PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Aksel Stenger (ranked 1132 p4p, 143 weight class) and Jabbar Omarov (ranked 1234 p4p, 155 weight class). Stenger kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is Hit2face - Ain't it nice to get hit to the face?. Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Stenger
vs
Omarov

186 cm
28
196 lbs
21 - 12 - 1

184 cm
25
200 lbs
11 - 4 - 1

Good wrestling
World class MT
Insanely flexible

Excellent grappler
Excellent MT
Heavy handed

Sin City Allstars
IniTech Nutrition

Urban Fighter

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 21 - 12 - 1, fighting out of Helsinki, Aksel Stenger!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 11 - 4 - 1, fighting out of St Petersburg, Jabbar Omarov!
The judges for this bout are Yves DeLean, William Peck and Dillan Fox.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Stenger scores with a jab.

It looks like Jabbar Omarov has been cut.
Omarov darts in looking for a takedown but Stenger gets double underhooks and turns Omarov into the cage.
Jab from Omarov.
Omarov throws out a loose jab but Stenger uses good head movement to avoid it.
Stenger misses with a jab, cross combination.
Stenger fails with an attempt to clinch.
Stenger connects with a single shot there.
Omarov rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Omarov takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Stenger looks to have improved his striking defense since last time we saw him fight.
Stenger on the wrong end of a nice hook.
Omarov fails with a takedown attempt.
Omarov looks to land a right hand but Stenger moved out of range.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Stenger swings for the body but Omarov moves out of range.
Omarov is definitely looking for the counter takedowns here.

Omarov looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into side control! Oh, that's bad for Stenger!
Stenger is looking for a sweep.
Stenger regains half guard.
Stenger trying to hold on to Omarov's head to control him but Omarov postures up.
Omarov thows a huge punch but Stenger dodges it nicely.
Omarov seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.
Omarov looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Stenger is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Stenger is concentrating on defense, preventing Omarov from advancing position.
Stenger is looking to control Omarov's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Stenger avoid being mounted?

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Well, if Omarov is going to just lie there, perhaps we should talk about what we're having for dinner tonight… I'm having a ham and pineapple pizza… Yum. Can't wait.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Stenger wants to get back to full guard.
The fighters are battling for position here. Stenger manages to regain full guard. Nice work.
Stenger managing to control the position.
Omarov postures up.
Stenger is adopting a defensive guard.
Stenger controls Omarov momentarily but Omarov frees himself.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Omarov chips away with some ground and pound.
Stenger trying to control the position.
Omarov throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Stenger working a defensive guard here.
Stenger pulls Omarov in to control the position.
Omarov chips away with some ground and pound.
Stenger knows he needs to get back to his feet asap. He's simply no match for Omarov on the ground.
Stenger working a defensive guard here.
Omarov throws a big right hand that misses.
Stenger is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Omarov has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
Omarov with a flurry of punches that miss.
In the pre-fight buildup videos we saw Omarov working his ground and pound in the gym.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Omarov chips away with some ground and pound.
Omarov trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Omarov scoring with punches to the head and body.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Stenger looking to control the pace of the fight rather than finish it.
Omarov stays in close to Stenger's body and controls the position.
Stenger is avoiding any damage by keeping wrist control.
Omarov postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Stenger not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Stenger pulls Omarov in close to prevent any damage.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Jabbar Omarov dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Jabbar Omarov's cut.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Stenger throws a low kick but his opponent is out of range.
Stenger just misses with a punch to the body.
Omarov throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Stenger sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Omarov has his takedown stuffed
letting Stenger counter with a right hand.
Stenger moves out of range as Omarov strikes.
The crowd cheers as Stenger lands an impressive looking overhand right. Omarov doesn't seem phased though.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Omarov tries to move into range but Stenger moves to the side and lands with a nice right hand.
Stenger takes a swing at Omarov's ribcage but misses.
Stenger tries to work over Omarov's front leg with a kick but Omarov checks it.
A solid leg kick lands there for Stenger.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Omarov has his front leg slapped to the side - a nice low kick landing there from Stenger.
Omarov slips a jab and a cross from Stenger.
Stenger misses with a low kick.
Omarov fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Stenger avoids it really well and circles away.
Stenger cracks Omarov with a hook to the jaw. Both fighters smile at eachother and high-five before getting back down to business.
Stenger uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Omarov shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Stenger as he avoids it easily.
Aksel Stenger has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Jabbar Omarov.
A telegraphed right hand from Stenger misses the target.
Stenger takes a swing at Omarov's ribcage but misses.
A right-left combo lands from Stenger.
Stenger misses with a hook. Omarov ducked under it nicely.
Jabbar Omarov seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Stenger darts in and out, connecting with a jab.
Stenger throws an off balance right hand
and Omarov cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Stenger throws a wild body kick that Omarov sees coming a mile off.
Stenger lands with a head kick! That's gotta hurt.

Omarov closes the distance and clinches up, looking for a takedown. He shifts his weight and gets a nice trip into half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Stenger trying to control from the bottom.
Stenger slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.
Stenger is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Omarov sitting in guard, not really doing much.
Hammerfist, elbow! yells Omarov's corner. There ya go! There ya go!
Stenger is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Omarov landing some decent shots from guard.
Stenger has a closed guard, preventing anything of note from happening. Perhaps he's looking to stall.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
My god... these two guys really need to pick up the pace or everyone will leave to go get a beer.

Omarov is trying to work a guillotine from the top, or something like that? Don't know how he thinks he's going to get a finish from there.
Stenger pulls Omarov in close to prevent any damage.
Stenger controls Omarov momentarily but Omarov frees himself.
Stenger is avoiding any damage by keeping wrist control.
Omarov stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Stenger swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Omarov trying to control but Stenger is working from the bottom.
Omarov is fighting to break Stenger's control of his arms but Stenger is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Aksel Stenger dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Jabbar Omarov's cut.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! 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.

Stenger takes a swing at Omarov's ribcage but misses.
Omarov misses with a takedown attempt
and Omarov takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Omarov is trying hard to land a takedown here. Stenger sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
An attempted straight right counter from Stenger misses the target.
Stenger with a jab.
Aksel Stenger is winning the standup battle so far.
A head kick misses from Stenger.
Omarov drops down looking to force a counter takedown but Stenger defends it well.
A jab from Omarov does it's job there.
Stenger throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Omarov stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Stenger fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.

Stenger darts in and clinches Omarov up against the cage.
Stenger misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Stenger misses with a body punch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Stenger misses with a hook to the ribs.
Stenger swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Omarov is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Stenger lands a hook to the side of the head.
Stenger misses with the head strike.
A right handed body shot lands from Stenger.
Omarov can't find room to land a body shot as Stenger controls the action.
Omarov blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Omarov throws a punch but it's blocked by Stenger.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Stenger.
Stenger swings wildly with an uppercut but Omarov uses good head movement to avoid it.
Omarov blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Stenger is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Omarov can do to turn this around?
Omarov lands a hook to the side of the head.
Stenger struggles to land a body shot inside as Omarov controls his hands.
Stenger swings away with an uppercut that misses.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Omarov blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Knees to the body from Stenger.
Omarov takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Stenger tries to work over Omarov's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Stenger misses with a short punch on the inside.
Omarov takes a knee right on the jaw!
Omarov swings wildly with an uppercut but Stenger uses good head movement to avoid it.
Stenger lands a body shot.
Omarov takes a shot to the head.
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!
A shot in the inside from Stenger.
Stenger scores with a shot to the side of Omarov's head.
Stenger swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Stenger lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Omarov backwards.

Omarov pulls guard effortlessly.
Stenger trying to control but Omarov is working from the bottom.
Jabbar Omarov has got the better of the ground game so far.
Stenger showing good wrestling skills to control the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Stenger pushing down on Omarov's thigh, trying to pass to half guard. He's managed it... Nice work.

Omarov looking for submissions off his back.
Stenger is looking to take a break and control but Omarov is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Stenger is controlling the pace.
Stenger seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Omarov does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Stenger trying to control the pace.
Stenger works his way into full mount!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Stenger takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
Omarov can't escape the position.
Omarov is squirming around, avoiding Stenger's attempts to control the action.
Stenger controlling his opponent.
Stenger can't quite control the action as he would like just now, as Omarov is looking to escape.
Stenger seems to be looking to move to his opponent's back but Omarov is holding on tight.
Omarov is squirming around, avoiding Stenger's attempts to control the action.
Omarov tries to get back to half guard but can't.

And that's the end of the fight!
Aksel Stenger showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Stenger has won this one but let's see what the judges have to say. 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 Yves DeLean scores the fight 29:28
Judge William Peck scores the fight 29:28
Judge Dillan Fox scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Aksel Stenger!
After winning the bout, Aksel Stenger thanked all his fans and promised he'd do even better in his next fight. The crowd seemed to love his humility.