PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Kazunori Kouya (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Vahan Karamyenyan (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Karamyenyan is bouncing up and down as he enters the arena, backed by Saw Theme - Bonecrusher ft. Lil Jon. Vahan Karamyenyan is the more experienced fighter, so let's see if that makes a difference tonight.

Kouya
vs
Karamyenyan

183 cm
26
210 lbs
2 - 2 - 0

186 cm
21
216 lbs
4 - 4 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Excellent MT
Big heart

BJJ Purple Belt
Counter fighter
Determined

Tokyo United Fightwear ($9 shirts)
Zombie Nutrition - LOD

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 2 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Kazunori Kouya!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 4 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Vahan Karamyenyan!
The judges for this bout are George Francis, Chris Downing and Frank Dennis.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Kouya finds nothing but air with that leg kick attempt.
Kouya throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.

Kouya closes the distance and pushes Karamyenyan back into the cage.

Karamyenyan manages to break the clinch.

Karamyenyan darts in and clinches Kouya up against the cage.

Karamyenyan escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Kouya tries to clinch
and Karamyenyan counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Karamyenyan circles away from the clinch attempt
and Karamyenyan counters with a stiff right hand.
Kouya tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Kouya tries to clinch there but Karamyenyan circles away.
Kouya tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Karamyenyan paws at him with a jab and circles away.

Karamyenyan gets a clinch.

Karamyenyan breaks the clinch.

Karamyenyan closes the distance and clinches.
Kouya tries to land a knee to the head but Karamyenyan blocks with his arms.

Kouya breaks from the clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Karamyenyan takes a kick to the side of the head.

Kouya has closed the distance and engaged Karamyenyan in a clinch.
Kouya definitely looks more muscular than last time we saw him fight.
Karamyenyan is struggling to control the position.
Karamyenyan blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.

Karamyenyan pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Karamyenyan scores with a shot to the body.
Karamyenyan thuds his right hand into Kouya's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
A solid leg kick lands there for Karamyenyan.
Kouya tries to clinch but Karamyenyan moves away

and Karamyenyan counters into the clinch. Nicely done.
Kouya prevents Karamyenyan from breaking the clinch.
Karamyenyan wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Kouya has him pressed against the cage.
Karamyenyan working hard to break the clinch.
Kouya tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Karamyenyan looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Karamyenyan wants to break free but Kouya has control.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Karamyenyan has had enough of the clinch but Kouya keeps him there for the moment.
Kouya misses with an elbow strike.
Karamyenyan is trying to push Kouya away but Kouya has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Kouya using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Karamyenyan has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.

Karamyenyan breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Kouya looks to clinch

and Karamyenyan counters by moving into the clinch.
Karamyenyan lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
Kouya landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.

Kouya breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Kouya tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Karamyenyan paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Kouya tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Karamyenyan paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Kouya throws a nice head kick!

It looks like Vahan Karamyenyan has been cut.
Kouya pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Kouya tries a head kick but it misses.

Karamyenyan moves into the clinch successfully.
Kouya tries to land a knee to the head but misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kouya tries to land knees in the clinch but Karamyenyan avoids the damage to the body.
Karamyenyan is trying to break the clinch but Kouya has him pressed against the cage.
Karamyenyan is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Karamyenyan throws an elbow but it misses.
Kouya tries a knee to the head but Karamyenyan blocks it.
Karamyenyan misses with an elbow over the top.

Karamyenyan breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Kouya tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Karamyenyan paws at him with a jab and circles away.
That's a knee to de groin and it's over and out! Karamyenyan crumples to the ground after an illegal strike from Kouya - the referee stops the clock and Karamyenyan gets 5 minutes to recover from that one. "I'm sorry" says Kouya. Karamyenyan manages to get back to his feet and the fight resumes.
Karamyenyan displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Kouya.
Karamyenyan fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Kouya manages to avoid it.
Karamyenyan throws a series of punches but Kouya moves out of range.
Karamyenyan takes a push kick to the midsection and stumbles backwards.

Kouya rushes Karamyenyan and pushes him back against the cage in a clinch.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Karamyenyan tries to break the clinch but Kouya is controlling the position.
Kouya with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Kouya has Karamyenyan pressed against the cage, preventing Karamyenyan from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Karamyenyan tries to circle away but Kouya has him pinned against the cage.
Kouya tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Karamyenyan is trying to break the clinch but Kouya is controlling him.
Kouya looking to throw knees to the head but Karamyenyan is blocking nicely.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Kouya looking to throw knees to the head but Karamyenyan is blocking nicely.
Karamyenyan throws an elbow that misses.
Karamyenyan is trying to break free.
Kouya tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Kouya keeps control of Karamyenyan as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Karamyenyan is trying to break free.
Kouya putting his Muay Thai to good use. He has Karamyenyan in a tight clinch and is doing some damage with knees to the body.
Karamyenyan looks winded!
Karamyenyan takes a knee right on the jaw!
Kouya crunches a lovely knee into Karamyenyan's ribcage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Kazunori Kouya will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Vahan Karamyenyan's cut.
That's time! Kouya's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

A head kick misses from Kouya.
A punch combination from Karamyenyan misses.
Karamyenyan lands with a thumping leg kick.
Vahan Karamyenyan seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Karamyenyan keeps the fight on the outside.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Kouya.
Kouya tries to clinch but Karamyenyan is having none of it.
Kouya tries to close the distance and clinch up but Karamyenyan swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Kazunori Kouya seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Kouya misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Karamyenyan scores with a nice one two combo and darts back out of range to avoid anything coming in the opposite direction.
Karamyenyan misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.

Kouya clinches.

Kouya escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Kouya wants to clinch up but Karamyenyan keeps it at a distance.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kouya wants to clinch up but Karamyenyan keeps it at a distance.
Karamyenyan scores with a nice looking left hook and follows it up with an uppercut!

Kouya is rocked!
Kouya showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Karamyenyan.
We are yet to see a takedown attempt from Karamyenyan 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.
Kouya looks to clinch

and Karamyenyan moves into the clinch.
Kouya dodges an elbow strike from Karamyenyan.
Kouya tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Kouya pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
Kouya creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Karamyenyan's defenses.
Karamyenyan looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Karamyenyan is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Kazunori Kouya has scored more points in the clinch so far.

Karamyenyan breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Kouya is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Karamyenyan stuffs the takedown.
Kouya missing with a left hand there. Karamyenyan was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kouya moves to clinch but Karamyenyan breaks away
and Karamyenyan counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Kouya fails to land the takedown.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Kazunori Kouya. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Kouya fails in his attempt to clinch.
Kouya throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Karamyenyan looks to land a combination but Kouya avoids it well.
Vahan Karamyenyan is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Kouya misses with the body kick

and Karamyenyan holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.
Karamyenyan dictating the pace here, as the fighters clinch against the cage.
Kouya misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Karamyenyan.
Karamyenyan avoids a wild elbow strike from Kouya.
Kouya tries to land knees in the clinch but Karamyenyan avoids the damage to the body.
Kouya using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Karamyenyan has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Karamyenyan wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Kouya has him pressed against the cage.
Karamyenyan throws an elbow that misses.

Kouya breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
A punch combination from Karamyenyan misses.
Karamyenyan throws a head kick that misses.

Karamyenyan closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Kouya utilising his Muay Thai to score with a knee to the body.
Karamyenyan is breathing heavily.
Kouya using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Karamyenyan has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Karamyenyan wants to stall.
Karamyenyan is trying to push Kouya away but Kouya has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Karamyenyan wants to break free but Kouya has control.
Kouya tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Karamyenyan working hard to break the clinch.

Kouya pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kouya closes the distance but Karamyenyan moves to the side
and Karamyenyan counters with a body kick that stops Kouya in his tracks momentarily.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Kouya looking to land some kicks to the body here.
Karamyenyan circles away from the clinch attempt

and Karamyenyan counters by clinching up.
Kouya with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
Karamyenyan wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Kouya landing knees to the body.
Kouya misses with a knee strike.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!

Karamyenyan's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Kouya tries to clinch but Karamyenyan moves out of range.

Karamyenyan closes the distance and clinches.
Karamyenyan is working hard here but doesn't seem to be able to control effectively, up against the cage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Vahan Karamyenyan showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Vahan Karamyenyan's cut.
That's time! Back to the action! This is the final round!

Kouya throws a nice head kick!
Karamyenyan takes a head kick and shrugs it off.
Kouya tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Karamyenyan defends well and Kouya ends up having to push Karamyenyan into the cage where they will battle it out in the clinch.
Kouya landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.
Karamyenyan is looking to break free of the clinch but Kouya has double underhooks.
Karamyenyan wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Kouya wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.

Karamyenyan breaks from the clinch.
Kouya closes the distance looking to clinch

and Karamyenyan counters by clinching up.
Kouya looking to throw knees to the head but Karamyenyan is blocking nicely.
Kouya with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kouya misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Karamyenyan.
Karamyenyan is trying to break the clinch but Kouya has him pressed against the cage.
A frustrated look appears on Karamyenyan's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Karamyenyan wants to break free but Kouya has control.
Karamyenyan managing to block the knees to the body from Kouya.
Kouya blocks the elbow strike.
Karamyenyan tries to break free but Kouya pushes him back against the cage.
Kouya misses with an elbow strike.
Kouya landing knees to the body.
Kouya comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
Kouya landing knees to the body.
Karamyenyan takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Karamyenyan is trying to break free.
Kouya keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Karamyenyan's efforts to push away.
Kouya throws a knee to the head but misses.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kouya throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Kouya lands a knee to the head.
Kouya with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Karamyenyan.
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!
Karamyenyan is trying to force a seperation but Kouya has the dominant position.

Kouya breaks the clinch.
Kouya closes the distance looking to clinch

and Karamyenyan holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.
Kouya tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Kouya being controlled against the cage.
Kouya tries to land knees in the clinch but Karamyenyan avoids the damage to the body.
Karamyenyan working hard to break the clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Kouya breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Kouya moves to clinch but Karamyenyan breaks away
and Karamyenyan counters with an outside leg kick.
Kouya tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Karamyenyan paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Kouya pivots as if he's going to throw a leg kick but stops half way.
Kouya delivers a nice body kick.
Kouya tries to clinch but fails miserably
and Karamyenyan counters with a slapping leg kick.
Vahan Karamyenyan is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Kouya checks a low kick from Karamyenyan.
Kouya avoids a punch combination nicely.
Kouya tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Karamyenyan paws at him with a jab and circles away.
A head kick misses from Kouya.
Kouya tries a head kick but it misses.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Karamyenyan throws a right hand that Kouya ducks under and follows up with a left that Kouya also avoids with ease.
Karamyenyan throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Kouya tries to clinch there but Karamyenyan circles away.
Kouya throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Karamyenyan looks to land a body kick but Kouya moved away.
Kouya shoots in for a takedown but Karamyenyan shows good takedown defense.
Kouya shoots in but no luck this time.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Kazunori Kouya. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Jab, cross, leg kick. Nice combination by Karamyenyan!
This has been an exciting period of action!
Kouya tries to clinch but Karamyenyan moves away
enabling Karamyenyan to counter with a crisp jab.
Kouya ducks right into an uppercut from Karamyenyan.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Kouya avoids a low kick by using good footwork.
Kouya moves in looking to clinch but Karamyenyan pushes him off.
Karamyenyan throws a head kick but Kouya moves out of range.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Kazunori Kouya.
I think Kouya has won this one but let's see what the judges have to say. 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 George Francis scores the fight 29:28
Judge Chris Downing scores the fight 29:28
Judge Frank Dennis scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Kazunori Kouya!
In his post fight interview, Kazunori Kouya gave a big smile as he said 'Killer Instinct by Team Goroshi - Armed by Blacksmith Gym - Proudly supported by Tokyo United Fightwear - Zombie Nutrition'.