PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Spinning Fire (ranked 1186 p4p, 1868 weight class) and Fedor Shabanov (ranked 170 p4p, 257 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Fire
vs
Shabanov

209 cm
30
290
19 - 9 - 0

197 cm
37
229
25 - 15 - 0

Great wrestler
Excellent boxer
Cardio machine

Olympic wrestler
World class boxer
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 19 - 9 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Spinning Fire!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 25 - 15 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Fedor Shabanov!
The judges for this bout are Ben Watson, Eliza Hachem and Ben Hemmingworth.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
We've got one fighter who appears to only be looking to counter and the other not looking particularly aggressive either, so we could be in for a dull fight.
Shabanov gets off balance looking for a body kick

and Fire counters with a nice double leg into half guard.

Shabanov kicks off Fire and gets to his feet.
Fire moves out of range of the body kick.
Fire attempts a counter takedown but Shabanov avoids it well and moves away.
Fire ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Shabanov fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Shabanov looks to throw a body kick

and Fire counters with a nice shoot takedown that brings the fighters to the ground.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Fire trying to control the position from guard on top but Shabanov is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Fire throwing strikes but missing.
Fire in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Fire with a flurry of punches that miss.
Fire will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Fire throwing strikes but missing.
Fire 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.
Fire won't allow Shabanov to get back to his feet.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
My god... these two guys really need to pick up the pace or everyone will leave to go get a beer.
Fire working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Fire landing with the ground and pound.
Fire missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Fire landing with the ground and pound.
Shabanov is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Fire is controlling him.
Fire seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.
Shabanov wants to get back to his feet but Fire is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Fire looking to sit in guard and control but Shabanov gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.

Shabanov must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shabanov tries to stand but Fire is controlling from the bottom.
Fire is avoiding any damage by keeping wrist control.

Shabanov stands up from Fire's guard - Shabanov perhaps looking for a knockout.
Fedor Shabanov seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
My god... these two guys really need to pick up the pace or everyone will leave to go get a beer.
Fire takes a body kick right on the floating rib. Ouchie.
A shot to the body from Shabanov misses

so Fire counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Fire throws an elbow that misses. Shabanov uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Fire's guard. Nice move by Shabanov!

Shabanov wants to stand but Fire has a closed guard, so he can't escape.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Fedor Shabanov will probably get the nod.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Shabanov scores with a kick to the body.
A jab from Shabanov misses.
Fire tries to counter with a takedown but Shabanov is quick to defend against it.
Shabanov throws a quick inside leg kick.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Shabanov throws out a powerful jab.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Shabanov misses with the body kick

and Fire counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Fire throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Shabanov on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Fire prevents Shabanov from standing back up.
Fire is stalling here. Shabanov is in no mood to hang around though. He's locked up a kimura from the bottom! Fire seems to be keeping calm but he's forced to roll out of the hold and Shabanov has ended up in side control on the top. Nice work.
Shabanov wants to stand but Fire has his arm trapped.
We could do with one of the fighters taking the initiative a bit more on the ground - they're both waiting to capitalize on a mistake.

Shabanov decides to stand up, so the ref orders Fire to his feet.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A combination from Shabanov does no damage.
Fire attempts a counter takedown but Shabanov avoids it well and moves away.
Fire keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Fire moves out of range as Shabanov strikes.
Fire half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Fire keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Shabanov.
Shabanov moving in and out of range nicely, whilst landing the scoring shot.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shabanov throws a body kick, spinning off balance

and Fire counters with a nice shoot takedown that brings the fighters to the ground.
Fire won't allow Shabanov to get back to his feet.
Fire throws a big elbow that misses.
Fire with a flurry of punches that miss.
Fire postures up in Shabanov's guard and throws a big left but Shabanov blocks it.
Shabanov wants to stand and escape but Fire is having none of it.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Fire postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Fire lands a couple of decent looking shots.
Spinning Fire overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Fire throwing strikes but missing.
The step up in weight doesn't seem to be a problem for Shabanov. He's performing admirably here against the bigger man.
Fire keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of Shabanov's head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Fire postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Fire throwing strikes from guard but Shabanov blocks nicely.
Fire throws a big elbow that misses.
Fire connects with a couple of short punches.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Shabanov wants to get back to his feet but Fire is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Fire trying to control but Shabanov is working from the bottom.

Shabanov has his feet on Fire's hips. He pushes off and gets to his feet. Nice work.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Shabanov moves into range and lands a nice body kick.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Fedor Shabanov 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! The crowd applaud as we get ready to start the final round!

Shabanov throws a quick inside leg kick.
Fire ducks right into an uppercut from Shabanov.
Shabanov throws a hook but Fire avoids it easily.
Fire appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Shabanov throws a nice outside leg kick.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Shabanov misses with an uppercut

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

That's one minute gone in the round.

Shabanov uses the cage to get back to his feet.
Shabanov throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Fire attempts a counter takedown but Shabanov avoids it well and moves away.
Shabanov scores with a straight right hand, right through his opponent's guard.
Fire moves out of range of the strikes.
Fire drops down looking for a counter takedown but Shabanov sprawls and moves away.
The fighters circling - Shabanov throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Fire half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Both fighters are looking to counter, which isn't making for the most exciting fight in the world.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Fire ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Fire changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.
Jab by Shabanov.
Fire uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Shabanov.
Fire half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Shabanov goes for a spinning back kick but it misses.
Fire feinted with a counter takedown.
Shabanov with a jab.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shabanov lands a beauty of a right hand that gets the crowd cheering.
Shabanov throws a lazy uppercut

and Fire counters with a takedown into side control! That could mean trouble for Shabanov!
Shabanov is pushing Fire's head away, looking to escape. Fire manages to hold on to the position though.
Fire lands a few punches from side control.
Shabanov avoids any damage from the ground and pound of Fire.
Fire looking to punish the body of his opponent here but Shabanov is avoiding damage well.
Shabanov is looking to work his way out of this bad position but Fire is controlling him well.
Fire misses with the ground and pound.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Fire landing with strikes to the head and body from side control.
Fire tries to score with some ground and pound. Shabanov controls his posture well this time though and the shots don't do any damage.
Fire trying to control the action but Shabanov is working from the bottom.
Spinning Fire has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Fire working the ground and pound 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!
Fire looks up at the clock and then as Shabanov takes his cue and looks up at the clock too, Fire smacks him right in the chops with a big elbow! How rude!
Shabanov is trying to buck Fire off.
Fire throwing shots but missing, from side control.
Fire working the head with strikes.
The strikes coming from Fire are missing the target in this wave of attacks.
Fire throwing shots but missing, from side control.

And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Fedor Shabanov.
I've got Shabanov 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 Ben Watson scores the fight 29:28
Judge Eliza Hachem scores the fight 27:30
Judge Ben Hemmingworth scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by split decision... Fedor Shabanov!
A relieved looking Fedor Shabanov thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.
Spinning Fire was interviewed post fight and said 'I'll back stronger'.