PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Doug Thomas (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Tauno Tolonen (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Tolonen is bobbing his head along to his entrance song: Hurt me. Both these guys have solid standup skills and neither is particularly fantastic on the ground, so let's hope for a nice standup war!

Thomas
vs
Tolonen

198 cm
28
270 lbs
4 - 6 - 0

205 cm
27
275 lbs
12 - 15 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Great elbows
Very strong

BJJ Blue Belt
Decent boxing
Heavy handed

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 4 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Doug Thomas!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 12 - 15 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Tauno Tolonen!
The judges for this bout are Matti Vanhoillinen, Roosa Järviläinen and Ben Zyskovitsi.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Tolonen lands a glancing blow to the side of Thomas's head.
Tolonen takes a head kick and shrugs it off.
Tolonen misses with the combination.
Tolonen swings for the body but Thomas moves out of range.
Thomas tries to clinch up.
Tolonen misses with a double jab.
Tolonen throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Thomas closes the distance but Tolonen moves to the side
and Tolonen makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Tolonen scores with a three punch combo!

It looks like Doug Thomas has been cut.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Tolonen blocks a head kick by Thomas.
Tolonen looks to land a combination but Thomas avoids it well.
Tolonen throws a one two combo.
Thomas thumps Tolonen with a low kick.
Thomas moves to clinch but Tolonen breaks away
letting Tolonen counter with a right hand.
Tolonen misses with a jab, cross combination.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A punch combination from Tolonen misses.

Thomas rushes Tolonen and presses him up against the cage.
Thomas throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Thomas misses with an elbow strike.
Thomas throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Thomas throws an elbow that misses.
Tolonen avoids a wild elbow strike from Thomas.
Thomas creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
Thomas misses with an elbow strike.

Thomas breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Tolonen misses with a series of wild punches.
Thomas takes one on the chin but keeps coming.
Tolonen takes a head kick and keeps coming.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Nice jab there from Tolonen.
Thomas wants to clinch up but Tolonen keeps it at a distance.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Tolonen lands a vicious shot with the stealth of a sniper and the strength of a viper. Are vipers that strong? I can think of lots of things that are stronger than a viper - not many rhyme with sniper though.

Doug Thomas's cut is getting worse.
Tolonen cracks Thomas with a nice right hand that draws applause from the crowd.
Tolonen avoids the head kick by Thomas.
Tolonen throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Thomas throws a sloppy head kick and Tolonen moves out of range easily.
Tolonen swings for the body but Thomas moves out of range.
Thomas slips a jab and a cross from Tolonen.
Tolonen lands a body shot.
Thomas misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Thomas throws a head kick that misses.
Thomas throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Thomas is breathing heavily.
Tolonen lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Thomas circles away quickly and effectively.
Thomas tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Tolonen fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Thomas manages to avoid it.
Tolonen's corner calls for a 1-2. Tolonen obliges with the 1 part as he scores the single shot and moves back out of range.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Thomas throws a nice head kick!
Tolonen has used his reach advantage pretty well so far tonight.
A left lands for Tolonen.
Thomas tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in the close the distance. Tolonen manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Tolonen fails to land with a series of punches.
Tolonen misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Thomas walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Tolonen checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Thomas wants to clinch.
Tolonen throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
Tolonen connects with a lovely jab that went straight through the gap between Thomas's hands.
Tolonen keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
Tolonen lets the fists fly and connects with a left straight followed by a right hook.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Thomas tries to close the distance and clinch up but Tolonen swats him away and circles back towards the center.

Tolonen cracks Thomas with a big right hand that sends him to the floor! Thomas looks wobbly but he's sprung back up to his feet straight away… can Tolonen finish him?

Thomas is rocked!

Doug Thomas's cut is bleeding quite badly. He's got to try and protect it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tolonen misses with a wild combination.
Oh Thomas is still all over the place! His legs are completely gone! Will he be able to recover?!!
Tolonen avoids the head kick by Thomas.
Thomas seems to have got his legs back now.
Tolonen bobs and weaves and unloads with a good uppercut.
Tolonen is landing a lot of head punches in this opening round! Thomas had better start moving his head a bit unless he wants his face to turn into pâté.
Nice body kick from Thomas.
Tolonen uses good footwork to get in and out and land a nice right hand before Thomas has time to react.
Tolonen tries to bum rush Thomas with a series of wild strikes but Thomas uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Thomas motions for Tolonen to come forward. Thomas throws a leg kick but it misses it's target.
A big right from Tolonen misses.
Thomas avoids a punch combination nicely.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Tolonen moves into range and connects with a jab.

Jeez, Doug Thomas's cut is really nasty now. The referee must be thinking about getting that checked.
Tolonen throws a series of punches but Thomas avoids them all with ease.
Thomas fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Tauno Tolonen dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Doug Thomas's cut.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

Tolonen will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Sloppy strikes from Tolonen. Those never looked like landing.
Thomas takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.
Thomas throws a head kick but Tolonen moves out of range.
A slapping leg kick lands for Thomas.
Tolonen throws a body punch but Thomas moves out of range.
A nice leg kick lands there from Thomas.
A head kick from Thomas lands but Tolonen takes it in his stride.

It looks like Tauno Tolonen has been cut.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Tolonen has his front leg slapped to the side - a nice low kick landing there from Thomas.
A head kick misses from Thomas.
Thomas tries to close the distance and clinch but Tolonen swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.

Thomas fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Tolonen, pushing him back against the cage.
Tolonen is breathing heavily.
Tolonen is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Tolonen takes an elbow to the temple.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tolonen takes an elbow to the forehead.
Tolonen avoids a wild elbow strike from Thomas.
Thomas throws an elbow but it misses.
Thomas creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Tolonen's defenses.
Tolonen misses with the head strike.
Thomas throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Thomas lands a nice elbow from the clinch.

Thomas breaks the clinch.
Tolonen throws a right and a left that both miss.
We are yet to see a takedown attempt from Tolonen in the fight. On paper you would think he is the more dominant ground fighter so let's see if these unusual tactics pay off.
Tolonen just misses with a punch to the body.
Tolonen misses with an uppercut.
Thomas misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Tolonen swats away the attempt to clinch by Thomas.
Tolonen throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Thomas stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
Tolonen blocks a low kick nicely.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Thomas throws a leg kick which misses Tolonen's front leg but catches the back leg as Tolonen tries to avoid it.

Thomas closes the distance and pushes Tolonen back into the cage.
Thomas lands an elbow inside that Tolonen shrugs off.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Tolonen wants to get back to striking at distance but Thomas won't allow it.
Thomas misses with an elbow over the top.
With the fighters up against the cage, Thomas throws an elbow but misses.
Tolonen has had enough of the clinch but Thomas keeps him there for the moment.
Thomas lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Tolonen wants to break the clinch but can't.
The fighters are going at a pretty good pace and they're both starting to sweat now.
Thomas lands an elbow inside.
Tolonen wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Thomas looks to throw an elbow but misses.
Thomas throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Thomas creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Tolonen's defenses.
Thomas pushes off an throws an elbow but Tolonen leans to the side and avoids it. We're back to clinching against the cage.
Tolonen avoids a wild elbow strike from Thomas.
Tolonen avoids the elbow strike from Thomas, against the cage.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Thomas misses with an elbow over the top.

Tolonen breaks from the clinch.
Thomas connects with a leg kick. Tolonen looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Tolonen with a nice cross.
Tolonen cracks Thomas with a good jab.
A head kick misses from Thomas.
Thomas is looking to slow Tolonen down with leg kicks.
Thomas uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Tolonen.
Tauno Tolonen seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Thomas pulls out of a head kick attempt.
A left and a right from Tolonen both land. Nice combination.
Thomas tries to clinch up but Tolonen circles away and keeps his distance.
Thomas tries to clinch up but Tolonen circles away and keeps his distance.
Tolonen's leg has a nasty welt from taking a succession of leg kicks. That must be slowing him down.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Thomas tries a head kick but it misses.
The fight stays on the outside here - Thomas looks like he's thinking about clinching though.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Thomas avoids a punch combination nicely.
Tolonen misses with a series of wild punches.

Thomas pushes Tolonen up against the cage in a clinch.
Tolonen dodges an elbow strike from Thomas.
Tolonen is trying to push Thomas away but Thomas has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Thomas lands a damaging elbow.

That has opened up Tauno Tolonen's cut even more.
Thomas lands an elbow that stopped Tolonen in his tracks for a moment.
Doug Thomas has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Thomas lands an elbow inside that Tolonen shrugs off.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Thomas lands an elbow inside that Tolonen shrugs off.

The cut above Tauno Tolonen's eye is starting to cause him problems now.
Tolonen wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Thomas lands an elbow inside.
Thomas pushes off an throws an elbow but Tolonen leans to the side and avoids it. We're back to clinching against the cage.
Thomas lands an elbow inside that Tolonen shrugs off.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Doug Thomas dominated that second round.
Both fighters have cut men working on them during the interval.
That's time! Back to the action! This is the final round!

Tolonen misses with the combination.
Tolonen throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Thomas.
Tolonen fakes a jab and then connects with a hook.
Tolonen takes a head kick and keeps coming.
Nice defenses there by Thomas.
Tolonen throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Tolonen misses the shot to the body.

Thomas moves into range and clinches up with Tolonen.
Tolonen throws a head punch that misses.
Thomas lands an elbow just above Tolonen 's eye.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Tolonen wants to break free but Thomas has control.
Tolonen takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Nice body punch from Tolonen.
Thomas gets an overhook and lands an elbow to the side of the head.
Tolonen blocks an elbow strike.
Tolonen dodges an elbow strike from Thomas.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Thomas throws an elbow that misses.
Tolonen wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Thomas has him pressed against the cage.
Tolonen tries to break free but Thomas pushes him back against the cage.
Thomas throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Thomas throws an elbow but it misses.
Thomas lands a nice elbow from the clinch.

Tauno Tolonen's cut is absolute horrible now. This looks like something out of a horror film with blood covering both fighters.
Thomas keeps control of Tolonen as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Tolonen looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Thomas creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Tolonen's defenses.
Tolonen is trying to break the clinch but Thomas is controlling him.
Thomas throws an elbow but it misses.
Tolonen working hard to break the clinch.
Thomas keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Tolonen's efforts to push away.
Tolonen wants to break free but Thomas has control.
Nice elbow from Thomas.

The referee calls the doctor in to look at Tauno Tolonen's cut. Oh no, the doctor has called an end to the bout!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2:58 of round 3, we have a winner by way of TKO (Cut). Doug Thomas!
Doug Thomas very nearly forgot to thank Global MMA Gear amongst all the excitement of his win but just as the interview came to a close, he screamed their name. Hopefully he'll get a few nice freebies in the mail as a thank you.