PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Michael Welsh (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Alex Harvey (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Harvey has chosen Metallica - Master of Puppets as his entrance music. Alex Harvey is the more experienced fighter, so let's see if that makes a difference tonight.

Welsh
vs
Harvey

180 cm
24
186 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

183 cm
20
200 lbs
0 - 3 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Solid boxing
Intelligent

BJJ Blue Belt
Basic striking
Enjoys gardening

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Michael Welsh!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 3 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Alex Harvey!
The judges for this bout are Valeri Chadov, Igor Prikhodko and Sergei Dronov.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Welsh's corner calls for a 1-2. Welsh obliges with the 1 part as he scores the single shot and moves back out of range.
Welsh scores to the head and body with a nice combination!
A looping hook to the body misses from Welsh. Harvey does a little dance to reset his feet.

Harvey closes the distance and pushes Welsh back into the cage.
The referee calls for Harvey to work.
Harvey receives a warning from the referee for stalling.
Welsh tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Harvey smiles and moves away.

Harvey clinches up with Welsh and pushes him back against the cage.
Welsh tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Harvey smiles and moves away.
Harvey showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Welsh.
Harvey slips a jab from Welsh.
Welsh misses with a double jab.
Welsh misses with a wild combination.
Welsh getting the better of the striking in that exchange.

Harvey fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Welsh, pushing him back against the cage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Welsh jumps guard but Harvey stands there with Welsh around his waist. Welsh gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Michael Welsh. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Welsh fails to pull the fight into his guard.
Harvey's corner are urging him to control the action in the clinch for a moment, rather than mount any serious offense. I'm sure the crowd appreciate those instructions... not.

Harvey jumps guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

Harvey escapes his hips to the side and looks to be working for an armbar. Welsh gives him a little smile and shakes his head. No chance.
Welsh pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Harvey is keeping the position for now.
Welsh is pushing down on Harvey's leg trying to pass to half guard. Harvey is fighting to maintain full guard but Welsh has managed to sneak the leg through.
Harvey avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Welsh.
Harvey gets full guard.

Welsh stands and steps away. Harvey gets to his feet too and we're back to the striking game.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Welsh moves into range and throws a lovely three punch combination.
Harvey shoots in for a takedown but Welsh shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.

Harvey pushes Welsh up against the cage in a clinch.

Harvey breaks the clinch.
Welsh throws a right hand that Harvey ducks under and follows up with a left that Harvey also avoids with ease.
Harvey walks into a stiff left hand from Welsh.

Harvey pushes Welsh up against the cage in a clinch.

Harvey breaks the clinch.
Welsh lands a jab to Harvey's midsection.
Harvey looks gassed!
Welsh misses with a few strikes there.
Harvey showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Welsh.
Welsh fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Harvey lets the fists fly and connects with a left straight followed by a right hook.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!

Harvey moves into range and clinches up with Welsh.
Harvey taking a break, stalling in the clinch.
Welsh tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Harvey lands a body punch - he's looking to wear down Welsh.

Harvey breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Welsh swings wildly with a couple of big hooks

and Harvey moves into the clinch.
Welsh tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Harvey just stands there and leans against the cage.
Harvey effectively controlling the action here.
Harvey lands an elbow just above Welsh 's eye.
Harvey tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Welsh tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Harvey smiles and moves away.
Harvey fails in his attempt to clinch.
Harvey chopping away at his opponent's legs.
Welsh throws a one two combo.
Welsh misses with a wild combination.
Welsh misses the shot to the body.
Welsh lands with a hook. Harvey tried to avoid it but it clipped the top of his head.
Welsh changes levels and scores with a jab to the body.
Harvey changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Welsh tries to avoid it but Harvey manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Welsh to the ground. Welsh escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Welsh ducks down and throws a hook to the body.
Welsh fails to land with a series of punches.
Left hook, right uppercut from Welsh.
Welsh ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Welsh dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Welsh is looking to wear down Harvey with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Welsh throws a right and a left that Harvey avoids nicely.
Harvey has a takedown stuffed.
Welsh connects with a body shot.
Welsh fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Welsh connects with a right hand. Harvey shakes it off.
Welsh throws a combination that misses

and Harvey counters by moving into the clinch.
Welsh tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Welsh jumps guard but Harvey stands there with Welsh around his waist. Welsh gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Welsh tries to pull guard but Harvey won't allow it.
Welsh tries to pull guard but Harvey holds him up against the cage and eventually Welsh drops back down to his feet.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Harvey.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Michael Welsh will probably get the nod.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Welsh throws a one two combo.
Welsh misses with a few strikes there.
Welsh looks to land a combination. Harvey sees it coming but can only parry a couple of the shots.
Harvey tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Welsh moves into range and throws a lovely three punch combination.
Harvey showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Welsh.
Jab by Welsh.

Harvey moves into the clinch.
Harvey lands a body shot.
Harvey landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Welsh jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Harvey walks away with a smile on his face. Welsh gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
Welsh lands with an uppercut that bounces Harvey off the cage and back into rage.
Harvey showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Welsh.
Welsh throws a series of strikes that have Harvey backpedaling.
Harvey looking to land some kicks to the body here.
A punch combination from Welsh misses.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Welsh's corner calls for a 1,2 combination and Welsh duly obliges.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Harvey.
Welsh throws a combination. Harvey tries to block but a couple of punches get through.
Welsh throws a right and a left that Harvey avoids nicely.
Welsh swings wildly with a couple of big hooks

and Harvey holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.
Welsh fails to pull guard.
Welsh tries to pull guard but Harvey won't allow it.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Michael Welsh. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Harvey scores with a knee to the head.

Harvey's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Welsh throws a two punch combo that lands nicely.
Harvey throws a right high kick that is partially blocked by Welsh.

Harvey clinches up with Welsh and pushes him back against the cage.
Harvey lands a nice elbow.
Welsh jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Harvey walks away with a smile on his face. Welsh gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.

Harvey clinches.

Harvey manages to break the clinch.
Welsh is working the combinations to good effect here.
Welsh scores with a shot to the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Harvey rushes Welsh and presses him up against the cage.
Welsh blocking some punches.
Harvey tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Welsh tries to pull guard but Harvey won't allow it.

Harvey pulls guard.
Harvey not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.

Harvey uses the cage to get back to his feet.
Michael Welsh is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Welsh getting the better of the striking in that exchange.
Welsh throws a combination that misses
and Harvey counters with a solid body kick.
Michael Welsh is winning the standup battle so far.
Welsh looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Danga de danga de dang - Welsh scores with a four punch combination!
Welsh keeps his opponent at a distance with a nice jab.
Harvey tries to clinch but Welsh is having none of it.
Nice jab there from Welsh.
Harvey with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Welsh to score with a decent uppercut.
Harvey throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Welsh's waist but Welsh gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Harvey off to one side.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Harvey shoots in for a takedown but Welsh shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
Welsh misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Nice body punch from Welsh.
Welsh lands with a good body shot.
Welsh stalks Harvey and leaps in with a furious combination of punches. Uppercuts and crosses smash into Harvey's face. Harvey staggers backwards, shaken.
Welsh throws a couple of head shots and lands with the final one - a decent hook, which struck Harvey on the side of the head.
Welsh lands a body shot.
Harvey takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Nice straight punches there by Welsh. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Welsh.
Harvey avoids the body shot from Welsh.
Welsh swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Welsh lands a jab. Then a cross. Then finally a nice hook to the body. Good work there by Welsh.
A nice combination there by Welsh.
Welsh lands a really nice looking cross but Harvey seems unphased.

Harvey closes the distance and clinches.
Harvey working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Knees in the clinch landing for Harvey.
Welsh fails to pull guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The fighters are pressed against the cage, as the pace of the fight slows.
Harvey putting his Muay Thai to good use. He has Welsh in a tight clinch and is doing some damage with knees to the body.
Harvey jumps guard but Welsh stands there with Harvey around his waist. Harvey gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Harvey is struggling to control the position.
Welsh jumps guard but Harvey stands there with Welsh around his waist. Welsh gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Welsh fails to pull guard.

Harvey escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Welsh misses with a jab, cross combination.
Welsh throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Harvey stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
Welsh throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Harvey.
Welsh misses with a few strikes there.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Michael Welsh will probably get the nod.
That's time! Welsh's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight. And we move into the final round!

Welsh misses with a double jab.
Harvey dodges the punch combination from Welsh.
Welsh cracks a nice hook into Harvey's ribs.

Harvey fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Welsh, pushing him back against the cage.
Harvey scores a nice knee to the body.

Harvey breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.

Harvey moves into the clinch.
Welsh fails to pull the fight into his guard.
Harvey makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.

Welsh pulls Harvey into guard.
Harvey pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Welsh is keeping the position for now.
Welsh keeping moving, preventing Harvey from controlling successfully.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

Welsh isolates an arm and boxes in a triangle. Harvey stacks Welsh on his neck as he steps over and passes to the side. He's now in a much more dominant position where he can look to do some serious damage. Nice move by Harvey!
Welsh is trying to get back to half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Harvey really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Welsh. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Harvey throws a strike aimed at the side of Welsh's head but Welsh avoids it well.
Welsh looking for a sweep but Harvey has passed into full mount! Oh no!
Welsh working to try and regain half guard.
Harvey controlling from the full mount.
Welsh sneaks a leg under to get to half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Welsh wants to get back to his feet.
Welsh flails away from the bottom but he's not doing any damage.
Welsh wants to improve his position but Harvey is controlling well.
Welsh keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Welsh tries to get to full guard but Harvey has control of the leg.

Harvey decides to stand up and try his luck on the feet.
Michael Welsh is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Welsh throws a right and a left that both miss.
Harvey throws a quick head kick that skims the top of Welsh's head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Harvey connects with a leg kick. He turned his hip over nicely there.
Welsh lands a jab followed by a nice looking cross.

Harvey closes the distance and pushes Welsh back into the cage.
Harvey taking a break, stalling in the clinch.
Harvey softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
A right hook to the body lands for Harvey.
Welsh jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Harvey walks away with a smile on his face. Welsh gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
Welsh misses with a two punch combination.
Harvey misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
Some wild striking there from Welsh.
A nice combination there by Welsh.
Harvey throws a head kick that misses.
Welsh throws a series of strikes that have Harvey backpedaling.
Welsh scores with a one two! Harvey had his feet all tangled up there and couldn't avoid the strikes.
Welsh misses with a wild combination.
Welsh dips down and scores with a jab to the body.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Nice straight punches there by Welsh. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Welsh.
A right-left combo lands from Welsh.
Harvey shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Harvey has a pretty nasty looking mouse under his right eye.
Welsh fails to land with a series of punches.
Welsh scores with a hook to the body. Harvey takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
A jab from Welsh does it's job there.
Nice body punch from Welsh.
Welsh misses with a series of wild punches.

Harvey gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
Welsh tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Harvey just stands there and leans against the cage.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Michael Welsh. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Welsh jumps guard but Harvey stands there with Welsh around his waist. Welsh gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Harvey scores with a knee to the head.
Alex Harvey has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Michael Welsh is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Welsh tries to pull guard but Harvey holds him up against the cage and eventually Welsh drops back down to his feet.
Harvey lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.

And that's the end of the fight!
Alex Harvey comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Welsh has won this one but let's see what the judges have to say. 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 Valeri Chadov scores the fight 29:28
Judge Igor Prikhodko scores the fight 29:28
Judge Sergei Dronov scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Michael Welsh!