PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Wasilij Kozlov (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Jose Faber (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Kozlov comes to the cage accompanied by Więcej. Wasilij Kozlov has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Kozlov
vs
Faber

210 cm
19
155 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

170 cm
22
155 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Excellent boxer
Good chin

BJJ Purple Belt
Decent boxing
Very confident

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of London, Wasilij Kozlov!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of London, Jose Faber!
The judges for this bout are James Atkins, James Ackerman and Steven Brown.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Kozlov misses with a series of wild punches.
Faber connects with the punch.
Kozlov steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Faber.
Kozlov swats away the attempt to clinch by Faber.
Kozlov throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Faber fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Faber looks to score with a jab to the body but Kozlov is just out of range.
A big left from Faber misses.
Kozlov throws a right and a left that Faber avoids nicely.
Kozlov staying out of range there.
Kozlov jabs at Faber's body.
Faber lands a vicious shot with the stealth of a sniper and the strength of a viper. Are vipers that strong? I can think of lots of things that are stronger than a viper - not many rhyme with sniper though.
Faber lands a head shot.
Faber throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Kozlov throws a series of punches but Faber moves out of range.
Kozlov lands an overhand right.
Faber swings for the body but Kozlov moves out of range.
Faber looks to throw the jab but Kozlov is out of range.
Kozlov ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Faber throws an overhand right that lands on Kozlov's shoulder, as Kozlov tries to avoid the shot.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Faber misses the jab.
Kozlov scores with a one two! Faber had his feet all tangled up there and couldn't avoid the strikes.
Kozlov staying out of range there.
Faber shoots in but no luck this time.

Kozlov fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Faber, pushing him back against the cage.
Faber working hard to break the clinch.
Kozlov lands a nice looking hook to the body, against the cage.

Kozlov manages to break the clinch.
Kozlov throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Faber throws a hook but Kozlov blocks it.
Nice defenses there by Kozlov.
Faber thows a left - swing and a miss!
Faber looks gassed!

Kozlov moves into the clinch.
Faber changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Kozlov fights it off and pushes away nicely.
Kozlov looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.

Kozlov has taken the fight to the clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kozlov lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Faber backwards.
Faber wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Some stalling of biblical proportions here from Kozlov.

Kozlov's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Faber misses with a hook. Kozlov ducked under it nicely.
Kozlov lands a jab. Then a cross. Then finally a nice hook to the body. Good work there by Kozlov.
Jose Faber seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Kozlov slips under a jab.
Kozlov throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Kozlov throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Faber.
A jab from Faber misses.
Kozlov ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Kozlov lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.

Kozlov gets in close and instigates a clinch.

Kozlov pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Faber throws a jab when Kozlov was well out of range.
Kozlov slips under a jab.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kozlov goes to the watering hole and comes back with a big thumbs up from the judges as he scores a three punch combo.

Kozlov closes the distance and clinches.
Faber blocks a body shot from Kozlov.
Faber tries to circle away but Kozlov has him pinned against the cage.
Kozlov displaying some good clinch control by pressing Faber up against the cage.
Faber fails to pull guard.
Wasilij Kozlov has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Jose Faber.
Faber is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Faber jumps guard but Kozlov stands there with Faber around his waist. Faber gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Kozlov creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.

Kozlov escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Faber ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Kozlov moves away.
Faber throws a hook but Kozlov avoids it easily.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kozlov takes an uppercut right on the button but keeps his composure.
Faber scores with a punch to the gut of his opponent.
Faber uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.
Faber swings away with a body shot that misses

and Kozlov counters into the clinch. Nicely done.
Faber is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.

Kozlov breaks from the clinch.
A slow jab from Faber misses its intended target.
Faber throws a body punch but Kozlov moves out of range.

Kozlov closes the distance and clinches.

Kozlov's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Kozlov scores with a leg kick.

Kozlov has closed the distance and engaged Faber in a clinch.

Kozlov escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Some wild striking there from Faber.
Faber throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Wasilij Kozlov dominated that round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Faber looks to throw the jab but Kozlov is out of range.
Kozlov staying out of range there.

Kozlov closes the distance and pushes Faber back into the cage.

Kozlov pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Wasilij Kozlov is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Kozlov uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Faber.
Faber looks to land a right hand but Kozlov moved out of range.
Faber throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Faber tries to clinch but Kozlov is having none of it.
Faber tries to clinch

and Kozlov counters by clinching up.
Faber jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Kozlov walks away with a smile on his face. Faber gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
Kozlov blocks a jab.
Kozlov keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Faber.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kozlov lands a jab followed by a nice looking cross.
Kozlov staying out of range there.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

Kozlov clinches up against the cage.

Kozlov manages to break the clinch.
Kozlov lands with an overhand left.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kozlov slips under a jab.
Kozlov ducks right into an uppercut from Faber.
Faber misses the shot to the body.
Kozlov avoids the body shot from Faber.
Faber throws a looping overhand right but Kozlov ducks down to avoid it.
Kozlov moves out of range of the strikes.
Kozlov staying out of range there.
Faber throws a body punch but Kozlov moves out of range.
Faber misses with a hook. Kozlov ducked under it nicely.

Kozlov pushes Faber up against the cage in a clinch.
Kozlov lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Kozlov really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.
Faber tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Faber fails to pull the fight into his guard.
Wasilij Kozlov has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Jose Faber.

Kozlov manages to break the clinch.
Faber misses the shot to the body.
Faber is really struggling to land any decent head shots against his taller opponent.
Kozlov scores with a punch to the head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.

Kozlov clinches up against the cage.

Kozlov breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Faber swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Faber throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Kozlov sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Faber throws a shot from downtown. Kozlov moves away and avoids it.
Faber takes a punch to the jaw and another one to the bread basket.
A big left from Faber misses.
Like a baseball bat into the meat of his leg there - nice leg kick by Kozlov.
Kozlov misses with a few strikes there.
Faber stalks Kozlov and leaps in with a furious combination of punches. Uppercuts and crosses smash into Kozlov's face. Kozlov staggers backwards, shaken.
Kozlov lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as Faber backs up against the cage.

Kozlov closes the distance and clinches.

The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Kozlov breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Faber throws a shot from downtown. Kozlov moves away and avoids it.
Kozlov staying out of range there.
Faber avoids the head kick by Kozlov.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Kozlov pushes Faber up against the cage in a clinch.

Kozlov breaks from the clinch.
A combination from Kozlov does no damage.
Faber lands an overhand right.
Faber pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Kozlov ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Faber tries to clinch up.
Faber is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Kozlov.
Faber lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.
Faber jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Kozlov throws a shot from downtown. Faber moves away and avoids it.
Faber throws the left hand but Kozlov avoids the punch easily.
Kozlov takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Faber looks to land a left hand but Kozlov moved out of range nicely.
Faber throws a jab but it's blocked by Kozlov.
Faber throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
A telegraphed right hand from Faber misses the target.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.
Kozlov slips under a jab.
Kozlov throws a body kick but he was well out of range there.
Kozlov swats away the attempt to clinch by Faber.
Kozlov displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Faber throws out the jab.
Faber throws a shot from downtown. Kozlov moves away and avoids it.
Kozlov lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as Faber backs up against the cage.
Faber throws a nice looking combination but Kozlov bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Faber throws a hook but Kozlov blocks it.
Faber lands with an uppercut that bounces Kozlov off the cage and back into rage.
Faber throws a hook but Kozlov blocks it.
Faber will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Kozlov throws a right hand that Faber ducks under and follows up with a left that Faber also avoids with ease.
Faber missing with a left hand there. Kozlov was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Faber throws a jab but it's blocked by Kozlov.
Faber throws a right and a left that Kozlov avoids nicely.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Wasilij Kozlov dominated that second round.
That's time! Back to the action! This is the final round!

Kozlov gets his head snapped back by a nice shot there.
Faber is moving around nicely and scores here with a single head shot.
Faber misses with a hook. Kozlov ducked under it nicely.
Faber fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Kozlov manages to avoid it.
Kozlov keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Faber.
A slow jab from Faber misses its intended target.
Faber takes one to the chin there.
A swing and a miss from Faber.

Kozlov closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.

Kozlov's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kozlov lands a front kick.
Faber misses with a hook. Kozlov ducked under it nicely.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Faber throws a combination that misses
and Kozlov counters with a flying knee. Nice.

Kozlov clinches.
A nice glancing elbow lands by Kozlov.
Faber tries to pull guard but Kozlov holds him up against the cage and eventually Faber drops back down to his feet.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Kozlov manages to break the clinch.
Kozlov is using his height advantage well here, landing a good percentage of his punches.
Faber avoids a punch combination nicely.
Kozlov ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Kozlov avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Faber throws a lazy right hand but Kozlov sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.
Kozlov gets cracked with a nice right hand there by Faber.
Faber swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Kozlov looks to land a combination. Faber sees it coming but can only parry a couple of the shots.
Kozlov circles away from the clinch attempt

and Kozlov counters by clinching up.
Faber wants to get back to striking at distance but Kozlov won't allow it.
Kozlov prevents Faber from breaking the clinch.
Jose Faber has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

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.
Faber is trying to break free.

Kozlov breaks the clinch.
Faber throws a jab but it's blocked by Kozlov.
Faber throws a right hand that Kozlov ducks under and follows up with a left that Kozlov also avoids with ease.
Kozlov with a jab.
Kozlov pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Kozlov takes an uppercut right on the jaw but it doesn't phase him.
Faber swings for the body but Kozlov moves out of range.
Kozlov moves out of range of the strikes.
Faber throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Kozlov blocks a jab.
Kozlov slips under a jab.
Kozlov ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Faber moves away.
Faber throws a right and a left that both miss.
A big right from Faber misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kozlov on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
Faber takes a punch to the jaw and another one to the bread basket.
Faber throws an overhand right that lands on Kozlov's shoulder, as Kozlov tries to avoid the shot.
Faber thows a left - swing and a miss!
Faber misses with a looping left.
Faber misses with an uppercut. Kozlov saw that one coming.
Kozlov lands with a kick to the temple. Faber shrugs as if to say "is that all you've got?"
Kozlov ducks under a wild hook from Faber.
Kozlov ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Kozlov avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Kozlov ducks under a wild hook from Faber.
Faber looks to land a right hand but Kozlov moved out of range.

Kozlov clinches with his opponent.
Faber tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Kozlov just stands there and leans against the cage.

Kozlov's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Kozlov uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Faber.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.
Faber throws a body punch but Kozlov moves out of range.
Faber jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Kozlov throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Kozlov throws a sloppy head kick and Faber moves out of range easily.
Faber swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
The fighters circling - Faber throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Kozlov ducks under a wild hook from Faber.
Kozlov throws a series of punches but Faber avoids them all with ease.
Faber throws a hook but Kozlov blocks it.
Faber looks to land a right hand but Kozlov moved out of range.

Kozlov drives through and clinches with Faber against the cage.
Kozlov pushes Faber back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Kozlov stops a takedown attempt from Faber.
Wasilij Kozlov has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Jose Faber.
Kozlov lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Faber backwards.
Wasilij Kozlov is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Faber tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Kozlov smiles and moves away.

And that's the end of the fight!
Wasilij Kozlov showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Kozlov 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 James Atkins scores the fight 30:27
Judge James Ackerman scores the fight 30:27
Judge Steven Brown scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Wasilij Kozlov!