PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Rogers Nelson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Maksim Zotov (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Zotov has chosen Мы расправи as his entrance music. Maksim Zotov has the eye of the tiger tonight.

Nelson
vs
Zotov

171 cm
24
146 lbs
8 - 3 - 0

160 cm
28
137 lbs
10 - 9 - 0

Good wrestling
Solid boxing
Good chin

BJJ Purple Belt
Good kicks
Granite chin

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 8 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Rogers Nelson!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 10 - 9 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Maksim Zotov!
The judges for this bout are Marco Blurström, Johanna Lukiainen and Tarja Halkonen.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Zotov scores with a leg kick.
Zotov bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
We've been informed that Zotov has been sparring a lot of Muay Thai in the buildup to this fight so let's see if that has an impact on the result.
Zotov wants to land a leg kick but Nelson is out of range.
Zotov lands a kick to the ribs of his opponent. Nice work there - in and out in a flash.
Nelson checks a leg kick nicely.
Zotov looks for the body kick but Nelson saw that one coming.
Nelson throws a hook but Zotov blocks it.
Zotov fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Nelson has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
Nelson tries to clinch up but Zotov circles away and keeps his distance.
A nice leg kick lands there from Zotov.
Zotov lands a leg kick that knocks Nelson off balance momentarily.
Nelson moves out of range of the body kick from Zotov.
Wow, both these guys are really going for it!
Zotov connects with a nice looking jab.
Zotov misses with an attempted mid kick.
Nelson throws a shot from downtown. Zotov moves away and avoids it.
Both fighters circling a little - Zotov finishes the exchange with a kick to the body.
Nelson lands with an overhand left.
Zotov connects with a leg kick. Nelson looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Zotov connects with a leg kick. Nelson looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Nelson misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Zotov.
Zotov lands a nice leg kick that just misses Nelson's sensitive parts.
Zotov is looking to chop away at Nelson's legs.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Zotov is looking to chop away at Nelson's legs.
A bone on bone clash there as Nelson blocks the leg kick.
Good standup being displayed there by Nelson as he connects with a hook.
Zotov misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
A clash of legs there as Nelson blocks the low kick.
Zotov throws a leg kick which misses Nelson's front leg but catches the back leg as Nelson tries to avoid it.
Zotov throws a right and a left that Nelson avoids nicely.
Nelson with a nice cross.
Maksim Zotov seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Zotov throws a leg kick which misses Nelson's front leg but catches the back leg as Nelson tries to avoid it.
Zotov throws a chopping leg kick but Nelson manages to avoid taking any serious damage.
Zotov thuds his shin into the meat of Nelson's side.
Zotov fakes the leg kick and cracks Nelson in the body.
Nelson throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Zotov.
Zotov throws a front kick that sends Nelson stumbling back into the cage.
Zotov tries to work over Nelson's front leg with a kick but Nelson checks it.
Zotov showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Nelson.
Zotov misses with a double jab.
Nelson swings for the body but Zotov moves out of range.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Zotov scores with a kick to the midsection.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Nelson throws a right and a left that Zotov avoids nicely.
Zotov lands with a kick to the temple. Nelson shrugs as if to say "is that all you've got?"
Zotov cracks Nelson with a nice right hand that draws applause from the crowd.
Zotov is looking to clinch.
Zotov is looking to land body kicks.
Zotov avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Zotov tries to land a leg kick but Nelson saw it coming and moves away.
Zotov misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Nelson moves out of range of the body kick.
Nelson tries to clinch there but Zotov circles away.
Zotov lands with a kick to the temple. Nelson shrugs as if to say "is that all you've got?"

Nelson darts in and clinches Zotov up against the cage.

Nelson breaks from the clinch.
Nelson scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
Zotov misses with a body kick.
Zotov throws a leg kick which misses Nelson's front leg but catches the back leg as Nelson tries to avoid it.
Nelson tries to clinch but Zotov is having none of it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Zotov lands a nice leg kick that just misses Nelson's sensitive parts.
A bone on bone clash there as Nelson blocks the leg kick.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Zotov.
Nice defenses there by Nelson.
Zotov throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Nelson fakes low and throws an overhand right that catches Zotov on the side of the head.
Nelson misses with a straight left.
Nelson looks to be in better condition than last time we saw him fight. Obviously he's been working hard on his cardio.
Nelson keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
Nelson misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Zotov.
Zotov throws a body kick that misses.
Zotov walks into a straight right hand from Nelson.
Nelson moves into range and connects with a jab.
Zotov misses with a low kick.
Zotov connects with a nice looking jab.
Zotov throws out a leg kick but Nelson moves out of range and Zotov only half commits.
Zotov throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Zotov misses with a low kick.
Nelson will be looking to protect his midsection after taking some solid kicks to the body.
Nelson misses with the combination.
Nelson dips down and scores with a jab to the body.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Zotov dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Nelson. That did some damage!
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Nelson checks the leg kick.
Nelson slips a straight right by Zotov.

Zotov takes the fight into the clinch.
Zotov lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.

Nelson jumps guard.
A real slowdown in the pace of the fight for a moment, as Nelson holds on and takes a little breather.
Nelson will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Zotov stopping the sweep attempt from Nelson.
Zotov trying to control but Nelson is working from the bottom.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Zotov trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Zotov loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Nelson knows he needs to get back to his feet asap. He's simply no match for Zotov on the ground.
Nelson wants to sweep here but Zotov controlling him for the moment.
Zotov wants to control from the top but Nelson keeps moving.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

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

Nelson misses with a straight right.
Nelson takes a push kick to the midsection and stumbles backwards.
Nelson scores with a crisp jab that stopped Zotov in his tracks.
Zotov throws a hook to the side of Nelson's head but Nelson sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
Nelson lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as Zotov backs up against the cage.
Zotov is looking to clinch but Nelson is avoiding it.
Zotov throws a half hearted mid kick.
A nice inside leg kick there by Zotov. That's going to slow Nelson down.
Nelson is using his reach advantage well here, landing the more effective single shots from range.
Nelson checks a leg kick nicely.
Zotov defending well as Nelson loads up on a big left hand.

The fight moves into the clinch position.
Zotov tries to throw a body punch but Nelson avoids it by throwing Zotov back against the cage.
Zotov content to slow the pace in the clinch.
Zotov wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.

Nelson breaks the clinch.
Zotov keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Nelson slips a jab from Zotov.
Zotov has his head slapped from side to side by a 3 punch combination. That must have hurt him.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Nelson works Zotov's body with a nice hook.
Ouch! a nice leg kick from Zotov, right into the meat.
A nice leg kick lands there from Zotov.
Zotov lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Zotov tries to clinch but Nelson is having none of it.
Zotov goes for a high kick. It partially lands.
Nelson fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Zotov manages to avoid it.
Nelson is hobbling a little on that front leg after taking quite a few leg kicks so far in this fight.
Zotov fails to land with a series of punches.
No joy there for Nelson, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Zotov lands a nice looking kick to the body. Nelson takes a step back to recover.
Zotov tries to clinch up but Nelson circles away and keeps his distance.
Zotov throws a quick inside leg kick.
Nelson is looking to clinch.
Zotov misses with a low kick as Nelson jumps back.
Zotov wants to land a leg kick but Nelson is out of range.
Zotov drops his hands momentarily and Nelson takes advantage with a crisp shot to the head.
Nelson ducks under a wild hook from Zotov.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Zotov fakes with the hands and throws a leg kick but Nelson is out of range.
Like a baseball bat into the meat of his leg there - nice leg kick by Zotov.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Zotov takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.
Nelson misses with a few strikes there.
Zotov takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Nelson checks a low kick. Bone on bone - not my idea of a good time.
Zotov lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Zotov throws a head kick that Nelson semi-blocks.
Maksim Zotov seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Zotov avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Crunch! Zotov slams his shin into Nelson's torso.
Nelson's jab looks to have found its range, popping Zotov under the eye.
Zotov avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Nelson takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
Nelson checks a low kick from Zotov.
Nelson tries to check the leg kick but that clearly hurt him.
Zotov throws a leg kick but Nelson checks it.
Nelson throws a right and a left that Zotov avoids nicely.
Nelson just misses with a punch to the body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Nelson avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Zotov moves away from the strike by Nelson.
Zotov avoids a punch combination nicely.
Zotov swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Nelson throws a right and a left that both miss.
Zotov misses with a straight left.
Zotov is looking to score with low kicks.
Zotov connects with a leg kick. Nelson looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Oooooooooooh, not good. A low kick from Zotov lands where it shouldn't have, right in the... well, you know what he did? He kicked him in the penis. He's injured, injured bad. The referee sends both fighters to their corners and Nelson has 5 minutes to recover. He's OK now though... a thumbs up from Nelson and we're back underway with a touch of gloves.
Zotov lands a nice looking body kick.
Zotov connects with a body shot.
Nelson scores with a sloppy right hand. Zotov should have avoided that one.
Nelson throws a body punch but Zotov moves out of range.
Nelson avoids the head kick by Zotov.
Nelson tries to check the leg kick but that clearly hurt him.
Nelson blocks a head kick by Zotov.
Zotov buckles his opponent's knee momentarily with a nice leg kick.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Nelson fails with an attempt to clinch.
Zotov cracks the inside of Nelson's front leg.
Zotov ducks under a wild hook from Nelson.
Zotov throws a quick inside leg kick.
Nelson fails in his attempt to clinch.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Nelson darts in and out, connecting with a jab.
Nelson scores with the left hand. Zotov knows he should have avoided that one.
Zotov connects with an inside leg kick.
Zotov tries to clinch up.
Good leg kick by Zotov there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Zotov wants to clinch up but Nelson keeps it at a distance.
Jab by Nelson.
The fight stays on the outside here - Zotov looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Nelson swinging wildly here.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Zotov throws the kick towards the body but Nelson avoids it.
Nelson lands a body shot.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Maksim Zotov showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action. This is the final round!

Zotov keeps Nelson at a distance using the push kick.
Zotov showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Nelson.
Zotov goes for a spinning back kick but it misses.
Nelson ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
A thudding body kick lands there by Zotov!
Zotov keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Nelson.
Good leg kick by Zotov there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Zotov moves into range and lands a nice body kick.
Good shot there by Nelson.
Nelson is using his height advantage well here, landing a good percentage of his punches.
Zotov tries to land a leg kick but Nelson saw it coming and moves away.
Zotov scoring well with a low kick there.
Zotov connects with a leg kick. He turned his hip over nicely there.
Zotov pushes Nelson away with a front kick.
Nelson stumbles momentarily as he takes a strong leg kick from Zotov.
Nelson sees a low kick coming and goes to check it, but it's actually a body kick and it thuds into his unprotected ribs.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Nelson misses with a hook. Zotov ducked under it nicely.
Zotov throws a wild body kick that Nelson sees coming a mile off.
Nelson has a nice red mark on his side after a thudding body kick by Zotov.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Zotov pushes Nelson away with a front kick.
Zotov moves into range and lands a nice body kick.
Zotov throws a leg kick but Nelson moved away.
Zotov throws a body kick that digs right into the meat.
Zotov fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Nelson jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Zotov connects with an inside leg kick.
Zotov does a little shimmy and throws a leg kick. The leg kick missed by a considerable margin though, making him look a little bit silly for doing the shimmy.
Zotov fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Zotov scoring well with a low kick there.
Zotov throws a low kick, looking for Nelson's leg but Nelson calmly moves out of range.
Nelson connects with a lovely jab that went straight through the gap between Zotov's hands.
Zotov tries to clinch but Nelson is having none of it.
Zotov throws a quick head kick that skims the top of Nelson's head.
A kick lands to the mid section there for Zotov.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Zotov throws a feint and then finishes with a kick to the body.
Nelson takes a kick to the body and keeps moving.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Zotov lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Nelson swings for the body but Zotov moves out of range.
Zotov lands a nice looking body kick.
Zotov lands a leg kick that knocks Nelson off balance momentarily.
Nelson lands a nice shot to the body.
Nelson tries to move into range but Zotov moves to the side and lands with a nice right hand.
Rogers Nelson is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Nelson misses with a looping right.
Nelson throws a lazy right hand but Zotov sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.
Zotov feints with a shoulder and throws a nice leg kick to Nelson's calf.
Zotov has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Zotov throws a leg kick but Nelson checks it.
Zotov walks into a left hand.
Nelson ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Zotov moves away.
Nelson takes a push kick to the midsection and stumbles backwards.
A slapping leg kick lands for Zotov.
Zotov throws a mid kick that lands with a slap.
Zotov turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Zotov with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Zotov fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Zotov lands a kick to the ribs of his opponent. Nice work there - in and out in a flash.
Zotov ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Some bone on bone action there as Nelson checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Zotov fakes a jab and then connects with a hook.
Zotov turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
A jab from Zotov does it's job there.
Nelson slips in close and lands a nice hook before moving back out of range.
Maksim Zotov is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Zotov.
Nelson lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Zotov circles away quickly and effectively.
Zotov misses with a hook. Nelson ducked under it nicely.
Nelson checks a leg kick.
Zotov tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Zotov has a pretty nasty looking mouse under his right eye.
Nelson rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Zotov moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Zotov looks for the body kick but Nelson saw that one coming.
Zotov scores with a leg kick.
Nelson is moving around nicely and scores here with a single head shot.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Zotov throws a decent looking leg kick but it doesn't land clean.
Nelson throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Zotov lands a leg kick that knocks Nelson off balance momentarily.
Zotov throws a push kick but Nelson slaps the foot to one side.
Nice defenses there by Zotov.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Zotov lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.
Nelson throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Zotov moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Zotov with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Nelson checks the leg kick.
Nelson scores with a jab. Zotov acknowledges it with a nod of the head.
Nelson connects with a nice looking jab.
Nelson blocks the body kick.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Zotov misses with a low kick as Nelson jumps back.
Zotov misses with a low kick.
Nelson throws a right and a left that Zotov avoids nicely.
Rogers Nelson has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Some wild striking there from Zotov.

And that's the end of the fight!
Maksim Zotov comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Zotov winning every round here. Surely the decision will go his way and he'll pick up a well deserved decision victory. 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 Marco Blurström scores the fight 27:30
Judge Johanna Lukiainen scores the fight 27:30
Judge Tarja Halkonen scores the fight 27:30

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