PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Hessu Hopo (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Henry Saari (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Hopo kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is Bodies. Saari has chosen Beck - Loser as his entrance music. I'm sure you'll be fascinated to know that I was talking to some pointless Z list celebrity before the fight and he thought that Henry Saari was going to win. Let's see if he was right.

Hopo
vs
Saari

200 cm
32
275 lbs
17 - 12 - 1

195 cm
30
288 lbs
14 - 13 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
World class boxer
Good gas tank

Revolution Fatigues

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 17 - 12 - 1, fighting out of Montreal, Hessu Hopo!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 14 - 13 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Henry Saari!
The judges for this bout are William Peck, Trevor Gratis and Yves DeLean.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Saari uses good footwork to get in and out and land a nice right hand before Hopo has time to react.
Hopo throws the left hand but Saari avoids the punch easily.
No luck for Hopo with that takedown attempt.
Hopo misses with a wild body shot.
Hopo uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.
Hopo shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Saari pinned against the cage. Saari gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Saari misses with a straight left.
Saari scores with a punch to the gut of his opponent.
Hopo fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
No luck for Hopo with that takedown attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Hessu Hopo. That's going to take a lot out of him.
A shot to the body from Hopo misses
and Saari counters with a two punch combo.

Hopo looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into mount! Oh, that's bad for Saari!
Saari holding onto his opponent's waist for dear life, as Hopo tries to land some strikes to get him to release his grip.

Hopo goes for an armbar but he's not got it… Saari turns into him and now he's in Hopo's guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hopo manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Saari manages to get himself to full guard.
Hopo throws an elbow that misses. Saari uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Hopo's guard. Nice move by Saari!
Saari trying to control but Hopo is working from the bottom.
Saari's corner is telling him to maintain position.
Saari really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Hopo. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Hopo lands a beautiful switch and he's in full mount! That could spell trouble for Saari!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Saari avoids a series of strikes thrown by Hopo.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Hopo is in the full mount, landing strikes.

It looks like Henry Saari has been cut.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Hopo looking to ground and pound but Saari is blocking nicely.
Saari is working to get back to half guard.
Hopo 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.

Hopo goes for an armbar but Saari turns quickly into his guard - lovely anticipation from Saari.
Hopo has a closed guard, preventing anything of note from happening. Perhaps he's looking to stall.
Hopo 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.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Hopo throws his legs up looking to secure a triangle. Oh, that looks pretty tight, I gotta say! Saari escapes and throws Hopo's legs to the side, diving into side control!
Hopo manages to get one leg in to regain half guard.
Hopo is pressing down on Saari's left leg trying to get back to full guard. He's managed it.

Hopo looking for submissions off his back, moving his hips, looking for an opening.
Hopo working a defensive guard here.
Hopo working a defensive guard but Saari passes into half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Saari is trying to control. Hopo wants to improve his position but can't escape this time.
Hopo is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Saari's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Saari's back!

Hopo is working really hard to secure the rear naked choke. Saari defends successfully for a significant amount of time. Both fighters are looking very determined.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Saari covering up well under a series of strikes from Hopo.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Hessu Hopo dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Henry Saari's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Hopo looks to land a combination. Saari sees it coming but can only parry a couple of the shots.
Saari misses with a left hand
and Hopo counters with a straight right hand.
Saari looks to score with a jab to the body but Hopo is just out of range.
Saari on the wrong end of a nice low kick. He's acting like it's no big deal but he doesn't want to take many more of those.
Hopo shoots for a double leg takedown but Saari sprawls well. He's pushed Hopo's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.

Hopo gets a clinch.
Hopo tries to pull guard but Saari won't allow it.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Saari.

Saari's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Hopo throws the kick towards the body but Saari avoids it.
Hopo ducks under a wild hook from Saari.
Saari lands with a nice body punch.

Hopo bobs and weaves into range and then changes levels and scores with a nice takedown into side control.

Hopo is looking for a kimura. He might have it! No, Saari has escaped the position, nice work there.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hopo is looking to take a break and control but Saari is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Saari is looking to regain half guard here but Hopo keeps moving and retains side control.
Hopo wants to lay and pray for a moment but Saari keeps working.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Saari sneaks back into half guard.
Hopo works his way into side control.
Saari takes an elbow right on the bridge of the nose and winces in pain.
Saari avoids any damage from the ground and pound of Hopo.
Hopo throwing strikes but Saari manages to buck up and roll into a nice reversal - now he's on top in side control!
Hopo manages to land a sweep and he's now on top! Lovely Jiu Jitsu!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hopo throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.

Hopo looking for a submission but Saari manages to get full guard, putting an end to that submission attempt.
Hopo missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Hopo trying to control but Saari is working from the bottom.
Saari preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Hopo passes Saari's right leg, so he's now in half guard.
Saari is trying to get back to full guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hopo trying to control the action but Saari is working from the bottom.
Saari is looking to control Hopo's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Saari avoid being mounted?
Hopo lands with an elbow from half guard - that looked like it hurt.
Hopo is figuring out what he wants to do next.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Hopo is just content to waste time from the top position. Saari takes advantage of the situation and regains full guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Hessu Hopo dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Henry Saari's cut.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! The crowd applaud as we get ready to start the final round!

Hopo showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Saari.
Hopo pushes forward with a 1-2 combination that forces Saari back to the cage. Hopo follows up with a solid lead hook to the liver.
Hopo misses with a takedown attempt - Saari sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Hopo misses with a looping right.
Saari looks to land a combination but Hopo avoids it well.
Hopo thows a body shot but no joy.
Hopo takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.
Hopo shoots in but no luck this time.
Hopo walks into a straight right hand from Saari.
No luck for Hopo with that takedown attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Hessu Hopo. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Hopo on the wrong end of a decent looking cross there.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Saari lands with a nice body punch.
Saari moving in and out of range nicely, whilst landing the scoring shot.
Saari lands a leg kick that knocks Hopo off balance momentarily.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hopo takes a swing at Saari's ribcage but misses.
Hopo smiles there as he lands a nice right hand right on the button.
Saari lands with a shot to the body.
Saari ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Saari throws a big shot that misses.
Hopo shoots in looking for a takedown. Saari tries to sprawl out of it but Hopo keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Saari manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Saari stooping low to avoid any incoming strikes and then lunges in with an uppercut come cross that lands flush.
Hopo takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
Hopo throws a body punch but Saari moves out of range.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Hopo scores with a body shot.
Saari throws a right hand that Hopo ducks under and follows up with a left that Hopo also avoids with ease.
Hopo is looking to wear down Saari with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Hopo dodges the punch combination from Saari.
The fighters circling - Saari throws out the jab but it was never going to land.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Saari lands a pitter patter jab to the forehead of his opponent.
Saari misses with an uppercut
and Hopo counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.
Hopo tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Saari swivels and escapes.
Saari throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Hopo.
Saari scores with a sloppy right hand. Hopo should have avoided that one.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from Hopo.
Saari misses with a jab, cross combination.
An inside leg kick lands from Hopo.
Hopo throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Henry Saari seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Hopo swings for the body but Saari moves out of range.
Hopo will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Hopo closes this distance looking for a takedown but Saari circles away.
Saari scores with a punch to the gut of his opponent.
Saari throws a two punch combo that lands nicely.
Saari connects with a lovely right hand, straight down the pipe.
Henry Saari has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Henry Saari is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Saari throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
Henry Saari seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Saari throws a big shot that misses.
Saari throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Hopo stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
Saari misses with a two punch combination.
Saari fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Hopo looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Saari takes a swing at Hopo's ribcage but misses.
Saari scores with a nice right hand.
Saari scores with a hook to the body. Hopo takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Saari throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Hopo.
Saari throws a series of punches but Hopo avoids them all with ease.
Saari looks to land a right hand but Hopo moved out of range.
Saari throws a hook but Hopo blocks it.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Hopo is defended easily by Saari.
Saari throws a right hand that Hopo ducks under and follows up with a left that Hopo also avoids with ease.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hopo shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Saari defends it nicely.
Saari slaps away a takedown attempt from Hopo, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Saari throws a shot from downtown. Hopo moves away and avoids it.
Saari buckles his opponent's knee momentarily with a nice leg kick.
Saari defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Hopo.
Saari lands a nice looking body shot.
Saari with a hook.
Hopo avoids a punch combination nicely.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Hopo on the wrong end of a decent looking cross there.
Hopo checks a low kick from Saari.

Hopo moves into the clinch successfully.

And that's the end of the fight!
Henry Saari comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Hopo 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 William Peck scores the fight 29:28
Judge Trevor Gratis scores the fight 29:28
Judge Yves DeLean scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Hessu Hopo!
A very excited looking Hessu Hopo made sure he remembered to thank all the fans both in the arena and on the internet. He said all the coolest people spend all day on MMA websites, which got a big reaction.