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WP 117 PBP Commentary |
This TWGC bout is 1 fifteen minute round in the super heavyweight division. Introducing today's competitors. In the red corner, competing out of New York, with a TWGC record of 58 wins and 76 losses; Boris Balkan! And in the blue corner, fighting out of Las Vegas, with a TWGC record of 50 wins and 26 losses; Reijo Halli!
The judges for this bout are Steven Brown, William Gold and Chris Edwards.
The fighters connect hands in the middle of the mat and we are under way.
Balkan closes the distance and looks for a trip takedown... aaaand he's got it - Balkan lands in his opponent's guard. Score +2 for takedown into guard / half guard: Balkan (2) vs (0) Halli
Balkan not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Halli is controlling Balkan's posture.
Balkan sneaks a leg through and gets to half guard. That was like a knife through butter how easily he passed Halli's guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Balkan trying to pass the guard but Halli defending well.
Balkan looks over to his corner - he wants some instructions but his corner are not responding.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Balkan is pressing down on Halli's thigh, looking to free his foot. Halli is holding on for now.
Balkan trying to control the action but Halli is working from the bottom.
Still in half guard, Balkan seems content to control.
Halli preventing any damage for now, controlling his opponent's head.
Balkan is just content to waste time from the top position. Halli takes advantage of the situation and regains full guard.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Balkan trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Balkan not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
We've been hearing good reports from Balkan'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.
Balkan trying to control the position from guard on top but Halli is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Balkan looking to pass the guard.
Balkan content to stall in guard here.
Balkan trying to control but Halli is working from the bottom.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Balkan pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Halli is keeping the position for now.
Halli controls Balkan momentarily but Balkan frees himself.
Balkan controlling from the top position.
Balkan has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
That's five minutes gone in the round.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
That's six minutes gone in the round.
Balkan tries to free his leg and advance position but Halli is retaining full guard.
Balkan is stalling in the full guard.
Balkan trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Balkan trying to control but Halli is working from the bottom.
A real slowdown in the pace of the fight for a moment, as Halli holds on and takes a little breather.
Balkan engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
That's seven minutes gone in the round.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Balkan seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Halli for as long as he can get away with.
That's eight minutes gone in the round.
Balkan postures up.
Halli is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Balkan stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Halli swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Balkan controls the pace of the fight for a moment.
Balkan trying to control but Halli is working from the bottom.
Balkan trying to move into half guard but instead Halli has managed to sweep! Score +2 for sweep to guard / half guard: Balkan (2) vs (2) Halli
That's nine minutes gone in the round.
Halli seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.
Halli postures up.
Balkan is really struggling to control Halli but he's trying to hold on to the position.
A real slowdown in the pace of the fight for a moment, as Balkan holds on and takes a little breather.
That's ten minutes gone in the round.
Balkan is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Balkan looking to hit a scissor sweep but Halli is one step ahead there.
Balkan is working hard here to advance position.
Halli wants to pass the guard but Balkan is keeping the position.
That's eleven minutes gone in the round.
Balkan working for a triangle but Halli defends it easily.
Balkan is working actively off his back, looking to secure an arm or perhaps work for a triangle.
That's twelve minutes gone in the round.
Balkan is avoiding any damage by keeping wrist control.
Balkan is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now Balkan is on top in guard.
Score +2 for sweep to guard / half guard: Balkan (4) vs (2) Halli
Balkan will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Balkan wants to control from the top but Halli keeps moving.
That's thirteen minutes gone in the round.
Balkan is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
Balkan passes into half guard.
Balkan sitting and controlling from the half guard.
Balkan is looking to stall here but Halli recovers full guard.
That's fourteen minutes gone in the round.
Balkan is stalling in the full guard.
Balkan wants to pass the guard but Halli is keeping the position.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Halli can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Balkan controls the pace.
Balkan wants to control from the top but Halli keeps moving.
And that's the end of the fight!
Balkan takes the fight on points by 4 to 2.
Boris Balkan thanked the fans post fight for their support. |
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