PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Tarmo Uusivirta (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Kris Johnson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). We have two fighters making their debuts here, so let's see who comes out of this one with their first professional victory.

Uusivirta
vs
Johnson

168 cm
25
154 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

185 cm
18
155 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Excellent boxer
Very quick

BJJ White Belt
Basic striking
Tends to cut

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 Helsinki, Tarmo Uusivirta!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Kris Johnson!
The judges for this bout are Roosa Järviläinen, Matti Vanhoillinen and Anni Minnemäki.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Uusivirta with a jab.
Johnson takes a jab right on the kisser.
Johnson lands a head kick. Uusivirta smiles back at him and beckons him forward.

It looks like Tarmo Uusivirta has been cut.
Johnson takes one to the side of the head.
Johnson takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Uusivirta scores with a nice looking left hook and follows it up with an uppercut!
Johnson fails with an attempt to clinch.
Johnson throws a low kick, looking for Uusivirta's leg but Uusivirta calmly moves out of range.

Uusivirta rushes Johnson and presses him up against the cage.
Uusivirta trying to stall but Johnson improves his position.
Johnson is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Uusivirta is keeping busy.
Uusivirta misses with a short punch on the inside.
Johnson blocks an uppercut.
Uusivirta lands with a left to the head.
Uusivirta swings wildly with an uppercut but Johnson uses good head movement to avoid it.
Johnson is a painfully thin specimen of a man. You do wonder whether a good body kick would snap him clean in two.
Johnson wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Uusivirta has him pressed against the cage.
Johnson is trying to break the clinch but Uusivirta is controlling him.
Uusivirta lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Johnson backwards.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Johnson wants to get back to striking at distance but Uusivirta won't allow it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Uusivirta working aggressively here.
Uusivirta gets through Johnson's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Uusivirta lands a right hand that snaps the head of Johnson backwards.
Uusivirta lands a shot to the body.
Uusivirta pushes Johnson back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Uusivirta lands a nice uppercut.
Johnson wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Johnson is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Johnson working hard to break the clinch.
Uusivirta misses with some punches.
Johnson wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Johnson wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Uusivirta has him pressed against the cage.
Uusivirta misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Johnson is trying to break the clinch but Uusivirta has him pressed against the cage.
Uusivirta misses with a punch on the inside.
Uusivirta doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Uusivirta fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Uusivirta lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Johnson backwards.
Johnson can't break the clinch.
Uusivirta swings wildly with an uppercut but Johnson uses good head movement to avoid it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Johnson has had enough of the clinch but Uusivirta keeps him there for the moment.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Johnson.
Johnson looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Uusivirta swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Uusivirta lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Johnson backwards.
Uusivirta pushes Johnson back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Johnson wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Uusivirta has him pressed against the cage.
Johnson is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Uusivirta lands a body shot.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Johnson takes a shot to the head.
A short right from Uusivirta on the inside.
Uusivirta has had enough of the clinch but Johnson keeps him there for the moment.
Uusivirta has Johnson pushed against the cage.
Uusivirta misses with the head strike.
Uusivirta doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Johnson blocks a couple of punches on the inside.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Johnson misses with a knee strike.
Uusivirta tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Uusivirta misses with a short punch on the inside.
Uusivirta scores with a shot to the side of Johnson's head.
Uusivirta is trying to push Johnson away but Johnson has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Uusivirta misses with a short punch on the inside.
Uusivirta blocks a body shot from Johnson.
Johnson is trying to push Uusivirta away but Uusivirta has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Uusivirta throws a punch but it's blocked by Johnson.
Johnson is working hard here but doesn't seem to be able to control effectively, up against the cage.
Uusivirta misses with a hook from the clinch.
Uusivirta is struggling to control the position.
Johnson is looking to break free of the clinch but Uusivirta has double underhooks.
Uusivirta throws a punch but it's blocked by Johnson.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.
Johnson is trying to break the clinch but Uusivirta has him pressed against the cage.
Johnson struggles to land a body shot inside as Uusivirta controls his hands.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Uusivirta misses with the head strike.
Johnson working hard to break the clinch.
Johnson jumps guard but Uusivirta stands there with Johnson around his waist. Johnson gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Johnson misses with a short punch on the inside.
Johnson is looking to break free of the clinch but Uusivirta has double underhooks.
Johnson is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the cage enables Uusivirta to keep the fight standing.
Johnson wants to break the clinch but can't.
Uusivirta misses with a hook from the clinch.
Johnson blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Uusivirta stalling here - the referee won't stand for too much of that.
Johnson is trying to push Uusivirta away but Uusivirta has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Uusivirta lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
Uusivirta misses with a short punch on the inside.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Johnson blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Johnson tries to break the clinch but Uusivirta is controlling the position.
Uusivirta effectively controlling the action here.
Uusivirta lands a shoulder strike.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Tarmo Uusivirta dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Tarmo Uusivirta's cut.
That's time! Back to the action!

Johnson defending well as Uusivirta loads up on a big left hand.
Johnson misses with a body shot.
Johnson misses with an attempted mid kick.
Good standup being displayed there by Uusivirta as he connects with a hook.
Johnson scores with a jab. Uusivirta acknowledges it with a nod of the head.
Uusivirta throws a looping overhand right but Johnson ducks down to avoid it.
Uusivirta lands a slapping body shot.

Uusivirta has taken the fight to the clinch.
Johnson takes a shot to the head.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Uusivirta.
Johnson wants to break free but Uusivirta has control.
Uusivirta gets through Johnson's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Uusivirta working aggressively here.
Uusivirta struggles to land a body shot inside as Johnson controls his hands.
Johnson working hard to break the clinch.
Johnson blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Johnson blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Johnson wants to break the clinch but can't.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Johnson tries to break free but Uusivirta pushes him back against the cage.
Johnson blocking some punches.
Johnson misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Uusivirta lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
A head punch on the inside from Uusivirta fails to land.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Uusivirta.
Johnson wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Uusivirta wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Johnson has him pressed against the cage.
A head punch on the inside from Uusivirta fails to land.
Tarmo Uusivirta has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Uusivirta is looking to break free of the clinch but Johnson has double underhooks.
Johnson looking for a takedown.
Uusivirta looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Uusivirta slows down the pace here.
Johnson wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Johnson doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
A head punch on the inside from Uusivirta fails to land.
Johnson is trying to maintain a safe position but Uusivirta gets an underhook and turns Johnson into the cage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Johnson wants to get back to striking at distance but Uusivirta won't allow it.
Johnson has had enough of the clinch but Uusivirta keeps him there for the moment.
Johnson blocks an uppercut.
Uusivirta wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Johnson tries to circle away but Uusivirta has him pinned against the cage.
A head punch on the inside from Uusivirta fails to land.
Johnson has had enough of the clinch but Uusivirta keeps him there for the moment.
A short uppercut from Uusivirta.
Uusivirta doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Uusivirta has a couple of punches blocked by Johnson.
Johnson tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
A short left from Uusivirta.
Uusivirta tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Uusivirta gets underhooks to prevent Johnson's takedown attempt.
Tarmo Uusivirta has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Kris Johnson.
Johnson wants to break free but Uusivirta has control.
Johnson is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Uusivirta lands a shoulder strike.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Johnson.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Uusivirta scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Uusivirta lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Johnson blocking some punches.
Johnson has had enough of the clinch but Uusivirta keeps him there for the moment.
Johnson fails to pull the fight into his guard.
A battle for position here, against the cage.
Johnson wants to break free but Uusivirta has control.
Uusivirta has Johnson pressed against the cage, preventing Johnson from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Uusivirta misses with the head strike.
Johnson throws a head punch that misses.
A short right from Uusivirta on the inside.
Johnson is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Uusivirta scores with a shot to the side of Johnson's head.
Uusivirta misses with a short punch on the inside.
Uusivirta misses with a short punch on the inside.
Johnson tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Uusivirta's elbow.
Uusivirta lands a right hand.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Johnson is working for takedown but Uusivirta is calmly controlling the position for now.
Johnson is breathing heavily.
Johnson tries to circle away but Uusivirta has him pinned against the cage.
Uusivirta keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Johnson's efforts to push away.
Uusivirta lands with a left to the head.
A bit of stalling here from Uusivirta.
A short left from Uusivirta.
Uusivirta is stalling here.
Uusivirta keeps control of Johnson as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Johnson takes a shot to the head.
Uusivirta lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Uusivirta misses with the head strike.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Johnson tries to break free but Uusivirta pushes him back against the cage.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Uusivirta lands with a right to the head.
Uusivirta keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Johnson's efforts to push away.
A right hook to the body lands for Uusivirta.
Uusivirta prevents Johnson from breaking the clinch.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Tarmo Uusivirta dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Tarmo Uusivirta's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. Let's get this one finished - here comes the final round!

Uusivirta scores with a punch to the gut of his opponent.
Johnson rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Uusivirta counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.
Uusivirta avoids the body shot from Johnson.
A looping hook to the body misses from Johnson. Uusivirta does a little dance to reset his feet.
Uusivirta tries a head kick but it misses.
Uusivirta swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Uusivirta tests Johnson's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Uusivirta jabs away that one connects to the head of his opponent.
Uusivirta throws a hook but Johnson avoids it easily.
Uusivirta throws out a loose jab but Johnson uses good head movement to avoid it.
Johnson walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Uusivirta checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Uusivirta moves into range and connects with a jab.
Uusivirta staying out of range there.
Johnson is trying hard to land a takedown here. Uusivirta sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Uusivirta wants to clinch.
Tarmo Uusivirta is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Johnson tries to close the distance and clinch but Uusivirta swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Uusivirta misses with an uppercut. Johnson saw that one coming.
Uusivirta 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.
Johnson swings away with a leg kick that misses.
Uusivirta is really head hunting here, hardly looking to strike to the body at all.
Johnson lands with a cross.
Johnson just misses with a punch to the body.
A solid leg kick lands there for Johnson.
A left and a right from Uusivirta both land. Nice combination.
Uusivirta 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.
Uusivirta's jab looks to have found its range, popping Johnson under the eye.
Uusivirta throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Johnson blocks a jab.
A big left from Uusivirta misses.
Kris Johnson has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Uusivirta ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Johnson moves away.
Uusivirta moves out of range of the strikes.
Uusivirta avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Uusivirta jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Uusivirta throws a one two combo.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Johnson lands a nice shot to the body.
Uusivirta uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Johnson.
Johnson slips a straight right by Uusivirta.
Johnson ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Uusivirta moves away.
The fight stays on the outside here - Uusivirta looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Uusivirta lands a nice shot to the body.
Johnson misses with a hook. Uusivirta ducked under it nicely.
Uusivirta moves out of range as Johnson throws a body kick.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Johnson misses the shot to the body.
Johnson misses with a hook. Uusivirta ducked under it nicely.
Uusivirta moves out of range of the body kick.
No luck with that takedown attempt from Johnson.
An inside leg kick lands from Uusivirta.
Johnson takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.

Uusivirta has closed the distance and engaged Johnson in a clinch.
Johnson goes for a takedown in the clinch but Uusivirta prevents it.
Tarmo Uusivirta has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Kris Johnson.
Johnson is trying to break the clinch but Uusivirta has him pressed against the cage.
Johnson is looking to break free of the clinch but Uusivirta has double underhooks.
Uusivirta lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Uusivirta has a couple of punches blocked by Johnson.
Johnson has had enough of the clinch but Uusivirta keeps him there for the moment.
Uusivirta tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Uusivirta pushes Johnson back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Uusivirta misses with a punch on the inside.
Uusivirta misses with the head strike.
Uusivirta swings wildly with an uppercut but Johnson uses good head movement to avoid it.
Johnson looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Johnson tries to circle away but Uusivirta has him pinned against the cage.
The fighters are pressed against the cage, as the pace of the fight slows.
Johnson is looking to break free of the clinch but Uusivirta has double underhooks.
Uusivirta tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Uusivirta.
Johnson is trying to break the clinch but Uusivirta is controlling him.
This has been an exciting period of action!
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Uusivirta doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Uusivirta misses with a punch on the inside.
Johnson is looking to break free of the clinch but Uusivirta has double underhooks.
Uusivirta throws a head punch that misses.

And that's the end of the fight!
Tarmo Uusivirta showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Uusivirta 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 Roosa Järviläinen scores the fight 30:27
Judge Matti Vanhoillinen scores the fight 30:27
Judge Anni Minnemäki scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Tarmo Uusivirta!