PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Jeffrey Mcclain (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Sergey Akulov (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Sergey Akulov will no doubt be trying to keep this one on the feet, where he has a distinct advantage.

Mcclain
vs
Akulov

159 cm
20
214 lbs
0 - 1 - 0

190 cm
18
200 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter fighter
Cuts easily

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Solid chin

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 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Jeffrey Mcclain!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Sergey Akulov!
The judges for this bout are Aleksandr Martynov, Fedor Mirinova and Vladimir Khabensky.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Akulov takes the fight into the clinch.
A frustrated look appears on Akulov's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Akulov tries to throw a body punch but Mcclain avoids it by throwing Akulov back against the cage.

Mcclain pulls guard successfully.
Mcclain looking to hit a scissor sweep but Akulov is one step ahead there.
Akulov throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Mcclain works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Mcclain doesn't do any damage with a couple of strikes from the bottom.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Akulov is holding a leg here, probably looking for an ankle lock - he drops back and goes for it! Mcclain is in trouble! Is it all over??? No! Mcclain has escaped and now he's on top!

Akulov tries to land a sweep but no joy.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Akulov is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Mcclain defends well.
Mcclain cracks Akulov with a solid left hand.

Akulov working for a triangle but Mcclain defends it easily.
Mcclain sitting in guard here, content to control.
Akulov looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Mcclain really is a fat lump.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Mcclain's corner is telling him to maintain position.
Akulov preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Mcclain not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Sergey Akulov seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Mcclain shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
A nice side step and Akulov releases a counter shot to the body, but it doesn't find it's home.

Akulov pushes Mcclain up against the cage in a clinch.

Mcclain breaks the clinch.

Akulov scores with a takedown into Mcclain's guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Mcclain striking off his back but it's not causing Akulov any problems.

Akulov drops back looking for a heel hook - he quickly realises he's not going to get it but Mcclain manages to dive on top of him before he can escape and now Akulov has Mcclain in his guard.

Mcclain is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Mcclain is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Mcclain is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Mcclain lands a couple of elbows.
Mcclain postures up in Akulov's guard and throws a big left but Akulov blocks it.
Mcclain seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.
Mcclain scoring with punches to the head and body.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Mcclain is stalling in the full guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Jeffrey Mcclain dominated that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Akulov throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Mcclain is looking to counter punch.

Akulov dives in and scores a takedown into Mcclain's guard.

Akulov got a little sloppy there for a moment and Mcclain has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Akulov has managed to get both his arms back between Mcclain's legs - danger averted.

Mcclain has his foot on Akulov's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Akulov works his way back into a safe position though.

Mcclain is looking for a triangle but Akulov pushes his legs off easily.
Akulov trying to control the position from guard on top but Mcclain is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Akulov wants to get up but he can't break Mcclain's closed guard. He needs to be careful trying to break the legs open, as he's open to submissions here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Akulov pushes down on Mcclain's leg and manages to get into half guard.
Mcclain makes his way to full guard. A much better position for Mcclain.

Mcclain escapes his hips to the side and looks to be working for an armbar. Akulov gives him a little smile and shakes his head. No chance.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now Mcclain is on top in guard.

Mcclain scoring with some ground and pound.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Mcclain postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Mcclain controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.
Akulov wants to stand up but Mcclain is controlling him.
Mcclain 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.
Akulov controlling Mcclain's posture.
Mcclain slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Mcclain working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Mcclain keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.

Mcclain gets taken down but at least he's managed to land in guard.
Akulov not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Mcclain tries to land a sweep but no joy.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Mcclain thows some rabbit punches from the bottom but they don't do any damage.
Akulov passes Mcclain's left leg - he's now in half guard.
Mcclain is pressing down on Akulov's left leg trying to get back to full guard. He's managed it.
Akulov looking to sit in guard and control but Mcclain gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.

The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Akulov trying to keep a closed guard but Mcclain is proving a slippery customer.
Mcclain throwing strikes from guard but Akulov blocks nicely.
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 Jeffrey Mcclain will probably get the nod.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! So, we enter the final round. Let's see if either fighter can bring us a finish, or whether we're going to the judges scorecards.

Akulov drives through with a really nice takedown into side control.
Mcclain tries to improve position but can't.
Jeffrey Mcclain overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Akulov wants to lay and pray for a moment but Mcclain keeps working.
Mcclain is trying to improve his position.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Akulov decides to stand back up.
Akulov tries to score with a low kick but Mcclain moves his leg out of the way.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Akulov throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Mcclain throws a hard body shot but it just misses.

Akulov closes the distance and after a bit of a stuggle, scores a takedown into Mcclain's guard.

Mcclain has his foot on Akulov's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Akulov works his way back into a safe position though.

Mcclain working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Akulov doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Akulov manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Akulov wants to get up but he can't break Mcclain's closed guard. He needs to be careful trying to break the legs open, as he's open to submissions here.
Mcclain being controlled here, momentarily.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Akulov trying to control the position from guard on top but Mcclain is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Mcclain looking for a triangle here. Akulov is fighting it but it looks tight! Mcclain pulls the arm across and this one won't last much longer! Nope, Akulov is tapping out - this one is all over!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2:41 of round 3, we have a winner by way of Submission (Triangle Choke). Jeffrey Mcclain!