PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a super heavyweight MMA rules bout between Run Forcover (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Veikko Kulkunen (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Forcover
vs
Kulkunen

185 cm
31
170 lbs
12 - 12 - 0

164 cm
23
152 lbs
6 - 1 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Cardio machine

Olympic wrestler
Counter fighter
Good gas tank

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 2 rounds, in the super heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 12 - 12 - 0, fighting out of Amsterdam, Run Forcover!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 6 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Amsterdam, Veikko Kulkunen!
The judges for this bout are Albert Achterberg, Daniel Blasius and Saam Ante.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Kulkunen stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Kulkunen wants it to stay on the feet.
Forcover shoots in but Kulkunen avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Forcover has been working on his boxing with his coaches at Private Gym Mano in the buildup to the fight.
Forcover shoots in and drives through. Kulkunen sprawls well.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Run Forcover. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Forcover closes the distance and clinches up with Kulkunen, looking for a takedown. Forcover pushes Kulkunen against the cage but Kulkunen circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Forcover shoots in and drives through. Kulkunen sprawls well.
Forcover fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
And Kulkunen tries to counter it with a takedown but Forcover pushes his down on his head and steps out.
Forcover shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Kulkunen pinned against the cage. Kulkunen gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.

Forcover gets caught on his heels momentarily as he allows Kulkunen to score an easy takedown into full guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kulkunen stays in close to Forcover's body and controls the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Forcover keeping moving, preventing Kulkunen from controlling successfully.
Kulkunen might have to switch it up a bit here because his efforts to control Forcover haven't been going to plan, at least at the current moment in time.
Kulkunen is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Kulkunen trying to control but Forcover is working from the bottom.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Forcover working a defensive guard here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.
Kulkunen pushes down on Forcover's leg and manages to get into half guard.
Forcover is trying to get back to full guard.
Kulkunen is looking to stall here but Forcover recovers full guard.
Kulkunen pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Forcover is keeping the position for now.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Forcover is defended easily by Kulkunen.
Forcover shoots in and drives through. Kulkunen sprawls well.

Kulkunen gets a takedown into half guard.

Kulkunen is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Kulkunen wants to lay and pray for a moment but Forcover keeps working.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Forcover moves his hips nicely and gets into full guard.
Kulkunen is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.
Forcover is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.

That's five minutes gone in the round.
Forcover is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Kulkunen is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.
The referee wants the fighters to be more active or he's going to reset them on the feet.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Forcover will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Forcover shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Kulkunen pinned against the cage. Kulkunen gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Forcover tries to score a power double leg takedown but Kulkunen sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten Forcover somewhat.

Kulkunen shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Kulkunen showed some decent athleticism there.
Forcover trying to hold on to Kulkunen's head to control him but Kulkunen postures up.

That's six minutes gone in the round.
Kulkunen is keen to just control but Forcover is a slippery customer.

Kulkunen is trying to work for a kimura. This could be trouble! No, Forcover has managed to free his arm - good work.
Forcover is refusing to be controlled, as Kulkunen sits in half guard.

That's seven minutes gone in the round.

Kulkunen is looking for a kimura but Forcover is holding onto that half guard position, so it's hard for Kulkunen to get the leverage.
Forcover is refusing to be controlled, as Kulkunen sits in half guard.
The referee is pacing around the two fighters - he looks like he's thinking about a standup.
Forcover is controlling Kulkunen's position as best he can from this difficult position.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.

Kulkunen scores with a takedown into Forcover's guard.
Kulkunen's corner is telling him to maintain position.
Forcover keeping moving, preventing Kulkunen from controlling successfully.
Forcover bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Kulkunen's guard.

That's eight minutes gone in the round.
Kulkunen is trying to keep Forcover in close.
Forcover passes easily into side control. Nice work.
Kulkunen tries to improve position but can't.
Forcover 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.
Forcover wants to control but Kulkunen is keeping him busy.

That's nine minutes gone in the round.
Forcover taking a breather here.
Kulkunen is looking to regain half guard here but Forcover keeps moving and retains side control.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Veikko Kulkunen dominated that round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! This is the final round!

Forcover shoots in for a double leg but Kulkunen sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
And Kulkunen tries to counter it with a takedown but Forcover pushes his down on his head and steps out.
Forcover shoots in looking for a takedown. Kulkunen tries to sprawl out of it but Forcover keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Kulkunen manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.

Kulkunen closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. Forcover quickly recovers to half guard.
Kulkunen is trying to control the action in half guard but Forcover is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
Forcover is looking for a sweep. Kulkunen is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.

Forcover is defending against the submission attempts here by Kulkunen.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kulkunen wants to take a breather but Forcover is having none of it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Forcover tries to roll over but Kulkunen keeps him under control.
Kulkunen controlling the action here.
Kulkunen has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Forcover gets full guard.
Forcover manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Kulkunen manages to get himself to full guard.

Kulkunen is trying to control the position from the bottom.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.

Kulkunen is working actively off his back, looking to secure an arm or perhaps work for a triangle.
Forcover will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.

Kulkunen is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Forcover defends well.
Forcover slips nicely into half guard.
Kulkunen trying to control here but he's found himself mounted! Oh no!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Forcover prevents Kulkunen from getting the reversal.
Kulkunen is squirming around, avoiding Forcover's attempts to control the action.
Forcover with some aggressive grappling here, looking for the finish.

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.
Forcover takes Kulkunen's back. Could be looking for a rear naked choke here - either way, Kulkunen is in trouble.
Forcover has the hooks in. Kulkunen is trying to push off one leg but he has to do so cautiously to avoid being submitted.

Kulkunen defends a rear naked choke attempt by controlling one of Forcover's arms.
Kulkunen tries to escape the position - he's now mounted. Is that better or worse? Hard to tell!

That's five minutes gone in the round.
Kulkunen is looking to improve his position but Forcover isn't that keen on the idea.
Kulkunen gets back to half guard.

Kulkunen looking to work for a kimura from the bottom.
Forcover seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Kulkunen does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.

That's six minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.
Kulkunen is looking to improve his position.
Kulkunen trying to get back to full guard but Forcover takes advantage of the position and moves to full mount!
Forcover fails to advance to Kulkunen's back.
Kulkunen tries to lock up and control but Forcover gives him a forearm to the face and pushes him away.
Kulkunen really trying hard to get back to half guard here.
Forcover avoids the attempt from Kulkunen to control.
Veikko Kulkunen is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.

That's seven minutes gone in the round.
Forcover looking to control and managing it successfully.
Forcover trying to control but Kulkunen is having none of it.
Kulkunen really trying hard to get back to half guard here.

That's eight minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.

Forcover goes for an armbar but he's fallen flat on his backside there and now Kulkunen is on top in guard.
Forcover looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Forcover trying to control the position here.
Forcover keeping moving, preventing Kulkunen from controlling successfully.

That's nine minutes gone in the round.
Kulkunen stays in close to Forcover's body and controls the position.
Forcover is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Forcover dives in for a single leg takedown but Kulkunen sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Run Forcover. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Forcover shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Kulkunen but Kulkunen pushes him off and we're back to square one.
And Kulkunen tries to counter it with a takedown but Forcover pushes his down on his head and steps out.
Run Forcover has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Forcover tries to score a power double leg takedown but Kulkunen sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten Forcover somewhat.

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 Run Forcover.
I have no idea who won that fight. Let's wait and see whether the judges are as confused as me! Time for a split decision perhaps?!. Over to the ring announcer for the scorecards.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Albert Achterberg scores the fight 19:19
Judge Daniel Blasius scores the fight 19:20
Judge Saam Ante scores the fight 19:19

The fight is ruled a majority draw!