PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Viacheslav Eltsov (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Junior dos Santos (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). We have two fighters making their debuts here, so let's see who comes out of this one with their first professional victory.

Eltsov
vs
dos Santos

192 cm
22
251 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

193 cm
25
240 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Solid boxing
Good in bed

BJJ Blue Belt
Excellent boxer
Determined

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 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Viacheslav Eltsov!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Junior dos Santos!
The judges for this bout are Vladimir Khabensky, Fedor Mirinova and Aleksei Zolotukhin.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
A punch combination from dos Santos misses.
Eltsov swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by dos Santos.
Sloppy strikes from dos Santos. Those never looked like landing.

Eltsov shoots in with a lovely double leg takedown. dos Santos manages to land in full guard to minimise the damage.
Eltsov content to stall in guard here.
If this pace continues, the referee will definitely step in and force a standup.
Eltsov stopping the sweep attempt from dos Santos.
Eltsov showing good wrestling skills to control the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Eltsov wants to pass the guard but dos Santos is keeping the position.

The ref stands the fighters back up because Viacheslav Eltsov just wasn't active enough.
dos Santos cracks Eltsov with a nice right hand that draws applause from the crowd.
dos Santos rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Eltsov moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Eltsov throws a combination. dos Santos tries to block but a couple of punches get through.
dos Santos throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped

and Eltsov counters with a shoot takedown. dos Santos fights it but they end up in guard.
Eltsov showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Eltsov forces his way into half guard.
Still in half guard, Eltsov seems content to control.
dos Santos wants to improve his position but Eltsov is controlling well.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Eltsov keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
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!
Eltsov missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Eltsov keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
Eltsov has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
We must be close to a standup if these guys don't pick up the pace.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Viacheslav Eltsov.
Eltsov keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from dos Santos.
dos Santos misses with a combination

and Eltsov counters with a shoot takedown. dos Santos fights it but they end up in guard.
Eltsov stopping the sweep attempt from dos Santos.
Eltsov showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
dos Santos is trying to keep Eltsov in close.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Eltsov content to stall in guard here.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.
Eltsov works over dos Santos with some ground and pound from guard.
Eltsov is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.
dos Santos misses with a hook. Eltsov ducked under it nicely.
dos Santos misses with a double jab

and Eltsov counters by moving into the clinch. Good anticipation by Eltsov.

Eltsov turns his hips and lands a very nice judo throw into side control!
Eltsov remains in side control and seems content to stay there. It's a versatile position from which he can work both strikes and submissions, whilst maintaining that control, so maybe he'll sit here for a while.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
dos Santos is looking for a sweep.
A bit of a lull in the action. I'm sure it will pick up again soon... even if the ref has to physically pick them up and put them back on their feet.
dos Santos takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Eltsov controls the position.
Eltsov has knee on belly and now moves to full mount! Trouble for dos Santos!
Eltsov throws some wild stikes that dos Santos manages to avoid easily.
BOOM! Eltsov connects with a massive shot to the dome!
dos Santos wants to use the cage to get back to his feet here.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Eltsov takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
Eltsov throwing strikes here but dos Santos is writhing around nicely and avoiding any serious damage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Viacheslav Eltsov dominated that round.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

Eltsov circles away from the clinch attempt
and Eltsov counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.
dos Santos falls off balance throwing a combination

and Eltsov counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Still in half guard, Eltsov seems content to control.
Eltsov trying to mount his opponent but dos Santos defends it.
dos Santos wants to improve his position but Eltsov is controlling well.
Eltsov performing his best blanket impression for a moment.

That's one minute gone in the round.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Viacheslav Eltsov.
dos Santos lets the fists fly and connects with a left straight followed by a right hook.
dos Santos throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped

and Eltsov counters with a nice double leg into guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Eltsov sitting in guard here, content to control.
dos Santos is trying to control the position from the bottom.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.
dos Santos uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
dos Santos lands a jab to the nose.
Eltsov shoots in looking for a takedown but dos Santos manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Eltsov's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Eltsov slips under a jab from dos Santos.
dos Santos throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped

so Eltsov counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Eltsov stays in close to dos Santos's body and controls the position.
dos Santos keeping full guard, as Eltsov tries to pass.
dos Santos is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Eltsov slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
We must be close to a standup if these guys don't pick up the pace.

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

Eltsov shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
dos Santos is not content to let Eltsov control the position.
dos Santos wants to control but Eltsov is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Eltsov with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.
dos Santos wants to control but Eltsov is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Viacheslav Eltsov overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
The referee looks like he's ready to step in and stand the fighters back up.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
dos Santos with a hook.
dos Santos falls off balance throwing a combination

and Eltsov counters with a shoot takedown. dos Santos fights it but they end up in guard.
Eltsov trying to control but dos Santos is working from the bottom.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Eltsov pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. dos Santos is keeping the position for now.
Eltsov sneaks a leg through and gets to half guard. That was like a knife through butter how easily he passed dos Santos's guard.
dos Santos wants to control but Eltsov is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Eltsov tries to pass to full mount but dos Santos defends it.
Eltsov is working hard here to advance position.
Eltsov stalling.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
dos Santos is looking for a sweep. Eltsov is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Eltsov with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Viacheslav Eltsov 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. Let's get this one finished - here comes the final round!

dos Santos throws a left and a right that both miss

and Eltsov moves into the clinch.

Eltsov pulls guard effortlessly.
dos Santos trying to control the position from guard on top but Eltsov is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Eltsov seems keen to control dos Santos's posture.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
dos Santos wants to pass the guard but Eltsov is keeping the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Eltsov is avoiding any damage by keeping wrist control.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
dos Santos cracks Eltsov with a good jab.
Eltsov keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from dos Santos.
dos Santos scores with a crisp jab that stopped Eltsov in his tracks.
dos Santos looks to land a right hand but Eltsov moved out of range.
Eltsov uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by dos Santos.
dos Santos looks to land a combination. Eltsov sees it coming but can only parry a couple of the shots.
dos Santos misses with a double jab

and Eltsov counters by moving into the clinch.
dos Santos working hard to break the clinch.

Eltsov tightens his grip and picks dos Santos up, before dumping him to the ground. dos Santos manages to land in guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Eltsov preventing the sweep.
Eltsov stands and throws dos Santos's legs to the side, diving into side control.
dos Santos being controlled for a moment.
Eltsov seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down dos Santos for as long as he can get away with.
dos Santos tries to escape but Eltsov is in control.
Eltsov controlling the position from side mount.
dos Santos managing to avoid any damage from the strikes thrown by Eltsov.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
It looks like the ref is thinking about a standup.
dos Santos parries the strikes from Eltsov easily there. Eltsov is wary of posturing up too much because it might enable dos Santos to escape.
dos Santos takes a couple of big shots there - the referee warns him that he has to defend himself better.
Eltsov has knee on belly momentarily but dos Santos bucks him off and regains half guard.
Eltsov missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Eltsov with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.
dos Santos wants to get back to his feet.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Eltsov prevents dos Santos from improving his position.

Viacheslav Eltsov has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
dos Santos looks to clinch

and Eltsov counters with a nice double leg into guard.
dos Santos is trying to control the position but Eltsov postures up.
Eltsov not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Eltsov passes easily into side control. Nice work.
Eltsov is working dos Santos over with some ground and pound from side control.
Junior dos Santos has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
dos Santos is looking to work his way out of this bad position but Eltsov is controlling him well.

And that's the end of the fight!
Viacheslav Eltsov showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Eltsov 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 Vladimir Khabensky scores the fight 30:26
Judge Fedor Mirinova scores the fight 30:26
Judge Aleksei Zolotukhin scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Viacheslav Eltsov!