PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Ritchie Johannesburg (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Bhat Pomkai (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Johannesburg
vs
Pomkai

162 cm
27
146 lbs
8 - 3 - 0

167 cm
27
138 lbs
10 - 5 - 1

BJJ Blue Belt
Excellent MT
Very strong

BJJ White Belt
Dangerous knees
Determined

M.O. Fight Wear

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 8 - 3 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Ritchie Johannesburg!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 10 - 5 - 1, fighting out of Helsinki, Bhat Pomkai!
The judges for this bout are Matti Vanhoillinen, Anni Minnemäki and Roosa Järviläinen.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Johannesburg doesn't manage to clinch there - Pomkai circles away.
Johannesburg tries to close the distance and clinch but Pomkai swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Pomkai swats away the attempt to clinch by Johannesburg.
Pomkai swings for the body but Johannesburg moves out of range.
We've been informed that Pomkai has been sparring a lot of Muay Thai in the buildup to this fight so let's see if that has an impact on the result.
Johannesburg steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Pomkai.
Pomkai swats away the attempt to clinch by Johannesburg.
Johannesburg tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Johannesburg wants to clinch
and Johannesburg takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Johannesburg doesn't manage to clinch there - Pomkai circles away.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Johannesburg tries to clinch but Pomkai moves out of range.
Johannesburg dodges the punch combination from Pomkai.
Pomkai scores with a punch to the gut of his opponent.
Johannesburg tries to grapple but his opponent circles
and Pomkai counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Johannesburg tries to clinch up.
Johannesburg fails with an attempt to clinch.
Pomkai jabs at Johannesburg's body.
Pomkai fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Pomkai throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Johannesburg has been working on his boxing with his coaches at St Petersburg MMA Gym in the buildup to the fight.
Pomkai jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Johannesburg wants to clinch up but Pomkai keeps it at a distance.
Pomkai fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Johannesburg looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Johannesburg moves in looking to clinch but Pomkai pushes him off.
Johannesburg tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Pomkai manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.

Johannesburg forces Pomkai back against the cage and clinches.

Pomkai breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Johannesburg wants to clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Pomkai misses with a jab, cross combination.
Johannesburg wants to clinch up but Pomkai keeps it at a distance.
Pomkai swats away the attempt to clinch by Johannesburg.
Pomkai misses the jab.
A shot to the liver by Pomkai. Beautiful body shot.
Johannesburg tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Pomkai paws at him with a jab and circles away.
A telegraphed right hand from Pomkai misses the target.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Pomkai swats away the attempt to clinch by Johannesburg.
Johannesburg is looking to clinch.
The fight stays on the outside here - Johannesburg looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Johannesburg takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
Pomkai avoids the clinch attempt nicely.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Johannesburg moves into the clinch.
Johannesburg throws a knee to the head but misses.
Johannesburg is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Pomkai is defending well for now.
Knees to the body from Johannesburg.
Johannesburg looking to throw knees to the head but Pomkai is blocking nicely.

Pomkai breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Pomkai throws a body shot but no joy.
Johannesburg tries to clinch up
and Pomkai counters with a straight punch to the midsection.
Pomkai is throwing a lot of body shots here, looking to wear down Johannesburg rather than just go for the knockout.
Pomkai swings for the body but Johannesburg moves out of range.
Pomkai throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
Pomkai misses with a straight right.
Johannesburg fails in his attempt to clinch.
Pomkai keeps the fight on the outside.
Pomkai throws a jab when Johannesburg was well out of range.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Pomkai circles away from the clinch attempt.
Pomkai keeps the fight on the outside.
Pomkai fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Pomkai swats away the attempt to clinch by Johannesburg.
Pomkai just misses with a punch to the body.
Johannesburg slips a jab and a cross from Pomkai.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Johannesburg tries to clinch but Pomkai is having none of it.
Johannesburg is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
A combination from Pomkai does no damage.
Johannesburg keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Pomkai.
Johannesburg tries to clinch there but Pomkai circles away.
Johannesburg tries to close the distance and clinch up but Pomkai swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Pomkai fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Johannesburg manages to avoid it.
Johannesburg thinks about countering with a head kick.
Pomkai moving in and out of range nicely, whilst landing the scoring shot.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Bhat Pomkai dominated that round.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action.

Johannesburg uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Pomkai.
Bhat Pomkai seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Pomkai is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Johannesburg.
Pomkai fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Johannesburg manages to avoid it.
Pomkai misses with a straight left.
Johannesburg moves to clinch but Pomkai breaks away
and Pomkai counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Johannesburg tries to clinch but Pomkai moves away
and Pomkai cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Johannesburg fails in his attempt to clinch.
The fight stays on the outside here - Johannesburg looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Johannesburg fails with an attempt to clinch.
Pomkai lands a jab to the nose.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Johannesburg tries to clinch
and Pomkai counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Pomkai avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Pomkai displaying good standup as he scores with a three punch combination.
The fight stays on the outside here - Johannesburg looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Ritchie Johannesburg is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Pomkai misses with a two punch combination.
Pomkai closes the distance and lands a one-two.
Pomkai throws a hook to the side of Johannesburg's head but Johannesburg sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
Johannesburg takes a shot to the body in his stride.
Pomkai swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Pomkai misses with a straight left.
Johannesburg tries to clinch up
and Pomkai connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Johannesburg tries to clinch
and Pomkai counters with a left to the body.
Some wild striking there from Pomkai.
Johannesburg tries to close the distance and clinch but Pomkai swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Johannesburg wants to clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Pomkai swats away the attempt to clinch by Johannesburg.
Pomkai keeps the fight on the outside.

Johannesburg has managed to clinch.
Pomkai avoiding damage as Johannesburg throws knees to the body.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Johannesburg tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Pomkai has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Pomkai takes a knee right on the jaw!
Johannesburg misses with a knee strike.
Johannesburg on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Johannesburg blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Johannesburg using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Pomkai has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Pomkai landing knees to the head.
Pomkai blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Johannesburg is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Pomkai is defending well for now.
Johannesburg tries to land a knee to the head but misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Johannesburg tries to land knees in the clinch but Pomkai avoids the damage to the body.
The fighters are going at a pretty good pace and they're both starting to sweat now.
Pomkai avoiding damage as Johannesburg throws knees to the body.
Johannesburg missing with knees to the body.
Pomkai takes an elbow to the forehead.
Johannesburg throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Johannesburg is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Pomkai is defending well for now.
Pomkai holding his opponent close, against the cage.
Johannesburg using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Pomkai has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
A battle for position here, against the cage.
Johannesburg throws a knee to the head but misses.
Johannesburg throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Johannesburg throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Pomkai blocks it with crossed arms.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Johannesburg with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Johannesburg misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Pomkai.
Johannesburg lands an elbow just above Pomkai 's eye.
Pomkai landing some nice looking knees to the body.
Johannesburg throws an elbow that misses.
Johannesburg using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.
Ritchie Johannesburg has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Pomkai wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Johannesburg tries to land a knee to the head but Pomkai blocks with his arms.
The referee calls for Pomkai to work.
Johannesburg managing to block the knees to the body from Pomkai.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Johannesburg misses with a knee to the head.
Johannesburg tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Bhat Pomkai showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!

Pomkai looks to score with a jab to the body but Johannesburg is just out of range.
Pomkai misses with an uppercut.

Johannesburg clinches.
Johannesburg misses with a knee to the head.
Johannesburg looking to throw knees to the head but Pomkai is blocking nicely.
Johannesburg tries to land a knee to the head but Pomkai blocks with his arms.
Pomkai avoiding damage as Johannesburg throws knees to the body.
Johannesburg misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Pomkai.

Pomkai breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Pomkai listening to his corner there, landing a nice uppercut.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Pomkai avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Pomkai misses with a wild combination.
Pomkai circles away from the clinch attempt.
Johannesburg tries to clinch up.
Johannesburg tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Johannesburg staying out of range there.
Johannesburg moves forwards but Pomkai connects with a nice, crisp jab.
Some wild striking there from Pomkai.
Pomkai fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.
Pomkai circles away from the clinch attempt.
Johannesburg tries to clinch but Pomkai moves away
and Pomkai counters with a straight right hand.
Johannesburg doesn't manage to clinch there - Pomkai circles away.
Pomkai looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Pomkai swings for the body but Johannesburg moves out of range.
Pomkai throws a right hand that Johannesburg ducks under and follows up with a left that Johannesburg also avoids with ease.
Pomkai lands with an overhand left.
Pomkai scores with a crisp jab that stopped Johannesburg in his tracks.
Johannesburg showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Pomkai.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Johannesburg tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Pomkai manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Pomkai unleashes a big counter combination but Johannesburg bobs and weaves and avoids any damage.
Johannesburg takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Johannesburg tries to clinch but Pomkai is having none of it.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Johannesburg is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Johannesburg is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Pomkai throws an overhand right that lands on Johannesburg's shoulder, as Johannesburg tries to avoid the shot.
Johannesburg wants to clinch up but Pomkai keeps it at a distance.
Johannesburg is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Pomkai cracks Johannesburg with a hook to the jaw. Both fighters smile at eachother and high-five before getting back down to business.
Pomkai throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Pomkai dips down and scores with a jab to the body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Johannesburg ducks right into an uppercut from Pomkai.

Pomkai tries to keep at a distance but Johannesburg has taken the fight into the clinch.
Johannesburg throws a knee to the head but misses.
Johannesburg tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Johannesburg using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Pomkai has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Pomkai is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Johannesburg is defending well for now.
Pomkai unloads a knee to the mid-section. Johannesburg lets out a prehistoric sounding urrrrgh.
Johannesburg trying to land knees to the body.
Johannesburg tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Pomkai avoids it.
Pomkai looking to slow down the pace here.

Pomkai breaks the clinch.
A shot to the liver by Pomkai. Beautiful body shot.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Pomkai throws a jab when Johannesburg was well out of range.
Johannesburg wants to clinch up but Pomkai keeps it at a distance.
Pomkai is clearly trying to counter these attacks from Johannesburg with a body shot.
Johannesburg ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Johannesburg moves out of range of the strikes.
Johannesburg is looking to clinch.
Pomkai lands a jab.
Johannesburg tries to clinch there but Pomkai circles away.
Johannesburg uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Pomkai.
Bhat Pomkai is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Johannesburg tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Pomkai paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Johannesburg tries to clinch up but Pomkai circles away and keeps his distance.

Johannesburg moves into range and clinches up with Pomkai.
Pomkai avoiding damage as Johannesburg throws knees to the body.
Johannesburg is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Pomkai is defending well for now.
Johannesburg trying to land knees to the body.
Ritchie Johannesburg has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Pomkai's corner are urging him to control the action in the clinch for a moment, rather than mount any serious offense. I'm sure the crowd appreciate those instructions... not.

And that's the end of the fight!
Bhat Pomkai comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Pomkai winning every round here. Surely the decision will go his way and he'll pick up a well deserved decision victory. 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 Matti Vanhoillinen scores the fight 27:30
Judge Anni Minnemäki scores the fight 27:30
Judge Roosa Järviläinen scores the fight 27:30

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