PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Mstislav Karelin (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Benten Gogul (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Karelin
vs
Gogul

190 cm
25
285 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

195 cm
18
280 lbs
3 - 1 - 0

Good wrestling
Basic striking
Big heart

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter striker
Intelligent

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the heavyweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Mstislav Karelin!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Benten Gogul!
The judges for this bout are Yasuomi Hirokawa, Tatsuya Matsuyama and Kenichi Hosakawa.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
No luck with that takedown attempt from Gogul.

Karelin shoots in for a takedown and gets it.
Karelin is controlling the pace.
Karelin missing with the ground and pound from half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gogul trying to hold on to Karelin's head to control him but Karelin postures up.
Karelin wants to pass to mount but Gogul is defending the position.
Gogul should think about turning a few of those tyres round his middle into muscle if he wants people to take him seriously as an athlete.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Karelin connects with a nice short shot to Gogul's temple.
Karelin landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Karelin throwing shots but Gogul is blocking nicely.
The fighters are battling for position here. Gogul manages to regain full guard. Nice work.
Karelin controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.
Karelin landing with the ground and pound.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Gogul being controlled here, momentarily.
Karelin is looking to advance position but Gogul has hit a scissor sweep - now he's on top in mount!
Karelin tries to hold on but Gogul pushes him away.
Gogul trying to control but he's not successful this time.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Karelin is working to get back to half guard.
Karelin on his back here. We all know that wrestlers don't like being on their back so let's see if Karelin tries to get out of the position.

Gogul is standing up, even though he is in mount.
Gogul gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily

and Karelin decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Gogul's guard.
Gogul is looking to stand back up... there's a bit of a scramble and Karelin dives into side control.
You can see the frustration on Gogul's face as Karelin controls the position.
Karelin throws a knee to the body but it doesn't do much damage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gogul wants to get back to his feet.
Karelin working the ground and pound from side control.
Gogul looks gassed!
Gogul tries to improve position but can't.
Karelin 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 Gogul's shoulder. That is not cool.
Karelin lands an elbow.
Gogul is trying to improve his position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Mstislav Karelin dominated that round.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action.

Gogul scores with a three punch combo!
Karelin swats away the attempt to clinch by Gogul.
Gogul steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Karelin.

Karelin scores with a takedown into Gogul's guard.
Karelin trying to control the position from guard on top but Gogul is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Karelin landing some decent shots from guard.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Karelin accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Karelin showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Karelin trying to control but Gogul is working from the bottom.
Gogul working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Karelin.
Gogul trying to control the position.
Karelin trying to control but Gogul is working from the bottom.

That's two 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.
Gogul working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Karelin.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Karelin accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Gogul with a poor takedown

and Karelin counters with a nice double leg into guard.
Gogul is breathing heavily.
Karelin sitting in guard here, content to control.
Gogul working a defensive guard but Karelin manages to pass into side control anyway.
Gogul is looking for a sweep.
Karelin moving around in side mount but really he's just happy to control for now.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Karelin seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Gogul for as long as he can get away with.
Karelin working the head and body with strikes.
Karelin controlling the position from side mount.
Karelin is looking to take a break and control but Gogul is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Karelin in side control lands a decent elbow.
Karelin scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at Gogul to see if he's OK.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Gogul seems a little lost for a moment, as Karelin dominates the positioning.
Karelin working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.
Karelin controls the position from side control.
Gogul is looking to regain half guard here but Karelin keeps moving and retains side control.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Mstislav Karelin dominated that second round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Karelin pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Gogul with a poor takedown

and Karelin counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Gogul pushes Karelin off looking to stand but Karelin dives back in and keeps control.
Karelin content to control rather than advance.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Karelin lands a nice short elbow.
Gogul takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Karelin lands strikes from half guard.
Karelin slips a nice elbow through Gogul's hands, connecting with Gogul's forehead.
Karelin thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Gogul's head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Karelin sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Gogul defending well though.
Karelin looks over to his corner - he wants some instructions but his corner are not responding.
Karelin winds up and cracks Gogul with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Gogul is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Karelin scores with a couple of nice shots.
Karelin content to control rather than advance.
Karelin scoring with strikes to the body and head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Karelin looks to land a strike but Gogul avoids it nicely and regains full guard.
Karelin postures up and lands a big shot to Gogul's brow.
Karelin distracts Gogul with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.

Gogul pushes Karelin off for just long enough to get back to his feet. Very athletic spring there.
Karelin throws a body punch but Gogul moves out of range.
Gogul ducks under a wild hook from Karelin.

Karelin looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into mount! Oh, that's bad for Gogul!
Karelin looking to control and managing it successfully.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Karelin 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.
Gogul tries to get back to half guard but can't.
The crowd growing excited in anticipation of a finish here! Right on cue, Karelin cracks his opponent with a massive right hand that draws loud cheers!
Gogul is looking to get to half guard.
Karelin controlling his opponent.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Karelin pausing momentarily but resumes with a couple of decent strikes that do a bit of damage.
Karelin prevents Gogul from getting the reversal.
Karelin lands with some vicious ground and pound - can Gogul hang on?
Karelin controlling the position easily from mount.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Karelin lands a big shot there that rocks Gogul but he's holding on and managing to survive for now.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Mstislav Karelin clearly takes that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Gogul avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Gogul defending well as Karelin loads up on a big left hand.

Karelin looking for a takedown here - he's got it.
Gogul 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.
Karelin is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
Gogul wants to get back to his feet but Karelin is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Gogul is absolutely dripping with sweat - he looks exhausted.
Gogul keeping full guard, as Karelin tries to pass.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Karelin throws and elbow that misses. Gogul uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Karelin's guard. Nice move by Gogul!
Gogul pushing down on Karelin's thigh, trying to pass to half guard. He's managed it... Nice work.

Gogul is trying a forearm choke… I don't think that's going to do much at this level of the game.
Karelin is trying is best to control the position here.
Karelin has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
Karelin is looking for a sweep. Gogul is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.

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.
Karelin is pressing down on Gogul's left leg trying to get back to full guard. He's managed it.

Karelin is edging up against the cage. He's using the cage to get back to his feet. Nice work there - the fighters are clinched.
Karelin changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Gogul fights it off and pushes away nicely.
Gogul is looking to clinch.
Karelin swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Karelin is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Gogul can do to turn this around?
Gogul tries to clinch there but Karelin circles away.
Gogul shoots in but doesn't get the takedown

and Karelin counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Karelin seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gogul is looking to improve his position.
Karelin slows the pace down in half guard.
Karelin is looking to advance position but Gogul won't allow it.
Gogul keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.

That's four 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.
Karelin content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
Karelin is trying to control. Gogul wants to improve his position but can't escape this time.

Gogul pushes Karelin off and gets back to his feet.
Gogul misses with an uppercut. Karelin saw that one coming.
Gogul with a lazy takedown attempt

and Karelin counters with a nice single leg takedown and he's in Gogul's guard now.

Gogul working for submissions but it's allowed Karelin to get to half guard.
Karelin frees up his trapped foot and advances to mount.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Mstislav Karelin had his way with Benten Gogul in that round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, 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 - Gogul looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Karelin throws a shot from downtown. Gogul moves away and avoids it.

Karelin shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Karelin showed some decent athleticism there.
Karelin is controlling the pace.
Both of our modern day gladiators look out of it here - an gruelling 5 rounds of action taking it's toll on them, no doubt.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gogul pushes Karelin off looking to stand but Karelin dives back in and keeps control.
Gogul keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Karelin missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Karelin stops Gogul from getting back to his feet.
Gogul has hold of Karelin's hands but Karelin slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Gogul is trying to stand.
Karelin scores with a couple of good hammerfists.

That's two 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.
Karelin scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Karelin is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Karelin is nestled in close to Gogul, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Mstislav Karelin overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Karelin slows the pace down in half guard.
Gogul on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Karelin slips a nice elbow through Gogul's hands, connecting with Gogul's forehead.
Gogul on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Karelin lands strikes from half guard.
Karelin takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Karelin looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
Karelin lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
Karelin thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Gogul's head.
Karelin takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Karelin looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.
Ground and pound from Karelin.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gogul makes his way to full guard. A much better position for Gogul.
Karelin controls from within his opponent's guard.
Mstislav Karelin is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

And that's the end of the fight!
Mstislav Karelin showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Karelin, 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 5 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Yasuomi Hirokawa scores the fight 50:45
Judge Tatsuya Matsuyama scores the fight 50:45
Judge Kenichi Hosakawa scores the fight 50:45

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Mstislav Karelin!
Mstislav Karelin is the new heavyweight champion!