PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Johnny Whiteside (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Pasi Pulkannaru (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Pulkannaru is bouncing up and down as he enters the arena, backed by Judas Priest - Pain Killer. Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Whiteside
vs
Pulkannaru

160 cm
23
148 lbs
7 - 6 - 0

206 cm
30
162 lbs
3 - 11 - 0

Good wrestling
Counter fighter
Very quick

Decent wrestler
Excellent boxer
Good gas tank

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 7 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Johnny Whiteside!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 11 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Pasi Pulkannaru!
The judges for this bout are Tarja Halkonen, Marco Blurström and Roosa Järviläinen.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Pulkannaru displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Whiteside throws out the jab.
Pulkannaru tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Whiteside misses with a straight right.
Pulkannaru throws a body kick that misses.

Pulkannaru looking to score a takedown here. Whiteside is defending well but Pulkannaru drives through and ends up in Whiteside's guard.
Pulkannaru makes a bit of distance and scores with some ground and pound, still in guard.
Pulkannaru trying to control the position from guard on top but Whiteside is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Whiteside is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Pulkannaru controls from within his opponent's guard.
Pulkannaru wants to control from the top but Whiteside keeps moving.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Pulkannaru is in a good position here but he's just trying to control... And he's not even managing to do that successfully.
Whiteside is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.

Pulkannaru is trying to stand up here but Whiteside is controlling him well.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Pulkannaru is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Whiteside thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Pulkannaru's head.
Whiteside throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Whiteside not landing any meaningful shots this time.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Pulkannaru is not content to let Whiteside control the position.
Whiteside wants to pass to mount but Pulkannaru is defending the position.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Whiteside lands with a punch from half guard.
Pulkannaru is trying to get back to full guard.
Whiteside missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Pulkannaru trying to control from the bottom.
Whiteside scoring with strikes to the body and head.

Whiteside is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Pulkannaru is not content to let Whiteside control the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Whiteside is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Whiteside prevents Pulkannaru from improving his position.
Whiteside passes the half guard and he's now in mount! Big trouble for Pulkannaru!
Whiteside throws some wild stikes that Pulkannaru manages to avoid easily.
Pulkannaru holding onto his opponent's waist for dear life, as Whiteside tries to land some strikes to get him to release his grip.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Pulkannaru tries to hold on but Whiteside postures up.
Pulkannaru is trying to stand up.
Whiteside trying to control but Pulkannaru is having none of it.
Whiteside working away from the top, dropping strikes.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Whiteside has his opponent pinned against the cage, landing some nasty ground and pound that is really making a bit of a mess out of Pulkannaru's face.
Whiteside pausing momentarily but resumes with a couple of decent strikes that do a bit of damage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Johnny Whiteside dominated that round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

A big right from Whiteside misses.
Pulkannaru pushes Whiteside away with a front kick.
Pulkannaru throws a body kick that misses.
It really doesn't seem like the step up in weight is hurting Whiteside here at all. He's more than holding his own against the bigger man.
Pulkannaru misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Whiteside looks to score with a jab to the body but Pulkannaru is just out of range.
Pulkannaru blocks a jab.
Pulkannaru looks like he wanted to counter with a high kick but didn't throw it.
Pulkannaru throws a head kick that misses.
Whiteside is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Pulkannaru can do to turn this around?
Whiteside misses the shot to the body.
Pulkannaru is clearly looking to counter with head kicks.
Pulkannaru fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Whiteside manages to avoid it.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Pulkannaru uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Whiteside.
Pulkannaru misses with a head kick.
An attempted straight right counter from Whiteside misses the target.
Pulkannaru throws a body kick, spinning off balance
and Pulkannaru takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Pulkannaru's corner calls for a 1, 2 combination and Pulkannaru duly obliges.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Whiteside showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Pulkannaru.
Pulkannaru throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
enabling Whiteside to counter with a crisp jab.
Pulkannaru tried to score with a low kick but Whiteside checks it.
Whiteside misses with a hook.

Whiteside has Pulkannaru up against the cage in a clinch.

Whiteside breaks the clinch.
Pasi Pulkannaru seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Pulkannaru misses with an attempted mid kick.
Pulkannaru scores with a head kick.
Nice uppercut there from Pulkannaru.
Pulkannaru tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Whiteside throws a shot from downtown. Pulkannaru moves away and avoids it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Pulkannaru rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Whiteside moves out of range and avoids them all easily.

Whiteside clinches up with Pulkannaru and pushes him back against the cage.
Whiteside is looking to take this one to the mat.
Pulkannaru misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Whiteside.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Pulkannaru is defending well against a takedown attempt.
Pulkannaru using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.
Pulkannaru is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Whiteside is defending well for now.
Whiteside has Pulkannaru pressed against the cage, preventing Pulkannaru from circling away and getting back to striking at range.

Whiteside breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
A jab from Whiteside misses.
Whiteside is really struggling to find his range with his punches. Pulkannaru's reach advantage is clearly causing him problems.
Whiteside moves out of range of the body kick.
Whiteside stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Whiteside wants it to stay on the feet.
Whiteside tries to counter with a takedown but Pulkannaru is quick to defend against it.
Pulkannaru ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Whiteside moves away.
Pulkannaru throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Whiteside.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Whiteside throws a lazy uppercut
and Pulkannaru counters with a three punch combo that has Whiteside backing up. Whiteside nods at Pulkannaru to acknowledge the strikes.
Pulkannaru throws a sloppy head kick and Whiteside moves out of range easily.
Whiteside thows a left - swing and a miss!
Whiteside backing away here, and Pulkannaru unleashes a leg kick that just misses.
Whiteside tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Pulkannaru paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Whiteside avoids the head kick by Pulkannaru.
Whiteside swung with a counter right hand that didn't connect.
Whiteside misses with a left hand
and Pulkannaru counters with a one-two to the body.
Pulkannaru throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Pulkannaru slips in close and lands a nice hook before moving back out of range.
Whiteside throws an overhand right that lands on Pulkannaru's shoulder, as Pulkannaru tries to avoid the shot.
Pulkannaru let fly with a counter punch to the body but it didn't land.
Pulkannaru throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Whiteside fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Pulkannaru manages to avoid it.
Pulkannaru is looking to clinch.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Whiteside misses with an uppercut
and Pulkannaru makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Pulkannaru throws a push kick but Whiteside slaps the foot to one side.
A head kick misses from Pulkannaru.
Whiteside misses with a hook
and Pulkannaru cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Horrible takedown attempt by Whiteside or perhaps it was just good defense by Pulkannaru, which made it look bad.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Johnny Whiteside. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Whiteside missing with a left hand there. Pulkannaru was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Pulkannaru fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
A thudding body kick lands there by Pulkannaru!
Whiteside takes a step back and watches a body kick go sailing past his mid section.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Pasi Pulkannaru showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business. This is the final round!

Whiteside throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Pulkannaru misses with a head kick.
Whiteside is looking for a counter combo.
A head kick misses from Pulkannaru.
An attempted straight right counter from Whiteside misses the target.
Whiteside tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Pulkannaru was well out of range. Poor timing from Whiteside.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Pulkannaru! But no joy.
The fight stays on the outside here - Whiteside looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Whiteside avoids a punch combination nicely.
It looked like Whiteside was looking amped, ready to throw a big counter but didn't commit.
A combination from Pulkannaru does no damage.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Pulkannaru throws a right hand that Whiteside ducks under and follows up with a left that Whiteside also avoids with ease.
Pulkannaru avoids the body shot from Whiteside.
Pulkannaru has done a lot of speed work in the buildup to this fight.
A head kick misses from Pulkannaru.
Whiteside avoids the head kick by Pulkannaru.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Whiteside lands with a nice combination. Pulkannaru backs away looking to recover.
Whiteside looks to land a left hand but Pulkannaru moved out of range nicely.
Whiteside shoots in and drives through. Pulkannaru sprawls well.
Whiteside doesn't manage to clinch there - Pulkannaru circles away.

Pulkannaru gets taken down but at least he's managed to land in guard.
Whiteside 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.
Whiteside trying to control the position from guard on top but Pulkannaru is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Whiteside stops Pulkannaru from standing up.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Whiteside stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Pulkannaru swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Whiteside wants to control from the top but Pulkannaru keeps moving.
Whiteside lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
Pulkannaru pulls Whiteside in close to prevent any damage.
Pulkannaru working a defensive guard here.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Pasi Pulkannaru is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Pulkannaru looks for the body kick but Whiteside saw that one coming.
Pulkannaru looks for the body kick but Whiteside saw that one coming.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Whiteside is on the wrong end of a nice combination from Pulkannaru.

Whiteside manages to get an easy takedown there - catching Pulkannaru on his heels. He'll look to pass Pulkannaru's guard now, I'm sure.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Pulkannaru can do anything to dispel that myth.
Pulkannaru working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Whiteside.
Whiteside trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Pulkannaru wants to get back to his feet but Whiteside is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Whiteside throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Pulkannaru works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Pulkannaru really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Whiteside. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Pulkannaru is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Whiteside is controlling him.
Whiteside loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Whiteside advances position into side control!
Pulkannaru is trying to improve his position.
The strikes coming from Whiteside are missing the target in this wave of attacks.
Whiteside is staying tight to Pulkannaru's torso, preventing him from escaping.
Pulkannaru is a painfully thin specimen of a man. You do wonder whether a good body kick would snap him clean in two.

Whiteside is trying to land an Americana. He has the arm isolated but Pulkannaru is keeping cool and he's avoided the danger for now.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Pulkannaru wants to get back to his feet but Whiteside drags him back down.

And that's the end of the fight!
Johnny Whiteside showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Whiteside has won this one but let's see what the judges have to say. 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 Tarja Halkonen scores the fight 29:28
Judge Marco Blurström scores the fight 29:28
Judge Roosa Järviläinen scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Johnny Whiteside!
A very excited looking Johnny Whiteside made sure he remembered to thank all the fans both in the arena and on the internet. He said all the coolest people spend all day on MMA websites, which got a big reaction.
Pasi Pulkannaru was interviewed post fight and said 'Dang, the fattest dude won this time'.