PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Aleksandr Zuev (ranked 1933 p4p, 3538 weight class) and Estevon Guerra (ranked 282 p4p, 448 weight class). Guerra is bobbing his head along to his entrance song: Clavar LA Espada. Man, I cannot wait for this one!

Zuev
vs
Guerra

201 cm
24
215
6 - 4 - 0

195 cm
23
222
9 - 5 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
World class MT
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
World class MT
Good gas tank

Conviction

Mythical Fighter

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 6 - 4 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Aleksandr Zuev!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 9 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Estevon Guerra!
The judges for this bout are Alexandre Firmino, Seu Braga and Daniel Cesar.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Zuev lands a head kick. Guerra smiles back at him and beckons him forward.
Guerra swats away the attempt to clinch by Zuev.
Guerra swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.

Guerra clinches with his opponent.
Kneeeeees! The crowd are calling for knees to the body. Zuev obliges.
Guerra is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.
Zuev stalling in the clinch.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Guerra.
Zuev tries to land a knee to the head but Guerra blocks with his arms.
Zuev slowing the pace effectively.
Guerra working aggressively here.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Zuev is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Guerra is defending well for now.
Guerra blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Guerra.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Guerra.
Zuev misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Guerra.
Zuev softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Zuev blocks an uppercut.
Guerra lands a hook that snaps the head of Zuev backwards.
Zuev blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Zuev throws a knee to the head but misses.
Zuev tries to land a knee to the head but Guerra blocks with his arms.
Zuev using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Guerra has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Guerra with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Guerra swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Zuev effectively controlling the action here.
Guerra displaying some good clinch control by pressing Zuev up against the cage.
Guerra tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Zuev lands a knee to the head.

It looks like Estevon Guerra has been cut.
Zuev displaying some good clinch control by pressing Guerra up against the cage.
Zuev with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Guerra tries a body shot but Zuev blocks it.
Guerra blocks a body shot from Zuev.
Guerra lands a right hand that snaps the head of Zuev backwards.
Guerra takes a knee to the side of the body.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Zuev goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Guerra misses with a short punch on the inside.
Zuev can't find room to land a body shot as Guerra controls the action.
Zuev misses with a knee to the head.
Guerra working aggressively here.
Guerra lands with a short punch from the clinch.
Guerra misses with a knee to the head.
Guerra misses with a hook from the clinch.
Zuev is struggling to control the position.
Guerra lands a body punch.
Guerra managing to block the knees to the body from Zuev.
Guerra lands a nice uppercut.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Zuev prevents a body shot from Guerra.
Guerra scores a nice knee to the body.
Guerra throws a head punch that misses.
A shot in the inside from Guerra.
Zuev stalling in the clinch but Guerra improves position.
Zuev looking to throw knees to the head but Guerra is blocking nicely.
Guerra swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Zuev is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Guerra is keeping busy.
Guerra misses with a punch on the inside.
A knee to the head by Zuev.
Guerra blocks an uppercut.
Stalling in the clinch from Zuev.
A head punch on the inside from Guerra fails to land.
Zuev misses with a punch on the inside.
A head punch on the inside from Guerra fails to land.
Guerra misses with a hook from the clinch.
Guerra misses with a short punch on the inside.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Zuev with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Guerra prevents a body shot from Zuev.
Zuev unloads a knee to the mid-section.
Zuev throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Guerras head.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Zuev tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Guerra misses with the head strike.
Guerra on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Guerra tries to land a knee to the head but Zuev blocks with his arms.
Zuev leaning his opponent against the cage.
Zuev prevents a body shot from Guerra.
Zuev throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Guerra blocks it with crossed arms.
Guerra tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Zuev tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
A head punch on the inside from Guerra fails to land.
Zuev with a knee to the head.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Aleksandr Zuev will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Estevon Guerra's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

The fighters are going at a pretty good pace and they're both starting to sweat now.
Zuev closes the distance and clinches.
Zuev slows down the pace here.
Guerra tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Our sources have told us that Zuev has been working on his knees in the buildup to the fight.
Guerra makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
Zuev avoiding damage as Guerra throws knees to the body.
Zuev blocking some punches.
Zuev with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Guerra stalling against the cage.
Guerra makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Zuev tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Estevon Guerra seems to be working more effectively in the clinch in the fight so far.
Guerra swings wildly with an uppercut but Zuev uses good head movement to avoid it.
Zuev with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Zuev throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Guerra blocks it with crossed arms.
Guerra misses with a punch on the inside.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Guerra lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Zuev misses with a punch to the body.
Guerra lands with a short punch from the clinch.
A head punch on the inside from Guerra fails to land.
We are yet to see a takedown attempt from Guerra in the fight. On paper you would think he is the more dominant ground fighter so let's see if these unusual tactics pay off.
Zuev throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Guerra blocks it with crossed arms.
Zuev with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Guerra pushes Zuev back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Guerra misses with a knee strike.
Guerra digs a right hand into Zuev's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Zuev's gas tank.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Guerra softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Zuev throws a knee to the head but misses.
Guerra lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Zuev scores with a knee to the head.
Guerra can't find room to land a body shot as Zuev controls the action.
Guerra swings away with an uppercut that misses.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Guerra lands a body shot in the clinch.
Guerra lands a left hand.
Guerra misses with some punches.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Zuev looking to throw knees to the head but Guerra is blocking nicely.
Zuev has a couple of punches blocked by Guerra.
Guerra connects with a nasty looking knee right to Zuev's face.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Zuev.
Guerra has a couple of punches blocked by Zuev.
A short right from Guerra.
Zuev takes a knee to the side of the body.
Guerra throws a punch but it's blocked by Zuev.
Guerra will no doubt start fighting again in a minute but for now he's just having a little rest, leaning Zuev up against the cage.
Zuev misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Guerra.
Guerra blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Guerra tries to land a knee to the head but Zuev blocks with his arms.
A right handed body shot lands from Guerra.
Zuev throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Guerra blocks it with crossed arms.
Guerra softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Guerra lands with a left to the head.
A head punch on the inside from Guerra fails to land.
A short uppercut from Guerra.
Guerra taking a break, stalling in the clinch.
Guerra on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Zuev misses with a hook to the ribs.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Guerra.
Zuev tries a knee to the head but Guerra blocks it.
Zuev missing with knees to the body.
Zuev tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Guerra taking a breather.
Zuev throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Guerra blocks it with crossed arms.
Guerra just leaning against Zuev, taking a breather.
Guerra gets through Zuev's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Guerra takes a knee right on the jaw!
Guerra lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Zuev with an attempt at a knee that misses.
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!
Zuev with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Zuev misses with a knee to the head.
Guerra unloads a knee to the mid-section. Zuev lets out a prehistoric sounding urrrrgh.
Guerra just leaning against Zuev, taking a breather.
Guerra putting his Muay Thai to good use. He has Zuev in a tight clinch and is doing some damage with knees to the body.
Guerra throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Guerra misses with some punches.
Zuev trying to control the position but instead, Guerra has worked for underhooks and has pushed Zuev into the cage.
Guerra is pushing Zuev up against the cage, for a bit of lean and pray action. Action being used the in the loosest possible sense of the word.
Guerra misses with a punch on the inside.
The two fighters are working to gain dominance in the clinch.
Guerra taking a breather.
Guerra receives a warning from the referee for stalling.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Estevon Guerra showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Estevon Guerra's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! This is the final round!

Guerra looks to land a combination. Zuev sees it coming but can only parry a couple of the shots.
Zuev tries a head kick but it misses.
Guerra lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Zuev circles away quickly and effectively.

Zuev clinches with his opponent.
Guerra managing to block the knees to the body from Zuev.
Zuev misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Guerra.
Zuev with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
Guerra lands with a short punch from the clinch.
Guerra lands a right hand that snaps the head of Zuev backwards.
Zuev blocking some punches.
Zuev with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Guerra tries to stall but Zuev uses the opportunity to gain a better position.
Nice body punch from Zuev.
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!
Guerra scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Guerra throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Zuev blocks it with crossed arms.
Guerra lands a body punch - he's looking to wear down Zuev.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Guerra fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Zuev looking to throw knees to the head but Guerra is blocking nicely.
Zuev tries a body shot but Guerra blocks it.
Zuev prevents a body shot from Guerra.
Guerra throws a head punch that misses.
Guerra gets through Zuev's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Guerra tries to work over Zuev's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Guerra goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Zuev tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Zuev misses with a knee to the head.
Guerra has a couple of punches blocked by Zuev.
Guerra lands a left hand.
Zuev with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
Good body shot from Guerra.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Zuev tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Guerra has a couple of punches blocked by Zuev.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Zuev throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Guerra blocks it with crossed arms.
Zuev misses with a knee to the head.
Guerra on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Zuev blocking some punches.
Zuev on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Guerra with an attempt at a knee that misses.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Guerra.
Zuev lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!

That has opened up Estevon Guerra's cut even more.
A nice right hand lands inside from Guerra.
Guerra lands a left hand that snaps the head of Zuev backwards.
Guerra has a couple of punches blocked by Zuev.
Zuev tries to land a knee to the head but Guerra blocks with his arms.
Guerra throws a head punch that misses.
Zuev blocks a punch to the side of the head.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Zuev.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Guerra.
Guerra swings away with an uppercut that misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A short right from Guerra.
Zuev tries a knee to the head but Guerra blocks it.
Guerra scores with a shot to the side of Zuev's head.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Guerra.
Guerra misses with a knee strike.
Zuev misses with a hook to the ribs.
Guerra lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
Guerra scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Guerra misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Zuev is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Guerra is defending well for now.
Guerra missing with knees to the body.
Zuev throws a knee to the head but misses.
Guerra softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Guerra has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Guerra avoiding damage as Zuev throws knees to the body.
Guerra has a couple of punches blocked by Zuev.
Still in the clinch, Guerra scores with a nice short uppercut.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Guerra lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
Zuev tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Zuev missing with knees to the body.
The pace really dropping off here, momentarily.
Guerra lands a right hand that snaps the head of Zuev backwards.
Guerra working some nice short punches in the clinch.
Guerra misses with a knee to the head.
Guerra lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Zuev leaning his opponent against the cage.
Zuev looking to stall.
Zuev throws a head punch that misses.

And that's the end of the fight!
Estevon Guerra comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Guerra 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 Alexandre Firmino scores the fight 28:29
Judge Seu Braga scores the fight 28:29
Judge Daniel Cesar scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Estevon Guerra!
A relieved looking Estevon Guerra thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.