PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Thor Wood (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Kelvin Tatum (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Wood kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is Wardruna - Blood Eagle. I don't know about you partner, but I'm pumped for this one!

Wood
vs
Tatum

187 cm
22
205 lbs
5 - 6 - 0

183 cm
24
217 lbs
6 - 6 - 0

Good wrestling
Great elbows
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
Decent boxing
Powerful

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 5 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Thor Wood!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 6 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Kelvin Tatum!
The judges for this bout are Marco Blurström, Tarja Halkonen and Anni Minnemäki.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Wood misses with a body punch
and Tatum cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.

It looks like Thor Wood has been cut.
Tatum tries to check a leg kick but that clearly hurt him.
Tatum lands an overhand right.

Wood darts in and clinches Tatum up against the cage.
A short uppercut from Tatum.
A short right from Tatum.
Wood using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Tatum has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Tatum misses with the head strike.
Wood blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Tatum tries a body shot but Wood blocks it.
Tatum just leaning against Wood, taking a breather.
Tatum swings wildly with an uppercut but Wood uses good head movement to avoid it.
Tatum tries to work over Wood's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Tatum tries to stall but Wood uses the opportunity to gain a better position.
Wood blocks an uppercut.
Wood tries to land knees in the clinch but Tatum avoids the damage to the body.
Wood blocks an uppercut.
Tatum throws a punch but it's blocked by Wood.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tatum misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Wood.
Tatum blocks the elbow strike.
Wood comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
Tatum is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Wood is keeping busy.
Wood with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Both guys are working to get underhooks.
Tatum doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Wood looks to throw an elbow but misses.
Tatum stalling in the clinch but Wood improves position.
Tatum misses with a short punch on the inside.
Wood throws a knee to the head but misses.
A shot in the inside from Tatum.
Tatum lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
Tatum lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Wood lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Tatum tries a body shot but Wood blocks it.
Tatum throws a punch but it's blocked by Wood.
Wood throws an elbow that misses.
Wood lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Tatum takes a knee right on the jaw!
Tatum throws a punch but it's blocked by Wood.
Wood with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Wood avoiding damage as Tatum throws knees to the body.
Wood prevents a body shot from Tatum.
Tatum lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Wood backwards.
Tatum pushes Wood back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Wood connects with a nasty looking knee right to Tatum's face.
Wood blocks an uppercut.
Wood scores with a knee to the head.

It looks like Kelvin Tatum has been cut.
Wood throws a knee to the head but misses.
Tatum taking a breather.
Tatum misses with a short punch on the inside.
Wood blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Tatum takes an elbow to the temple.
Tatum taking a breather.
Tatum pushes Wood back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Tatum tries a body shot but Wood blocks it.
Wood tries a knee to the head but Tatum blocks it.
Wood throws a knee to the head but misses.
Tatum tries a knee to the head but Wood blocks it.
A left hand lands to the body for Tatum.
Nice body punch from Tatum.
Tatum has a couple of punches blocked by Wood.
Wood using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Tatum has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Wood blocks an uppercut.
Tatum tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Tatum working aggressively here.
Wood blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Wood using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Tatum has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Tatum lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Tatum doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Tatum fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Tatum slows down the pace here.
Tatum can't find room to land a body shot as Wood controls the action.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Wood with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
A short uppercut from Tatum.
Tatum misses with the head strike.
Tatum lands with a short shot to the head.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Tatum is trying to maintain a safe position but Wood gets an underhook and turns Tatum into the cage.
Wood comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
Wood with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Tatum avoiding damage as Wood throws knees to the body.
Wood tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Tatum digs a right hand into Wood's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Wood's gas tank.
The fighters are going at a pretty good pace and they're both starting to sweat now.
Wood lands a nice elbow from the clinch.
Wood creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Tatum's defenses.
Tatum throws a head punch that misses.
A nice left hand lands by Tatum.
Tatum tries to stall but Wood uses the opportunity to gain a better position.
The pace slowing considerably in the clinch, as Tatum takes a break from that fighting nonsense to think about the finer things in life.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kelvin Tatum dominated that round.
Both fighters have cut men working on them during the interval.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

Tatum pivots, looking for a leg kick but Wood is out of range and Tatum settles back down.
Tatum avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Wood throws a mid kick that lands with a slap.
Wood wants to slow Tatum down by chopping away at his legs.
Tatum misses with a looping right.
Wood is looking to clinch.
Wood misses with a wild body shot.
Tatum swings away with a leg kick that misses.
Wood just misses with a punch to the body.
Good exchange - Tatum coming out on top.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Tatum swinging wildly here.
Tatum just misses with a punch to the body.
Wood throws a head kick but Tatum moves out of range.
Wood keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tatum fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Wood manages to avoid it.
Tatum works over Wood's head and body with a nice combination.
Tatum has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Wood keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Tatum.
Both fighters circling a little - Tatum finishes the exchange with a kick to the body.
Tatum uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Wood.
Wood throws a nice outside leg kick.
Tatum throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Wood stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
Tatum misses with a head kick.
Tatum 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.
A nice combination there by Tatum.
Wood works his jab well there, keeping his opponent at a distance.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Wood throws a nice outside leg kick.
Tatum is looking to slow Wood down with leg kicks.
Wood ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Wood feints and then cracks Tatum's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Tatum down.
Wood cracks the inside of Tatum's front leg.
Wood staying out of range there.
Tatum looks to land a left hand but Wood moved out of range nicely.
Wood jinks towards his opponent looking like he wants to counter with a mid kick but doesn't commit.
Wood drops his hands momentarily and Tatum takes advantage with a crisp shot to the head.
Wood throws a low kick, looking for Tatum's leg but Tatum calmly moves out of range.
Wood connects with a lovely jab that went straight through the gap between Tatum's hands.
Tatum has his front leg slapped to the side - a nice low kick landing there from Wood.
Tatum sees a low kick coming and goes to check it, but it's actually a body kick and it thuds into his unprotected ribs.
Good work by Tatum as he checks the leg kick.
Tatum throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Wood counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Ouch! a nice leg kick from Wood, right into the meat.
Wood throws a leg kick which misses Tatum's front leg but catches the back leg as Tatum tries to avoid it.
Wood throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Tatum throws a big counter head kick but Wood avoids it with no problem.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Wood is looking to clinch but Tatum is avoiding it.
Tatum keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
Tatum replies with a solid counter kick to the body but Wood blocks it well.
Wood fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Tatum has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
Tatum's leg has a nasty welt from taking a succession of leg kicks. That must be slowing him down.
Wood with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Tatum throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Tatum looks to land a right hand but Wood moved out of range.

Wood closes the distance and clinches.
Wood blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Wood using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Tatum has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Wood throws a knee to the head but misses.
Tatum trying to stall but Wood improves his position.
Wood's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Tatum blocks the elbow strike.
Tatum has a couple of punches blocked by Wood.
Wood landing knees to the head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Wood lands a knee to the head.
Wood tries a knee to the head but Tatum blocks it.
Tatum working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Still in the clinch, Tatum scores with a nice short uppercut.
Tatum throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Tatum leaning his opponent against the cage.
Wood creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Tatum's defenses.
Tatum lands with a right to the head.
Tatum misses with a hook to the ribs.
Wood is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Tatum is defending well for now.
Wood tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Tatum throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Wood misses with a knee to the head.
Tatum is looking to control Wood's arms but Wood gets an underhook and turns him. Now Tatum has his back to the cage.
Tatum lands with a short head shot on the inside.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Thor Wood will probably get the nod.
Both fighters have cut men working on them during the interval.
That's time! Back to the action! This is the final round!

Tatum connects with a jab.
Tatum misses with a straight left.
Crunch! Wood slams his shin into Tatum's torso.
Jab by Tatum.
Tatum throws a leg kick but Wood sees it coming and moves out of range.
Kelvin Tatum seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Wood throws a nice inside leg kick.
Wood with a body punch. A glancing blow.

Tatum gets tackled into the cage by Wood. Wood maintains the clinch.
Tatum throws a head punch that misses.
Tatum wants to stall.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Wood blocks a punch to the side of the head.
A short right from Tatum.
Kelvin Tatum seems to be working more effectively in the clinch in the fight so far.
Wood lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!
Wood blocking some punches.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Wood utilising his Muay Thai to score with a knee to the body.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Wood tries a knee to the head but Tatum blocks it.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Tatum.
Wood throws a knee to the head but misses.
Wood throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Tatum blocks it with crossed arms.
With the fighters up against the cage, Wood throws an elbow but misses.
Wood looking to throw knees to the head but Tatum is blocking nicely.
Wood lands a nice elbow from the clinch.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.
Wood tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
A hook to the body from Tatum.
Tatum lands a hook to the side of the head.
We are yet to see a takedown attempt from Tatum in the fight. On paper you would think he is the more dominant ground fighter so let's see if these unusual tactics pay off.
Wood tries to land a knee to the head but Tatum blocks with his arms.
Tatum lands a nice uppercut.
Tatum tries to throw a body punch but Wood avoids it by throwing Tatum back against the cage.
Wood blocks a body shot from Tatum.
Tatum misses with a punch to the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Tatum.
Tatum tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Tatum misses with a hook from the clinch.
A short right from Tatum on the inside.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Tatum.
Tatum doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Tatum avoiding damage.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Wood with a knee to the head.
Knees to the body from Wood.
Tatum takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Tatum lands a left hand.
Tatum swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Wood throws a knee to the head but misses.
Tatum tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Wood's elbow.
Wood lands a good knee to the midsection. Tatum won't want to take too many of those.
Wood with a knee to the head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Wood using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Tatum has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Tatum misses with a punch on the inside.
Nice elbow from Wood.
Nice elbow from Wood.
Tatum tries to throw a body punch but Wood avoids it by throwing Tatum back against the cage.
Tatum throws a head punch that misses.
Wood blocks an uppercut.
Tatum is trying to maintain a safe position but Wood gets an underhook and turns Tatum into the cage.
Tatum tries to work over Wood's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Tatum fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Wood misses with a knee to the head.
Wood blocks a body shot from Tatum.
Tatum tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Wood creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
Wood throws an elbow but it misses.
Tatum is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Wood is keeping busy.
A head punch on the inside from Tatum fails to land.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tatum misses with a body punch.
Tatum swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Wood lands an elbow that stopped Tatum in his tracks for a moment.
Tatum lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Wood throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Tatum blocks it with crossed arms.
Wood misses with an elbow strike.
Wood with a knee to the head.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Tatum misses with a short punch on the inside.
Wood using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Tatum has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Wood tries a knee to the head but Tatum blocks it.
Tatum doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Tatum can't find room to land a body shot as Wood controls the action.
Tatum is working hard here but doesn't seem to be able to control effectively, up against the cage.
Wood blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Wood tries to land knees in the clinch but Tatum avoids the damage to the body.

And that's the end of the fight!
Thor Wood showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Wood 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 Marco Blurström scores the fight 28:29
Judge Tarja Halkonen scores the fight 29:29
Judge Anni Minnemäki scores the fight 29:29

The fight is ruled a majority draw!