PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Rokki Kukko (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Stanley Burrell (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). The crowd seem to be enjoying Burrell 's choice of entrance music: Can't Touch This. Rokki Kukko could well score a knockout today. He has the power to get to Stanley Burrell 's chin.

Kukko
vs
Burrell

176 cm
32
171 lbs
24 - 15 - 2

180 cm
43
179 lbs
35 - 19 - 2

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Granite chin

Good wrestler
World class boxer
Powerful

Voodoo Nutrition

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 24 - 15 - 2, fighting out of Los Angeles, Rokki Kukko!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 35 - 19 - 2, fighting out of St Petersburg, Stanley Burrell !
The judges for this bout are Daniel Bishop, Chris Edwards and William Gold.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Kukko throws a leg kick that misses.
Burrell has been spending a lot of time sparring his boxing in the run up to the fight, trying to sharpen up those hands and look for a knockout.
Kukko throws a push kick but Burrell slaps the foot to one side.
Kukko uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.
Burrell throws a head kick but Kukko moves out of range.
Kukko drops down looking for a counter takedown but Burrell sprawls and moves away.
Kukko definitely looks more muscular than last time we saw him fight.
Burrell checks the leg kick.
Burrell lands a jab-cross combination.
Burrell throws a leg kick
and Kukko counters with a three punch combo that has Burrell backing up. Burrell nods at Kukko to acknowledge the strikes.
Burrell takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
Burrell throws out a leg kick but Kukko moves out of range and Burrell only half commits.
An inside leg kick from Burrell misses.
Burrell takes a big uppercut there. He seems a bit wobbly but no, he's OK.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Burrell thuds his right hand into Kukko's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.

Burrell gets tackled into the cage by Kukko. Kukko maintains the clinch.
Kukko tries to land a knee to the head but Burrell blocks with his arms.
Kukko jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Burrell walks away with a smile on his face. Kukko gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
Burrell throws a leg kick

and Kukko counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Kukko.
Burrell has his hands on Kukko's head, controlling the position.
Burrell not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kukko forces his way into half guard.
Kukko is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.
Burrell moves his hips nicely and gets into full guard.
Burrell has Kukko pulled in close to control his posture.
Burrell avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.
Kukko is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.
Burrell is pulling down on Kukko's head to control his posture.

Burrell uses the cage to get back to his feet.
Kukko throws a front kick aimed at Burrell 's knee but Burrell avoids it well.
Kukko lands a nice looking body kick.
A chopping leg kick lands by Burrell .
Burrell misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Burrell swats away the attempt to clinch by Kukko.
Kukko steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Burrell .
Burrell takes a swing at Kukko's ribcage but misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Burrell tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Kukko was well out of range. Poor timing from Burrell .
Burrell throws a wild body kick that Kukko sees coming a mile off.
Kukko throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Burrell .
Kukko fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Burrell manages to avoid it.
Burrell lands with a straight right. Kukko didn't see that one coming.
Kukko moves out of range as Burrell strikes.
Kukko tries to clinch but fails miserably
enabling Burrell to counter with a crisp jab.
Kukko takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
Burrell throws a wild body kick that Kukko sees coming a mile off.
Kukko lands with a two punch combination before moving back out of range.
Burrell scores with a jab to the head.
Burrell checks a leg kick.
Kukko shakes his hands off, looking to compose himself, but takes a jab to the jaw whilst he does it.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Burrell misses with a body shot.
Kukko keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
Kukko misses with a wild body shot.
Burrell on the wrong end of an overhand right that came out of nowhere.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Kukko closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. Burrell quickly recovers to half guard.
Burrell pushes Kukko off looking to stand but Kukko dives back in and keeps control.
Burrell blocking the ground and pound attempt from Kukko.
Kukko lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
Kukko not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Kukko content to control rather than advance.
Burrell wants to improve his position but Kukko is controlling well.
Kukko 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.
Kukko working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
Kukko trying to control the pace.
Kukko takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Rokki Kukko will probably get the nod.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Kukko misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Burrell .
Burrell scores with a head kick. Kukko tried to block it but didn't get his arm up in time.
Burrell takes a step towards his opponent and connects with a left hand, before circling away.
Burrell scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
Good work by Burrell as he checks the leg kick.
Burrell throws a big counter head kick but Kukko avoids it with no problem.
Kukko walks into a left hand.
Burrell misses with a body kick.
Kukko just misses with a punch to the body.
Burrell scores with a kick to the body.
Kukko tries to clinch up.
Burrell lands a nice looking body shot.
Stanley Burrell seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Kukko changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Burrell tries to avoid it but Kukko manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Burrell to the ground. Burrell escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Burrell misses with a hook. Kukko ducked under it nicely.
Good work by Kukko as he checks the leg kick.
Burrell connects with a lovely jab that went straight through the gap between Kukko's hands.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Kukko dives in and grabs Burrell 's left leg, looking for a takedown. Burrell pushes down on Kukko's head and hops out.
Kukko keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kukko fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Rokki Kukko. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Burrell thuds a left hand into Kukko's body.
A swing and a miss from Burrell .
Kukko fails to land the takedown.
A nice inside leg kick there by Burrell . That's going to slow Kukko down.
Kukko checks a low kick from Burrell .
Burrell 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.
Kukko throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Kukko moves in looking to clinch but Burrell pushes him off.
Kukko scores with a jab to the body.

Kukko closes the distance and clinches.
Burrell lands with a short shot to the head.
Burrell tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Kukko's elbow.
Burrell tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kukko jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Burrell walks away with a smile on his face. Kukko gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
Kukko shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Burrell as he avoids it easily.
Kukko will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Kukko uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Burrell .
Kukko digs a good body shot into Burrell 's ribs.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Burrell throws a head kick but Kukko moves out of range.
Burrell pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Kukko changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
Kukko checks a leg kick.
Stanley Burrell is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Burrell rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Kukko counters with a straight right hand.
Burrell tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Kukko was well out of range. Poor timing from Burrell .
Kukko takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
Burrell throws a body kick that digs right into the meat.
Burrell throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Burrell turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Burrell misses with a leg kick
and Kukko counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Burrell feints a straight left to the body, then turns around with a flashy move and hits Kukkos jaw with a dramatic spinning back fist!
Kukko misses with a wild body shot.
Burrell throws a counter combo.
Burrell scores with a nice right hand.
Kukko stumbles momentarily as he takes a strong leg kick from Burrell .
Kukko fails in his attempt to clinch.
Burrell looked like he wanted to counter with a punch but didn't throw it.
Kukko avoids the body shot from Burrell .
Kukko checks the leg kick.
Kukko uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Burrell .
Kukko falls off balance throwing a combination
and Burrell counters with a stiff right hand.
Kukko works over Burrell 's head and body with a nice combination.

Burrell has closed the distance and engaged Kukko in a clinch.
Kukko is trying to pull guard but Burrell has him pressed against the cage.
Burrell lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Burrell taking a breather.
Burrell tries to throw a body punch but Kukko avoids it by throwing Burrell back against the cage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kukko keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Burrell 's efforts to push away.
Kukko softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Burrell slowing the pace effectively.
Burrell avoids a wild elbow strike from Kukko.
Kukko tries to pull guard but Burrell holds him up against the cage and eventually Kukko drops back down to his feet.
Burrell tries to break free but Kukko pushes him back against the cage.

Kukko gets control of Burrell 's arms and successfully pulls guard. Kukko will no doubt be looking for submissions off his back.

Burrell gets to his feet - Kukko follows without any prompting.
Burrell moves in looking to clinch but Kukko pushes him off.

Burrell gets caught napping as Kukko dives in and scores a takedown. Burrell manages to retain guard.
Kukko postures up.
Rokki Kukko overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Kukko makes a bit of distance and scores with some ground and pound, still in guard.
Kukko tries to free his leg and advance position but Burrell is retaining full guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Stanley Burrell showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
That's time! Kukko's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!

Kukko checks a leg kick nicely.
Kukko shoots in looking for a takedown. Burrell tries to sprawl out of it but Kukko keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Burrell manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
It seemed like Burrell was going to counter with the hook but didn't fully commit to it.
Burrell is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Burrell ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Kukko moves away.
Kukko is pinned up against the cage taking some big shots here. The referee is looking closely deciding whether he should stop the fight.
Kukko uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Burrell .
Burrell lands a glancing blow to the side of Kukko's head.
Burrell swings for the body but Kukko moves out of range.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Burrell jabs. That one connects to the head of his opponent.
Kukko sees a low kick coming and goes to check it, but it's actually a body kick and it thuds into his unprotected ribs.
Burrell throws a half hearted mid kick.
Kukko will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Burrell throws a counter combo.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Burrell throws a leg kick that is checked
and Kukko connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Burrell stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Burrell wants it to stay on the feet.
Burrell fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Burrell cracks the inside of Kukko's front leg.
Kukko misses with an uppercut. Burrell saw that one coming.

Kukko scores with a nice takedown into half guard. Let's see what he's got on the ground.
Kukko not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Burrell on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Kukko misses with a head shot. Burrell uses the momentum to regain guard.
Kukko trying to control the position from guard on top but Burrell is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Kukko is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Burrell is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Burrell not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Burrell seems keen to control Kukko's posture.
Kukko wants to control from the top but Burrell keeps moving.
Kukko working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Burrell 's head.
Kukko trying to control the position from guard on top but Burrell is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Kukko postures up.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kukko won't allow Burrell to get back to his feet.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Kukko keeps his opponent at a distance with a nice jab.
Kukko lands with a thumping leg kick.
Burrell throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Burrell throws a leg kick which misses Kukko's front leg but catches the back leg as Kukko tries to avoid it.
Kukko takes a punch to the jaw and another one to the bread basket.
Kukko showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Burrell .
Burrell connects with a high kick.
Burrell throws a sloppy body shot
letting Kukko counter with a right hand.
Burrell throws a low kick but it's checked well by Kukko.

Kukko darts in and clinches Burrell up against the cage.
Kukko jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Burrell walks away with a smile on his face. Kukko gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Rokki Kukko. That's going to take a lot out of him.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Burrell thows a leg kick but Kukko checks it
and Kukko counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.
Kukko is hobbling a little on that front leg after taking quite a few leg kicks so far in this fight.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kukko darts in looking for a takedown but Burrell gets double underhooks and turns Kukko into the cage.
Burrell works Kukko's body with a nice hook.
Kukko misses with a wild combination.
Burrell uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.

The fight moves into the clinch position.
Kukko keeps control of Burrell as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Kukko gets through Burrell 's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Kukko fails to pull the fight into his guard.
Kukko looking for a takedown.
Burrell wants to break free but Kukko has control.
Kukko is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.
Burrell lands a body shot in the clinch.

And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Stanley Burrell .
I think Burrell has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 Daniel Bishop scores the fight 28:29
Judge Chris Edwards scores the fight 28:29
Judge William Gold scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Stanley Burrell !
An out of breath Stanley Burrell thanked his loyal fans in his post fight interview, giving them credit for his success over the course of his career.