PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Dom Cruz (ranked 347 p4p, 9 weight class) and Kalevi Koski (ranked 451 p4p, 16 weight class). Kalevi Koski told me before the fight that he's been watching a lot of DVDs so let's see if that helps him in this one! I can't wait to find out!

Cruz
vs
Koski

172 cm
29
144 lbs
18 - 9 - 0

168 cm
27
146 lbs
6 - 4 - 1

Great wrestler
World class boxer
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
World class MT
Granite chin

CAGED CROW Clothings 50$

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the bantamweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 18 - 9 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Dom Cruz!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 6 - 4 - 1, fighting out of Los Angeles, Kalevi Koski!
The judges for this bout are Yukihiro Shimada, Kenichi Hosakawa and Yukihiro Yamamoto.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Cruz dives in and grabs Koski's left leg, looking for a takedown. Koski pushes down on Cruz's head and hops out.
Koski misses with a wild body shot.
Koski throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Cruz sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Koski looks more muscular than last time we saw him. He must have been on the weights.
Koski tries a head kick but it misses.
Koski tries to score with a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Koski misses with an uppercut.
Cruz lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Koski circles away quickly and effectively.
Koski throws out a counter right but Cruz avoids it with no problem.

Cruz has taken the fight to the clinch.

Cruz drags the fight down to the ground.
Koski controls from within his opponent's guard.
Cruz controlling Koski's posture.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Koski trying to control the position from guard on top but Cruz is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Cruz is active off his back here, looking for submissions.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Cruz has his foot on Koski's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Koski works his way back into a safe position though.

Cruz is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
Cruz looking for a sweep. Not yet Cruz, not yet.
Koski slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.
Cruz has Koski pulled in close to control his posture.
Koski pushing down on Cruz's thigh, trying to pass to half guard. He's managed it... Nice work.
Cruz is looking to control Koski's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Cruz avoid being mounted?
Cruz tries to get to full guard but Koski has control of the leg.
Koski is looking to advance position but Cruz won't allow it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Cruz wants to get back to full guard.

Cruz is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Koski pulls his head out easily.
Koski works his foot free and advances to mount.
Koski controlling his opponent.
Cruz is looking to get to half guard.
Cruz is in a tricky position but he's been working on his transitions down at Roosters Coop, so we'll see if he gets out of it.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Koski controlling from mount.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Cruz tries to reverse the position but Koski maintains control.
Koski controlling from mount.
Koski wants to take Cruz's back here but Cruz is holding on to an arm, himself looking to escape.
Cruz tries to reverse the position but Koski maintains control.
Cruz tries to lock up and control but Koski gives him a forearm to the face and pushes him away.
Cruz is in all sorts of trouble here.
Cruz sneaks a leg under to get to half guard.
Cruz wants to improve his position but Koski is controlling well.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Koski looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Cruz is trying to maintain the position but Koski is very close to passing his half guard.
Cruz is trying to get back to full guard.
Cruz has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Koski is working away from the top position though.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!

Cruz looking to work for a kimura from the bottom.
Cruz tries to roll over but Koski keeps him under control.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kalevi Koski dominated that round.
That's time! Cruz's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Koski misses with a straight left.
Cruz throws a right hand that Koski ducks under and follows up with a left that Koski also avoids with ease.
Cruz slips under a jab.
Cruz avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Cruz throws a two punch combo that lands nicely.
Cruz tries to clinch but Koski is having none of it.
Koski appeared to try and counter that last move with a leg kick.
Koski misses with an uppercut. Cruz saw that one coming.
Koski just misses with a punch to the body.
Koski connects with a lovely jab that went straight through the gap between Cruz's hands.
Cruz drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Cruz walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.

Cruz is rocked!
A jab from Koski misses.
Cruz tries to counter by clinching up but Koski breaks away and moves out of range.
Kalevi Koski seems to be getting the better of the standup.
A combination from Cruz does no damage.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Cruz scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Cruz slips a straight right by Koski.
Koski takes a swing at Cruz's ribcage but misses.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Cruz is trying hard to land a takedown here. Koski sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Koski is on the wrong end of a nice combination from Cruz.
Koski tries a low kick but Cruz avoids it.
A punch combination from Cruz misses.
Cruz staying out of range there.
Dom Cruz seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

Cruz closes the distance, clinches up and gets a nice trip takedown into side control. Very smooth.
Cruz working the ground and pound but Koski is defending the strikes.
Cruz throws an elbow but Koski slips to the side and avoids it well.
Cruz landing a few strikes.
Cruz working the ground and pound from side control.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Cruz working away.
Cruz trying to control the position but Koski is working away.
Koski is looking to reverse the position.

Cruz tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Koski tries to bench press Cruz off him but Cruz keeps the position.
Koski is trying to get back to half guard. He's pushing on Cruz's leg. He's managed it. Nice work.
Koski is trying to maintain the position but Cruz is very close to passing his half guard.

Cruz is trying to work for a kimura but Koski is defending well.
Koski trying to hold on to Cruz's head to control him but Cruz postures up.
Koski tries to roll over but Cruz keeps him under control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Cruz looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Koski with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Koski is looking to control Cruz's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Koski avoid being mounted?

Cruz looking for a kimura but he'll have to free his other leg if he wants to finish that. Perhaps he's just using it as a distraction technique.
Cruz seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Koski keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Ground and pound from Cruz.
Cruz wants to lay and pray for a moment but Koski keeps working.
Cruz throws a big elbow that misses, also allowing Koski to regain full guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Cruz got a little sloppy there for a moment and Koski has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Cruz has managed to get both his arms back between Koski's legs - danger averted.
Koski keeping moving, preventing Cruz from controlling successfully.
Cruz throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Koski works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Cruz throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Cruz working some strikes from top position.
Cruz trying to control the position from guard on top but Koski is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Cruz postures up and scores with a shot to the body and a follow up elbow to the head.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

Koski working for a triangle but Cruz defends it easily.
Koski has Cruz pulled in close to control his posture.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Dom Cruz dominated that second round.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action.

A slapping body kick lands there for Koski.
Cruz looks to land a right hand but Koski moved out of range.
Koski throws a shot from downtown. Cruz moves away and avoids it.
Cruz gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
and Koski counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Cruz displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Koski throws out the jab.
Koski finds nothing but air with that leg kick attempt.
Koski explodes with a nice body kick and back out of range. Nice work.
Koski lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Dom Cruz is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
That kick from Koski tenderised Cruz's leg. Cruz is trying to keep his angry face on.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Koski fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Cruz manages to avoid it.
It looked like Cruz was looking amped, ready to throw a big counter but didn't commit.
A good leg kick by Cruz.
A chopping leg kick lands by Koski.
Koski throws a nice outside leg kick.
No luck for Cruz with that takedown attempt.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Cruz misses the jab.
Koski lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Some wild striking there from Cruz.
Cruz ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Koski moves away.
Cruz avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Koski misses with a low kick.
Koski with a jab.
Koski dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Cruz throws a body shot but no joy.

Cruz shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in side control! That's better than Cruz was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!
Cruz lands a few punches from side control.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Cruz scoring with punches and elbows.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The strikes coming from Cruz are missing the target in this wave of attacks.
Cruz 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.
Cruz tries to land with some ground and pound but misses.
Cruz tries to move into full mount but can't pass Koski's legs.
Cruz throws a knee to the body but it doesn't do much damage.
Koski is looking for a sweep.
The ground and pound from Cruz seems to be hitting the mat more than his opponent.
Cruz working the head and body with strikes.
Koski is holding Cruz down, trying to stall.
Cruz is working Koski over with some ground and pound from side control.
Koski can't do much from the bottom here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Cruz trying to control the action but Koski is working from the bottom.
Dom Cruz overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Koski is looking for a sweep.

Cruz thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.

Cruz tries for an arm triangle. That looks pretty tight to me. Is this one over!?! Possibly, maybe, no Cruz has let go of the choke. Obviously it wasn't as tight as we thought!
Cruz wants to lay and pray for a moment but Koski keeps working.

Cruz is trying to get an arm triangle but Koski is defending well.

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.
Cruz grinds an elbow into Koski's temple.
Cruz lands a decent elbow from side control.
Koski avoids any damage from the ground and pound of Cruz.
Cruz misses with the ground and pound.
Koski is looking to reverse the position.
Koski struggling a bit here.
Cruz cracks Koski with a big elbow.
Koski struggling a bit here.
Sloppy strikes there by Cruz.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but Dom Cruz did the better work so I'd imagine he'll take it.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

Cruz shuffles to his left behind two crisp jabs. Koski eats them both and turns towards Cruz to reposition himself and eats a stinging right hand-left hook combo.
Koski scores with a hook to the body. Cruz takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
Jab, jab by Koski - just one landing.
Cruz throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Koski cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Koski connects with a nice looking jab.
Oh Cruz is still all over the place! His legs are completely gone! Will he be able to recover?!!
Cruz misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Cruz closes the distance and clinches up with Koski, looking for a takedown. Cruz pushes Koski against the cage but Koski circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Cruz gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
and Koski makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Cruz seems to have got his legs back now.
Koski lands a nice leg kick that just misses Cruz's sensitive parts.
Koski fails in his attempt to clinch.
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!
The crowd cheers as Koski lands an impressive looking overhand right. Cruz doesn't seem phased though.
Cruz chopped to the floor by a nice leg kick but he springs right back up before Koski can pounce on him.
Cruz takes a shot to the nose. Hopefully that hasn't broken it.
Good work by Cruz as he checks the leg kick.
Cruz is looking to counter punch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Cruz doesn't succeed with the takedown
and Koski counters with a stiff right hand.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Dom Cruz. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Cruz shoots in for a double leg but Koski sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
It's got to the stage where if one of these guys blows hard enough, the other might fall over.
Koski on the wrong end of a nice hook.
Koski takes a big uppercut there. He seems a bit wobbly but no, he's OK.
Koski darts in and out, connecting with a jab.
Cruz fails with the takedown
and Koski connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Koski connects with a picture perfect right hand that knocks Cruz out cold! This one is over in a flash!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 1:43 of round 4, we have a winner by way of KO (Punch). Kalevi Koski!
Kalevi Koski is the new bantamweight champion!
A relieved looking Kalevi Koski thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.