PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Konrad Kurze (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Eki Vieri (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Eki Vieri has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Kurze
vs
Vieri

150 cm
24
130 lbs
16 - 6 - 0

160 cm
32
158 lbs
15 - 15 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
Excellent boxer
Cardio machine

BJJ Blue Belt
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 16 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Konrad Kurze!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 15 - 15 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Eki Vieri!
The judges for this bout are Johanna Lukiainen, Tarja Halkonen and Roosa Järviläinen.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Kurze will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Vieri tries to bum rush Kurze with a series of wild strikes but Kurze uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Kurze swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Kurze just misses with a punch to the body.
Kurze throws a body punch but Vieri moves out of range.
Vieri throws a right hand that Kurze ducks under and follows up with a left that Kurze also avoids with ease.
Vieri throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Kurze stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
A combination from Vieri does no damage.

Kurze looking to score a takedown here. Vieri is defending well but Kurze drives through and ends up in Vieri's guard.
Vieri can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Kurze controls the pace.
Kurze seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Vieri for as long as he can get away with.
Kurze missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Vieri can't keep his opponent in guard - Kurze advances to half guard, no doubt looking to mount.
Kurze not landing any meaningful shots this time.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kurze seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.
Kurze wants to lay and pray for a moment but Vieri keeps working.
Vieri tries to kick Kurze off but Kurze keeps his base steady and stays in half guard.

Konrad Kurze has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
Vieri misses with a double jab.
Kurze looks to land a combination but Vieri avoids it well.
Kurze dodges the punch combination from Vieri.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Vieri throws a predictable looking body shot
and Kurze counters with a left to the body.
Kurze misses with a few strikes there.
Kurze lands a beauty of a right hand that gets the crowd cheering.
Vieri blocks a head kick by Kurze.

Kurze shoots in for a takedown and gets it. Oh and he's advanced to full mount straight away.
Kurze 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.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Kurze landing shots from mount.
Kurze trying to control but Vieri is having none of it.
Kurze is landing with some decent strikes but Vieri is trying to advance his position so the referee is letting the fight continue.
BOOM! Kurze connects with a massive shot to the dome!
Kurze controlling the position easily from mount.
Kurze lands with some strikes.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kurze with shots to the head and body - Vieri looks very uncomfortable down there.
Kurze with shots to the head and body - Vieri looks very uncomfortable down there.
Vieri is trying to get to the cage to help him get back to his feet.
Kurze looking to ground and pound his opponent to a finish here.
Kurze controlling the position easily from mount.
Kurze has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
Kurze pausing momentarily but resumes with a couple of decent strikes that do a bit of damage.
Kurze lands an elbow that was bordering on illegal but the referee lets it go with a warning.
This has been an exciting period of action!

Kurze wants to finish this one by submission but Vieri is holding onto his waist, trying to prevent any attacks from Kurze.
Kurze looking to finish Vieri with some ground and pound. This is bad for Vieri!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kurze with good strikes from the mount here!
Vieri is in a horrible position here. Kurze smacks him with another shot as he tries to escape the position.
Vieri really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Kurze. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Kurze lands a big elbow.
Kurze raining down hammerfists from mount.
Kurze raining down hammerfists from mount.
Kurze content just to control the position here.
The referee warns Vieri that he has to improve his position here as he takes two more clean shots to the head.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Kurze is still in mount, landing shots to his trapped opponent. Vieri can't stay in a position like this for much longer.
Kurze tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Konrad Kurze 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.

Kurze tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Vieri was well out of range. Poor timing from Kurze.
Vieri lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Kurze circles away quickly and effectively.
Vieri throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Kurze.
Kurze is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Vieri can do to turn this around?
Vieri misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Kurze.
Eki Vieri is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Kurze cracks Vieri with an open hand slap.
Vieri looks to land a combination but Kurze avoids it well.
Kurze goes for a high kick. It partially lands.
Kurze fails with the takedown.
Vieri throws a right and a left that both miss.
Vieri tries to bum rush Kurze with a series of wild strikes but Kurze uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Kurze wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
A head kick misses from Kurze.
Kurze is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Vieri.
Vieri walks into a left hand.
Kurze scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Kurze throws a good cross that connects.
Vieri throws an overhand right that lands on Kurze's shoulder, as Kurze tries to avoid the shot.
Vieri works his jab well there, keeping his opponent at a distance.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kurze fails with a takedown attempt.
Kurze throws a shot from downtown. Vieri moves away and avoids it.
Kurze fails with a takedown attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Konrad Kurze. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Kurze shoots for a double leg takedown but Vieri sprawls well. He's pushed Kurze's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Konrad Kurze is winning the standup battle so far.
Vieri fails to land with a series of punches.
Vieri stuffs the takedown attempt from Kurze. Kurze gets slowly back to his feet.
Kurze takes a body punch but keeps moving.
Kurze swinging wildly here.
Vieri scores with a jab to the jaw.
Eki Vieri is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Kurze swings for the body but Vieri moves out of range.
A swing and a miss from Vieri.
Kurze dodges the punch combination from Vieri.
Some wild striking there from Kurze.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Vieri misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Kurze throws a jab when Vieri was well out of range.
Vieri lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Kurze circles away quickly and effectively.
Vieri takes a step back and watches a body kick go sailing past his mid section.
Vieri slips a jab and a cross from Kurze.
Kurze showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Vieri.
Vieri misses with a looping left.
Kurze lands with a good body shot.
Kurze throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Kurze shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Vieri as he avoids it easily.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Vieri displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Kurze throws out the jab.
Vieri looks to throw the jab but Kurze is out of range.
Vieri misses with a combination
and Kurze counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Vieri misses with a wild combination.
No luck for Kurze with that takedown attempt.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Vieri misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Kurze throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Vieri takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.
Kurze swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Kurze walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.
Vieri defending well as Kurze loads up on a big left hand.
Kurze lands a nice looking kick to the body. Vieri takes a step back to recover.
Kurze misses with a body kick.
Eki Vieri seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Some bone on bone action there as Vieri checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Kurze misses the shot to the body.
Vieri drops his hands momentarily and Kurze takes advantage with a crisp shot to the head.
Kurze ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Vieri moves away.
Vieri misses with a wild combination.
Kurze misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Vieri misses with a few strikes there.
Vieri throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Kurze.
Kurze moves away from the strike by Vieri.
Vieri ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Kurze moves away.
Vieri connects with a looping left hand that seems like it dazed Kurze momentarily.
Kurze cracks a nice hook into Vieri's ribs.
Vieri is breathing heavily.
Kurze misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Kurze takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Vieri avoids the head kick by Kurze.

Kurze closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. Vieri quickly recovers to half guard.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Kurze lands a nice short elbow.

Kurze is working for a submission of some sort.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!

Kurze is working for a kimura but Vieri is defending it quite comfortably.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Konrad Kurze dominated that second round.
That's time! Back to the action! This is the final round!

Kurze takes a swing at Vieri's ribcage but misses.
Kurze misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Vieri.
It really doesn't seem like the step up in weight is hurting Kurze here at all. He's more than holding his own against the bigger man.
Kurze will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Vieri avoids the body shot from Kurze.
Vieri swinging wildly here.
Vieri fails to land with a series of punches.
Vieri misses with a jab, cross combination.

Kurze drives through with a takedown into guard.
Vieri can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Kurze controls the pace.
Kurze lands a couple of elbows.
Kurze distracts Vieri with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kurze trying to control but Vieri is working from the bottom.

Kurze drops back for a leg! It's a sloppy attempt though and Kurze jumps back into guard quickly, to retain the dominant position.
Kurze landing some decent shots from guard.
Vieri is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Kurze is controlling him.
Kurze looking to sit in guard and control but Vieri gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.
Konrad Kurze overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Kurze is adopting a defensive guard.
Kurze is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.
Eki Vieri has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Konrad Kurze is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Still in half guard, Kurze seems content to control.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

Vieri is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Kurze pulls his head out easily.
Kurze perhaps working for something from half guard, or maybe not. It looks like he's just sitting there.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

We're going to have a standup here because Konrad Kurze wasn't active enough for the referee's liking.
Kurze shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Vieri as he jumps to the side.
No joy there for Vieri, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Kurze is looking to wear down Vieri with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.

Excellent takedown into side control there by Kurze.
Kurze moving around in side mount but really he's just happy to control for now.
Kurze's ground tactics aren't going to win him many fans. Let's hope he's got fireworks for us if he gets back to his feet because he's not doing much on the ground.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Vieri tries to escape but Kurze is in control.
The referee asks Kurze politely if he wouldn't mind getting on with it and actually doing something. Kurze prefers to stall for the moment though.

The ref stands the fighters back up. Konrad Kurze wasn't doing enough on the ground.
Kurze moves away from the strike by Vieri.
Kurze shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Vieri but Vieri pushes him off and we're back to square one.

Kurze closes the distance and after a bit of a stuggle, scores a takedown into Vieri's guard.
This has been an exciting period of action!
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Kurze showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Kurze slips nicely into half guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
Konrad Kurze showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Kurze 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 Johanna Lukiainen scores the fight 30:26
Judge Tarja Halkonen scores the fight 30:27
Judge Roosa Järviläinen scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Konrad Kurze!
Konrad Kurze managed to slip a mention for his sponsors, Punishment Nutrition - All 159Q products now $75, into his post fight interview.