PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Murad Khalimov (ranked 5438 p4p, 5585 weight class) and Lion Tiger (ranked 485 p4p, 488 weight class). Tiger comes into a darkened arena with his song building. Alok - Hear Me Tonight kicks in, the lights come on and the crowd goes wild! What a showman! We have two fighters making their debuts here, so let's see who comes out of this one with their first professional victory.

Khalimov
vs
Tiger

188 cm
22
275
0 - 0 - 0

190 cm
18
225
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Basic striking
KO power

BJJ White Belt
Counter fighter
Powerful

MKFC

Brooklyn Apothecary
Altitude Clothing

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Murad Khalimov!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Lion Tiger!
The judges for this bout are Luis Engracia, Alexandre Firmino and Daniel Cesar.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Excellent takedown into side control there by Khalimov.

Tiger throws his opponent off and manages to get back to his feet! Nicely done!
Khalimov throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Tiger looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Nice defenses there by Tiger.

Khalimov looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into side control! Oh, that's bad for Tiger!
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Tiger is looking for a sweep.
Khalimov wants to control but Tiger is keeping him busy.
Khalimov scoring with punches and elbows.
Sloppy strikes there by Khalimov.

Khalimov is trying to get an arm triangle but Tiger is defending well.
Tiger takes a couple of big shots there - the referee warns him that he has to defend himself better.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Khalimov controlling the position.
Khalimov trying to control the action but Tiger is working from the bottom.

Khalimov tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Khalimov cracks Tiger with a big elbow.

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.

Khalimov looking for an arm triangle but it's way too loose to do anything.
Tiger gives up the full mount - oops, sloppy defensive grappling there!
Khalimov has his opponent pinned against the cage, landing some nasty ground and pound that is really making a bit of a mess out of Tiger's face.
Tiger holding onto his opponent's waist for dear life, as Khalimov tries to land some strikes to get him to release his grip.
Khalimov trying to control but he's not successful this time.
Khalimov controlling from mount.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Tiger is in a horrible position here, under a barrage of strikes, he's managing to avoid any damage.
Tiger is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
Tiger is squirming around, avoiding Khalimov's attempts to control the action.
Khalimov is really struggling to control Tiger but he's trying to hold on to the position.
Tiger is looking to improve his position but Khalimov isn't that keen on the idea.
Tiger avoids a series of strikes thrown by Khalimov.

Khalimov looking for a guillotine from mount but Tiger is having none of it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Khalimov misses with a head shot.
Tiger avoids a series of strikes thrown by Khalimov.
Khalimov working away from the top, dropping strikes.
Khalimov throws some wild stikes that Tiger manages to avoid easily.
Khalimov takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
Khalimov looking to finish Tiger with some ground and pound. This is bad for Tiger!
Khalimov controlling from mount.

Khalimov with some aggressive grappling here. He's looking for submissions here, rather than waiting for the opportunity to counter.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Murad Khalimov dominated that round.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action.

Tiger cracks Khalimov with an open hand slap.

It looks like Murad Khalimov has been cut.
Khalimov misses the jab.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Tiger! But no joy.

Khalimov fakes an overhand right and shoots for a takedown. Tiger sprawls well initially but Khalimov persists and gets the takedown into half guard.
Tiger really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Khalimov. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Khalimov controlling the action here.
Khalimov 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.
Khalimov winds up and cracks Tiger with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Khalimov not doing much here.
Tiger is trying to maintain the position but Khalimov is very close to passing his half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Khalimov trying to control the pace.
Khalimov throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.

Khalimov is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Tiger sees it coming and defends easily.
Khalimov controlling the action here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Khalimov not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Khalimov wants to pass to mount but Tiger is defending the position.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

Khalimov is trying for a guillotine from the top but the pressure isn't in the right place so Tiger is just riding it out for now. Khalimov eventually gives up the hold.
Tiger makes his way to full guard. A much better position for Tiger.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Khalimov slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
Khalimov distracts Tiger with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Khalimov with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Khalimov wants to pass the guard but Tiger is keeping the position.
Khalimov passes Tiger's left leg - he's now in half guard.

Khalimov is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Tiger sees it coming and defends easily.
Tiger avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Khalimov.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tiger blocking the ground and pound attempt from Khalimov.
Tiger on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Khalimov thows a huge punch but Tiger dodges it nicely.
Khalimov keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
Tiger wants to control but Khalimov is keeping busy.
Khalimov lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Khalimov throws a big elbow that misses, also allowing Tiger to regain full guard.
Khalimov content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.
Khalimov working from the guard for now, landing some ground and pound.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Murad Khalimov dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Murad Khalimov's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. This is the final round!

Tiger avoids a kick to the body.
Tiger throws a series of strikes that have Khalimov backpedaling.
Khalimov missing with a left hand there. Tiger was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Nice uppercut lands for Tiger. That snapped Khalimov's head back.
Nice jab there from Tiger.

Khalimov drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.
Khalimov trying to control but Tiger is working from the bottom.
Tiger preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Khalimov trying to control but Tiger is working from the bottom.
Khalimov landing with the ground and pound.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Khalimov engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
The referee is pacing around the two fighters, thinking about a standup.
Khalimov pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Tiger is keeping the position for now.
Murad Khalimov overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

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.
Khalimov is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Tiger utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Khalimov working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Khalimov throwing strikes but missing.
Khalimov stands and throws Tiger's legs to the side, diving into side control.
Khalimov has knee on belly and moves into mount.
Khalimov postures up and cracks his opponent a couple of times before moving back into close ground control. Tiger looks a forlorn figure.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Khalimov has hold of Tiger's left arm, perhaps looking for a submission. The two fighters tussle over control of the isolated limb and Tiger manages to get his arm back to his side and away from danger.
Khalimov controlling from mount.

Khalimov is looking to secure an arm. He's managed it! He's pivoting for an armbar - that looks tight! But Tiger has managed to get out of it and now he's in a dominant position. Nice work from Tiger!

Khalimov is active off his back here, looking for submissions.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tiger wants to pass the guard but Khalimov is keeping the position.
Khalimov wants to sweep but no luck.
Murad Khalimov is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Khalimov managing to control the position.
Khalimov's ground tactics aren't going to win him many fans. Let's hope he's got fireworks for us if he gets back to his feet because he's not doing much on the ground.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Khalimov lands a beautiful sweep and he's now moved into his opponent's guard.

Lion Tiger has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Khalimov passes easily into side control. Nice work.

And that's the end of the fight!
Murad Khalimov showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Khalimov, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 Luis Engracia scores the fight 30:27
Judge Alexandre Firmino scores the fight 30:27
Judge Daniel Cesar scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Murad Khalimov!