PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Spartak Yuri (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Filip Mirkovic (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both these guys have solid standup skills and neither is particularly fantastic on the ground, so let's hope for a nice standup war!

Yuri
vs
Mirkovic

193 cm
26
205 lbs
1 - 6 - 0

190 cm
28
217 lbs
5 - 6 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Decent elbows
Experienced

BJJ Blue Belt
Decent boxing
Determined

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 1 - 6 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Spartak Yuri!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 5 - 6 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Filip Mirkovic!
The judges for this bout are Ivan Kurochkin, Konstantin Menshow and Igor Prikhodko.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Yuri tries to close the distance and clinch but Mirkovic swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Mirkovic lands a jab. Then a cross. Then finally a nice hook to the body. Good work there by Mirkovic.

It looks like Spartak Yuri has been cut.
Mirkovic fails with a takedown attempt.
Yuri is looking for a counter combo.
Mirkovic walks forward, straight into a front kick from Yuri.
Filip Mirkovic seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Yuri fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Mirkovic has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
Mirkovic uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Yuri.
Yuri walks into a straight right hand from Mirkovic.
Mirkovic lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Yuri circles away quickly and effectively.
Yuri fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Yuri fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Mirkovic manages to avoid it.
Mirkovic lets the fists fly and connects with a left straight followed by a right hook.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Mirkovic swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Mirkovic misses with a few strikes there.
Left hook, right uppercut from Mirkovic.

Yuri tries to keep at a distance but Mirkovic has taken the fight into the clinch.
Yuri comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Yuri lands with a right to the head.
Yuri tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.

Mirkovic breaks from the clinch.
Mirkovic misses with a takedown attempt - Yuri sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Yuri gets cracked with a nice right hand there by Mirkovic.
Thud! ouch! good body kick from Yuri - that will leave a mark!

Mirkovic gets in close and instigates a clinch.
Yuri using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Mirkovic has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Still in the clinch, Yuri scores with a nice short uppercut.
Yuri landing knees to the body.

Mirkovic breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Mirkovic lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Yuri circles away quickly and effectively.
Mirkovic looks winded!
Yuri throws the kick towards the body but Mirkovic avoids it.
A nice leg kick lands there from Yuri.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.

Mirkovic rushes Yuri and pushes him back against the cage in a clinch.
Yuri throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Mirkovic blocks it with crossed arms.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Yuri unloads a knee to the mid-section.
Yuri landing knees to the body.
Yuri tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Yuri working aggressively here.
Mirkovic is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the cage enables Yuri to keep the fight standing.
Spartak Yuri has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Filip Mirkovic.
Yuri tries a body shot but Mirkovic blocks it.
Yuri working aggressively here.
Yuri misses with a knee to the head.
Mirkovic wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Yuri gets an overhook and lands an elbow to the side of the head.
Yuri misses with a punch to the body.

Mirkovic pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Yuri moves in looking to clinch but Mirkovic pushes him off.
Yuri throws a leg kick which misses Mirkovic's front leg but catches the back leg as Mirkovic tries to avoid it.
The crowd cheers as Yuri lands an impressive looking overhand right. Mirkovic doesn't seem phased though.
A looping hook to the body misses from Yuri. Mirkovic does a little dance to reset his feet.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

The fight moves into the clinch position.
Yuri tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Mirkovic tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Yuri smiles and moves away.
Mirkovic fails to land with a series of punches.
Mirkovic misses with a double jab.
Yuri tries to counter by moving into the clinch but Mirkovic manages to circle out of the way.
Spartak Yuri is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Yuri just misses with a punch to the body.
Yuri feints and then cracks Mirkovic's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Mirkovic down.
Mirkovic takes a head kick and keeps coming.
We've been informed that Mirkovic has been working hard on his conditioning in the buildup to the fight.
Yuri throws a body kick that digs right into the meat.
Some wild striking there from Yuri.
Mirkovic scores with a jab to the jaw.
Mirkovic scores to the head and body with a nice combination!
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Yuri feints and then cracks Mirkovic's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Mirkovic down.
Mirkovic works his jab well there, keeping his opponent at a distance.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Yuri thuds a mid kick into his opponent's body. That will wear on Mirkovic if he has to take too many more of those.

Mirkovic has Yuri up against the cage in a clinch.
Yuri goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Yuri trying to land knees to the body.
Yuri lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Yuri misses with a knee strike.
Knees to the body from Yuri.
Mirkovic takes an elbow to the forehead.
Mirkovic blocks the elbow strike.
Yuri with a knee to the head.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Yuri tries a body shot but Mirkovic blocks it.
Yuri scores with a knee to the head.
Yuri connects with a nasty looking knee right to Mirkovic's face.
Kneeeeees! The crowd are calling for knees to the body. Yuri obliges.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Spartak Yuri dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Spartak Yuri's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Mirkovic lands with a cross.
Yuri throws a body punch but Mirkovic moves out of range.
Yuri ducks right into an uppercut from Mirkovic.

Mirkovic instigates a clinch.
Yuri lands an uppercut.
Yuri lands a good knee to the midsection. Mirkovic won't want to take too many of those.
Yuri tries to land a knee to the head but Mirkovic blocks with his arms.
Mirkovic scores with a nice hook to the head.
Mirkovic tries to break free but Yuri pushes him back against the cage.
Yuri scores a nice knee to the body.
Yuri throws an elbow but it misses.
Yuri misses with a punch to the body.
Yuri with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!

Mirkovic escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Yuri bobs and weaves and throws out a fast jab that snaps Mirkovic's head backwards.
Yuri scores with a nice looking left hook and follows it up with an uppercut!

That's one minute gone in the round.
Mirkovic throws a series of punches but Yuri avoids them all with ease.
Yuri throws a head kick that connects with a bit of head and a bit of hand.
Yuri swings for the body but Mirkovic moves out of range.
Mirkovic walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.
Yuri misses with a head kick.
We've been told by Yuri's head coaches at Russian Fighting Community Gym that he's been working on his takedown defense in preparation for this fight.

Mirkovic rushes Yuri and pushes him back against the cage in a clinch.
Mirkovic takes a knee right on the jaw!
Yuri tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Yuri misses with a knee strike.
Yuri tries to throw a body punch but Mirkovic avoids it by throwing Yuri back against the cage.
Yuri landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Yuri misses with a punch on the inside.
Yuri misses with an elbow strike.
Mirkovic blocking some punches.
Mirkovic is trying to break the clinch but Yuri is controlling him.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Yuri lands an elbow just above Mirkovic 's eye.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Mirkovic on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Yuri landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Mirkovic is breathing heavily.
A frustrated look appears on Mirkovic's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Mirkovic has dropped down and is looking to force the takedown but it's defended by Yuri after a bit of a struggle.
Yuri using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Mirkovic has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Mirkovic blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Spartak Yuri has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Yuri pushes off an throws an elbow but Mirkovic leans to the side and avoids it. We're back to clinching against the cage.
Yuri is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Mirkovic can do to turn this around?
Mirkovic working hard to break the clinch.
Mirkovic avoiding damage as Yuri throws knees to the body.
Yuri misses with a hook from the clinch.
Yuri goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Mirkovic pressing his opponent against the cage.
Mirkovic blocks an elbow strike.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Mirkovic wants to break free but Yuri has control.
Mirkovic blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Mirkovic wants a takedown.
Mirkovic wants to break free but Yuri has control.
Yuri misses with a hook to the ribs.
Yuri tries to throw a body punch but Mirkovic avoids it by throwing Yuri back against the cage.
A short right from Yuri on the inside.
Mirkovic tries for a takedown but Yuri manages to get underhooks.
Spartak Yuri has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Filip Mirkovic.
Mirkovic blocks an uppercut.
Yuri lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Yuri throws a head punch that misses.
Yuri lands a knee to the head.
Mirkovic is looking to break free of the clinch but Yuri has double underhooks.
Mirkovic is trying to push Yuri away but Yuri has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Mirkovic blocks an elbow strike from Yuri.
Mirkovic managing to block the knees to the body from Yuri.
Yuri misses with a knee to the head.
Yuri keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Mirkovic's efforts to push away.

Mirkovic jumps into guard, dragging Yuri to the mat.
Yuri is fighting to break Mirkovic's control of his arms but Mirkovic is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.
Yuri throws a big elbow that misses.
Mirkovic utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Yuri in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Spartak Yuri dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Spartak Yuri's cut.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! This is the final round!

Yuri tries to land a leg kick but Mirkovic saw it coming and moves away.
Mirkovic jabs Yuri right on the nose. Yuri blinks but takes it well.
Yuri throws a series of punches but Mirkovic moves out of range.
Yuri looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Yuri misses with a body kick.
Mirkovic thuds a left hand into Yuri's body.
Yuri tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Yuri scores with a three punch combo!
Mirkovic tries a head kick but it misses.
Filip Mirkovic seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Mirkovic shoots in but Yuri avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Yuri lands with a head kick! That's gotta hurt.
Mirkovic moves out of range of the strikes.
Mirkovic tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Yuri defends well and Mirkovic ends up having to push Yuri into the cage where they will battle it out in the clinch.
Yuri is looking to wear down Mirkovic with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Mirkovic moves out of range of the leg kick from Yuri.
Mirkovic takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Yuri tries to clinch up but Mirkovic circles away and keeps his distance.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Yuri lands with a nice body punch.
Yuri scores with a leg kick.
Yuri tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Mirkovic was well out of range. Poor timing from Yuri.
Yuri bobbing and weaving, closes the distance and lands a hook to the side of Mirkovic's head.
Mirkovic scores with a three punch combo!
Yuri throws a head kick that misses.
Yuri jabbing away but nothing is landing.
A clash of legs there as Mirkovic blocks the low kick.
Mirkovic tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Yuri looking to land some kicks to the body here.
Yuri pivots, looking for a leg kick but Mirkovic is out of range and Yuri settles back down.
Mirkovic throws a one two combo.
Yuri scores with a push kick.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Yuri blocks a head kick by Mirkovic.
Mirkovic takes a jab right on the nose. That must have hurt but he shrugs his shoulders and looks to return the favor.
A thudding body kick lands there by Yuri!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Yuri misses with a body shot.
That kick from Yuri tenderised Mirkovic's leg. Mirkovic is trying to keep his angry face on.
Yuri pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Mirkovic throws out a counter right but Yuri avoids it with no problem.
Yuri scores with a kick to the body.
Yuri will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Yuri throws a body kick but he was well out of range there.
Sloppy strikes from Mirkovic. Those never looked like landing.
Yuri is looking to counter the offense by Mirkovic and move into the clinch.
Yuri throws out a powerful jab.
Mirkovic moves into range and throws a lovely three punch combination.
Mirkovic's hands are dropping dangerously low here and Yuri connects clean with a right hook that sends him down to one knee! Mirkovic scrambles back to his feet.
Yuri tries a head kick but it misses.
Left hook, right uppercut from Mirkovic.
Mirkovic takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
Mirkovic thuds a left hand into Yuri's body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Mirkovic throws a right hand that Yuri ducks under and follows up with a left that Yuri also avoids with ease.
Yuri seemed to be looking to counter by closing the distance.
A punch combination from Mirkovic misses.
Yuri closes the distance but Mirkovic moves to the side
and Mirkovic counters with a one-two to the body.
Mirkovic's leg has a nasty welt from taking a succession of leg kicks. That must be slowing him down.
Yuri is looking to clinch but Mirkovic is avoiding it.
Filip Mirkovic is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Mirkovic takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
Mirkovic throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Filip Mirkovic has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Yuri thuds his right hand into Mirkovic's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.
Yuri tries to clinch but Mirkovic is having none of it.
Mirkovic changes levels for a counter takedown but doesn't follow through with his attempt.
Yuri lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Yuri connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.
Yuri lands with an overhand left.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Yuri.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Yuri swings for the body but Mirkovic moves out of range.
Mirkovic lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as Yuri backs up against the cage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Mirkovic throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.

Mirkovic closes the distance and clinches.
Yuri landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Yuri putting his Muay Thai to good use. He has Mirkovic in a tight clinch and is doing some damage with knees to the body.
Knees in the clinch landing for Yuri.
Yuri lands an elbow inside that Mirkovic shrugs off.
Yuri tries to work over Mirkovic's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Mirkovic blocks an uppercut.
Yuri lands with a light punch inside.
Yuri lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Yuri misses with some punches.
Mirkovic wants to break free but Yuri has control.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Yuri doesn't land with the attempted body shot.

Mirkovic escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Mirkovic displaying good standup as he scores with a three punch combination.
Yuri lands a slapping body shot.

And that's the end of the fight!
Spartak Yuri showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Yuri, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 Ivan Kurochkin scores the fight 30:27
Judge Konstantin Menshow scores the fight 30:27
Judge Igor Prikhodko scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Spartak Yuri!