PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Sebastian Heikkinen (ranked 21206 p4p, 0 weight class) and Gegard Shlemenko (ranked 4910 p4p, 0 weight class). Heikkinen comes to the cage accompanied by Sigur Rós - Varúð. Sebastian Heikkinen has the edge in experience - let's see if he can make that count tonight.

Heikkinen
vs
Shlemenko

160 cm
24
140 lbs
0 - 6 - 0

169 cm
26
140 lbs
3 - 1 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Good chin

BJJ White Belt
Excellent MT
Heavy handed

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 0 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Sebastian Heikkinen!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Gegard Shlemenko!
The judges for this bout are Roosa Järviläinen, Arvi Lind and Matti Vanhoillinen.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Heikkinen misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Shlemenko throws a right and a left that both miss.
Shlemenko connects with a lovely right hand, straight down the pipe.

Shlemenko has Heikkinen up against the cage in a clinch.

Heikkinen breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
A nice combination there by Shlemenko.
Shlemenko slaps away a takedown attempt from Heikkinen, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Heikkinen takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Shlemenko throws a right and a left that Heikkinen avoids nicely.
As Shlemenko backs away, Heikkinen returns fire with a leg kick that just misses.

Shlemenko closes the distance and pushes Heikkinen back into the cage.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Shlemenko throws a punch but it's blocked by Heikkinen.
Heikkinen blocking some punches.
Shlemenko throws a punch but it's blocked by Heikkinen.
Shlemenko lands a right hand.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Shlemenko misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Shlemenko misses with a punch to the body.
Shlemenko has a couple of punches blocked by Heikkinen.
Shlemenko gets through Heikkinen's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Heikkinen takes a shot to the head.
Shlemenko lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
Shlemenko lands a body shot.
Shlemenko misses with a body punch.
Shlemenko lands a nice uppercut.
Shlemenko lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Heikkinen is working on a leg, looking for a takedown but Shlemenko is defending well.
Shlemenko lands a left hand that snaps the head of Heikkinen backwards.

Heikkinen ties up his opponent against the cage and manages to drag the fight down to the ground. Heikkinen no doubt will be looking to work submissions from his guard.
Shlemenko must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Shlemenko is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Shlemenko pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Heikkinen is keeping the position for now.

Heikkinen is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Heikkinen looking for a sweep. Not yet Heikkinen, not yet.

Shlemenko avoids a guillotine attempt easily.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Heikkinen is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.

The fight moves into the clinch position.
Shlemenko tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Shlemenko scores with a shoulder strike.
Heikkinen's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Shlemenko lands a left hand that snaps the head of Heikkinen backwards.
Shlemenko pushes Heikkinen back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Shlemenko lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Heikkinen backwards.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A hook to the body from Shlemenko.
Shlemenko lands a body punch.
Heikkinen is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Shlemenko gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Sebastian Heikkinen. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Shlemenko lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
Shlemenko working aggressively here.
Shlemenko misses with some punches.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Shlemenko.
This has been an exciting period of action!

Heikkinen breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Shlemenko scores with a body shot.

Shlemenko forces Heikkinen back against the cage and clinches.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Shlemenko creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Shlemenko lands a nice looking hook to the body, against the cage.
Shlemenko throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Heikkinens head.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Gegard Shlemenko dominated that round.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action.

A lazy left from Shlemenko finds it's target.

Heikkinen gets tackled into the cage by Shlemenko. Shlemenko maintains the clinch.
The fighters are starting to get sweaty, which will make takedowns a bit more tricky.
Shlemenko throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Shlemenko makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
Shlemenko pushes Heikkinen back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Shlemenko.
An uppercut to the body lands inside from Shlemenko.
Shlemenko pushes Heikkinen back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Shlemenko lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Heikkinen backwards.

Shlemenko breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.

Shlemenko closes the distance and clinches.
Heikkinen is trying to break the clinch but Shlemenko is controlling him.
Shlemenko lands a hook to the side of the head.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Shlemenko lands a left hand.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Shlemenko is working Heikkinen over against the cage.
Shlemenko makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
Shlemenko taking a break, stalling in the clinch.
Heikkinen prevents a body shot from Shlemenko.
A nice right hand lands inside from Shlemenko.
Shlemenko tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Shlemenko has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Shlemenko scores with a hook to the body.
Shlemenko lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.

Shlemenko breaks the clinch.

Shlemenko closes the distance and clinches.
Shlemenko scores with a nice hook to the head.
Still in the clinch, Shlemenko scores with a nice short uppercut.
Heikkinen has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Shlemenko avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Heikkinen jumps guard but Shlemenko turns him against the cage and keeps the fight standing.
Shlemenko scores with an uppercut up the middle.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Shlemenko creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Shlemenko lands a body punch - he's looking to wear down Heikkinen.
A right hand to the body from Shlemenko.
Shlemenko softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Shlemenko lands with a left to the head.
Shlemenko lands an uppercut.
Shlemenko lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
Shlemenko lands a hook to the side of the head.
Shlemenko pushes Heikkinen back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Shlemenko lands with a left to the head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Heikkinen is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Shlemenko prevents a takedown attempt there.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Sebastian Heikkinen. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Shlemenko stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
Shlemenko lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Shlemenko lands a right hand.

Heikkinen drags the fight down to the ground.
Shlemenko tries to free his leg and advance position but Heikkinen is retaining full guard.
Shlemenko is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.

Heikkinen is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Shlemenko defends well.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Shlemenko controls the pace of the fight for a moment.
Let's hope that Shlemenko has the urge to step up the pace any second now because for the last 15 or 20 seconds he's just been holding on tight.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Gegard Shlemenko 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! The crowd applaud as we get ready to start the final round!

Shlemenko scores with a crisp jab that stopped Heikkinen in his tracks.
A punch lands to the side of Heikkinen 's head but he takes it in his stride.
Heikkinen will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Shlemenko tests Heikkinen's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Heikkinen fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Shlemenko tries to counter with a clinch but Heikkinen shakes him off and moves away.

Shlemenko drives through and clinches with Heikkinen against the cage.
Heikkinen tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Shlemenko just stands there and leans against the cage.
A short right from Shlemenko.
Shlemenko has used his reach advantage pretty well so far tonight.
Shlemenko stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Shlemenko.
Heikkinen misses with a hook to the ribs.
Heikkinen drops down for a takedown but doesn't get it.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Sebastian Heikkinen. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Shlemenko scores with a shot to the side of Heikkinen's head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Shlemenko lands a shoulder strike.
Shlemenko prevents Heikkinen from breaking the clinch.
A nice left hand lands by Shlemenko.
Shlemenko presses Heikkinen against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
Shlemenko pushes Heikkinen back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Shlemenko scores with a hook to the body.
Shlemenko scores with a shot to the side of Heikkinen's head.
A short left from Shlemenko.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Shlemenko.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Shlemenko.
Shlemenko lands with a short shot to the head.
Shlemenko lands a hook to the side of the head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Shlemenko lands a right hand that snaps the head of Heikkinen backwards.
Shlemenko lands a body shot.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Heikkinen has Shlemenko pressed up against the cage and is working for takedown. Shlemenko manages to improve position though and keeps the fight standing.
A nice right hand lands inside from Shlemenko.
Heikkinen tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Shlemenko avoids it.
Heikkinen tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Shlemenko lands with a left to the head.
Shlemenko lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Heikkinen backwards.
Shlemenko working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Shlemenko'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.
Shlemenko presses Heikkinen against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shlemenko throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Heikkinens head.
Heikkinen tries to pull guard but Shlemenko holds him up against the cage and eventually Heikkinen drops back down to his feet.
Heikkinen is trying to pull guard but Shlemenko has him pressed against the cage.
Shlemenko lands a body shot in the clinch.
Sebastian Heikkinen has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Gegard Shlemenko is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Shlemenko stalling the fight.
Shlemenko lands a left hand.
A nice right hand lands inside from Shlemenko.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Heikkinen is trying to pull guard but Shlemenko has him pressed against the cage.
A hook to the body from Shlemenko.
Shlemenko lands a hook that snaps the head of Heikkinen backwards.

Shlemenko gets a nice trip takedown into half guard.
Heikkinen is trying to control but can't.
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!
Shlemenko looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.

And that's the end of the fight!
Gegard Shlemenko comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Shlemenko has outworked and out performed his opponent in all aspects of the game today. He was simply too good and the decision should be no more than a formality. 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 Roosa Järviläinen scores the fight 25:30
Judge Arvi Lind scores the fight 25:30
Judge Matti Vanhoillinen scores the fight 24:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Gegard Shlemenko!