PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Steven NZonzi (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Dylan Hollinger (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). The crowd seem to be enjoying Hollinger's choice of entrance music: WILD BOYS. I can't wait for this one - let's get the fighter introductions out of the way and get this one started!

NZonzi
vs
Hollinger

176 cm
34
167 lbs
18 - 14 - 0

184 cm
30
167 lbs
18 - 5 - 0

Good wrestling
Dangerous knees
KO power

Excellent grappler
Excellent MT
Good gas tank

Bellum Dominum

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the lightweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 18 - 14 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Steven NZonzi!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 18 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Dylan Hollinger!
The judges for this bout are Konstantin Menshow, Aleksei Zolotukhin and Sergei Dronov.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
NZonzi misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Hollinger.
NZonzi is looking to clinch.
Hollinger lands a nice shot that snaps NZonzi's head back.
NZonzi has his head snapped back a nice jab. A little nod from NZonzi there as he acknowledges the shot.
NZonzi tries to clinch up but Hollinger circles away and keeps his distance.
NZonzi tries to close the distance and clinch but Hollinger swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
NZonzi waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Hollinger.
Hollinger avoids a punch combination nicely.
NZonzi fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Hollinger manages to avoid it.
Hollinger scores with a big left there. The judges will like that one.
Hollinger has been working on his striking defense in training and it's paying off as NZonzi is landing a low percentage of strikes.
Hollinger throws a push kick but NZonzi slaps the foot to one side.
Hollinger fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.
NZonzi wants to clinch.
NZonzi connects with a high kick.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
NZonzi takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.
NZonzi ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Hollinger moves away.
Nice shot lands for Hollinger.
NZonzi tries to clinch but Hollinger is having none of it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
NZonzi takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Hollinger works his jab well there, keeping his opponent at a distance.
Hollinger closes the distance and lands a one-two.
NZonzi gets cracked with a nice right hand there by Hollinger.
NZonzi is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
NZonzi looks shocked there as he takes a right hand to the temple.
NZonzi tries to clinch but Hollinger is having none of it.
Hollinger connects with a body shot.
NZonzi tries to clinch but Hollinger moves out of range.
NZonzi tries to close the distance and clinch but Hollinger swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Hollinger scores with a nice head shot.
Steven NZonzi is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Hollinger connects with a good right hand that stumbles NZonzi. NZonzi circles away out of range and recomposes himself.
NZonzi tries to clinch but Hollinger is having none of it.
NZonzi ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Hollinger moves away.
A shot to the liver by Hollinger. Beautiful body shot.
NZonzi misses with a body shot.
NZonzi wants to clinch up but Hollinger keeps it at a distance.
Nice defenses there by Hollinger.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hollinger connects with a right hand. NZonzi shakes it off.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Hollinger.
NZonzi tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Hollinger paws at him with a jab and circles away.
NZonzi takes a swing at Hollinger's ribcage but misses.
NZonzi throws a wild body kick that Hollinger sees coming a mile off.
Hollinger throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
NZonzi misses with a leg kick.
Hollinger scores with a shot to the body.
Hollinger keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Hollinger throws a nice inside leg kick.
NZonzi moves his head to the side to avoid a jab but walks straight into a cross.
Hollinger lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.
NZonzi tries to clinch but Hollinger is having none of it.
No joy there for NZonzi, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Steven NZonzi seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
NZonzi pivots as if he's going to throw a leg kick but stops half way.
Hollinger clobbers NZonzi with an overhand right that has the crowd gasping. That made a horrendous noise.
NZonzi looks to land a combination but Hollinger avoids it well.
NZonzi is breathing heavily.
NZonzi throws a lazy right hand but Hollinger sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
NZonzi wants to clinch.
Hollinger wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
NZonzi is looking to wear down Hollinger with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Hollinger darts in and out, connecting with a jab.
NZonzi is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
NZonzi takes one to the chin there.
Hollinger has used his reach advantage pretty well so far tonight.
NZonzi throws the left hand but Hollinger avoids the punch easily.
Hollinger is landing a lot of head punches in this opening round! NZonzi had better start moving his head a bit unless he wants his face to turn into pâté.
Hollinger slips under a jab from NZonzi.
NZonzi tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
NZonzi tries to clinch there but Hollinger circles away.

Hollinger fakes an overhand right and shoots for a takedown. NZonzi sprawls well initially but Hollinger persists and gets the takedown into half guard.
We must be close to a standup if these guys don't pick up the pace.
Hollinger slows the pace down in half guard.
Hollinger trying to control from half guard but NZonzi is working away.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hollinger tries to pass to full mount but NZonzi defends it.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
NZonzi trying to hold on to Hollinger's head to control him but Hollinger postures up.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Hollinger wants to control but NZonzi is keeping him busy.
NZonzi trying to control from the bottom.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
NZonzi ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
NZonzi tries to clinch but Hollinger moves away
and Hollinger counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Hollinger thuds his shin into the meat of NZonzi's side.
Hollinger cracks NZonzi with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Hollinger scores with a jab to the jaw.
Nice body punch from Hollinger.
Good leg kick by Hollinger there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Hollinger.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Dylan Hollinger dominated that round.
That's time! Back to the action!

Hollinger keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from NZonzi.
NZonzi moves in looking to clinch but Hollinger pushes him off.
NZonzi takes a push kick to the midsection and stumbles backwards.
Hollinger lands with a cross to side of his opponent's head.
Hollinger throws a lazy body kick
and NZonzi counters with a solid body kick.
NZonzi tries to close the distance and clinch up but Hollinger swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Hollinger bobs and weaves and unloads with a good uppercut.
NZonzi is looking to clinch.
NZonzi wants to clinch.
The fighters circling - NZonzi throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
NZonzi fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Hollinger manages to avoid it.
NZonzi thows a body shot but no joy.
Hollinger looks for the body kick but NZonzi saw that one coming.
NZonzi looks like he's developed a pretty tasty lump over his left eye. He'll need to avoid taking much more damage to that.
Hollinger throws a nice outside leg kick.
NZonzi is looking to clinch.
Well, he's not going to score with shots like that. A lazy body kick attempt from NZonzi.

That's one minute gone in the round.

NZonzi gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
NZonzi tries to break free but Hollinger pushes him back against the cage.
NZonzi tries to pull guard but Hollinger holds him up against the cage and eventually NZonzi drops back down to his feet.
Hollinger keeps control of NZonzi as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Hollinger taking a breather.
The crowd are getting on Hollinger's back here. They're not happy about his lack of aggression in the clinch.
NZonzi wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
NZonzi throws an elbow that misses.
Hollinger is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Still in the clinch, Hollinger scores with a nice short uppercut.
A short right hand to the side of the head by NZonzi.
Hollinger tries to stall but NZonzi uses the opportunity to gain a better position.
Hollinger is persisting with his attempts to control the action in the clinch, rather than do any real damage.
NZonzi tries to land knees in the clinch but Hollinger avoids the damage to the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hollinger wants to stall.
NZonzi is really struggling to find his range with his punches. Hollinger's reach advantage is clearly causing him problems.
The ref breaks the fighters up, due to lack of action by Dylan Hollinger.
Hollinger scores with a sloppy right hand. NZonzi should have avoided that one.
NZonzi misses with the combination.
NZonzi ducks right into an uppercut from Hollinger.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Hollinger scores with a leg kick.
NZonzi misses with a wild body shot.
NZonzi fails with an attempt to clinch.
Hollinger scores with a nice body kick.
NZonzi looks to score with a jab to the body but Hollinger is just out of range.
Hollinger lands with a right hand.
Hollinger lands with a nice body kick.
Hollinger scores with a sloppy right hand. NZonzi should have avoided that one.
Hollinger scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
Dylan Hollinger seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Decent striking displayed by Hollinger there.

NZonzi is rocked!
Hollinger scores with a big left there. The judges will like that one.
Oh NZonzi is still all over the place! His legs are completely gone! Will he be able to recover?!!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
NZonzi looks to land a left hand but Hollinger moved out of range nicely.

Hollinger dives in and scores a takedown into NZonzi's guard.
Hollinger slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.
Hollinger trying to control but NZonzi is working from the bottom.
We must be close to a standup if these guys don't pick up the pace.
NZonzi looking to control.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Steven NZonzi.
NZonzi fails with an attempt to clinch.
Hollinger paws at his opponent with the jab and then lunges in with a straight, right on the button.
Hollinger stuns NZonzi with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.
NZonzi tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Hollinger manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.

Hollinger drives through with a really nice takedown into side control.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Hollinger wants to control but NZonzi is keeping him busy.
Hollinger 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.
NZonzi takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.
We've been hearing good reports from NZonzi's training camp. Apparently he has been rolling around with some good quality BJJ practitioners and has been sharpening his skills. Let's see if that has an impact on the fight today.
A lull in the action here.
NZonzi struggling a bit here.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hollinger wants to control but NZonzi is keeping him busy.
NZonzi is trying to control Hollinger's posture but Hollinger avoids it.
NZonzi seems to have got his legs back now.
NZonzi trying to remain calm as Hollinger controls from the top position.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Hollinger is looking to take a break and control but NZonzi is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.

OK we're going to have a standup here. Dylan Hollinger hasn't been effective enough on the ground and the referee wants a restart.
Hollinger throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent NZonzi stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Hollinger thuds a mid kick into his opponent's body. That will wear on NZonzi if he has to take too many more of those.
Hollinger uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from NZonzi.
Hollinger moves into range and lands a nice body kick.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Dylan Hollinger showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
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. This is the final round!

Hollinger lands a nice looking body shot.
NZonzi throws a jab when Hollinger was well out of range.
A swing and a miss from NZonzi.
Hollinger listening to his corner there, landing a nice uppercut.
Hollinger checks a leg kick.
Hollinger swats away the attempt to clinch by NZonzi.
Hollinger shoots in for a double leg but NZonzi sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
Hollinger lands with a good body shot.
NZonzi jabs Hollinger to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Hollinger has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
NZonzi throws a lazy head kick
and Hollinger counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
NZonzi on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
Hollinger scores with a jab to the jaw.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Hollinger lands a nice shot that snaps NZonzi's head back.
NZonzi throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Hollinger drops NZonzi with a straight left! Oh this is bad for NZonzi! Hollinger dives in and starts dropping bombs - the referee has no choice but to step in and save him!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 0:58 of round 3, we have a winner by way of TKO (Strikes). Dylan Hollinger!
An out of breath Dylan Hollinger thanked his loyal fans in his post fight interview, giving them credit for his success over the course of his career.