PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Koba Dvalishvili (ranked 531 p4p, 699 weight class) and White Rain (ranked 83 p4p, 106 weight class). Rain is bobbing his head along to his entrance song: For Heavy Metal we will die!. White Rain 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!

Dvalishvili
vs
Rain

180 cm
33
165
17 - 9 - 2

178 cm
30
162
17 - 9 - 0

Good wrestling
World class boxer
Insanely flexible

Olympic wrestler
World class MT
Good gas tank

Brooklyn Threads
Brooklyn Apothecary

HELLBENT
Heavy Metal Drugs

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 - 9 - 2, fighting out of St Petersburg, Koba Dvalishvili!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 17 - 9 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, White Rain!
The judges for this bout are Frank Antenori, Don Winkell and Percy O'Donnell.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Dvalishvili misses with a straight left.
It seemed like Rain was going to counter with the hook but didn't fully commit to it.
Rain misses with a straight right.
Dvalishvili works the jab nicely.
Dvalishvili cracks Rain with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.
Dvalishvili misses with a looping right.
Dvalishvili thows a left - swing and a miss!
Dvalishvili misses with a body kick.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Rain! But no joy.

Dvalishvili closes the distance and pushes Rain back into the cage.
A head punch on the inside from Dvalishvili fails to land.
Rain unloads a knee to the mid-section. Dvalishvili lets out a prehistoric sounding urrrrgh.
Rain has a couple of punches blocked by Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili stalling in the clinch but Rain improves position.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Rain misses with a punch on the inside.
Dvalishvili struggles to land a body shot inside as Rain controls his hands.
Rain misses with a hook to the ribs.
Dvalishvili stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
A nice left hand lands by Rain.
Rain tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Rain lands a right hand.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rain lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
Rain lands a left hand that snaps the head of Dvalishvili backwards.
Rain tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Dvalishvili smiles and moves away.
Dvalishvili throws a shot to the body.
Rain avoids the body shot from Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili lands with a right hand.
A big right from Dvalishvili misses.
A left lands for Dvalishvili.
A slow jab from Dvalishvili misses its intended target.
Dvalishvili lands with a straight right. Rain didn't see that one coming.
Koba Dvalishvili seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

Dvalishvili instigates a clinch.
Dvalishvili avoids the elbow strike from Rain, against the cage.
Dvalishvili misses with a punch to the body.
Dvalishvili swings away with an uppercut that misses.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Dvalishvili working aggressively here.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Dvalishvili tries to work over Rain's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Rain blocks an uppercut.
Dvalishvili lands a body shot.
Dvalishvili blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Dvalishvili blocking some punches.
Dvalishvili softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Rain misses with a hook to the ribs.
Dvalishvili blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Rain misses with a short punch on the inside.
Dvalishvili doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Dvalishvili blocking some punches.
Dvalishvili lands a body punch in the clinch.
Dvalishvili lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Rain or not.
Dvalishvili blocks an uppercut.
Rain misses with an elbow over the top.
I was talking to Dvalishvili's coach per-fight and he was telling me that they'd been working on the clinch in the runup to this fight.
Nice body punch from Dvalishvili - that landed with a thud.
Rain tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Still in the clinch, Rain scores with a nice short uppercut.
Rain misses with the head strike.
Rain prevents a body shot from Dvalishvili.
Some stalling of biblical proportions here from Dvalishvili.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A short right from Dvalishvili.
Rain misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Dvalishvili scores with a shoulder strike.
Rain blocks a body shot from Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Dvalishvili blocking some punches.
Rain with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.

It looks like Koba Dvalishvili has been cut.
Dvalishvili can't find room to land a body shot as Rain controls the action.
Dvalishvili lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
Rain blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
A nice left hand lands by Dvalishvili.
Rain missing with knees to the body.
Dvalishvili presses Rain against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
Dvalishvili avoids the elbow strike from Rain, against the cage.
Rain softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Dvalishvili managing to block the knees to the body from Rain.
Dvalishvili avoiding damage as Rain throws knees to the body.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Dvalishvili works on Rain's body with a couple of short punches.
Rain tries to work over Dvalishvili's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Dvalishvili gets through Rain's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Rain lands an elbow just above Dvalishvili 's eye.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Rain trying to land knees to the body.
Rain tries to land knees in the clinch but Dvalishvili avoids the damage to the body.
Dvalishvili works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
Rain blocks a body shot from Dvalishvili.
Rain's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Rain throws a punch but it's blocked by Dvalishvili.
Rain trying to land knees to the body.
Rain swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Dvalishvili swings wildly with an uppercut but Rain uses good head movement to avoid it.
Dvalishvili can't find room to land a body shot as Rain controls the action.
A short uppercut from Dvalishvili.
Rain is working Dvalishvili over against the cage.
Rain throws a punch but it's blocked by Dvalishvili.
A hook to the body from Rain.
A right hook to the body lands for Rain.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Dvalishvili has a couple of punches blocked by Rain.
Dvalishvili misses with a punch to the body.
Dvalishvili lands a body punch - he's looking to wear down Rain.
Still in the clinch, Dvalishvili scores with a nice short uppercut.
Rain has a couple of punches blocked by Dvalishvili.
Rain jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Dvalishvili walks away with a smile on his face. Rain gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Koba Dvalishvili dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Koba Dvalishvili's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Dvalishvili uses good footwork to get in and out and land a nice right hand before Rain has time to react.
Dvalishvili throws out a loose jab but Rain uses good head movement to avoid it.
Rain fakes with the hands and throws a leg kick but Dvalishvili is out of range.
Dvalishvili lands with a shot to the body.
Dvalishvili is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Dvalishvili misses with a hook to the body
and Rain counters with a series of strikes. Dvalishvili will be more careful next time no doubt.
Dvalishvili blocks a head kick by Rain.
Rain misses with a jab, cross combination.
Rain moves out of range of the strikes.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Dvalishvili throws a good cross that connects.
Rain darts in and out, connecting with a jab.
The fight stays on the outside here - Dvalishvili looks like he's thinking about clinching though.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Dvalishvili throws a nice inside leg kick.

Dvalishvili pushes Rain up against the cage in a clinch.
Dvalishvili swings wildly with an uppercut but Rain uses good head movement to avoid it.
Dvalishvili stalling.
Rain lands a left hand.
Dvalishvili blocks a body shot from Rain.
Rain struggles to land a body shot inside as Dvalishvili controls his hands.
Rain tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Dvalishvili's elbow.
Dvalishvili blocks a body shot from Rain.
Nice body punch from Dvalishvili - that landed with a thud.
Rain has been looking to improve his clinch game in recent weeks. Dvalishvili seems to have the measure of him in the clinch so far, so let's see if Rain can turn it around.
Dvalishvili misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Rain doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Rain lands a left hand that snaps the head of Dvalishvili backwards.
Rain lands a good knee to the midsection. Dvalishvili won't want to take too many of those.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Rain creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Rain creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Dvalishvili misses with a hook to the ribs.
Rain tries to pull guard but Dvalishvili holds him up against the cage and eventually Rain drops back down to his feet.
Dvalishvili blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Dvalishvili misses with a body punch.
Rain digs a right hand underneath Dvalishvili's ribcage. Dvalishvili let out a lung full of air as it connected.
Dvalishvili struggles to land a body shot inside as Rain controls his hands.
Dvalishvili misses with some punches.
Dvalishvili works on Rain's body with a couple of short punches.
Dvalishvili lands a hook that snaps the head of Rain backwards.
Dvalishvili can't find room to land a body shot as Rain controls the action.
Rain swings away with an uppercut that misses.
A head punch on the inside from Dvalishvili fails to land.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Rain.
Rain tries to work over Dvalishvili's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Dvalishvili lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
Dvalishvili goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Rain gets through Dvalishvili's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
A hook to the body from Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili blocks an elbow strike from Rain.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A right hand to the body from Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili lands with a right to the head.
Dvalishvili tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Rain lands a damaging elbow.
Dvalishvili lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
A short right from Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Dvalishvili tries a body shot but Rain blocks it.
Rain throws a head punch that misses.
Dvalishvili misses with a punch to the body.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Dvalishvili.
Rain has a couple of punches blocked by Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili misses with a punch to the body.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Rain.
Dvalishvili scores with a shoulder strike.
Dvalishvili fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Rain blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Dvalishvili works on Rain's body with a couple of short punches.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Dvalishvili's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Rain lands a hook to the side of the head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Dvalishvili lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Dvalishvili takes a shot to the head.
Dvalishvili struggles to land a body shot inside as Rain controls his hands.
Dvalishvili misses with a punch to the body.
Dvalishvili tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Dvalishvili tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Rain avoids it.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Rain.
Rain tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Dvalishvili struggles to land a body shot inside as Rain controls his hands.
A shot in the inside from Rain.
Rain misses with some punches.
Rain goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Dvalishvili tries a body shot but Rain blocks it.
Rain blocks an uppercut.
Rain looks to throw an elbow but misses.
Dvalishvili lands a nice uppercut.
Rain misses with a punch on the inside.
Rain is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the cage enables Dvalishvili to keep the fight standing.
Dvalishvili works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
Dvalishvili wants to stall.
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 Koba Dvalishvili will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Koba Dvalishvili's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! The crowd applaud as we get ready to start the final round!

Rain displaying good standup as he scores with a three punch combination.
White Rain has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Rain ducks under a wild hook from Dvalishvili.
It seemed like Rain was going to counter with the hook but didn't fully commit to it.
Rain is on the wrong end of a nice combination from Dvalishvili.
Rain moves his head to the side to avoid a jab but walks straight into a cross.
Dvalishvili misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Dvalishvili throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Rain swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili is really head hunting here, hardly looking to strike to the body at all.
A big right from Rain misses.
Dvalishvili feints a straight left to the body, then turns around with a flashy move and hits Rains jaw with a dramatic spinning back fist!
Rain scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Rain ducks right into an uppercut from Dvalishvili.

Dvalishvili takes the fight into the clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rain misses with a punch on the inside.
With the fighters up against the cage, Rain throws an elbow but misses.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili pressing his opponent against the cage.
Rain softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Dvalishvili blocks an uppercut.
Dvalishvili is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Nice body punch from Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Rain lands a hook that snaps the head of Dvalishvili backwards.
Dvalishvili throws a knee to the head but misses.

Rain jumps guard.

Rain working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Dvalishvili doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Dvalishvili manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Rain keeping moving, preventing Dvalishvili from controlling successfully.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Dvalishvili is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.
Dvalishvili continues to stall.
Rain trying to control the position here.
Dvalishvili trying to control the position from guard on top but Rain is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Dvalishvili engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
Rain wants to stand and escape but Dvalishvili is having none of it.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Rain lands a really nice looking cross but Dvalishvili seems unphased.
Dvalishvili looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Good exchange - Dvalishvili coming out on top.
Dvalishvili scores with a jab to the jaw.
Dvalishvili moves into range and connects with a jab.
Dvalishvili sizes up Rain with a pawing jab and scores with a straight right down the middle.
Dvalishvili fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Rain manages to avoid it.
Despite the aggression on Rain's face he doesn't fully commit to the counter.
Dvalishvili works the jab nicely.
Koba Dvalishvili is winning the standup battle so far.
Good standup being displayed there by Rain as he connects with a hook.
Dvalishvili lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Rain circles away quickly and effectively.
Rain unleashes a big counter combination but Dvalishvili bobs and weaves and avoids any damage.

Dvalishvili darts in and clinches Rain up against the cage.
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!
Dvalishvili's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Rain misses with a short punch on the inside.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Dvalishvili doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Rain blocks an uppercut.
Rain throws a head punch that misses.
Rain tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Dvalishvili smiles and moves away.
Rain moves out of range of the body kick from Dvalishvili.
Rain swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
Rain tries to clinch up.
Rain throws a jab but it's blocked by Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
A jab lands there for Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Rain slips a jab from Dvalishvili.
Rain ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Rain looked like he wanted to counter with a punch but didn't throw it.
Koba Dvalishvili is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Dvalishvili throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.

And that's the end of the fight!
Koba Dvalishvili showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Dvalishvili, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 Frank Antenori scores the fight 30:27
Judge Don Winkell scores the fight 30:27
Judge Percy O'Donnell scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Koba Dvalishvili!