PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Yury Vesnev (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Vladimir Kharitonov (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Kharitonov has chosen BLUNT - Raggae All Day as his entrance music. Vladimir Kharitonov has the power to score a knockout today if he connects clean with Yury Vesnev's chin.

Vesnev
vs
Kharitonov

170 cm
27
159 lbs
15 - 3 - 0

170 cm
28
156 lbs
19 - 7 - 0

Great wrestler
Excellent boxer
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
World class MT
Granite chin

Project Mayhem

Hellbent

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 15 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Amsterdam, Yury Vesnev!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 19 - 7 - 0, fighting out of Hilo, Vladimir Kharitonov!
The judges for this bout are Frank Dennis, Stewart Dunkirk and Tiny Johnson.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Vesnev ducks under a wild hook from Kharitonov.
Kharitonov looking to throw a kick but he's pulled out of it.
Kharitonov walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Vesnev checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
A nice inside leg kick there by Vesnev. That's going to slow Kharitonov down.
Kharitonov throws a low kick but his opponent is out of range.
Vesnev shoots in and drives through. Kharitonov sprawls well.
Kharitonov throws a hook but Vesnev blocks it.
Kharitonov slaps away a takedown attempt from Vesnev, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Vesnev fails with an attempt to clinch.
An inside leg kick lands from Kharitonov.
Vesnev misses with a jab, cross combination.
Vesnev buckles his opponent's knee momentarily with a nice leg kick.
Vesnev ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Kharitonov moves away.
Vesnev bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Vesnev takes a swing at Kharitonov's ribcage but misses.
Vesnev throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Vesnev with a hook.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Vesnev throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Vesnev swings for the body but Kharitonov moves out of range.
Good leg kick by Kharitonov there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Kharitonov with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Vesnev to score with a decent uppercut.
Kharitonov uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Vesnev.
Some wild striking there from Vesnev.
Kharitonov ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Vesnev shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Yury Vesnev. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Vesnev throws a big shot that misses.
A punch lands to the side of Vesnev 's head but he takes it in his stride.
Kharitonov throws a good cross that connects.
Vesnev tries to clinch but Kharitonov is having none of it.
Kharitonov tries to score with an inside leg kick but telegraphs it and Vesnev is able to avoid easily.
Vesnev bobs and weaves and unloads with a good uppercut.
Kharitonov keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Kharitonov leaves Vesnev with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kharitonov swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Nice defenses there by Vesnev.
Kharitonov will need to close the distance a bit before he attacks - that leg kick was thrown from too far away.
Kharitonov digs a good hook to Vesnev's body.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Vesnev takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
A punch combination from Vesnev misses.
Vesnev shoots in and drives through. Kharitonov sprawls well.
Kharitonov scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
Kharitonov pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Kharitonov blocks a jab.
Kharitonov connects with a high kick.
Kharitonov tries to land a leg kick but Vesnev saw it coming and moves away.
Vesnev misses with an uppercut.
Vesnev turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Vesnev ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Kharitonov moves away.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Vesnev swings for the body but Kharitonov moves out of range.
A clash of legs there as Vesnev blocks the low kick.
Vesnev lands a jab to the head.

Vesnev has taken the fight to the clinch.

Vesnev ties up his opponent against the cage and manages to drag the fight down to the ground. Vesnev no doubt will be looking to work submissions from his guard.
Kharitonov throws a big elbow that misses.
Vesnev looking to control.
Vesnev wants to sweep but no luck.
Kharitonov working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Vesnev utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Kharitonov works over Vesnev with some ground and pound from guard.
Kharitonov postures up and lands a big shot to Vesnev's brow.
Vesnev keeping moving, preventing Kharitonov from controlling successfully.
Vesnev bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Kharitonov's guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Vesnev won't allow Kharitonov to get back to his feet.
Kharitonov keeping moving, preventing Vesnev from controlling successfully.
Vesnev slips effortlessly into side control - very nice.
Kharitonov is looking to regain half guard here but Vesnev keeps moving and retains side control.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Kharitonov is trying to control Vesnev's posture but Vesnev avoids it.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Vladimir Kharitonov will probably get the nod.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

Vesnev connects with a right hand. Kharitonov shakes it off.
Kharitonov throws a leg kick but Vesnev checks it.
Kharitonov connects with an inside leg kick.
Kharitonov tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Kharitonov with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Vesnev paws at his opponent with the jab and then lunges in with a straight, right on the button.
Kharitonov keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Kharitonov throws a low kick, looking for Vesnev's leg but Vesnev calmly moves out of range.
Vesnev cracks Kharitonov with a right hand to the side of the head.
Vesnev throws a body punch but Kharitonov moves out of range.
Vesnev misses with a looping right.
Nice defenses there by Kharitonov.
Kharitonov looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Kharitonov takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Kharitonov moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Vesnev ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Vesnev throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
No luck for Vesnev with that takedown attempt.
Vesnev fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Kharitonov has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
Kharitonov connects with the punch.
Vesnev wants to clinch.
Vladimir Kharitonov is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Vesnev keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
Vesnev avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Kharitonov looks to land a left hand but Vesnev moved out of range nicely.
Vesnev waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Kharitonov.
Kharitonov scores with a nice right hand.
Vladimir Kharitonov seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Kharitonov comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.
Vesnev keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Vesnev jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Vesnev swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Kharitonov slips a jab from Vesnev.
Vesnev tries to close the distance and clinch but Kharitonov swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Kharitonov scores with a crisp jab that stopped Vesnev in his tracks.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Kharitonov slips a straight right by Vesnev.
Good shot there by Vesnev.
Kharitonov connects with a solid leg kick.
Vesnev tries to clinch up.
Vesnev fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Kharitonov swings away with a leg kick that misses.
Vesnev takes a swing at Kharitonov's ribcage but misses.
Vesnev throws a leg kick which misses Kharitonov's front leg but catches the back leg as Kharitonov tries to avoid it.
Nice body kick from Kharitonov.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kharitonov pushes Vesnev away with a front kick.
Vesnev looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Kharitonov is fending him off so far but Vesnev persists. Nope, Kharitonov circles away and we're back to standing.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Yury Vesnev. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Kharitonov lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Vesnev is pinned up against the cage taking some big shots here. The referee is looking closely deciding whether he should stop the fight.
Vesnev fails to land the takedown.
Kharitonov dodges the punch combination from Vesnev.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Boom, another hit is landed. "You're gunna get knocked out" taunts Kharitonov, as that shot connected.
Vesnev loads up on a big right hand but Kharitonov slips the punch.
Vesnev is hobbling a little on that front leg after taking quite a few leg kicks so far in this fight.
Kharitonov walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Vesnev checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Vesnev attempts a leg kick but it's missed by a good margin.
Kharitonov swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Nice defenses there by Vesnev.
Vesnev misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Kharitonov.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Vesnev checks a low kick from Kharitonov.
Kharitonov misses with a looping left.
Kharitonov wants to land a leg kick but Vesnev is out of range.
Kharitonov jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Vesnev looks for a takedown but Kharitonov sprawls well.
Vesnev lands a straight punch to the body, keeping Kharitonov at a distance.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Nice cross by Kharitonov.
Kharitonov avoids a low kick by using good footwork.
Kharitonov avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Oooooooooooh, not good. A low kick from Kharitonov lands where it shouldn't have, right in the... well, you know what he did? He kicked him in the penis. He's injured, injured bad. The referee sends both fighters to their corners and Vesnev has 5 minutes to recover. He's OK now though... a thumbs up from Vesnev and we're back underway with a touch of gloves.
Vesnev fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Kharitonov manages to avoid it.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Kharitonov lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Nice jab there from Vesnev.
Vesnev just misses with a punch to the body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Vladimir Kharitonov showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! This is the final round!

Vesnev checks a low kick from Kharitonov.
Kharitonov slips a jab from Vesnev.
Vesnev shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Kharitonov defends it nicely.
Vesnev fails in his attempt to clinch.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Vesnev is defended easily by Kharitonov.
Kharitonov lands with a two punch combination before moving back out of range.
Vesnev takes a step towards his opponent and connects with a left hand, before circling away.
Kharitonov scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
Vesnev throws out a powerful jab.
Vesnev waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Kharitonov.
Kharitonov connects with a leg kick. He turned his hip over nicely there.
Kharitonov misses the shot to the body.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Vesnev wants to clinch
and Kharitonov counters with a flying knee. Nice.
That kick from Kharitonov tenderised Vesnev's leg. Vesnev is trying to keep his angry face on.
Kharitonov connects with a leg kick. Vesnev looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Kharitonov lands a lovely overhand right.
Vesnev throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
A low kick from Kharitonov misses

and Vesnev counters with a takedown into side control! That could mean trouble for Kharitonov!
Vesnev throwing shots but missing, from side control.
You can see the frustration on Kharitonov's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Kharitonov manages to work his way to half guard, despite Vesnev's best efforts.
Kharitonov trying to control from the bottom.
Kharitonov is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Vesnev's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Vesnev's back!
Kharitonov misses with a punch to the head.
Yury Vesnev has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Vesnev looking very determined here, making life difficult for Kharitonov.
Vesnev manages to escape to a better position under a series of strikes. Kharitonov is now in side control.
Vesnev is not content to let Kharitonov control the position.
Kharitonov throwing ground and pound but whilst doing so, he forgets to control position and Vesnev works his way back to half guard. Good composure under pressure.
Kharitonov tries to pass to full mount but Vesnev defends it.
Kharitonov missing with the ground and pound from half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Vesnev tries to roll over but Kharitonov keeps him under control.
Kharitonov lands with a punch from half guard.
Kharitonov wants to control but Vesnev is keeping him busy.
Vesnev trying to control from the bottom.
Kharitonov not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Kharitonov throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Vesnev is pressing down on Kharitonov's left leg trying to get back to full guard. He's managed it.
Kharitonov throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Kharitonov keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of Vesnev's head.
Vesnev utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Kharitonov slips nicely into half guard.
Vladimir Kharitonov is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kharitonov throwing shots but Vesnev is blocking nicely.
Kharitonov not doing much here.

Vesnev actively working from the bottom here.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Vesnev is staying active underneath Kharitonov, who seems content to just control the action from this position.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Vesnev tries to roll over but Kharitonov keeps him under control.
Vesnev gets back to full guard.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Kharitonov sitting in guard here, content to control.

And that's the end of the fight!
Vladimir Kharitonov comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Kharitonov winning every round here. Surely the decision will go his way and he'll pick up a well deserved decision victory. 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 Frank Dennis scores the fight 27:30
Judge Stewart Dunkirk scores the fight 27:30
Judge Tiny Johnson scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Vladimir Kharitonov!
An out of breath Vladimir Kharitonov thanked his loyal fans in his post fight interview, giving them credit for his success over the course of his career.