PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Kai Kuolema (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Robert Paulson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Kuolema comes to the cage accompanied by Ratatat - Lex. Paulson is bobbing his head along to his entrance song: Pantera - Cowboys from Hell. The fight MMA fans around the world have waited their entire lives for!

Kuolema
vs
Paulson

170 cm
22
165 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

177 cm
19
165 lbs
2 - 0 - 1

BJJ White Belt
Great elbows
Good chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Decent boxing
Powerful

Control Nutrition
Control Nutrition

•‡• LION Clothing •‡•
Black Skull Clothing

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 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of London, Kai Kuolema!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 0 - 1, fighting out of London, Robert Paulson!
The judges for this bout are James Glass, Steven Brown and James Atkins.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Kuolema is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Nice sprawl there from Kuolema as Paulson shoots in.

Kuolema drives through and clinches with Paulson against the cage.
Kuolema misses with an elbow strike.
Paulson on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Kuolema lands an elbow inside.
With the fighters up against the cage, Kuolema throws an elbow but misses.
Paulson avoids a wild elbow strike from Kuolema.
Paulson has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.
Paulson leaning against his opponent.
Kuolema lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Paulson managing to block the knees to the body from Kuolema.
Kuolema lands an elbow just above Paulson 's eye.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kuolema creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Paulson's defenses.
Kuolema lands an elbow inside that Paulson shrugs off.
Kuolema creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
Kuolema pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
Kuolema lands a nice elbow from the clinch.
Kuolema throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Paulson takes an elbow to the temple.
Paulson lands with a light punch inside.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kuolema misses with an elbow strike.
Kuolema missing with knees to the body.
Paulson blocks the elbow strike.
Paulson tries to break free but Kuolema pushes him back against the cage.
Paulson misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Paulson blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Kuolema throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Paulson lands a body punch - he's looking to wear down Kuolema.
Kuolema lands an elbow inside that Paulson shrugs off.
Paulson dodges an elbow strike from Kuolema.
Paulson blocks an elbow strike.
Kuolema creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Paulson's defenses.
Kuolema throws an elbow that misses.
Kuolema landing knees to the body.
Kuolema throws an elbow but it misses.
Kuolema misses with a knee strike.
Kuolema tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Paulson avoids it.
Kuolema creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Paulson's defenses.
Paulson pushes Kuolema back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
Paulson is struggling to control the position.
Kuolema throws an elbow that misses.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Paulson stalling the fight.
Paulson takes an elbow to the temple.
Kuolema throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Kuolema lands a nice elbow from the clinch.
Kuolema stalling in the clinch but Paulson improves position.
Kuolema will no doubt start fighting again in a minute but for now he's just having a little rest, leaning Paulson up against the cage.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.
Paulson doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Paulson lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Paulson lands a body shot.
Paulson dodges an elbow strike from Kuolema.
Kuolema is working hard here but doesn't seem to be able to control effectively, up against the cage.
Kuolema misses with a knee strike.
A head punch on the inside from Paulson fails to land.
Kuolema tries to land knees in the clinch but Paulson avoids the damage to the body.
Paulson looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Kuolema with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Paulson swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Paulson looking for a takedown.
Paulson is trying to drag Kuolema to the mat but Kuolema just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
Kai Kuolema has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Robert Paulson.
Paulson avoiding damage as Kuolema throws knees to the body.
Paulson takes an elbow to the forehead.
Paulson avoids the elbow strike from Kuolema, against the cage.
Kuolema pushes off an throws an elbow but Paulson leans to the side and avoids it. We're back to clinching against the cage.
Kuolema lands an elbow just above Paulson 's eye.
A short left from Paulson.
Paulson looking for a takedown.
Kuolema misses with an elbow over the top.
Kuolema throws an elbow but it's blocked.
With the fighters up against the cage, Kuolema throws an elbow but misses.
Nice elbow from Kuolema.
Paulson is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Kuolema misses with a knee strike.
Kuolema misses with an elbow strike.
Kuolema swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Kuolema creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Paulson's defenses.

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.
Kuolema lands an elbow that stopped Paulson in his tracks for a moment.
Kuolema lands an elbow just above Paulson 's eye.
Paulson wants to stall.
Kuolema throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Kuolema pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
Kuolema throws an elbow that misses.
With the fighters up against the cage, Kuolema throws an elbow but misses.
Kuolema trying to land knees to the body.
Paulson blocks an elbow strike.
Paulson trying to control the position but instead, Kuolema has worked for underhooks and has pushed Paulson into the cage.
Kuolema tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Kuolema misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Paulson.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Kuolema throws an elbow but it misses.
Kuolema tries to stall but Paulson uses the opportunity to gain a better position.
An uppercut to the body lands inside from Paulson.
Paulson is trying to drag Kuolema to the mat but Kuolema just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
Kuolema creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kai Kuolema dominated that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Horrible takedown by Paulson or perhaps it was just good defense by Kuolema which made him look bad.
Kuolema tries to clinch up.
Paulson circles away from the clinch attempt.
The fight stays on the outside here - Kuolema looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Kuolema moves forwards but Paulson connects with a nice, crisp jab.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Kuolema tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Paulson scores with a shot to the body.
Paulson tries to bum rush Kuolema with a series of wild strikes but Kuolema uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Kuolema misses with a combination

and Paulson counters with a takedown into side control.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Paulson controls the position from side control.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Paulson in side control, trying to ground and pound but not landing this time.

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.
Kuolema trying to remain calm as Paulson controls from the top position.
Kuolema on his back here. We all know that wrestlers don't like being on their back so let's see if Kuolema tries to get out of the position.
Let's hope that Paulson has the urge to step up the pace any second now because for the last 15 or 20 seconds he's just been holding on tight.

Despite being in the dominant position, Robert Paulson just isn't active enough and the referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Kuolema has his hands up protecting his head but a hook from Paulson finds it's way round the side to connect with Kuolema's head.
Kuolema wants to clinch but Paulson slips to the side

and Paulson counters with a takedown into side control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Kuolema explodes and escapes back to his feet! Nice escape there!
Kuolema walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.
Paulson misses with a hook. Kuolema ducked under it nicely.
Kuolema tries to clinch

and Paulson counters with a nice double leg into side control. Kuolema won't be happy with that.
Paulson tries to move to mount but Kuolema blocks the move with his legs.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Paulson with the ground and pound but Kuolema regains half guard under the barage of strikes.
Paulson is controlling the pace.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Paulson prevents Kuolema from standing back up.
Paulson slows the pace down in half guard.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Kuolema is trying to stand back up but Paulson is controlling him
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Robert Paulson showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
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. The crowd applaud as we get ready to start the final round!

Kuolema closes the distance but Paulson moves to the side
and Kuolema takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Paulson throws a big shot that misses.
Kai Kuolema is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Kuolema tries to clinch but fails miserably
and Paulson connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
No luck for Paulson with that takedown attempt.
Paulson lands a with a good body shot.
Kuolema slaps away a takedown attempt from Paulson, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Kuolema looks to clinch
letting Paulson counter with a right hand.
Kuolema wants to clinch

and Paulson counters with a takedown into side control.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kuolema is pushing Paulson's head away, looking to escape. Paulson manages to hold on to the position though.
Paulson taking a breather here.
Kuolema is trying to get back to his feet.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.
Paulson controls the position.
Kuolema is trying to escape and get back to his feet.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Paulson throws a right and a left that Kuolema avoids nicely.
Kuolema fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Paulson manages to avoid it.
Paulson misses with the combination.
Kuolema tries to clinch but Paulson moves away
and Paulson counters with a series of strikes. Kuolema will be more careful next time no doubt.
Kuolema defending well as Paulson loads up on a big left hand.
Paulson throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Nice jab there from Paulson.
Kuolema displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Paulson throws out the jab.
Paulson is on the wrong end of a nice combination from Kuolema.
Robert Paulson seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Kuolema takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.
Paulson ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Paulson has used his reach advantage pretty well so far tonight.
Paulson tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Kuolema was well out of range. Poor timing from Paulson.
Paulson circles away from the clinch attempt
and Paulson connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Kuolema closes the distance looking to clinch

and Paulson counters with a nice double leg into side control. Kuolema won't be happy with that.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Kuolema trying to remain calm as Paulson controls from the top position.
Kuolema wants to escape from the position here - easier said than done!
Kuolema is letting Paulson control him for a moment.
Paulson landing with strikes to the head and body from side control.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Paulson is moving around in side control but his primary objective seems to be to maintain the position.

And that's the end of the fight!
Robert Paulson comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Paulson has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 Glass scores the fight 28:29
Judge Steven Brown scores the fight 28:29
Judge James Atkins scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Robert Paulson!