PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Harkon Volkihar (ranked 2956 p4p, 0 weight class) and Michael Under (ranked 4537 p4p, 0 weight class). Volkihar has a slight injury, which hopefully won't affect the fight too much. Harkon Volkihar has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Volkihar
vs
Under

194 cm
25
196 lbs
5 - 0 - 0

182 cm
25
184 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

Good wrestling
Counter fighter
Big heart

BJJ Blue Belt
Basic striking
Determined

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 5 - 0 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Harkon Volkihar!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of The Island, Michael Under!
The judges for this bout are Daniel Franklin, Dirk Anderson and Sandra Marshall.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Under looking to score a takedown here. Volkihar is defending well but Under drives through and ends up in Volkihar's guard.
Volkihar tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Under wants to control from the top but Volkihar keeps moving.
Volkihar utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Under stopping the sweep attempt from Volkihar.
Volkihar looking to control but Under passes into half guard.
Volkihar is trying to get back to full guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Volkihar is working hard here to advance position.
Volkihar is staying active underneath Under, who seems content to just control the action from this position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Volkihar tries to roll over but Under keeps him under control.
Volkihar moves into full guard.
Volkihar manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Under manages to get himself to full guard.

Under is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.

Volkihar has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Under is working away from the top position though.
Under is looking to take a break and control but Volkihar is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Under looks over to his corner - he wants some instructions but his corner are not responding.
Volkihar tries to get to full guard but Under has control of the leg.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Volkihar wants to control but Under is keeping busy.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Volkihar keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
The fighters are battling for position here. Volkihar manages to regain full guard. Nice work.
Under trying to control the position from guard on top but Volkihar is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Under sitting in guard here, content to control.
Volkihar tries to land a sweep but no joy.
We must be close to a standup if these guys don't pick up the pace.
Volkihar is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Under's coach down at Island Safe Space was telling us pre-fight that they have been working on Under's balance. Obviously they view that as a key factor in the outcome of this fight.
Under throws a head kick that misses.
Volkihar changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
Under shoots for a takedown but Volkihar saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
The fight stays on the outside here - Under looks like he's thinking about clinching though.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Under will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Volkihar appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Volkihar checks a low kick from Under.
Volkihar moves out of range as Under throws a body kick.
A low kick from Under is predictable there

and Volkihar counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
Volkihar drops an elbow to the side of Under's head.
Under slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.
Under tries to land a sweep but no joy.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Volkihar is working Under over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Volkihar throwing strikes but missing.
Under looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Michael Under will probably get the nod.
That's time! Back to the action!

Under throws a nice head kick!
Under scores with a jab.
A combination from Under does no damage.
Volkihar darts in looking for a takedown but Under gets double underhooks and turns Volkihar into the cage.
Under throws a head kick but Volkihar moves out of range.

Volkihar looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into side control! Oh, that's bad for Under!
Volkihar working the ground and pound but Under is defending the strikes.
Under sneaks back into half guard.
Volkihar lands with an elbow from half guard - that looked like it hurt.
Harkon Volkihar overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Under trying to control here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Volkihar throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Volkihar trying to control from half guard but Under is working away.
Under trying to control but Volkihar postures up.
Volkihar looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Under with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Under trying to control from the bottom.
Volkihar throwing shots but Under is blocking nicely.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Volkihar lands a nice short elbow.
Under gets back to full guard.
Volkihar lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
Volkihar postures up and lands a big shot to Under's brow.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Volkihar with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Under trying to keep a closed guard but Volkihar is proving a slippery customer.
Volkihar is in close to Under's body, working some short punches and elbows.
Under bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Volkihar's guard.

Under wants to control from the top but Volkihar keeps moving.
Volkihar striking off his back but it's not causing Under any problems.
Under is working Volkihar over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Volkihar tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Under must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Under trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.

Volkihar throwing his legs up looking for a triangle.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Volkihar is trying to keep Under in close.
Under wants to control from the top but Volkihar keeps moving.
Volkihar managing to control the position.
Volkihar looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
The referee wants the fighters to be more active or he's going to reset them on the feet.
Volkihar is trying to keep Under in close.

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

That's four 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.
Under with a lazy takedown attempt

and Volkihar counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Volkihar.
Under utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Volkihar stopping the sweep attempt from Under.
Volkihar looking to pass the guard.
Under is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.

Volkihar tries to get to full guard but Under has control of the leg.
Volkihar 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.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Under trying to control from half guard but Volkihar is working away.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close second round but Michael Under will probably get the nod - 10:9.
That's time! Volkihar's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight. This is the final round!

Under shoots for a takedown but Volkihar saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Volkihar swats away the attempt to clinch by Under.
Volkihar goes for a double leg but Under avoids the attempt and the two fighters end up clinched against the cage as Under continues to drive forward.
Under shoots in for a takedown but Volkihar shows good takedown defense.

Under darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.
Under wants to lay and pray for a moment but Volkihar keeps working.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Volkihar is looking for a sweep. Under is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Under trying to control from half guard but Volkihar is working away.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Volkihar tries to get to full guard but Under has control of the leg.
Under is pressing down on Volkihar's thigh, looking to free his foot. Volkihar is holding on for now.
Still in half guard, Under seems content to control.
Under prevents Volkihar from improving his position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Volkihar closes the distance and clinches up with Under, looking for a takedown. Volkihar pushes Under against the cage but Under circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Under misses with a double jab.
Under tries to close the distance and clinch up but Volkihar swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Michael Under seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Under tries to clinch but Volkihar moves out of range.
Volkihar shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Under as he jumps to the side.
Under tries to counter by closing the distance.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Harkon Volkihar. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Volkihar circles away from the clinch attempt.
Volkihar appears to be looking for a counter punch to the body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Under throws a wild body kick that Volkihar sees coming a mile off.
Under fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Volkihar looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Under throws a right and a left that both miss.
Volkihar appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Under tries a head kick but it misses.
Volkihar goes for a double leg but Under avoids the attempt and the two fighters end up clinched against the cage as Under continues to drive forward.
Under tries for a takedown but Volkihar sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.

Under looking for a takedown here - he's got it.
Volkihar is wriggling around but Under manages to pass to half guard.

Volkihar is looking to escape.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Under is trying to control the action in half guard but Volkihar is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
Volkihar is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Under controlling the action here.
Volkihar wants to improve his position but Under is controlling well.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Volkihar is not content to let Under control the position.
Harkon Volkihar has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Michael Under is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Under moves into full mount! Volkihar won't be happy about that!

And that's the end of the fight!
Michael Under comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Under 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 Daniel Franklin scores the fight 27:30
Judge Dirk Anderson scores the fight 27:30
Judge Sandra Marshall scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Michael Under!
Harkon Volkihar spoke after the fight, saying 'Whooosh '.