PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Raine Lovelair (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Tapio Valo (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Tapio Valo is staring across the cage at his opponent, tweaking his nipples.

Lovelair
vs
Valo

200 cm
23
195 lbs
8 - 5 - 0

187 cm
29
190 lbs
14 - 5 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Solid boxing
Granite chin

Decent wrestler
Excellent MT
Good gas tank

Perkele!

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 8 - 5 - 0, fighting out of New York, Raine Lovelair!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 14 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Tapio Valo!
The judges for this bout are Bruno Lombardi, Franklyn Lucas and Reed Andrews.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Valo closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Valo is trying to stall.
Valo tries a body shot but Lovelair blocks it.
Lovelair throws a punch but it's blocked by Valo.
The pace slowing considerably in the clinch, as Valo takes a break from that fighting nonsense to think about the finer things in life.
Valo controlling the action here for a moment.
Valo tries to throw a body punch but Lovelair avoids it by throwing Valo back against the cage.
Valo fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Valo makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
Valo swings away with an uppercut that misses.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Valo lands with a short punch from the clinch.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Valo.
Valo misses with a body punch.
Valo stalling in the clinch but Lovelair improves position.
Valo blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Our sources have told us that Lovelair has been working on his knees in the buildup to the fight.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Lovelair misses with a knee to the head.
Valo misses with a punch on the inside.
Valo misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Valo lands with a short punch from the clinch.
Valo blocks a body shot from Lovelair.
Valo struggles to land a body shot inside as Lovelair controls his hands.
The referee is keeping an eye on Valo - much more stalling and he will separate the fighters.
Valo can't find room to land a body shot as Lovelair controls the action.
Valo working aggressively here.
Nice body punch from Valo - that landed with a thud.
Lovelair takes a shot to the head.
Valo displaying some good clinch control by pressing Lovelair up against the cage.
Lovelair using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Valo has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
A short uppercut from Lovelair.
A short right from Valo on the inside.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Lovelair throws a knee to the head but misses.
Lovelair lands a body shot.
Valo lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Lovelair backwards.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Some stalling of biblical proportions here from Valo.
Valo has a couple of punches blocked by Lovelair.
Valo swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Valo lands with a short shot to the head.
Lovelair throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Valo blocks it with crossed arms.
Valo is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.
Valo working some nice short punches in the clinch.
Valo digs a right hand into Lovelair's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Lovelair's gas tank.
Lovelair blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Valo tries a body shot but Lovelair blocks it.
Lovelair blocks a body shot from Valo.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Lovelair missing with knees to the body.
Lovelair really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.
Valo is pushing Lovelair up against the cage, for a bit of lean and pray action. Action being used the in the loosest possible sense of the word.
The referee is keeping an eye on Valo - much more stalling and he will separate the fighters.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Lovelair.
Valo is working Lovelair over against the cage.
Lovelair using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Valo has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Lovelair throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Valo blocks it with crossed arms.
Valo lands a shoulder strike.
Valo lands with a light punch inside.
Valo is struggling to control the position.
Valo stalling against the cage.
Valo continues to stall. The referee tells him to work or he's going to break them up.
A nice left hand lands by Valo.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Lovelair misses with a knee to the head.
Valo displaying some good clinch control by pressing Lovelair up against the cage.
Valo displaying some good clinch control by pressing Lovelair up against the cage.
Valo tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Valo'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.
Valo tries to throw a body punch but Lovelair avoids it by throwing Valo back against the cage.
Valo misses with a punch to the body.
Valo will no doubt start fighting again in a minute but for now he's just having a little rest, leaning Lovelair up against the cage.
The ref breaks the fighters up, due to lack of action by Tapio Valo.
The fighters circling - Valo throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Valo pivots, looking for a leg kick but Lovelair is out of range and Valo settles back down.
A chopping leg kick lands by Valo.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Tapio Valo dominated that round.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Valo is looking to score with low kicks.
Lovelair throws a wild combination but nothing lands.

Lovelair tries to keep at a distance but Valo has taken the fight into the clinch.
An uppercut to the body lands inside from Valo.
Valo just leaning against Lovelair, taking a breather.
Lovelair is working Valo over against the cage.
Valo lands a right hand that snaps the head of Lovelair backwards.

It looks like Raine Lovelair has been cut.
A right handed body shot lands from Valo.
A short right from Lovelair on the inside.
A short right from Valo on the inside.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Valo scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Valo lands a body punch - he's looking to wear down Lovelair.
Valo misses with a hook to the ribs.
Valo leaning against his opponent.
Valo lands on the inside with an uppercut.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Lovelair tries a knee to the head but Valo blocks it.
Lovelair has a couple of punches blocked by Valo.
Valo lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Lovelair or not.
The fighters are pressed against the cage, as the pace of the fight slows.
Valo lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Valo lands with a short punch from the clinch.
Lovelair tries to land a knee to the head but Valo blocks with his arms.
Valo lands with a short punch from the clinch.
Valo pushes Lovelair back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Some stalling of biblical proportions here from Valo.
Valo blocks a body shot from Lovelair.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Valo.
Valo misses with some punches.
Valo misses with a body punch.
Valo tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Stalling in the clinch from Valo.
Lovelair tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Valo has Lovelair pushed against the cage.
Lovelair using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Valo has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Valo lands a body shot in the clinch.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Valo avoiding damage.
Valo lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Lovelair backwards.
Valo stalling.
Valo misses with a punch to the body.
Valo leaning his opponent against the cage.
Valo has a couple of punches blocked by Lovelair.
Valo misses with a punch to the body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Lovelair blocks a body shot from Valo.
Tapio Valo seems to be working more effectively in the clinch in the fight so far.
Valo blocking some punches.
Lovelair scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Valo dictating the pace here, as the fighters clinch against the cage.
Valo lands with a light punch inside.
Valo misses with a hook to the ribs.
Valo has Lovelair pressed against the cage.
Valo has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Valo.
A shot in the inside from Valo.
Lovelair fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
An uppercut to the body lands inside from Valo.
Valo managing to block the knees to the body from Lovelair.
Valo misses with a punch on the inside.
Valo blocks a punch to the side of the head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Valo has Lovelair pushed against the cage.
Valo lands a body shot in the clinch.
Good body shot from Valo.
Lovelair tries to land knees in the clinch but Valo avoids the damage to the body.
Valo holding his opponent close, against the cage.
Valo lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Lovelair backwards.
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!
Lovelair tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Valo content to slow the pace in the clinch.
The referee is keeping an eye on Valo - much more stalling and he will separate the fighters.
Lovelair misses with a shot to the kidneys.
A nice left hand lands by Valo.
Valo misses with a body punch.
Valo lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Valo lands a shoulder strike.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Tapio Valo showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Raine Lovelair's cut.
That's time! Lovelair's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight. 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.

Valo misses with a kick to the body.
Tapio Valo seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Sloppy strikes from Lovelair. Those never looked like landing.
Lovelair misses the shot to the body.
Lovelair displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Valo throws out the jab.
Valo's corner calls for a 1-2. Valo obliges with the 1 part as he scores the single shot and moves back out of range.
Lovelair looks to score with a jab to the body but Valo is just out of range.
Valo misses with a low kick.
Valo digs a good body shot into Lovelair's ribs.
Lovelair drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Lovelair throws a body shot but no joy.
Valo swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Valo throws a leg kick that misses.
Raine Lovelair is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.

Valo cracks Lovelair with a big right hand that sends him crashing to the floor. Valo has the opportunity to follow him to the ground but instead he's beckoning Lovelair to stand back up!

Lovelair is rocked!
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Valo lunges in with a left hook that violently twists Lovelair head around and knocks him out cold! Valo hops onto the cage and yells out at the top of his lungs - Yeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaah! They're showing the replay on the big screens now; that was nasty! I hope one of the photographers got a good shot of it.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 0:58 of round 3, we have a winner by way of KO (Punch). Tapio Valo!
Our winner, Tapio Valo, made sure he spent some time buttering up the crowd during his post fight interview, which will no doubt bring him a few more fans.