PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Karl Henriksen (ranked 2439 p4p, 4237 weight class) and Emre Hussain (ranked 300 p4p, 471 weight class). Henriksen kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is OST Vikings - If I Had a Heart. Emre Hussain 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!

Henriksen
vs
Hussain

184 cm
28
169
17 - 8 - 0

171 cm
41
158
33 - 25 - 0

BJJ Brown Belt
Solid boxing
Granite chin

Good wrestler
Excellent MT
Powerful

Barry Bonds Performance Enhancers $110 160q Rec&St

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the lightweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 17 - 8 - 0, fighting out of Hilo, Karl Henriksen!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 33 - 25 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Emre Hussain!
The judges for this bout are Andrew Berry, Sam Margolis and Phil Schofield.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Hussain lands the left hand.
Hussain just misses with a punch to the body.
Nice uppercut there from Hussain.
Hussain is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
A slow jab from Hussain misses its intended target.
Hussain throws a jab when Henriksen was well out of range.
Hussain throws a low kick but it's checked well by Henriksen.
Henriksen misses with a head kick.
Hussain scores with a jab to the jaw.
Henriksen throws a body shot but no joy.
Henriksen scores with a decent looking hook.
Henriksen takes a big uppercut there. He seems a bit wobbly but no, he's OK.
Hussain throws a half hearted mid kick.
Nice sprawl there from Hussain as Henriksen shoots in.
Hussain keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Hussain works his jab well there, keeping his opponent at a distance.

Hussain takes the fight into the clinch.

Hussain escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Henriksen lands a head shot.
Emre Hussain seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
An inside leg kick from Henriksen misses.
Henriksen stuns Hussain with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hussain connects with a body shot.
Hussain misses with a body kick.
The fight stays on the outside here - Hussain looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Hussain displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Henriksen.
Hussain lands a kick to the ribs of his opponent. Nice work there - in and out in a flash.
Hussain ducks under a wild hook from Henriksen.
Hussain looks like he wants to counter punch here.

Hussain moves into the clinch.

Henriksen has managed to pull guard. Let's see whether he can work an aggressive guard. It will also be interesting to see what tactics Hussain uses from the top position.

Hussain gets to his feet and steps away from his opponent.
Hussain with a nice cross.
Hussain lands a really nice looking cross but Henriksen seems unphased.
Henriksen keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Hussain.
Hussain misses with a body kick.
Hussain leaves Henriksen with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Karl Henriksen. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Henriksen looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Henriksen closes the distance and takes a jab right on the nose as he does so.
Henriksen moves out of range of the strikes.
Hussain moves in looking to clinch but Henriksen pushes him off.
It looked like Henriksen wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Henriksen shoots in for a takedown but Hussain shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
Emre Hussain is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Henriksen misses with a head kick.
Hussain lands an overhand right.
Hussain throws a shot from downtown. Henriksen moves away and avoids it.
Henriksen shoots for a takedown but Hussain saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Wow, both these guys are really going for it!
Henriksen ducks under a wild hook from Hussain.
Hussain is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Hussain lands a really nice looking cross but Henriksen seems unphased.
Henriksen throws out a powerful jab.
Henriksen on the wrong end of a nice low kick. He's acting like it's no big deal but he doesn't want to take many more of those.
Hussain wants to clinch.
Henriksen misses with a series of wild punches.
Hussain has done a lot of speed work in the buildup to this fight.
Hussain is landing a lot of head punches in this opening round! Henriksen had better start moving his head a bit unless he wants his face to turn into mush.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Henriksen moves out of range as Hussain strikes.
Henriksen lands a high kick!
Hussain is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Henriksen.
Henriksen will need to close the distance a bit before he attacks - that leg kick was thrown from too far away.
Hussain lands with a straight right. Henriksen didn't see that one coming.
Hussain dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Henriksen. That did some damage!
Hussain dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Hussain slips in close and lands a nice hook before moving back out of range.

Henriksen tries to keep at a distance but Hussain has taken the fight into the clinch.
Henriksen has dropped down and is looking to force the takedown but it's defended by Hussain after a bit of a struggle.
Henriksen gets through Hussain's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.

Hussain's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Henriksen throws a shot from downtown. Hussain moves away and avoids it.
Hussain's jab looks to have found its range, popping Henriksen under the eye.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Henriksen goes for a double leg but Hussain avoids the attempt and the two fighters end up clinched against the cage as Hussain continues to drive forward.

Hussain escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Henriksen swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Henriksen misses with a low kick.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Henriksen drives through with a takedown into Hussain's guard. Let's see what he can do from the top position.

Hussain pushes Henriksen off for just long enough to get back to his feet. Very athletic spring there.
Hussain throws out a powerful jab.
Donk. Hussain catches Henriksen right on the button with a cross.
Henriksen moves out of range of the strikes.
Hussain connects with a lovely right hand, straight down the pipe.
Henriksen lands a slapping body shot.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Hussain.
Hussain uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.
Hussain throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Hussain throws a jab when Henriksen was well out of range.
Henriksen throws a body punch but Hussain moves out of range.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Henriksen misses with a body shot.
A slow jab from Henriksen misses its intended target.

Henriksen shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.

Hussain kicks Henriksen off and gets back to his feet.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Emre Hussain dominated that round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Hussain is looking to clinch but Henriksen is avoiding it.

Hussain has closed the distance and engaged Henriksen in a clinch.
A frustrated look appears on Hussain's face as he tries to break the clinch.

Henriksen breaks from the clinch.
Hussain avoids the head kick by Henriksen.
Henriksen misses with a takedown attempt - Hussain sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Henriksen takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
Hussain throws out a powerful jab.
Hussain wants to clinch.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Henriksen will need to close the distance a bit before he attacks - that leg kick was thrown from too far away.
A swing and a miss from Hussain.
Jab by Hussain.
Henriksen ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
A big right from Hussain misses.
Henriksen throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Nice uppercut lands for Hussain. That snapped Henriksen's head back.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Henriksen feints and then cracks Hussain's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Hussain down.
Hussain tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Henriksen manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Henriksen slips a straight right by Hussain.
A little feinted left hand from Henriksen on the counter but he doesn't commit to it.
Hussain with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Hussain avoids the head kick by Henriksen.
Hussain has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Hussain wants to clinch.
Emre Hussain seems to be getting the better of the standup.

Henriksen tries to keep at a distance but Hussain has taken the fight into the clinch.

Hussain breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Henriksen takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.
Henriksen throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Hussain tries a quick counter leg kick but Henriksen is wise to it.
Henriksen shoots in and drives through. Hussain sprawls well.
Henriksen is looking to wear down Hussain with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Henriksen tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Hussain stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Hussain wants it to stay on the feet.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Karl Henriksen. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Hussain lands with an uppercut that bounces Henriksen off the cage and back into range.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A nice inside leg kick there by Hussain. That's going to slow Henriksen down.

Henriksen gets tackled into the cage by Hussain. Hussain maintains the clinch.
This has been an exciting period of action!

Hussain breaks from the clinch.
Hussain connects with a looping right hand.
Henriksen fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
Hussain lands an overhand right.
The fight stays on the outside here - Hussain looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Henriksen throws a low kick but Hussain avoids it.
Hussain thumps Henriksen with a low kick.
Hussain tests Henriksen's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Henriksen ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Hussain moves away.
Hussain looked like he wanted to counter with a punch but didn't throw it.

Hussain clinches.

Hussain breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
A low kick lands for Henriksen.
Hussain connects with a body shot that sends Henriksen's belly button to the back.
Henriksen misses with a head kick.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hussain is looking to clinch.
Henriksen looks like he's developed a pretty tasty lump over his left eye. He'll need to avoid taking much more damage to that.
Hussain attempts a low kick but it misses it's target.
Henriksen scores with a nice strike.

Henriksen shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Henriksen showed some decent athleticism there.
Hussain is looking to escape.

Henriksen is thinking about going for an arm triangle but he can't free his leg.
Henriksen stops Hussain from getting back to his feet.
Henriksen seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Hussain does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Henriksen is nestled in close to Hussain, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.

Henriksen is looking for a kimura. It's going to be difficult to finish that from half guard though and Hussain defends it well.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Hussain has managed to escape just enough to sneak back to his feet but Henriksen is on him like a limpet, forcing Hussain back against the cage.
Henriksen is trying to pull guard but Hussain turns him against the cage and we stay in the clinch.

Hussain escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
A jab from Hussain misses.

Hussain gets a clinch.
Henriksen is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Hussain gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.

Hussain breaks from the clinch.
Hussain tries to clinch there but Henriksen circles away.
Hussain tries to close the distance and clinch up but Henriksen swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Henriksen throws out a leg kick but Hussain moves out of range and Henriksen only half commits.
Henriksen is using his height advantage well here, landing a good percentage of his punches.
Good work by Hussain as he checks the leg kick.
Henriksen shoots in for a takedown but Hussain shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
Hussain scores with a body shot.
Henriksen avoids a kick to the body.
Henriksen takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Hussain's jab looks to have found its range, popping Henriksen under the eye.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Emre Hussain showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

Hussain closes the distance looking to clinch
and Henriksen counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Henriksen shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Hussain pinned against the cage. Hussain gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Henriksen listening to his corner there, landing a nice uppercut.
Henriksen has his head snapped back a nice jab. A little nod from Henriksen there as he acknowledges the shot.
Hussain lands a nice shot that snaps Henriksen's head back.
Henriksen throws a jab when Hussain was well out of range.
Henriksen throws a head kick that misses.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Hussain has closed the distance and engaged Henriksen in a clinch.
Henriksen is trying to pull guard but Hussain turns him against the cage and we stay in the clinch.

Henriksen breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Henriksen circles away from the clinch attempt.
Henriksen looked to counter with a high kick but didn't commit.
Nice body punch from Hussain.
Hussain wants to clinch up but Henriksen keeps it at a distance.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hussain doesn't manage to clinch there - Henriksen circles away.
Henriksen tries to land a leg kick but Hussain saw it coming and moves away.
Henriksen misses with a head kick.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Hussain tries to clinch but Henriksen is having none of it.
Henriksen takes a shot to the nose. Hopefully that hasn't broken it.
Hussain 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.
Hussain connects with a jab.
Henriksen takes a jab right on the kisser.
Decent striking displayed by Hussain there.
Hussain lands with an uppercut that bounces Henriksen off the cage and back into range.
Henriksen bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Henriksen looks to land a left hand but Hussain moved out of range nicely.
Henriksen shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Hussain sprawls well. Hussain wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Henriksen gets slowly back to his feet.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Karl Henriksen. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Henriksen gets cracked there but stands up to it.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Henriksen takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Emre Hussain is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Henriksen throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Hussain is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Hussain's jab looks to have found its range, popping Henriksen under the eye.
Hussain fails with an attempt to clinch.
Hussain moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Henriksen throws a hook but Hussain blocks it.
Hussain swings and misses with a shot to the body

and Henriksen counters with a nice double leg into side control. Hussain won't be happy with that.
Hussain tries to get back to his feet but has found himself mounted instead. Damn, that's gotta suck.
Henriksen trying to control but he's not successful this time.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Henriksen cracks Hussain with a nasty head shot there - the crowd let out an audible gasp there, as the noise reverberated around the arena.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hussain really wants to buck Henriksen off and get back to his feet.
We've been hearing that Henriksen has been drilling a lot of ground and pound in training, so let's see if he get the finish.
Hussain is using up a lot of energy trying to get back to his feet. Perhaps he should improve his position first.
Hussain blocking the ground and pound.
Henriksen wants to control the pace but Hussain is squirming around nicely.
Hussain is trying to stand.
Henriksen looking to control but Hussain is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.

Henriksen is in full mount, looking to secure a guillotine but Hussain is surviving well by controlling Henriksen's body position as best he can.
Henriksen misses with a series of strikes from mount. He'll no doubt be working on his ground and pound when he gets back to the gym.
Karl Henriksen overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hussain is trying to get back to his feet but can't.

Henriksen is working on an americana here. Ooh, that looks pretty nasty! Nope, Hussain has managed to escape the submission attempt.
Henriksen trying to control but he's not successful this time.
Hussain wants to try and get back to his feet.
Henriksen looking to ground and pound his opponent to a finish here.
Hussain squirming around on the bottom, looking to escape.
Karl Henriksen has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

Hussain bucks Henriksen off and manages to get back to his feet!
Hussain checks a low kick from Henriksen.
Henriksen throws an overhand right that lands on Hussain's shoulder, as Hussain tries to avoid the shot.
Henriksen looks shocked there as he takes a right hand to the temple.
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!
Henriksen misses with an uppercut.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Hussain! But no joy.
Henriksen takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.

And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Emre Hussain.
I've got Hussain 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 Andrew Berry scores the fight 27:30
Judge Sam Margolis scores the fight 28:29
Judge Phil Schofield scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Emre Hussain!
Emre Hussain decided to hype himself up post fight. It was going well but he went on about it a bit too long and the crowd turned on him a little.