PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Kiec Bicas (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Maksim Anufriev (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Kiec Bicas looks tired to me. Hopefully he has got enough gas left in the tank to put in a good performance.

Bicas
vs
Anufriev

185 cm
23
180 lbs
1 - 1 - 0

183 cm
25
185 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Solid boxing
Granite chin

BJJ White Belt
Good kicks
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 1 - 1 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Kiec Bicas!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Maksim Anufriev!
The judges for this bout are Illya Tyunina, Aleksandr Martynov and Aleksei Zolotukhin.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Anufriev darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.
Bicas looks exhausted already! Oh dear, he should have come in in better shape than this!
It looks like Anufriev is going to stand back up.
Anufriev moves into full mount! Bicas won't be happy about that!
Anufriev trying to control but Bicas is having none of it.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Anufriev looking for a guillotine from mount but Bicas is having none of it.
Anufriev tries to control but Bicas wriggling away.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.

Anufriev is in full mount, looking to secure a guillotine but Bicas is surviving well by controlling Anufriev's body position as best he can.
Anufriev wants to control the pace but Bicas is squirming around nicely.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
We've had a lack of effective grappling in the last minute or so, which could well see a referee standup.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.

The ref calls for a clean break and stands the fighters back up. Maksim Anufriev wasn't active enough on the ground.
Bicas shoots in looking for a takedown. Anufriev tries to sprawl out of it but Bicas keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Anufriev manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Bicas walks forward, straight into a front kick from Anufriev.
Bicas misses with a takedown attempt
and Anufriev counters with an outside leg kick.
Anufriev throws a sloppy head kick and Bicas moves out of range easily.
Anufriev has his takedown stuffed

and Bicas counters with a takedown into full mount! That could mean trouble for Anufriev!
Bicas prevents Anufriev from getting the reversal.
Bicas looking to control but Anufriev is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
Bicas working away from the top, dropping strikes.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Maksim Anufriev dominated that round.
That's time! Bicas's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Anufriev connects with a high kick.
Bicas is trying hard to land a takedown here. Anufriev sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Anufriev throws a nice head kick!
Anufriev misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Bicas.
Maksim Anufriev seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Anufriev tries a head kick but it misses.
Anufriev throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped

and Bicas counters with a nice double leg into side control. Anufriev won't be happy with that.
Anufriev manages to get back to half guard.
Bicas wants to lay and pray for a moment but Anufriev keeps working.
Anufriev looks like he's trying to stand up.
Anufriev moves into full guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Bicas throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Anufriev works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Bicas working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Anufriev's head.
Bicas chips away with some ground and pound.
Anufriev is looking to stand up but Bicas isn't so interested in that idea.
Bicas stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Anufriev swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Bicas chips away with some ground and pound.

Anufriev is edging up against the cage. He's using the cage to get back to his feet. Nice work there - the fighters are clinched.
Bicas lands a hook that snaps the head of Anufriev backwards.
Anufriev with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
Bicas wants to break free but Anufriev has control.
A hook to the body from Bicas.
Bicas tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. Anufriev smiles and moves away.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Some wild striking there from Bicas.
Bicas shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Anufriev pinned against the cage. Anufriev gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Kiec Bicas. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Anufriev fails to land the takedown.
Anufriev throws a quick inside leg kick.
Anufriev throws a lazy head kick

and Bicas counters with a takedown into full mount! That could mean trouble for Anufriev!
Anufriev is working to get back to half guard.
Bicas raining down shots from the mount!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Anufriev is in all sorts of trouble here.

Bicas is in full mount, looking to secure a guillotine but Anufriev is surviving well by controlling Bicas's body position as best he can.
Anufriev keeping his composure momentarily, calmly looking to get back to half guard.
Anufriev is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.
Anufriev takes a big shot to the head but keeps on trying to improve his position.
Anufriev taking shots to the head.
Bicas tries to control but Anufriev wriggling away.
Anufriev wants to get back to his feet.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Bicas with a couple of short strikes.
Bicas working the ground and pound effectively.
Anufriev keeping his composure momentarily, calmly looking to get back to half guard.
Bicas 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.
Bicas cracks Anufriev with a nasty head shot there - the crowd let out an audible gasp there, as the noise reverberated around the arena.
Both fighters really going for it on the ground here!

Anufriev somehow manages to escape the mount and get back to his feet!
Bicas shoots for a takedown but Anufriev saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.

Bicas drives through with a really nice takedown into side control.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Anufriev is trying to escape and get back to his feet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kiec Bicas dominated that second round.
That's time! Back to the action! Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

A momentary lapse in concentration from Anufriev enables Bicas to shoot in and score with a neat double leg. Anufriev manages to secure a closed guard as the fighters hit the mat.
Bicas stops Anufriev from standing up.
Bicas is looking to work some ground and pound but Anufriev has wrist control.
Bicas stops Anufriev from standing up.

Bicas gets to his feet - Anufriev follows without any prompting.
A head kick misses from Anufriev.
Bicas goes for a high kick. It partially lands.
Anufriev gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily

and Bicas holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.
Anufriev gets double underhooks to prevent a takedown attempt from Bicas.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Anufriev is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Bicas is keeping busy.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Bicas tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Anufriev just stands there and leans against the cage.

Anufriev breaks the clinch.

Anufriev shoots in looking for a single leg takedown. Bicas is trying to defend but Anufriev finishes it well and ends up in half guard. Let's see if he can advance position further.
Anufriev is trying to get back to his feet now but his leg is trapped.
Bicas is pressing down on Anufriev's left leg trying to get back to full guard. He's managed it.
Anufriev throws and elbow that misses. Bicas uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Anufriev's guard. Nice move by Bicas!
Anufriev is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Bicas postures up and lands a big shot to Anufriev's brow.
Kiec Bicas overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Bicas is working Anufriev over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Anufriev wants to stand and escape but Bicas is having none of it.

Bicas drops back looking for a leg! Anufriev is in trouble here! The fighters roll with the hold and Anufriev manages to kick Bicas off! Bicas jumps back into Anufriev's guard.
Anufriev is wriggling around but Bicas manages to pass to half guard.
Bicas not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Anufriev works his way to full guard. Good work.
Anufriev is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Anufriev is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Anufriev wants to sweep but no luck.
Bicas postures up in Anufriev's guard and throws a big left but Anufriev blocks it.
Anufriev wants to stand and escape but Bicas is having none of it.
Bicas works over Anufriev with some ground and pound from guard.
Anufriev manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Bicas manages to get himself to full guard.
Anufriev has decided he wants to stand but the closed guard of Bicas is proving hard to escape from.
Anufriev won't allow Bicas to sweep him here.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.
Anufriev is pushing down on Bicas's leg trying to pass to half guard. Bicas is fighting to maintain full guard but Anufriev has managed to sneak the leg through.
Bicas regains full guard. Nicely done.
Anufriev wants to get up but he can't break Bicas's closed guard. He needs to be careful trying to break the legs open, as he's open to submissions here.
Bicas 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.
Anufriev throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Bicas works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Anufriev would like to get this fight back to the feet but can't get free from the closed guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Kiec Bicas.
I think Bicas 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 Illya Tyunina scores the fight 29:28
Judge Aleksandr Martynov scores the fight 29:28
Judge Aleksei Zolotukhin scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Kiec Bicas!