild combination.
Sitkin takes one on the chin but keeps coming.
Struthers tries to clinch but Sitkin moves out of range.
Sitkin takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.
A right-left combo lands from Struthers.
Sitkin tries to close the distance and clinch up but Struthers swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Struthers throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Sitkin swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Struthers tries to close the distance and clinch up but Sitkin swats him away and circles back towards the center.

The fight moves into the clinch position.
A short body shot lands from Struthers as the two fighters clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Struthers pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Sitkin ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Sitkin shoots in but Struthers avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Struthers fails with an attempt to clinch.
Struthers ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Sitkin moves away.

Sitkin fakes an overhand right and shoots for a takedown. Struthers sprawls well initially but Sitkin persists and gets the takedown into half guard.
Sitkin slows the pace down in half guard.
Struthers is not content to let Sitkin control the position.

Struthers has one foot on Sitkin's thigh - he pushes off and manages to get back to his feet.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Struthers lands an overhand right.
Struthers connects with a hook to the side of his opponent's head.
Struthers closes the distance and lands a one-two.
An inside leg kick from Sitkin misses.
Jab, jab by Struthers - just one landing.
Struthers throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Struthers misses with a hook.
Sitkin takes a shot right to the bread basket.
A telegraphed right hand from Struthers misses the target.
No luck for Sitkin with that takedown attempt.
Struthers throws a right and a left that Sitkin avoids nicely.
Struthers lands a jab to the nose.
Sitkin lands with a head kick! That's gotta hurt.
Sitkin walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.

Struthers closes the distance and clinches.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Struthers escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Struthers misses with a jab, cross combination.
Struthers ducks under a wild hook from Sitkin.
Struthers scores with a nice one two combo and darts back out of range to avoid anything coming in the opposite direction.
Struthers takes a swing at Sitkin's ribcage but misses.
Sitkin throws a head kick that connects with a bit of head and a bit of hand.
Struthers lands a nice hook to Sitkin's body. Sitkin takes it in his stride and looks to land his own strikes.
Nice cross by Struthers.
Struthers misses with a double jab.
No luck with that takedown attempt from Sitkin.
Lee Struthers has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Vitaliy Sitkin.
Struthers throws a series of punches but Sitkin moves out of range.
Sitkin throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.

Struthers drives through and clinches with Sitkin against the cage.

Struthers breaks the clinch.
Lee Struthers is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sitkin looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Struthers is fending him off so far but Sitkin persists. Nope, Struthers circles away and we're back to standing.
Struthers works over Sitkin's head and body with a nice combination.
Sitkin tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Struthers lands a straight punch to the body, keeping Sitkin at a distance.
Struthers slips in close and lands a nice hook before moving back out of range.

Sitkin is looking for a takedown here. He's shot in and has managed to get it, finishing up in Struthers's half guard.
Sitkin stalling away here and it's allowed Struthers to slip out his trapped foot and regain full guard.
Sitkin looking to sit in guard and control but Struthers gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.

Struthers stands and steps away. Sitkin gets to his feet too and we're back to the striking game.
Vitaliy Sitkin has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Struthers looks to land a combination. Sitkin sees it coming but can only parry a couple of the shots.

And that's the end of the fight!
Lee Struthers showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Struthers, 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 Dmitry Maklakov scores the fight 30:27
Judge Vladimir Khabensky scores the fight 30:27
Judge Aleksandr Martynov scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Lee Struthers!