PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Ruslan Danilov (ranked 1105 p4p, 1058 weight class) and Arjan Bhullar (ranked 159 p4p, 155 weight class). Bhullar has chosen Daniel Cormier - All About That Cake as his entrance music. Rumors backstage are that the fighters have been paid to keep it standing but we know that would never happen in MMA!

Danilov
vs
Bhullar

185 cm
32
180
20 - 17 - 0

180 cm
39
177
38 - 24 - 1

Great wrestler
World class MT
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
World class boxer
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 20 - 17 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Ruslan Danilov!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 38 - 24 - 1, fighting out of Las Vegas, Arjan Bhullar!
The judges for this bout are James Atkins, James Glass and Richard Clark.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Bhullar tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Danilov was well out of range. Poor timing from Bhullar.
Danilov moves out of range of the strikes.
Danilov fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Bhullar uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Danilov.
A low kick lands for Danilov.
Danilov scores with a push kick.
Bhullar dives in for a single leg takedown but Danilov sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.
Bhullar takes one to the side of the head.
Danilov with the inside leg kick.
Bhullar checks a low kick from Danilov.
Danilov lands a kick to the ribs of his opponent. Nice work there - in and out in a flash.
Danilov uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Bhullar.
Bhullar scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
Bhullar walks into a left hand.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Danilov cracks a nice hook into Bhullar's ribs.
Danilov pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Danilov jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Bhullar with the counter takedown but Danilov avoids it easily.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Bhullar gets caught flat footed, as Danilov shoots in with a quick takedown into guard.
Danilov not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Danilov slips nicely into half guard.
Bhullar wants to improve his position but Danilov is controlling well.
Bhullar has his hands clasped together around Danilov's back. He's all about the action.
Bhullar pushes Danilov off looking to stand but Danilov dives back in and keeps control.
Danilov misses with a head shot. Bhullar uses the momentum to regain guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Bhullar wants to sweep here but Danilov controlling him for the moment.
Danilov trying to control but Bhullar is working from the bottom.
Bhullar preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Bhullar keeping moving, preventing Danilov from controlling successfully.
Bhullar trying to control the position.
Danilov distracts Bhullar with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Danilov in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bhullar keeping moving, preventing Danilov from controlling successfully.
The referee wants the fighters to be more active or he's going to reset them on the feet.
Bhullar wants to stand up but Danilov is controlling him.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Bhullar takes a swing at Danilov's ribcage but misses.
Danilov throws a head kick that looked like it stung.
A swing and a miss from Danilov.
Bhullar avoids a low kick by using good footwork.
A swing and a miss from Bhullar.
Nice body punch from Bhullar.
Bhullar misses with a wild body shot.
Bhullar has his front leg slapped to the side - a nice low kick landing there from Danilov.
Danilov steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Bhullar.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The fighters are starting to get sweaty, which will make takedowns a bit more tricky.
Danilov dips to his left and cracks Bhullar with an uppercut!
Danilov lands a slapping body shot.
Oooooooooooh, not good. A low kick from Danilov 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 Bhullar has 5 minutes to recover. He's OK now though... a thumbs up from Bhullar and we're back underway with a touch of gloves.
A jab from Bhullar does it's job there.
Bhullar throws a body shot but no joy.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Danilov lands a nice shot that snaps Bhullar's head back.
Danilov feints and then cracks Bhullar's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Bhullar down.
Bhullar swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Bhullar ducks under a wild hook from Danilov.
Bhullar drops his hands momentarily and Danilov takes advantage with a crisp shot to the head.
Danilov misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Bhullar.
Danilov looks to have improved his striking defense since last time we saw him fight.
Bhullar fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Danilov feinted with a counter takedown.
Nice jab there from Danilov.
The fighters circling - Bhullar throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
A shot to the liver by Bhullar. Beautiful body shot.
Bhullar uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Danilov.
Bhullar is clearly trying to counter these attacks from Danilov with a body shot.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Ruslan Danilov dominated that round.
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.

Bhullar shoots for a double leg takedown but Danilov sprawls well. He's pushed Bhullar's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Ruslan Danilov seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Bhullar thows a left - swing and a miss!
A little feinted left hand from Danilov on the counter but he doesn't commit to it.
Danilov throws a low kick, looking for Bhullar's leg but Bhullar calmly moves out of range.
Danilov throws a hook but Bhullar avoids it easily.
A nice side step and Bhullar releases a counter shot to the body, but it doesn't find it's home.
Bhullar walks into a straight right hand from Danilov.
Nice uppercut lands for Bhullar. That snapped Danilov's head back.
Bhullar lands a beauty of a right hand that gets the crowd cheering.
Danilov tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Danilov slips under a jab.
Bhullar looks shocked there as he takes a right hand to the temple.
Danilov getting the better of the striking in that exchange.
Danilov takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.
Danilov with a lazy takedown attempt
and Bhullar counters with a lovely straight right hand!
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Danilov avoids the body shot from Bhullar.
Bhullar connects with a body shot.
A jab from Danilov does it's job there.
Ruslan Danilov is winning the standup battle so far.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Good work by Bhullar as he checks the leg kick.
Bhullar drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Danilov misses with a low kick.
Bhullar tries to counter by closing the distance.
Danilov pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Bhullar looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Danilov is trying hard to land a takedown here. Bhullar sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Danilov fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Bhullar swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Danilov's hands are dropping dangerously low here and Bhullar connects clean with a right hook that sends him down to one knee! Danilov scrambles back to his feet.
Danilov ducks under a wild hook from Bhullar.
Danilov keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Bhullar pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Danilov misses with a double jab.
Danilov throws a leg kick which misses Bhullar's front leg but catches the back leg as Bhullar tries to avoid it.
A slapping leg kick lands for Danilov.
Danilov ducks under a wild hook from Bhullar.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Danilov throws a lazy head kick
and Bhullar counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Danilov punishes Bhullar's body with a nice straight punch.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Danilov fakes with a right hand and throws a good leg kick, right into the thigh. That had to hurt Bhullar.
Bhullar lands a jab to the nose.
Bhullar shoots and misses
and Danilov counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Danilov misses with a leg kick
and Bhullar counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Bhullar's leg has a nasty welt from taking a succession of leg kicks. That must be slowing him down.
Danilov fails with the takedown
and Bhullar counters nicely by changing levels and landing a hook to the body.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Ruslan Danilov. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Bhullar misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
Danilov swings for the body but Bhullar moves out of range.
Danilov scores with the left hand. Bhullar knows he should have avoided that one.
Bhullar shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Danilov as he avoids it easily.
Danilov was looking to counter that move with a punch but didn't quite pull the trigger.
Danilov scores with a nice right hand.
Bhullar throws a lazy uppercut

and Danilov decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Bhullar's guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bhullar bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Danilov's guard.

Bhullar preventing the sweep.

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

Danilov is throwing his legs up, looking for submissions. Bhullar is aware though and is defending well.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Bhullar accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

Danilov is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Bhullar landing with the ground and pound.
Bhullar connects with a couple of short punches.
Bhullar trying to control the position from guard on top but Danilov is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Danilov looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Danilov is controlling Bhullar's posture.
Bhullar chips away with some ground and pound.

Danilov is throwing his legs up, looking for submissions. Bhullar is aware though and is defending well.
Ruslan Danilov overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

Danilov looking for a guillotine here but Bhullar defends easily.
Bhullar throwing strikes from guard but Danilov blocks nicely.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Ruslan Danilov will probably get the nod.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare each other down, ready to get back to the action. The crowd applaud as we get ready to start the final round!

Bhullar throws a lazy right hand but Danilov sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.
Bhullar keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
Bhullar connects with a body shot.
Bhullar misses the shot to the body.
A telegraphed right hand from Bhullar misses the target.
Danilov was looking to counter that last move with a shot to the body but he didn't commit.
A head kick misses from Danilov.
Danilov looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Danilov uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Bhullar.
Danilov clobbers Bhullar with an overhand right that has the crowd gasping. That made a horrendous noise.
Danilov throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Danilov connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Bhullar closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. Danilov quickly recovers to half guard.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!

Danilov looking for submissions from an awkward position here.
Bhullar trying to control the pace.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Danilov on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Bhullar wants to stand but Danilov has hold of a leg and an arm, so he's trapped for now.
Danilov wants to control but Bhullar is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Danilov is looking to improve his position.
Bhullar thows a huge punch but Danilov dodges it nicely.
Bhullar looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
Danilov is looking to improve his position.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

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.
Bhullar performing his best blanket impression for a moment.
Danilov has hold of Bhullar's hands but Bhullar slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Danilov makes his way to full guard. A much better position for Danilov.
Bhullar not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Bhullar wants to control from the top but Danilov keeps moving.
Bhullar connects with a couple of short punches.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bhullar slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
Bhullar trying to stand up but can't free himself from Danilov's guard.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
A punch lands to the side of Bhullar 's head but he takes it in his stride.
A big right from Bhullar misses.
Danilov lands a nice shot that snaps Bhullar's head back.
Bhullar ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Danilov moves away.
Danilov throwing a counter right hand but Bhullar manages to avoid it.
Danilov ducks under a wild hook from Bhullar.
Danilov keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Bhullar throws a lazy uppercut

so Danilov counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
Danilov is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Bhullar pulls Danilov in close to prevent any damage.
Bhullar is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Ruslan Danilov is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Bhullar keeping moving, preventing Danilov from controlling successfully.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Bhullar seems keen to control rather than go for a submission, at least for now.
Arjan Bhullar has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Danilov controlling from the top position.

And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Arjan Bhullar.
I think Danilov 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 James Atkins scores the fight 29:28
Judge James Glass scores the fight 29:28
Judge Richard Clark scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Ruslan Danilov!
Ruslan Danilov decided to thank the fans in attendance for making a great atmosphere. It seemed to go down pretty well.