PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between grave robber (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Valery Georgievich Karpin (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). I don't know about you partner, but I'm pumped for this one!

robber
vs
Georgievich Karpin

225 cm
23
130 lbs
2 - 2 - 0

170 cm
22
145 lbs
1 - 1 - 0

Good takedowns
Counter striker
Cuts easily

BJJ White Belt
Excellent MT
Solid chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 2 - 2 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, grave robber!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 1 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Valery Georgievich Karpin!
The judges for this bout are Fedor Mirinova, Ivan Kurochkin and Konstantin Menshow.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
robber shoots in and drives through. Karpin sprawls well.
robber fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Karpin tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from robber.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for grave robber. That's going to take a lot out of him.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Karpin tries to clinch but robber is having none of it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
robber keeps the fight on the outside.
Karpin tries to clinch but robber moves out of range.
Karpin wants to clinch.
robber tries to clinch

and Karpin counters by moving into the clinch.
robber has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Karpin is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
Karpin with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Karpin landing knees to the head.

robber is rocked!

It looks like grave robber has been cut.
Karpin misses with a knee strike.
Oh robber is still all over the place! His legs are completely gone! Will he be able to recover?!!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Karpin tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
robber really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.
robber goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Karpin tries to land a knee to the head but robber blocks with his arms.
robber is trying to drag Karpin to the mat but Karpin just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
Karpin looking to throw knees to the head but robber is blocking nicely.
Karpin using the Thai plumb to throw knees but robber has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
robber seems to have got his legs back now.
Karpin using the Thai plumb to throw knees but robber has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
robber tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Karpin smiles and moves away.

Karpin has managed to clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Karpin with an attempt at a knee that misses.
robber tries to pull guard but Karpin holds him up against the cage and eventually robber drops back down to his feet.
Karpin looking to throw knees to the head but robber is blocking nicely.
robber tries to pull guard but Karpin won't allow it.
Karpin tries to land a knee to the head but robber blocks with his arms.
robber jumps guard but Karpin stands there with robber around his waist. robber gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Karpin tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Karpin lands a knee to the head.
Karpin looks gassed!
Karpin tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Karpin tries to land a knee to the head but robber blocks with his arms.
robber tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Karpin just stands there and leans against the cage.
Karpin is pressed up against the cage. robber has hold of a leg and is looking to drag Karpin down to the mat. Karpin avoids the attempt though and has circled away. We're back to striking at a distance.
robber has his takedown stuffed

and Karpin moves into the clinch.
robber fails to pull the fight into his guard.
Karpin throws a knee to the head but misses.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Karpin tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Karpin with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Karpin with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
robber changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Karpin fights it off and pushes away nicely.
robber moves in looking to clinch but Karpin pushes him off.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Karpin tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but robber paws at him with a jab and circles away.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Valery Georgievich Karpin dominated that round.
The cut man is working on grave robber's cut.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Karpin is looking to clinch.
Karpin tries to close the distance and clinch up but robber swats him away and circles back towards the center.

robber tries to keep at a distance but Karpin has taken the fight into the clinch.
Karpin tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Karpin misses with a knee to the head.
Karpin tries a knee to the head but robber blocks it.
Karpin with an attempt at a knee that misses.
robber wants to get back to striking at distance but Karpin won't allow it.
Karpin gets underhooks to prevent robber's takedown attempt.
robber has had enough of the clinch but Karpin keeps him there for the moment.
robber changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Karpin fights it off and pushes away nicely.
robber shoots and misses

and Karpin counters by moving into the clinch.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for grave robber. That's going to take a lot out of him.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Karpin throws a knee to the head but misses.
robber is looking to break free of the clinch but Karpin has double underhooks.
Karpin with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Karpin is breathing heavily.
Karpin with an attempt at a knee that misses.
robber misses with an elbow over the top.
robber wants to break free but Karpin has control.
Karpin tries a knee to the head but robber blocks it.
Karpin tries a knee to the head but robber blocks it.
robber jumps guard but Karpin stands there with robber around his waist. robber gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Karpin throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but robber blocks it with crossed arms.
robber tries to pull guard but Karpin holds him up against the cage and eventually robber drops back down to his feet.
robber drops down looking for an ankle pick but Karpin pulls his leg out and moves away.

robber closes the distance and looks for a trip takedown... aaaand he's got it - robber lands in his opponent's guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
robber slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
robber loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
robber stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Karpin swivels though and keeps the full guard.
robber trying to control but Karpin is working from the bottom.
robber slips nicely into half guard.
Karpin keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
robber will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
robber tries to pass the half guard into mount. Karpin knows what he's doing though and prevents the attempt.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.
robber trying to control from half guard but Karpin is working away.
Karpin is in trouble now - robber has advanced to mount!
Karpin wants to get back to his feet.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
robber with some aggressive grappling here, looking for the finish.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Karpin can do anything to dispel that myth.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Karpin holding onto his opponent's waist for dear life, as robber tries to land some strikes to get him to release his grip.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that grave robber will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on grave robber's cut.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action. This is the final round!

Karpin is looking to clinch but robber is avoiding it.
robber with a lazy takedown attempt

and Karpin moves into the clinch.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
A knee to the head by Karpin.
robber is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Karpin pulls him back up using the underhooks.
Karpin tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Karpin with a knee to the head.
robber tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
robber wants a takedown but no success here.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for grave robber. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Karpin tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Karpin looking to throw knees to the head but robber is blocking nicely.
Karpin with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Karpin with an attempt at a knee that misses.
robber tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Karpin just stands there and leans against the cage.
Karpin throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but robber blocks it with crossed arms.
robber taking a breather.
Karpin misses with a knee strike.
robber jumps guard but Karpin stands there with robber around his waist. robber gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Karpin using the Thai plumb to throw knees but robber has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
robber is trying to break the clinch but Karpin has him pressed against the cage.
Karpin prevents a body shot from robber.
robber tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Karpin tries a knee to the head but robber blocks it.
robber wants to break the clinch but can't.
Karpin throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but robber blocks it with crossed arms.
robber has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Karpin avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.
robber throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Karpin using the Thai plumb to throw knees but robber has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
robber is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Karpin misses with a knee to the head.
Karpin tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
robber fails to pull guard.
Karpin with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Karpin with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Karpin tries to land a knee to the head but misses.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.
robber has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Karpin is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
Karpin throws a knee to the head but misses.
Karpin is pressed up against the cage. robber has hold of a leg and is looking to drag Karpin down to the mat. Karpin avoids the attempt though and has circled away. We're back to striking at a distance.
Karpin closes the distance looking to clinch

and robber moves into the clinch.
Karpin throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but robber blocks it with crossed arms.
robber drops down looking for an ankle pick but Karpin pulls his leg out and moves away.
grave robber is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
robber shoots in but doesn't get the takedown

and Karpin holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Karpin landing knees to the head.
Karpin throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but robber blocks it with crossed arms.
Karpin misses with a knee to the head.
Karpin using the Thai plumb to throw knees but robber has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
robber tries for a takedown but Karpin manages to get underhooks.
Karpin tries to land a knee to the head but robber blocks with his arms.
Karpin misses with a knee to the head.
robber wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
robber tries to score a body lock takedown but Karpin shows good agility there to stay on his feet.
Karpin misses with a knee to the head.
Karpin misses with a knee strike.
robber tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Karpin smiles and moves away.
robber misses with a takedown

and Karpin counters by clinching up.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.
robber tries for a takedown. No joy.
Karpin tries to land a knee to the head but robber blocks with his arms.
Karpin with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Karpin misses with a knee to the head.
Karpin misses with a knee strike.
robber is looking to break free of the clinch but Karpin has double underhooks.
Karpin misses with a knee to the head.
Karpin throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but robber blocks it with crossed arms.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
robber tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Karpin smiles and moves away.
robber throws a right and a left that both miss.

And that's the end of the fight!
Valery Georgievich Karpin comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Karpin has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 Fedor Mirinova scores the fight 28:29
Judge Ivan Kurochkin scores the fight 28:29
Judge Konstantin Menshow scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Valery Georgievich Karpin!