PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Sammy Johnson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Jukka Tuulola (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). We have two fighters making their debuts here, so let's see who comes out of this one with their first professional victory.

Johnson
vs
Tuulola

178 cm
22
176 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

183 cm
22
175 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Intelligent

BJJ Blue Belt
Basic striking
Likes ground

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 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Sammy Johnson!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Jukka Tuulola!
The judges for this bout are , and .

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Tuulola feints and as Johnson raises his hands in defense, Tuulola changes levels and drives through with a takedown into guard.
Johnson trying to control the position.
Tuulola throwing strikes from guard but Johnson blocks nicely.
Tuulola has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
Tuulola passes into half guard.
Johnson avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Tuulola.
Tuulola sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Johnson defending well though.
Johnson gets back to full guard.
Johnson not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Tuulola throws and elbow that misses. Johnson uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Tuulola's guard. Nice move by Johnson!
Tuulola is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Johnson trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Tuulola looking for a sweep. Not yet Tuulola, not yet.
Johnson with a flurry of punches that miss.
The fighters are tangled up in the ropes here. We might need a restart if the fighters can't break free themselves.
Johnson wants to control from the top but Tuulola keeps moving.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tuulola looking to sweep here. No luck so far.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fight is doing enough on the ground.
Johnson is on the wrong end of a nice combination from Tuulola.

Tuulola darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.
Johnson trying to control but Tuulola postures up.
Johnson tries to roll over but Tuulola keeps him under control.
Tuulola looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
Tuulola seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Johnson wants to get back to full guard.
Tuulola throws a strike but Johnson avoids it easily and moves to full guard.
Tuulola working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Tuulola distracts Johnson with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Johnson wants to get back to his feet but Tuulola is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Tuulola throwing strikes but missing.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The fighters are going at a pretty good pace and they're both starting to sweat now.
Johnson controls Tuulola momentarily but Tuulola frees himself.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Tuulola accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.

Johnson fakes an overhand right and shoots for a takedown. Tuulola sprawls well initially but Johnson persists and gets the takedown into half guard.
Tuulola regains full guard. Nicely done.
Johnson is breathing heavily.
Tuulola is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Tuulola thows some rabbit punches from the bottom but they don't do any damage.
Johnson trying to control the position from guard on top but Tuulola is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Johnson preventing the sweep.
Johnson slips effortlessly into side control - very nice.
Tuulola tries to bench press Johnson off him but Johnson keeps the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Tuulola shoots for a takedown but Johnson saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.

Tuulola shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Tuulola showed some decent athleticism there.
Johnson blocking the ground and pound attempt from Tuulola.
Tuulola is thwarting Johnson's attempts to control the position.
Tuulola frees up his trapped foot and advances to mount.
Tuulola fakes a shot to the body and cracks his opponent in the head. Nice ground and pound there!
Johnson is in all sorts of trouble here.
Tuulola scoring with some good ground and pound from mount here. Will he manage to finish Johnson?
The fighters are trapped in the ropes so we're going to have a reposition here. The ref calls for a break and repositions the fighters in the center of the ring.
Johnson is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
Tuulola putting on the heat here with some good ground and pound!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tuulola dominating with strikes here.
Tuulola lands with some strikes.
The crowd growing excited in anticipation of a finish here! Right on cue, Tuulola cracks his opponent with a massive right hand that draws loud cheers!
Johnson slips a leg in and gets back to half guard.
Tuulola not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Johnson is trying to control but can't.
Tuulola thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Tuulola with the ground and pound but Johnson uses the opportunity to regain guard.
Tuulola stands up over Johnson, holding his feet. He dives back in and lands a decent shot to the head.
Johnson is controlling Tuulola's posture.
Johnson is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Johnson trying to control the position.
Johnson avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Jukka Tuulola dominated that round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the ring so we can get back down to business.

Johnson looks frusrated there after his takedown attempt is stuffed easily.

Tuulola looks for a takedown. He's got it. We're now in half guard.
Johnson looks like he's trying to stand up.
Tuulola missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Johnson avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Tuulola.
Tuulola wants to free his trapped foot but Johnson is holding on for dear life with his legs.
Tuulola lands strikes from half guard.
Tuulola not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Johnson blocking the ground and pound attempt from Tuulola.
Johnson has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Tuulola is working away from the top position though.
Johnson blocking the ground and pound attempt from Tuulola.
Johnson is looking to escape.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Johnson slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.
Tuulola throwing strikes but missing.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.

Tuulola closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Johnson to the mat! Johnson manages to get full guard.
Tuulola throwing strikes from guard but Johnson blocks nicely.
Tuulola works over Johnson with some ground and pound from guard.
Johnson working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Tuulola.
Tuulola postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Johnson lands a beautiful switch and he's in full mount! That could spell trouble for Tuulola!
Johnson scoring with strikes but Tuulola is staying in there.
Tuulola can't escape the position.
Johnson in mount throwing good strikes here, bouncing his opponent's head off the canvas.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Johnson looking to control and managing it successfully.
Tuulola really trying hard to get back to half guard here.
Johnson lands a big elbow.
Tuulola gets back to half guard.
Johnson stalling.
Tuulola wants to get back to full guard.
Johnson is trying to control the action in half guard but Tuulola is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
Tuulola wants to improve his position but Johnson is controlling well.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Tuulola misses with some strikes from the bottom.
Johnson wants to control but Tuulola is keeping him busy.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.

Johnson gets caught flat footed, as Tuulola shoots in with a quick takedown into guard.
Tuulola trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Tuulola stands up over Johnson, holding his feet. He dives back in and lands a decent shot to the head.
Tuulola is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Johnson avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Johnson preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Johnson wants to sweep here but Tuulola controlling him for the moment.

Johnson throwing his legs up looking for a triangle.
Tuulola pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Johnson is keeping the position for now.
Tuulola scoring with some ground and pound.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Johnson wants to stand up but Tuulola is controlling him.
Johnson wants to sweep but no luck.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Johnson shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Tuulola as he jumps to the side.
Johnson changes levels and scores with a jab to the body.
Tuulola has a takedown stuffed.
Johnson shoots in and drives through. Tuulola sprawls well.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Sammy Johnson. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Tuulola shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Johnson but Johnson pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Johnson shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Tuulola as he jumps to the side.

Tuulola darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.
Ground and pound from Tuulola.
Tuulola prevents Johnson from improving his position.
Tuulola sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Johnson defending well though.
Johnson on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Jukka Tuulola showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
That's time! Back to the action! So, we enter the final round. Let's see if either fighter can bring us a finish, or whether we're going to the judges scorecards.

Tuulola circles away from the clinch attempt.
Tuulola fails to land the takedown.
Johnson stuffs the takedown attempt from Tuulola. Tuulola gets slowly back to his feet.
Johnson doesn't manage to clinch there - Tuulola circles away.

Tuulola changes levels and drives through with a really nice takedown into side control. Johnson looks really pissed at himself for not defending that better.
Johnson is moving his hips around well on the bottom and has managed to get back to half guard.
Johnson trying to control from the bottom.
Tuulola not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Johnson flails away from the bottom but he's not doing any damage.
Tuulola throwing shots but Johnson is blocking nicely.
Johnson has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Tuulola is working away from the top position though.
Tuulola throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Johnson gets full guard.
Tuulola with a nice head shot there.
Tuulola working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Tuulola working from the guard for now, landing some ground and pound.
Johnson controls Tuulola momentarily but Tuulola frees himself.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Johnson looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.
Johnson can't keep his opponent in guard - Tuulola advances to half guard, no doubt looking to mount.
Johnson regains full guard. Nicely done.
Tuulola pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Johnson is keeping the position for now.
Tuulola takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Tuulola won't allow Johnson to sweep him here.
Tuulola forces his way into half guard.
Johnson is controlling Tuulola's trapped leg to prevent Tuulola from advancing to side control.
Tuulola not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Johnson is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Tuulola thows a huge punch but Johnson dodges it nicely.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Tuulola thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Johnson avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Tuulola.
Tuulola throwing shots but Johnson is blocking nicely.
Johnson moves into full guard.
Johnson keeping busy, throwing shots from the bottom.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.

Tuulola closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Johnson to the mat! Johnson manages to get full guard.
Johnson not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.

Johnson throwing his legs up looking for a triangle.
Johnson is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Johnson doesn't do any damage with a couple of strikes from the bottom.
Johnson wants to stand and escape but Tuulola is having none of it.

Tuulola avoids a guillotine attempt easily.
Johnson is trying to control the position from the bottom.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Tuulola lands a couple of decent looking shots.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Nice takedown defense from Johnson. No joy for Tuulola on that attempt.
Sammy Johnson has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Jukka Tuulola.
Johnson will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Tuulola closes the distance and lands a one-two.

Johnson forces Tuulola back against the ropes and clinches.
Johnson stops a takedown attempt from Tuulola.
Johnson is working for takedown but Tuulola is calmly controlling the position for now.
Tuulola has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Johnson avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.
Tuulola tries for a takedown but Johnson manages to get underhooks.

Johnson is fighting off a takedown attempt but Tuulola is just too persistent for him and manages to trip Johnson to the mat. Johnson regains guard as soon as the fighters hit the mat.
Tuulola distracts Johnson with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Tuulola pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Johnson is keeping the position for now.
Tuulola postures up in Johnson's guard and throws a big left but Johnson blocks it.
Johnson looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Tuulola throws a big right hand that misses.
Johnson seems keen to control rather than go for a submission, at least for now.

Johnson throwing his legs up looking for a triangle.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tuulola throwing strikes but missing.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Johnson misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Tuulola looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Johnson throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Tuulola.
Jukka Tuulola seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Tuulola shoots for a double leg takedown but Johnson sprawls well. He's pushed Tuulola's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Jab, cross, leg kick. Nice combination by Johnson!

Johnson decides to change it up a bit and drives through with a nice takedown into half guard.
Johnson prevents Tuulola from improving his position.
Tuulola is not content to let Johnson control the position.
Johnson blocks the strikes from Tuulola.
Tuulola is pressing down on Johnson's left leg trying to get back to full guard. He's managed it.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Tuulola wants to sweep here but Johnson controlling him for the moment.
Tuulola is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.
Sammy Johnson has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Jukka Tuulola.
I've got Tuulola 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 Andi Peters scores the fight 27:30
Judge Gordon Ramsey scores the fight 27:30
Judge Frank Skinner scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Jukka Tuulola!