PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Tali Ihantala (ranked 1552 p4p, 824 weight class) and Yngve Laake (ranked 197 p4p, 105 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Ihantala
vs
Laake

203 cm
39
253
38 - 22 - 0

192 cm
27
246
11 - 11 - 0

Good wrestling
World class boxer
Granite chin

Good wrestler
World class MT
Good gas tank

NARCOS
Kersikov's Vitamin Clinic (160)

Wrestler Wayfare

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 38 - 22 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Tali Ihantala!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 11 - 11 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Yngve Laake!
The judges for this bout are Sosuke Kotani, Kenichi Hosakawa and Shigeki Sano.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Ihantala is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Laake.
Ihantala has been working on his boxing with his coaches at The 3rd Precinct in the buildup to the fight.
Ihantala connects with a jab.

It looks like Yngve Laake has been cut.
Ihantala keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Laake scoring well with a low kick there.
Ihantala throws the left hand but Laake avoids the punch easily.
Ihantala chopped to the floor by a nice leg kick but he springs right back up before Laake can pounce on him.
Ihantala throws a nice inside leg kick.
Ihantala misses with a looping right.
Laake keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Ihantala.
Ihantala throws a series of punches but Laake avoids them all with ease.
Ihantala swings for the body but Laake moves out of range.
Ihantala misses with an uppercut. Laake saw that one coming.
Laake lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Ihantala throws a hook to the side of Laake's head but Laake sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
Laake avoids the body shot from Ihantala.
Ihantala misses with the combination.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Ihantala thuds his right hand into Laake's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Ihantala missing with a left hand there. Laake was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Ihantala moves out of range as Laake throws a body kick.
Laake throws a leg kick which misses Ihantala's front leg but catches the back leg as Ihantala tries to avoid it.
Ihantala drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Laake comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.
Laake lands an overhand left. A wild punch that just about connected.
Ihantala missing with a left hand there. Laake was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
A little jabbing left from Laake on the counter but it doesn't find it's target.
Laake with a jab.
Laake moves out of range of the strikes.
Laake ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Ihantala throws a right and a left that both miss.
Ihantala misses with an uppercut.
Laake jabs. That one connects to the head of his opponent.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Laake cracks Ihantala with a nice right hand that draws applause from the crowd.
Ihantala pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Ihantala misses with a body shot
and Laake counters with a straight right hand.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ihantala takes a shot right to the bread basket.
Laake buckles his opponent's knee momentarily with a nice leg kick.
Ihantala has his hands up protecting his head but a hook from Laake finds it's way round the side to connect with Ihantala's head.
Laake has been working his punching technique in the buildup to the fight and it appears to be paying off.
Nice straight punches there by Laake. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Laake.
Laake uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.
Ihantala lands with a straight right. Laake didn't see that one coming.
Ihantala throws an off balance right hand
and Laake cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Laake looks to score with a jab to the body but Ihantala is just out of range.
A decent looking cross lands there for Ihantala.
Ihantala swings widly with a right hand
and Laake counters with a solid body kick.
Ihantala throws a low kick but Laake moves out of range easily.
It seemed like Laake was going to counter with the hook but didn't fully commit to it.
Ihantala takes a head kick and keeps coming.
Laake lands a lovely overhand right.
Ihantala misses with an uppercut. Laake saw that one coming.
Laake is clearly trying to counter these attacks from Ihantala with a body shot.
Laake with a body punch. A glancing blow.
A big left from Ihantala misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Laake fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Ihantala has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
Laake lands a nice hook to Ihantala's body. Ihantala takes it in his stride and looks to land his own strikes.
Ihantala is breathing heavily.
Laake tries a head kick but it misses.
Laake scores with a kick to the midsection.
Ihantala keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Laake.
Ihantala was looking to counter that move with a punch but didn't quite pull the trigger.
Laake lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Ihantala jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Tali Ihantala seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Well, he's not going to score with shots like that. A lazy body kick attempt from Laake.
Laake jabs Ihantala to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Ihantala misses with a hook
and Laake counters with an outside leg kick.
Laake smiles there as he lands a nice right hand right on the button.
That kick from Laake tenderised Ihantala's leg. Ihantala is trying to keep his angry face on.
Jab from Laake.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Ihantala has his front leg slapped to the side - a nice low kick landing there from Laake.
Laake staying out of range there.
Laake throws the left hand but Ihantala avoids the punch easily.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ihantala goes for a spinning back kick but it misses.
Laake is looking to land body kicks.
Ihantala misses with a left hand
letting Laake counter with a right hand.
Donk. Laake catches Ihantala right on the button with a cross.
Ihantala has his hands up protecting his head but a hook from Laake finds it's way round the side to connect with Ihantala's head.
Ihantala throws a hook but Laake blocks it.
Laake scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
Laake swings for the body but Ihantala moves out of range.
Ihantala throwing a counter right hand but Laake manages to avoid it.
Laake is landing a lot of head punches in this opening round! Ihantala had better start moving his head a bit unless he wants his face to turn into mush.
The fighters circling - Ihantala throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
A combination from Ihantala does no damage.
Ihantala tests Laake's chin there with a solid looking shot.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Ihantala looks to land a right hand but Laake moved out of range.
Ihantala misses with a hook
and Laake counters with a low kick, right behind Ihantala 's knee.
Ihantala misses with a right hand
and Laake counters with a straight right hand.
Laake fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Ihantala looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Yngve Laake dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Yngve Laake's cut.
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.

Ihantala scores with a hook.
Laake lands a powerful looking uppercut that connected with his opponent's jaw.
Laake digs a good hook to Ihantala's body.
Laake throws a head kick that misses.
Laake feints a straight left to the body, then turns around with a flashy move and hits Ihantalas jaw with a dramatic spinning back fist!
Laake lands the left hand.
Ihantala moves out of range as Laake throws a body kick.
Ihantala has his hands up protecting his head but a hook from Laake finds it's way round the side to connect with Ihantala's head.
Laake misses with a straight left.
Ihantala misses with a two punch combination.
Laake looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Ihantala displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Laake throws out the jab.
A jab from Laake finds it's way through Ihantala's defenses.

Ihantala is rocked!
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Laake keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Ihantala.
Ihantala throws a looping overhand right but Laake ducks down to avoid it.
Ihantala throws a leg kick that is checked
and Laake counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Ihantala throws a looping overhand right but Laake ducks down to avoid it.
Ihantala throws an overhand right that lands on Laake's shoulder, as Laake tries to avoid the shot.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Laake connects with a body shot that sends Ihantala's belly button to the back.
Ihantala throws out a loose jab but Laake uses good head movement to avoid it.
Laake feints a counter leg kick.
Laake tests Ihantala's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Oh Ihantala is still all over the place! His legs are completely gone! Will he be able to recover?!!
Ihantala feints a straight left to the body, then turns around with a flashy move and hits Laakes jaw with a dramatic spinning back fist!
Ihantala seems to have got his legs back now.
Laake ducks under a wild hook from Ihantala.
Ihantala lands a nice hook to Laake's body. Laake takes it in his stride and looks to land his own strikes.
Laake throws a head kick that misses.
Ihantala throws a hook but Laake avoids it easily.
Ihantala waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Laake.
Laake keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Ihantala.
Ihantala motions for Laake to come forward. Ihantala throws a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Ihantala avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Laake scores with a leg kick.
Ihantala misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Laake appeared to try and counter that last move with a leg kick.
Laake throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Ihantala is looking to counter punch.
This entire fight has taken place on the feet so far and you wonder whether Ihantala might be better served trying to take this one to the ground because he's losing the standup battle so far.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ihantala lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Laake has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Laake throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Laake lands with a good body shot.
Ihantala throws the left hand but Laake avoids the punch easily.
Ihantala throws a jab but it's blocked by Laake.
Ihantala looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Laake turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Laake ducks under a wild hook from Ihantala.
Laake scores with a body shot.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Ihantala tries to move into range but Laake moves to the side and lands with a nice right hand.
Laake throws a body kick that digs right into the meat.
A solid leg kick lands there for Laake.
Laake staying out of range there.
Laake lands a nice leg kick that just misses Ihantala's sensitive parts.
Laake cracks Ihantala with a good jab.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Ihantala rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
enabling Laake to counter with a crisp jab.
Ihantala pivots, looking for a leg kick but Laake is out of range and Ihantala settles back down.
Ihantala swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
A thudding body kick lands there by Laake!
Laake throws a nice inside leg kick.
Laake chopping away at his opponent's legs.
Ihantala gets cracked with a nice right hand there by Laake.
Ihantala looks like he's developed a pretty tasty lump over his left eye. He'll need to avoid taking much more damage to that.
Laake digs a good body shot into Ihantala's ribs.
Laake connects with a leg kick. He turned his hip over nicely there.
A solid leg kick lands there for Laake.
Laake steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Ihantala.
A head kick misses from Laake.
Laake with a body punch. A glancing blow.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Laake scores with a jab.
Laake connects with a looping left hand that seems like it dazed Ihantala momentarily.
Laake fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Ihantala has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ihantala misses with a hook
and Laake counters with a nice uppercut.
Laake fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Ihantala looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Laake scores with a body shot.
Laake scores with a shot to the body.
Laake lands a jab to Ihantala's midsection.
Laake throws a quick inside leg kick.
Laake wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
Laake connects with a nice looking jab.
Ihantala takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
Ihantala throws a right hand that misses
and Laake makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Ihantala on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Laake. Laake obviously looking to wear him down.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
A low kick lands for Laake.
Laake lands a leg kick and bounces back out of range.
Laake scores with a jab to the jaw.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Yngve Laake showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Yngve Laake's cut.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! This is the final round!

Laake blocks a head kick by Ihantala.
Laake looks to land a right hand but Ihantala moved out of range.
Ihantala throws a poor cross that misses
and Laake counters with a good low kick that Ihantala was not able to check.
Laake dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Laake uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Ihantala.
Yngve Laake seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Laake scores with a jab to the body.
Laake connects with an inside leg kick.
Ihantala is hobbling a little on that front leg after taking quite a few leg kicks so far in this fight.
Laake works his jab well there, keeping his opponent at a distance.
Laake bobs and weaves and unloads with a good uppercut.
Laake checks a leg kick.
A low kick lands for Laake.
Ihantala slips under a jab from Laake.
As Laake looks to move away, Ihantala throws a big counter combo but Laake just gets out of the way.
Laake changes levels and scores with a jab to the body.
Laake feints and then cracks Ihantala's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Ihantala down.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Nice shot by Laake.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Ihantala fakes with the hands and throws a leg kick but Laake is out of range.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Laake turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Ihantala throws the kick towards the body but Laake avoids it.
Nice straight punches there by Laake. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Laake.
Laake digs a good body shot into Ihantala's ribs.
Laake is looking to slow Ihantala down with leg kicks.
Laake bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Laake was about to counter that last move with a leg kick but changes his mind.
Nice shot by Laake.
Ihantala's legs have taken a beating and he's really slowing down as a result.
Laake thows a body kick. Ihantala tries to catch it but that hurt him.
Well, he's not going to score with shots like that. A lazy body kick attempt from Laake.
Ihantala misses with a straight left.
Laake throws a nice outside leg kick.
Laake digs a good body shot into Ihantala's ribs.
Laake throws a head kick that misses.
Yngve Laake is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Laake digs a good hook to Ihantala's body.
Tali Ihantala has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Ihantala on the wrong end of a nice low kick. He's acting like it's no big deal but he doesn't want to take many more of those.
Ihantala takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
Laake thuds a left hand into Ihantala's body.
Ihantala on the wrong end of a nice low kick. He's acting like it's no big deal but he doesn't want to take many more of those.
Laake scores with a hook.
Laake throws a head kick but Ihantala moves out of range.
Ihantala was looking to counter that move with a punch but didn't quite pull the trigger.
Laake throws a quick inside leg kick.
Laake scores with a nice strike.
Ihantala connects with a looping right hand.
Laake lands a kick to the ribs of his opponent. Nice work there - in and out in a flash.
Ihantala throws a poor cross that misses
and Laake counters with a right hand to the body.
Ihantala takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
Laake slips under a jab from Ihantala.
Laake moves out of range of the strikes.
Ihantala misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Laake.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Laake throws a nice inside leg kick.
Laake jabs Ihantala to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Laake bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Ihantala takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.
Ihantala throws a poor cross that misses
and Laake counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Laake scores with a jab to the head.
Laake scores with a nice strike.
The crowd cheers as Laake lands an impressive looking overhand right. Ihantala doesn't seem phased though.
A kick lands to the mid section there for Laake.
Laake scores with a reasonable looking shot to the body. Ihantala doesn't seem bothered though.
Boom, another hit is landed. "You're gunna get knocked out" taunts Laake, as that shot connected.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Ihantala misses with a looping left.
Laake lands a jab to the nose.
Laake lunges at Ihantala with a hook that half lands and is half blocked by Ihantala's hand.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Laake throws a quick head kick that skims the top of Ihantala's head.
Laake connects with an inside leg kick.
Ihantala takes one to the chin there.
Decent striking displayed by Laake there.
Ihantala connects with a lovely right hand, straight down the pipe.
Laake scores with a hook to the body. Ihantala takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
Ihantala takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Laake defending well as Ihantala loads up on a big left hand.
A countering left hand to the body from Laake misses.
A solid leg kick lands there for Laake.
Laake checks a low kick from Ihantala.
Ihantala throws a lazy body kick
and Laake counters with a leg kick that reverborates around the arena.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
A nice leg kick lands there from Laake.
Ihantala moves forwards but Laake connects with a nice, crisp jab.
Ihantala swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Laake counters nicely by changing levels and landing a hook to the body.
Ihantala misses with a looping left.

And that's the end of the fight!
Yngve Laake comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Laake 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 Sosuke Kotani scores the fight 27:30
Judge Kenichi Hosakawa scores the fight 27:30
Judge Shigeki Sano scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Yngve Laake!
During a confident post fight interview, Yngve Laake thanked all his fans. He seemed very genuine when describing how motivated his fans keep him.