PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Anton Kruglov (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Macadam Baird (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Buckle up people - heeeeeeeeeere we go!

Kruglov
vs
Baird

171 cm
21
176 lbs
5 - 4 - 0

176 cm
20
172 lbs
2 - 2 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Excellent boxer
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
Basic striking
Good gas tank

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 5 - 4 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Anton Kruglov!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 2 - 0, fighting out of New York, Macadam Baird!
The judges for this bout are Reed Andrews, John Roberts and Jorge Garcia.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Baird swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Baird listening to his corner there, landing a nice uppercut.
Baird avoids the body shot from Kruglov.
Kruglov misses with a wild combination.
Macadam Baird seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

Kruglov drives through and clinches with Baird against the cage.
Baird throws a head punch that misses.
Kruglov lands with a light punch inside.
Kruglov is pressed up against the cage. Baird has hold of a leg and is looking to drag Kruglov down to the mat. Kruglov avoids the attempt though and has circled away. We're back to striking at a distance.

Baird shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in side control! That's better than Baird was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Kruglov is trying to escape and get back to his feet.
Kruglov taking a bit of punishment here - Baird scoring with strikes.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
The strikes coming from Baird are missing the target in this wave of attacks.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kruglov tries to work a leg under to get back to half guard but Baird wriggles his own leg back out and remains in side control.
Baird scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at Kruglov to see if he's OK.
Kruglov is trying to buck Baird off.
Baird working the ground and pound.
The referee asks Baird politely if he wouldn't mind getting on with it and actually doing something. Baird prefers to stall for the moment though.
We've been hearing good reports from Kruglov's training camp. Apparently he has been rolling around with some good quality BJJ practitioners and has been sharpening his skills. Let's see if that has an impact on the fight today.
Baird lands a decent elbow from side control.
Baird tries to score with some ground and pound. Kruglov controls his posture well this time though and the shots don't do any damage.
Kruglov taking punishment in the form of punches.
Kruglov is trying to improve his position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kruglov wants to get back to his feet but Baird drags him back down.
Baird working the head and body with strikes.
Kruglov pushes Baird away and creates a bit of space to escape. He's almost out here... but no, Baird gets a good hold of his legs and remains firmly in side control.
Baird connects with a decent looking elbow from side control that caused Kruglov some visible discomfort.
Kruglov is putting a lot of effort into getting back to his feet here.
Baird scores with punches from side control.
Baird working away.
Kruglov wants to get back to his feet but Baird drags him back down.
Kruglov can't do much from the bottom here.
Baird in side control lands a nice looking series of punches and elbows.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Baird lands a knee to the body and a forearm to the face.
Baird landing a few strikes.
Kruglov is positioning himself to get back to half guard.
Kruglov takes a big shot right to the temple there but he's taken it well.
Kruglov on the wrong end of some ground and pound.
Baird lands a few punches from side control.
Kruglov is not content to let Baird control the position.
Kruglov is working to avoid the ground and pound but Baird connects with a decent elbow.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kruglov is not content to let Baird control the position.
Kruglov is working to avoid the ground and pound but Baird connects with a decent elbow.
Baird cracks Kruglov with a big right hand but Kruglov just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.

Baird thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.
Baird landing strikes.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Kruglov takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.
Kruglov is putting a lot of effort into getting back to his feet here.

Baird wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Kruglov, who protects the arm well.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Macadam Baird dominated that round.
That's time! Kruglov's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Kruglov connects with a crisp jab.

Baird moves into the clinch successfully.
Kruglov blocks an uppercut.
Kruglov prevents Baird from breaking the clinch.
Kruglov goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Baird controlling the action here for a moment.
A short left from Kruglov.
Kruglov swings wildly with an uppercut but Baird uses good head movement to avoid it.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kruglov prevents a takedown attempt there.
Baird taking a break, stalling in the clinch.
Kruglov lands a right hand that snaps the head of Baird backwards.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Baird misses with a hook from the clinch.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Baird.
Kruglov working aggressively here.
Kruglov working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Baird is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.
Kruglov is working hard here but doesn't seem to be able to control effectively, up against the cage.

Baird has double underhooks and is working for a body lock takedown. He's got it. The fighters land in half guard but Kruglov regains guard immediately.
Baird connects with a couple of short punches.
Kruglov is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Baird prevents Kruglov from getting back to his feet.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Baird in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Kruglov being controlled here, momentarily.
Kruglov looking to hit a scissor sweep but Baird is one step ahead there.

Kruglov looking for a guillotine here but Baird defends easily.
Baird content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Baird is looking to work some ground and pound but Kruglov has wrist control.
Kruglov is trying to control the position but Baird postures up.
Baird lands a couple of digs.
Baird working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Kruglov's head.
Kruglov wants to stand up but Baird is controlling him.
Macadam Baird has got the better of the ground game so far.
Baird with a flurry of punches that miss.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.
Baird steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Kruglov.
A shot to the liver by Kruglov. Beautiful body shot.
Kruglov lands three nice shots there - that looked like it hurt!
Kruglov throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Baird stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
Baird throws a left and a right that both miss
and Kruglov makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Kruglov changes levels and scores with a jab to the body.
Baird staying out of range there.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A telegraphed right hand from Baird misses the target.
A swing and a miss from Baird.

Baird closes the distance and scores a nice trip takedown into half guard. Kruglov did well to prevent Baird getting side control.
Kruglov is looking to get back to is feet but Baird passes into side control.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Baird is looking to take a break and control but Kruglov is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.

Baird wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Kruglov, who protects the arm well.
Baird trying to control the position but Kruglov is working away.
You can see the frustration on Kruglov's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

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

Kruglov cracks a nice hook into Baird's ribs.
Kruglov uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Baird.
A swing and a miss from Baird.
Baird shoots in looking for a takedown. Kruglov tries to sprawl out of it but Baird keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Kruglov manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Anton Kruglov is winning the standup battle so far.
Kruglov fails in his attempt to clinch.
Kruglov tries to clinch up but Baird circles away and keeps his distance.
Baird shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Kruglov but Kruglov pushes him off and we're back to square one.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kruglov misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.

Baird looking for a takedown here - he's got it.
Kruglov wants to get back to his feet but Baird is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Baird throws an elbow that misses. Kruglov uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Baird's guard. Nice move by Kruglov!

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kruglov wanted to stand there but Baird had control of the position.
Kruglov stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Baird swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Baird has a closed guard, preventing Kruglov from standing up.
Baird looking to hit a scissor sweep but Kruglov is one step ahead there.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

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.
Kruglov wanted to stand there but Baird had control of the position.
Kruglov stopping the sweep attempt from Baird.
Kruglov tries to stand but Baird is controlling from the bottom.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Baird closes the distance and clinches up with Kruglov, looking for a takedown. Baird pushes Kruglov against the cage but Kruglov circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Anton Kruglov has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Macadam Baird.
Kruglov tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Baird with the counter takedown but Kruglov avoids it easily.
Baird pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Kruglov scores with a punch to the gut of his opponent.
Kruglov throws a hook but Baird avoids it easily.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kruglov keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
Kruglov looks to score with a jab to the body but Baird is just out of range.

Baird darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.
Baird not doing much here.
Baird sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Kruglov defending well though.
Kruglov wants to get back to his feet.
Baird throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Baird slips a nice elbow through Kruglov's hands, connecting with Kruglov's forehead.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Baird connects with a nice short shot to Kruglov's temple.
Kruglov wants to get back to his feet.
Baird throwing shots but Kruglov is blocking nicely.
Baird working Kruglov over with strikes.
Baird wants to control but Kruglov is keeping him busy.
Baird is just content to waste time from the top position. Kruglov takes advantage of the situation and regains full guard.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Baird scores with a decent looking elbow strike.
Baird missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.

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 Anton Kruglov.
I think Kruglov 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 Reed Andrews scores the fight 29:28
Judge John Roberts scores the fight 29:28
Judge Jorge Garcia scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Anton Kruglov!
During a confident post fight interview, Anton Kruglov thanked all his fans. He seemed very genuine when describing how motivated his fans keep him.