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PBP Commentary |
Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Akseli Suokuokka (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Paul Harris (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Suokuokka's entrance music is The Bags - Cavemen Rejoice. A fine choice. Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!
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| 189 cm
40
255 lbs
21 - 23 - 4 |
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180 cm
33
225 lbs
15 - 15 - 0 |
Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Cardio machine |
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Olympic wrestler
Lethal high kicks
Granite chin |
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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
21 - 23 - 4, fighting out of Sydney, Akseli Suokuokka!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of
15 - 15 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Paul Harris!
The judges for this bout are Winston Howard, Topper Green and Chris Dean.
The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Suokuokka tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Harris with the counter takedown but Suokuokka avoids it easily.
Suokuokka clinches with his opponent.
I was talking to Suokuokka's coach per-fight and he was telling me that they'd been working on the clinch in the runup to this fight.
The referee calls for Suokuokka to work.
Harris has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Suokuokka is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
Harris is trying to drag Suokuokka to the mat but Suokuokka just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
Harris wants to break free but Suokuokka has control.
Harris can't get the takedown.
Akseli Suokuokka has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Paul Harris.
Harris wants a takedown but no success here.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Harris wants to get back to striking at distance but Suokuokka won't allow it.
Suokuokka taking a break, stalling in the clinch.
Harris drops down for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Suokuokka stops a takedown attempt from Harris.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Suokuokka wants the takedown. Harris is fighting it off but Suokuokka persists and manages to bring the fight to the ground, ending up in Harris's guard against the cage.
Harris is looking for a triangle but Suokuokka pushes his legs off easily.
Suokuokka working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Suokuokka stays in close to Harris's body and controls the position.
Harris is trying to control the position but Suokuokka postures up.
Suokuokka wants to control from the top but Harris keeps moving.
Suokuokka not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Suokuokka got a little sloppy there for a moment and Harris has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Suokuokka has managed to get both his arms back between Harris's legs - danger averted.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Suokuokka controlling from the top position.
Suokuokka preventing the sweep.
Harris is trying to control the position but Suokuokka postures up.
Suokuokka controls the pace of the fight for a moment.
It looks like the ref is thinking about a standup.
Harris is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Suokuokka defends well.
Suokuokka distracts Harris with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Harris working a defensive guard here.
Harris has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but Suokuokka can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Harris isolates an arm and boxes in a triangle. Suokuokka stacks Harris 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 Suokuokka!
Suokuokka wants to control but Harris is keeping him busy.
Harris on the wrong end of some ground and pound.
You can see the frustration on Harris's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Harris tries to bench press Suokuokka off him but Suokuokka keeps the position.
Suokuokka is looking to take a break and control but Harris is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Harris is trying to improve his position.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Suokuokka creates a bit of distance and throws down some hard shots.
Harris can't do much from the bottom here.
The referee tells the fighters to keep busy.
Suokuokka wants to control but Harris is keeping him busy.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
You can see the frustration on Harris's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Harris taking punishment in the form of punches.
Harris is being controlled here.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Harris struggling a bit here.
Suokuokka wants to lay and pray for a moment but Harris keeps working.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
Akseli Suokuokka dominated that round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!
Suokuokka gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
Suokuokka is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Harris can do to turn this around?
Suokuokka pulls Harris into guard.
Suokuokka working a defensive guard but Harris passes into half guard.
Suokuokka avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Harris.
Harris is trying a forearm choke… I don't think that's going to do much at this level of the game.
Harris is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Harris is working for a kimura but Suokuokka is defending it quite comfortably.
Harris seems to be working for a kimura but Suokuokka defends the submission attempt.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Suokuokka has managed to escape just enough to sneak back to his feet but Harris is on him like a limpet, forcing Suokuokka back against the cage.
Suokuokka escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Suokuokka fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
The fight stays on the outside here - Suokuokka looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
It seemed like Harris was going to counter with the hook but didn't fully commit to it.
Suokuokka misses with a wild combination.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Harris loads up on a big right hand but Suokuokka slips the punch.
Suokuokka rushes Harris and pushes him back against the cage in a clinch.
Harris wants a takedown.
Harris has Suokuokka pressed up against the cage and is working for takedown. Suokuokka manages to improve position though and keeps the fight standing.
Harris wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Harris wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Suokuokka has him pressed against the cage.
Suokuokka lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Harris backwards.
Suokuokka prevents a takedown attempt there.
Akseli Suokuokka has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Paul Harris.
Suokuokka is pressed up against the cage. Harris has hold of a leg and is looking to drag Suokuokka down to the mat. Suokuokka avoids the attempt though and has circled away. We're back to striking at a distance.
Suokuokka fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Harris avoids it really well and circles away.
Suokuokka takes a shot right to the bread basket.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Suokuokka drives through and clinches with Harris against the cage.
Harris wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Suokuokka has him pressed against the cage.
Harris tries for a takedown but Suokuokka manages to get underhooks.
Harris breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Suokuokka closes the distance looking to clinch
and Harris counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
Suokuokka manages to create a bit of space in order to work his way back to his feet. Harris keeps hold of his opponent and drives him back against the cage.
Suokuokka has picked Harris up - he's going for a ride! Suokuokka dumps his opponent to the mat with a thud and settles into half guard.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Harris is refusing to be controlled, as Suokuokka sits in half guard.
Suokuokka landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Akseli Suokuokka overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Well, if Suokuokka is going to just lie there, perhaps we should talk about what we're having for dinner tonight… I'm having a ham and pineapple pizza… Yum. Can't wait.
Suokuokka trying to control from half guard but Harris is working away.
Suokuokka looks over to his corner - he wants some instructions but his corner are not responding.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Harris wants to get back to full guard.
Suokuokka looking for a kimura but he'll have to free his other leg if he wants to finish that. Perhaps he's just using it as a distraction technique.
Suokuokka thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
Akseli Suokuokka dominated that second round.
That's time! Back to the action! This is the final round!
Harris tries to keep at a distance but Suokuokka has taken the fight into the clinch.
Harris escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Harris swats away the attempt to clinch by Suokuokka.
Harris throws a body punch but Suokuokka moves out of range.
The fight moves into the clinch position.
Harris pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Harris circles away from the clinch attempt.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Harris swats away the attempt to clinch by Suokuokka.
Suokuokka looks to clinch
and Harris counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Harris.
Suokuokka pulls Harris in to control the position.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Harris wants to control from the top but Suokuokka keeps moving.
Suokuokka has control of Harris's left arm, preventing Harris from doing any damage.
Harris working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Harris trying to control the position from guard on top but Suokuokka is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Harris works over Suokuokka with some ground and pound from guard.
Harris tries to stand but Suokuokka is controlling from the bottom.
Harris wants to pass the guard but Suokuokka is keeping the position.
Suokuokka is trying to keep Harris in close.
Akseli Suokuokka is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
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.
Harris drops back, looking for a kneebar! Suokuokka looks panicked! The fighters roll across the mat, one looking to finish, one looking to escape. Suokuokka looks to have wriggled free... Yes, he's got his leg free and he's dived into side control! Good work there from Suokuokka!
A lull in the action here as Suokuokka stalls from top position.
Suokuokka's ground tactics aren't going to win him many fans. Let's hope he's got fireworks for us if he gets back to his feet because he's not doing much on the ground.
Harris is looking for a sweep.
Harris striking from the bottom but nothing landed.
Harris is trying to escape the position but Suokuokka is controlling the position.
Harris tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Suokuokka is looking to take a break and control but Harris is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Harris tries to improve position but can't.
Harris is trying to work for a sweep but Suokuokka has mounted him!
Suokuokka controlling his opponent.
Suokuokka wants to control the pace but Harris is squirming around nicely.
Suokuokka looking to control and managing it successfully.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Suokuokka avoids the attempt from Harris to control.
Paul Harris has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Suokuokka content just to control the position here.
Harris is working to get back to half guard.
Suokuokka controlling his opponent.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Suokuokka seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Harris for as long as he can get away with.
Suokuokka continues to stall.
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 Akseli Suokuokka.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Suokuokka, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 Winston Howard scores the fight 30:27
Judge Topper Green scores the fight 30:27
Judge Chris Dean scores the fight 30:27
In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Akseli Suokuokka!
Akseli Suokuokka decided to thank the fans in attendance for making a great atmosphere. It seemed to go down pretty well.
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| S |
C
A |
G |
S |
C
B |
G |
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S |
C |
G |
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energy
A | B |
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hype
A | B |
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pop
A | B |
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mgr
A | B |
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FIGHT
RATING
29% |
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