PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Volodimir Borrisinov (ranked 1454 p4p, 1990 weight class) and Sam Holt (ranked 103 p4p, 127 weight class). Volodimir Borrisinov could well score a knockout today. He has the power to get to Sam Holt's chin.

Borrisinov
vs
Holt

181 cm
25
145
11 - 6 - 0

165 cm
29
135
6 - 6 - 0

Great wrestler
Solid boxing
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
Excellent boxer
Powerful

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 11 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Volodimir Borrisinov!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 6 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Sam Holt!
The judges for this bout are Jorge Garcia, Russell Pearce and Eddie Farnsworth.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Borrisinov shoots in and bounces Holt off the cage to secure the takedown into guard.
Borrisinov is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Holt doesn't do any damage with a couple of strikes from the bottom.
Borrisinov scoring with some ground and pound.
Borrisinov makes a bit of distance and scores with some ground and pound, still in guard.
Borrisinov working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Holt keeping moving, preventing Borrisinov from controlling successfully.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Borrisinov controls the pace of the fight for a moment.
Holt is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Borrisinov stands up over Holt, holding his feet. He dives back in and lands a decent shot to the head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Borrisinov with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Borrisinov stays in close to Holt's body and controls the position.
Holt has momentary wrist control but Borrisinov slips an elbow through the middle.
Holt tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Borrisinov is stalling in the full guard.
Borrisinov has improved his flexibility recently so we will have to see if he can use that to his advantage.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Borrisinov has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
Holt looking to control.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.
Borrisinov controls the pace of the fight for a moment.
The referee must be thinking about standing these guys back up.
Borrisinov really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.
Borrisinov throws a big elbow that misses.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Volodimir Borrisinov seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Borrisinov avoids the body shot from Holt.
Holt digs a good body shot into Borrisinov's ribs.
Borrisinov moves out of range of the strikes.
Holt displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Borrisinov.
Borrisinov dives in for a single leg takedown but Holt sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.
Borrisinov prevents a body shot from Holt.
Holt is pressed up against the cage. Borrisinov has hold of a leg and is looking to drag Holt down to the mat. Holt avoids the attempt though and has circled away. We're back to striking at a distance.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Volodimir Borrisinov. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Borrisinov has his takedown stuffed
and Borrisinov takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Sam Holt is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Borrisinov dives in and grabs Holt's left leg, looking for a takedown. Holt pushes down on Borrisinov's head and hops out.
Borrisinov looks for a takedown but Holt sprawls well.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Holt throws a jab when Borrisinov was well out of range.

Holt tries to sprawl but Borrisinov drives through with a takedown into half guard.
Borrisinov misses with a head shot. Holt uses the momentum to regain guard.
Borrisinov trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Borrisinov is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
Borrisinov with a flurry of punches that miss.
Borrisinov throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Holt works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Borrisinov 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.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Borrisinov seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Holt for as long as he can get away with.
Holt lands some strikes from the bottom.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Borrisinov throwing strikes but missing.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up.
Borrisinov throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Holt's waist but Holt gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Borrisinov off to one side.
Holt fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Borrisinov manages to avoid it.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Volodimir Borrisinov dominated that round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Borrisinov shoots for a takedown but Holt saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Borrisinov takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Borrisinov shoots in looking for a takedown but Holt manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Borrisinov's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Borrisinov fails to land the takedown.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Volodimir Borrisinov. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Holt swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Holt lands an overhand left. A wild punch that just about connected.
Borrisinov shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Holt defends it nicely.
Borrisinov will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Borrisinov is on the wrong end of a nice combination from Holt.
Borrisinov shoots and misses
and Holt counters with a lovely shot to the body.
Borrisinov slips a straight right by Holt.
Borrisinov shoots in looking for a takedown. Holt tries to sprawl out of it but Borrisinov keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Holt manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Sam Holt seems to be getting the better of the standup.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Borrisinov shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Holt counters with a straight punch to the midsection.
Borrisinov avoids the body shot from Holt.
Holt has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Holt scores with a body shot.
Holt jabs Borrisinov to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Borrisinov misses with a takedown attempt
and Holt counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.
Borrisinov dives in for a single leg takedown but Holt sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.
Borrisinov jumps guard but Holt turns him against the cage and keeps the fight standing.
Holt goes for a body shot but it's blocked.

Borrisinov gets control of Holt's arms and successfully pulls guard. Borrisinov will no doubt be looking for submissions off his back.
Borrisinov is trying to control the position but Holt postures up.
Holt with a flurry of punches that miss.
Holt postures up in Borrisinov's guard and throws a big left but Borrisinov blocks it.
Borrisinov will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Borrisinov is doing well to control the posture of his opponent and prevent any damage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Borrisinov utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Holt scores with a decent looking elbow strike.
Borrisinov looking to hit a scissor sweep but Holt is one step ahead there.
Holt must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Holt in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Borrisinov managing to control the position.
Holt won't allow Borrisinov to sweep him here.
Holt throws a big right hand that misses.
Borrisinov not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Holt with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Borrisinov looking for a sweep. Not yet Borrisinov, not yet.
Holt lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
Holt works over Borrisinov with some ground and pound from guard.
Holt is stalling in the full guard.
In the pre-fight buildup videos we saw Holt working his ground and pound in the gym.
Borrisinov lands a beautiful sweep and he's now moved into his opponent's guard.

Holt controls Borrisinov momentarily but Borrisinov frees himself.
Borrisinov throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Holt can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Borrisinov controls the pace.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Borrisinov missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Holt throwing strikes off his back to little effect.
Borrisinov has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.
Borrisinov is in close to Holt's body, working some short punches and elbows.
Holt looking to control.
Borrisinov 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.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Borrisinov bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Borrisinov misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Sam Holt showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. This is the final round!

Borrisinov gets a double leg takedown into Holt's guard.
Borrisinov trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Borrisinov with a flurry of punches that miss.
Borrisinov not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Borrisinov is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Holt keeping moving, preventing Borrisinov from controlling successfully.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Holt avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Holt avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Borrisinov stands up over Holt, holding his feet. He dives back in and lands a decent shot to the head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Borrisinov trying to control the position from guard on top but Holt is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Borrisinov controlling from the top position.
Borrisinov wants to control from the top but Holt keeps moving.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.
Borrisinov trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Borrisinov needs to keep his hands up - Holt had a free shot at his head there.
Borrisinov misses with a takedown attempt - Holt sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Holt looked like he wanted to counter with a punch but didn't throw it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.
Borrisinov closes this distance looking for a takedown but Holt circles away.
Holt stuffs the takedown.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Volodimir Borrisinov. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Holt throws out a powerful jab.
Holt misses with a wild body shot.
Nice takedown defense from Holt. No joy for Borrisinov on that attempt.
Holt let fly with a counter punch to the body but it didn't land.
Borrisinov fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
A little jabbing left from Holt on the counter but it doesn't find it's target.
Borrisinov fails to land the takedown.
Holt throws a hook but Borrisinov blocks it.
Borrisinov appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Holt ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Borrisinov moves away.
The fighters circling - Holt throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Holt throws an off balance right hand

and Borrisinov counters with a nice shoot takedown that brings the fighters to the ground.
Holt working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Borrisinov.
Borrisinov wants to control from the top but Holt keeps moving.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Borrisinov working from the guard for now, landing some ground and pound.
Holt is trying to keep Borrisinov in close.
Borrisinov looking to sit in guard and control but Holt gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.

Holt not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Borrisinov tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Borrisinov working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Holt.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now Borrisinov is on top in guard.

Holt thows some rabbit punches from the bottom but they don't do any damage.
Holt keeping full guard, as Borrisinov tries to pass.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now Holt is on top in guard.

Borrisinov looking for a sweep. Not yet Borrisinov, not yet.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Volodimir Borrisinov overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Holt loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Holt postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Volodimir Borrisinov.
I think Borrisinov has won this one but let's see what the judges have to say. 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 Jorge Garcia scores the fight 29:28
Judge Russell Pearce scores the fight 29:29
Judge Eddie Farnsworth scores the fight 29:28

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