PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Itziar Belmond (ranked 1658 p4p, 1913 weight class) and Sergey Bakarow (ranked 227 p4p, 251 weight class). Itziar Belmond could well score a knockout today. He has the power to get to Sergey Bakarow's chin.

Belmond
vs
Bakarow

182 cm
27
175
13 - 12 - 0

187 cm
28
185
7 - 10 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
Excellent MT
Good gas tank

Shadow Realm Apparel

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 13 - 12 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Itziar Belmond!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 7 - 10 - 0, fighting out of Amsterdam, Sergey Bakarow!
The judges for this bout are Daniel Blasius, Nard Betker and Saam Ante.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Bakarow closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. Belmond quickly recovers to half guard.
Belmond keeping control of the position.
Belmond makes his way to full guard. A much better position for Belmond.
Bakarow stands and throws Belmond's legs to the side, diving into side control.
Belmond is looking to reverse the position.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Bakarow stands up and beckons Belmond to his feet.

Bakarow looking for a takedown here - he's got it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Belmond looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Belmond has a closed guard, preventing Bakarow from standing up.
Bakarow pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Belmond is keeping the position for now.
Bakarow must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Bakarow throws a big right hand that misses.
Belmond managing to control the position.
Belmond bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Bakarow's guard.

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.
Belmond is fighting to break Bakarow's control of his arms but Bakarow is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.

Bakarow looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.
Bakarow is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Bakarow wants to sweep here but Belmond controlling him for the moment.
Bakarow trying to control the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Belmond is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Bakarow wants to control here, rather than go for any submissions from the bottom. At least for now.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Belmond is looking to clinch but Bakarow is avoiding it.
Bakarow shoots in looking for a takedown but Belmond manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Bakarow's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Belmond dips down and scores with a jab to the body.

Belmond gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
A shot in the inside from Belmond.

Bakarow manages to break the clinch.
Bakarow looks more muscular than last time we saw him. He must have been on the weights.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Bakarow ducks under a wild hook from Belmond.
The fight stays on the outside here - Bakarow looks like he's thinking about clinching though.

Belmond fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Bakarow, pushing him back against the cage.
Bakarow misses with a knee to the head.
Belmond throws an elbow that misses.
Belmond gets an overhook and lands an elbow to the side of the head.
Bakarow tries to land a knee to the head but Belmond blocks with his arms.
Bakarow with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Belmond pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Bakarow.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Bakarow controlling the action here for a moment.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Belmond.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Itziar Belmond dominated that round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

Bakarow tries to check a leg kick but that clearly hurt him.

Belmond forces Bakarow back against the cage and clinches.
Bakarow fails to pull the fight into his guard.
A nice left hand lands by Belmond.
Bakarow blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Belmond lands a damaging elbow.

It looks like Sergey Bakarow has been cut.
Belmond has Bakarow pushed against the cage.
Bakarow is struggling to control the position.
Belmond works on Bakarow's body with a couple of short punches.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Belmond stalling the fight.

Bakarow breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Bakarow moves out of range of the body kick.

Belmond gets tackled into the cage by Bakarow. Bakarow maintains the clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Belmond managing to block the knees to the body from Bakarow.
Bakarow struggles to land a body shot inside as Belmond controls his hands.

Bakarow pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
A kick lands to the mid section there for Belmond.

Belmond closes the distance and clinches.
Bakarow has had enough of the clinch but Belmond keeps him there for the moment.
Belmond is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.
Bakarow goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
A frustrated look appears on Bakarow's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Bakarow has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Belmond avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.
Bakarow is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Belmond gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.
Itziar Belmond has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Sergey Bakarow.
Belmond lands with a right to the head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Belmond lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Bakarow backwards.
Bakarow tries to break free but Belmond pushes him back against the cage.
Belmond throws a punch but it's blocked by Bakarow.
Belmond has Bakarow pressed against the cage, preventing Bakarow from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Both guys are working to get underhooks.
Belmond scores with a nice hook to the head.
Bakarow lands a knee to the body.
A nice left hand lands by Belmond.
Itziar Belmond has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Bakarow is trying to push Belmond away but Belmond has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Belmond taking a breather.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Bakarow tries to pull guard but Belmond won't allow it.
Bakarow is trying to force a seperation but Belmond has the dominant position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Belmond doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Belmond creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Belmond misses with an elbow over the top.
A left hand lands to the body for Belmond.
Bakarow is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Belmond is defending well for now.
Belmond lands a nice elbow.
Bakarow wants to stall.
Belmond avoiding damage as Bakarow throws knees to the body.
Bakarow slowing the pace effectively.
Belmond creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Bakarow's defenses.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Belmond creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.

Bakarow is rocked!
Belmond lands an elbow that stopped Bakarow in his tracks for a moment.
Bakarow is still on wobbly legs! Can Belmond finish him?
Bakarow is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Bakarow has Belmond pressed up against the cage and is working for takedown. Belmond manages to improve position though and keeps the fight standing.
Bakarow seems to have recovered his senses.
Belmond pushes Bakarow back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Belmond gets an overhook and lands an elbow to the side of the head.
Belmond lands an elbow just above Bakarow 's eye.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Bakarow is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Belmond pulls him back up using the underhooks.
Bakarow is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Belmond gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.
Belmond goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
A nice left hand lands by Belmond.
Bakarow looking for a takedown.
Bakarow misses with a punch to the body.

Bakarow escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Bakarow moves out of range of the leg kick from Belmond.

Belmond clinches.
Belmond lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Bakarow backwards.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Itziar Belmond dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Sergey Bakarow's cut.
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!

Belmond is looking to clinch but Bakarow is avoiding it.
Bakarow throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Bakarow shoots for a double leg takedown but Belmond sprawls well. He's pushed Bakarow's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.

Belmond has Bakarow up against the cage in a clinch.
Belmond lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
A nice right hand lands inside from Belmond.
Belmond blocks an elbow strike from Bakarow.
Bakarow tries to pull guard but Belmond won't allow it.
With the fighters up against the cage, Belmond throws an elbow but misses.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Bakarow blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.

Bakarow pulls guard effortlessly.
Belmond is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Bakarow can do to turn this around?
Belmond looking to control the position here, rather than advance.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Belmond throwing strikes but missing.
Itziar Belmond is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

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.
Belmond advances to half guard.
Bakarow tries to roll over but Belmond keeps him under control.
Belmond is pressing down on Bakarow's thigh, looking to free his foot. Bakarow is holding on for now.
Belmond works his way into full mount!
Belmond tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bakarow is in all sorts of trouble here.

That's four 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.
Belmond sitting in mount, just looking to control for the moment.
Bakarow tries to hold on but Belmond pushes him away.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Bakarow is looking to improve his position but Belmond isn't that keen on the idea.
Sergey Bakarow has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!

And that's the end of the fight!
Itziar Belmond showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Belmond 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 Daniel Blasius scores the fight 30:27
Judge Nard Betker scores the fight 30:27
Judge Saam Ante scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Itziar Belmond!
Itziar Belmond thanked the fans post fight for their support.