PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Sergei Ulatov (ranked 3243 p4p, 3660 weight class) and Evert Norddahl (ranked 126 p4p, 0 weight class). Sergei Ulatov has the edge in experience - let's see if he can make that count tonight.

Ulatov
vs
Norddahl

173 cm
43
155
35 - 20 - 0

178 cm
28
154
3 - 2 - 0

Good wrestling
Brawler
Experienced

Good takedowns
Basic striking
Good gas tank

Fantasy Threads

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 35 - 20 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Sergei Ulatov!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Hilo, Evert Norddahl!
The judges for this bout are Konstantin Menshow, Sergei Dronov and Aleksei Zolotukhin.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Ulatov closes the distance and looks for a trip takedown... aaaand he's got it - Ulatov lands in his opponent's guard.
Ulatov sitting in guard, not really doing much.

Norddahl looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.

Norddahl working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Ulatov doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Ulatov manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Norddahl keeping moving, preventing Ulatov from controlling successfully.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Ulatov is really struggling to control Norddahl but he's trying to hold on to the position.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

Norddahl is looking for a triangle but Ulatov pushes his legs off easily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Ulatov wants to control from the top but Norddahl keeps moving.

Ulatov drops back looking for a leg! Norddahl is in trouble here! The fighters roll with the hold and Norddahl manages to kick Ulatov off! Ulatov jumps back into Norddahl's guard.
Ulatov sitting in guard here, content to control.
Ulatov trying to control the position from guard on top but Norddahl is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Ulatov controls from within his opponent's guard.
Norddahl is trying to control the position from the bottom.
If this pace continues, the referee will definitely step in and force a standup.

That's two 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.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.

Ulatov closes the distance and after a bit of a stuggle, scores a takedown into Norddahl's guard.
Norddahl not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Ulatov trying to control the position from guard on top but Norddahl is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Norddahl had isolated an arm as going for a kimura. Ulatov defends it easily.

Ulatov drops back for a leg! It's a sloppy attempt though and Ulatov jumps back into guard quickly, to retain the dominant position.

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

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Ulatov content to stall in guard here.
Norddahl not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.

Norddahl is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Ulatov defends well.
Ulatov looking to control the position here, rather than advance.
We've been hearing good reports from Ulatov's training camp. Apparently he has been rolling around with some good quality BJJ practitioners and has been sharpening his skills. Let's see if that has an impact on the fight today.

Ulatov drops back, looking for a kneebar! Norddahl looks panicked! The fighters roll across the mat, one looking to finish, one looking to escape. Norddahl looks to have wriggled free... Yes, he's got his leg free and he's dived into side control! Good work there from Norddahl!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ulatov is not content to let Norddahl control the position.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

Norddahl swings around for an armbar but Ulatov sees it coming a mile off and turns beautifully into Norddahl's guard.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Norddahl keeping moving, preventing Ulatov from controlling successfully.
Norddahl controls Ulatov momentarily but Ulatov frees himself.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Sergei Ulatov dominated that round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Ulatov closes the distance and looks for a trip takedown... aaaand he's got it - Ulatov lands in his opponent's guard.

Norddahl is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Ulatov postures up.
Sergei Ulatov overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

Ulatov drops back for a leg! It's a sloppy attempt though and Ulatov jumps back into guard quickly, to retain the dominant position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Ulatov postures up.
Ulatov content to stall in guard here.

Norddahl is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Ulatov defends well.
Ulatov not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.

Norddahl looking for a guillotine here but Ulatov defends easily.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Ulatov showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Ulatov looking to sit in guard and control but Norddahl gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.

Ulatov is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Norddahl can do to turn this around?
Ulatov looking to control.
Ulatov keeping moving, preventing Norddahl from controlling successfully.
Norddahl might have to switch it up a bit here because his efforts to control Ulatov haven't been going to plan, at least at the current moment in time.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Norddahl tries to free his leg and advance position but Ulatov is retaining full guard.
My spies in Cobra Kai Workout Center inform me that Norddahl has been getting involved in the gym's BJJ sparring sessions. Let's see whether that pays dividends!
Norddahl looking to sit in guard and control but Ulatov gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.

Norddahl keeping moving, preventing Ulatov from controlling successfully.
Ulatov controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.
Norddahl pulls Ulatov in close to his closed guard and prevents Ulatov from doing any damage or advancing position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Ulatov wants to control from the top but Norddahl keeps moving.

Norddahl had isolated an arm as going for a kimura. Ulatov defends it easily.
Norddahl keeping moving, preventing Ulatov from controlling successfully.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!

Norddahl looking for a guillotine here but Ulatov defends easily.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Sergei Ulatov dominated that second round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! The crowd applaud as we get ready to start the final round!

Ulatov shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Ulatov showed some decent athleticism there.
Ulatov content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.

Norddahl is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Ulatov pulls his head out easily.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Ulatov seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Norddahl does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.

Norddahl is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Ulatov pulls his head out easily.
Ulatov stalling.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Norddahl actively working from the bottom here.

Ulatov is looking for an arm triangle, whilst trying to pass to side control. Norddahl doesn't seem that keen to cooperate though. No luck this time Ulatov.
Ulatov wants to pass the guard but Norddahl is defending well.

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.
Still in half guard, Ulatov seems content to control.
Norddahl won't allow Ulatov to pass to mount.
Ulatov content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.

Ulatov throws a loose over hand right and dives in with a double leg takedown. Norddahl tries to sprawl but it's too late and the fighters hit the mat. Ulatov is in Norddahl's guard.
Ulatov is stalling in the full guard.
Sergei Ulatov is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Ulatov 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.

Norddahl had isolated an arm as going for a kimura. Ulatov defends it easily.
Evert Norddahl has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Ulatov trying to control but Norddahl is working from the bottom.
Ulatov looking to control the position here, rather than advance.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.
Norddahl throwing strikes off his back to little effect.
Ulatov not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.

Ulatov closes the distance and clinches up, looking for a takedown. He shifts his weight and gets a nice trip into half guard.
Ulatov is looking to take a break and control but Norddahl is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Norddahl wants to improve his position but Ulatov is controlling well.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!

Norddahl actively working from the bottom here.
Ulatov is looking to pass the guard... He's managed it - he's now in full mount!

And that's the end of the fight!
Sergei Ulatov showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Ulatov has outscored his opponent in every aspect of the fight today. Only a scarily incompetent judge or two will keep him from a well deserved win... 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 Konstantin Menshow scores the fight 30:27
Judge Sergei Dronov scores the fight 30:27
Judge Aleksei Zolotukhin scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Sergei Ulatov!
A very excited looking Sergei Ulatov made sure he remembered to thank all the fans both in the arena and on the internet. He said all the coolest people spend all day on MMA websites, which got a big reaction.