PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Niko Sirkiä (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Samppa Linna (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Sirkiä comes to the cage accompanied by Thergothon - Elemental. Samppa Linna will no doubt be looking to use his reach advantage to good effect.

Sirkiä
vs
Linna

178 cm
34
230 lbs
33 - 13 - 0

190 cm
27
256 lbs
13 - 3 - 0

Good wrestling
World class boxer
Granite chin

Good wrestler
World class MT
Good gas tank

Perkele!
FinnFighter Nutrition (Five 160Q supps!)

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 33 - 13 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Niko Sirkiä!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 13 - 3 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Samppa Linna!
The judges for this bout are James Ackerman, Richard Clark and James Glass.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Linna does a little shimmy and throws a leg kick. The leg kick missed by a considerable margin though, making him look a little bit silly for doing the shimmy.
Sirkiä moves out of range as Linna strikes.
Sirkiä changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
An inside leg kick from Linna misses.
Linna has done a lot of speed work in the buildup to this fight.
Linna gets off balance looking for a body kick

and Sirkiä counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
Linna controlling the leg, holding on to half guard.
Linna is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Sirkiä missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Sirkiä is pressing down on Linna's thigh, looking to free his foot. Linna is holding on for now.
Sirkiä not landing any meaningful shots this time.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Linna is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Sirkiä pulls his head out easily.
Linna is looking to control Sirkiä's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Linna avoid being mounted?
Sirkiä is pressing down on Linna's thigh, looking to free his foot. Linna is holding on for now.
Sirkiä throwing shots but Linna is blocking nicely.
Sirkiä sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Linna defending well though.
Linna wants to control but Sirkiä is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Sirkiä not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Sirkiä throws a big elbow that misses, also allowing Linna to regain full guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Sirkiä trying to control but Linna is working from the bottom.
Sirkiä has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.

Linna looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.
Linna preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.

Linna has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but Sirkiä can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.
Sirkiä tries to free his leg and advance position but Linna is retaining full guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Linna working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Sirkiä doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Sirkiä manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Linna avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sirkiä throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Linna works some decent striking defense from the bottom.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Linna misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Sirkiä appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Linna throws a big shot that misses.
Sirkiä appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Sirkiä staying out of range there.
A shot to the body from Linna misses

and Sirkiä decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Linna's guard.
Sirkiä missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Linna is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Sirkiä wants to pass the guard but Linna is keeping the position.
Sirkiä stands up over Linna, holding his feet. He dives back in and lands a decent shot to the head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Linna avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Sirkiä distracts Linna with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Sirkiä throws a big right hand that misses.
Sirkiä throws a big elbow that misses.
Sirkiä loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Linna working a defensive guard here.

Linna is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Sirkiä lands a couple of decent looking shots.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Niko Sirkiä dominated that round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Linna lands a leg kick that knocks Sirkiä off balance momentarily.
Sirkiä staying out of range there.
Linna tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Sirkiä was well out of range. Poor timing from Linna.
Sirkiä appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Linna is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Sirkiä.
Sirkiä half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Linna buckles his opponent's knee momentarily with a nice leg kick.
Linna stuns Sirkiä with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.
Sirkiä walks into a stiff left hand from Linna.
Linna throws a hook but Sirkiä avoids it easily.
Samppa Linna seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Linna throws a body shot but no joy.
Linna is looking to slow Sirkiä down with leg kicks.
Linna misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Linna tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Sirkiä was well out of range. Poor timing from Linna.
Linna looking to land some kicks to the body here.
Sirkiä attempts a counter takedown but Linna avoids it well and moves away.
Linna tries to land a front kick but Sirkiä steps back. That was a bit too telegraphed.
Sirkiä moves out of range as Linna throws a body kick.
Sirkiä half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Linna fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Sirkiä manages to avoid it.
Sirkiä tries to counter with a takedown but Linna is quick to defend against it.
Niko Sirkiä is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Linna wants to land a leg kick but Sirkiä is out of range.
Sirkiä attempts a counter takedown but Linna avoids it well and moves away.
Linna misses the shot to the body.
Sirkiä slips a straight right by Linna.
Linna walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Sirkiä checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Linna throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Sirkiä half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Linna lands a body shot.
Linna thows a leg kick but Sirkiä checks it

and Sirkiä decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Linna's guard.
Sirkiä working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Sirkiä looking to pass the guard.
Sirkiä throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Sirkiä postures up and scores with a shot to the body and a follow up elbow to the head.

Linna has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but Sirkiä can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Sirkiä accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sirkiä throwing strikes from guard but Linna blocks nicely.
Linna controls Sirkiä momentarily but Sirkiä frees himself.
Sirkiä throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Sirkiä working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Linna's head.
Linna wants to control here, rather than go for any submissions from the bottom. At least for now.
Sirkiä throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Sirkiä throwing strikes but missing.
Linna is trying to control the position from the bottom.

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.
Sirkiä works over Linna with some ground and pound from guard.
Linna utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Linna avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Linna working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Sirkiä.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Linna throws a head kick but Sirkiä moves out of range.
Sirkiä appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Samppa Linna is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Nice straight punches there by Linna. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Linna.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
The fighters circle momentarily. Linna darts into range and connects with a nice straight punch.
Linna walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Sirkiä checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Linna is using his reach advantage to land shots from outside his opponent's range.
A looping hook to the body misses from Linna. Sirkiä does a little dance to reset his feet.
Sirkiä tries to counter with a takedown but Linna is quick to defend against it.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Samppa Linna showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action. And we move into the final round!

Sirkiä doesn't react quick enough there as he takes a shot to the body.
A combination from Linna does no damage.
Linna throws a low kick but Sirkiä moves out of range easily.
A head kick by Linna misses

so Sirkiä counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
Sirkiä postures up in Linna's guard and throws a big left but Linna blocks it.
Linna preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Linna is adopting a defensive guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Sirkiä throwing strikes but missing.

Linna is looking for a triangle but Sirkiä pushes his legs off easily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sirkiä throwing strikes but missing.
Sirkiä trying to control but Linna is working from the bottom.
Sirkiä is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Sirkiä wants to control from the top but Linna keeps moving.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Sirkiä accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Sirkiä accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Linna trying to control the position.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Linna lands a nice hook to Sirkiä's body. Sirkiä takes it in his stride and looks to land his own strikes.
Linna fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Sirkiä manages to avoid it.
Sirkiä half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Linna dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Sirkiä. That did some damage!
Linna looks to score with a jab to the body but Sirkiä is just out of range.
Sirkiä attempts a counter takedown but Linna avoids it well and moves away.
Linna throws a body kick that misses.
Sirkiä changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
Sirkiä moves away from the strike by Linna.
Linna with a hook.
Linna thuds a left hand into Sirkiä's body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Linna fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Sirkiä manages to avoid it.
Sirkiä uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Linna.
Sirkiä appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Linna misses with a body shot.
Sirkiä half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Linna is looking to slow Sirkiä down with leg kicks.
Linna just misses with a punch to the body.
Linna throws a head kick but Sirkiä moves out of range.
Sirkiä attempts a counter takedown but Linna avoids it well and moves away.
Linna throws a body punch but Sirkiä moves out of range.
Linna throws the left hand but Sirkiä avoids the punch easily.
Sirkiä slips a straight right by Linna.
Linna throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Sirkiä sees it coming and avoids it easily.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Linna throws a couple of head shots and lands with the final one - a decent hook, which struck Sirkiä on the side of the head.
Linna throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Sirkiä stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
Linna is throwing a lot of body shots here, looking to wear down Sirkiä rather than just go for the knockout.
Linna tries to score with a low kick but Sirkiä moves his leg out of the way.
Sirkiä appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Linna ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Sirkiä moves away.
Sirkiä half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Sirkiä moves away from the strike by Linna.
Linna scores with a hook.
Nice straight punches there by Linna. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Linna.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Linna misses with a head kick.
Sirkiä feinted with a counter takedown.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Linna throws a leg kick that is checked

and Sirkiä counters with a nice double leg into half guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
Samppa Linna comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Linna 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 James Ackerman scores the fight 28:29
Judge Richard Clark scores the fight 28:29
Judge James Glass scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Samppa Linna!
Samppa Linna tried to hype himself up post fight but didn't word it too well and it ended up with him sounding like a bit of a tool.
Niko Sirkiä spoke after the fight, saying '"That is not dead which can eternal lie, and with strange aeons even death may die." '.