PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Miilo Nurkkanen (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Peter Solberg (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Nurkkanen comes to the cage accompanied by When im gone remixed by DJ Darkjuice . I don't know about you partner, but I'm pumped for this one!

Nurkkanen
vs
Solberg

190 cm
20
190 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

182 cm
19
180 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Basic striking
Cardio machine

BJJ Purple Belt
Good kicks
Determined

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 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Miilo Nurkkanen!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Peter Solberg!
The judges for this bout are Roosa Järviläinen, Marco Blurström and Ben Zyskovitsi.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Nurkkanen shoots in with a lovely double leg takedown. Solberg manages to land in full guard to minimise the damage.
Nurkkanen forces his way into half guard.
Nurkkanen is pressing down on Solberg's thigh, looking to free his foot. Solberg is holding on for now.

Nurkkanen stands up out of the half guard.
Nurkkanen shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Solberg but Solberg pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Solberg scores with a nice right hand.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Nurkkanen shoots and misses
and Solberg counters with a nice uppercut.
Nurkkanen will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Miilo Nurkkanen. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Nurkkanen with a poor takedown
and Solberg counters with a one-two to the body.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Horrible takedown attempt by Nurkkanen or perhaps it was just good defense by Solberg, which made it look bad.
Like a baseball bat into the meat of his leg there - nice leg kick by Solberg.
Peter Solberg is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Nurkkanen shoots for a double leg takedown but Solberg sprawls well. He's pushed Nurkkanen's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Nurkkanen shoots in but no luck this time.
Miilo Nurkkanen seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
A head kick misses from Solberg.
Nice straight punches there by Solberg. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Solberg.
Nurkkanen shoots in but no luck this time.
Solberg leaves Nurkkanen with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
Solberg defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Nurkkanen.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Nurkkanen tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Solberg swivels and escapes.
Nice uppercut there from Solberg.
Nurkkanen shoots for a takedown but Solberg saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Solberg throws a head kick that looked like it stung.
Nurkkanen shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Solberg defends it nicely.
The fighters circle momentarily. Solberg darts into range and connects with a nice straight punch.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Solberg goes for a high kick. It partially lands.

Nurkkanen drives through with a takedown into guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Nurkkanen is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.

Solberg working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Nurkkanen doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Nurkkanen manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Solberg looking to control but Nurkkanen passes into half guard.
Nurkkanen wants to pass to mount but Solberg is defending the position.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Nurkkanen in particular looking to stall.
Nurkkanen frees up his trapped foot and advances to mount.
Nurkkanen controlling from mount.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Nurkkanen wants to take his opponent's back but Solberg doesn't allow it.
Nurkkanen controlling his opponent.
Solberg told us pre-fight that he has been working on his escapes in training. Let's see if he can call on some of his new skills to get back to his feet.
Solberg really trying hard to get back to half guard here.
Nurkkanen controlling from mount.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Peter Solberg dominated that round.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

Nurkkanen shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Solberg counters with an inside leg kick.
Peter Solberg seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Solberg loads up on a big right hand but Nurkkanen slips the punch.
Solberg throws a head kick but Nurkkanen moves out of range.
Nurkkanen blocks a head kick by Solberg.
Solberg throws a combination. Nurkkanen tries to block but a couple of punches get through.
Solberg has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Solberg waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Nurkkanen.
Solberg throws a big shot that misses.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Nurkkanen has his takedown stuffed
and Solberg counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Nurkkanen throws a head kick but Solberg moves out of range.
Solberg fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Nurkkanen is looking for a takedown here. He's shot in and has managed to get it, finishing up in Solberg's half guard.
Miilo Nurkkanen overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Nurkkanen in particular looking to stall.
Solberg is trying to get back to full guard.
Solberg wants to control but Nurkkanen is keeping busy.
Nurkkanen works his way into full mount!
Nurkkanen controlling the position easily from mount.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Solberg wants to hold on but Nurkkanen pushes him away.
We've been hearing good reports from Nurkkanen's training camp. Apparently he has been rolling around with some good quality BJJ practitioners and has been sharpening his skills. Let's see if that has an impact on the fight today.
Nurkkanen sitting in mount, just looking to control for the moment.
Solberg tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Nurkkanen controlling his opponent.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Nurkkanen is trying to take his opponent's back.
Solberg regains half guard.
Solberg trying to control here but he's found himself mounted! Oh no!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Nurkkanen looking to control and managing it successfully.
Solberg is desperately trying to get back to half guard.
Nurkkanen is dominating on the ground here - he's now on his opponent's back, looking to sink in the hooks. Solberg is in real trouble.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Nurkkanen controlling the position well here. Solberg rolled but Nurkkanen kept the hooks locked in and stayed in the dominant position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Miilo Nurkkanen dominated that second round.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action. This is the final round!

Nurkkanen shoots in but Solberg avoids the takedown attempt easily.

A momentary lapse in concentration from Solberg enables Nurkkanen to shoot in and score with a neat double leg. Solberg manages to secure a closed guard as the fighters hit the mat.
Nurkkanen's corner is telling him to maintain position.

Nurkkanen stands and steps away. Solberg gets to his feet too and we're back to the striking game.
Nurkkanen fails with a takedown attempt.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Nurkkanen takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Nurkkanen closes this distance looking for a takedown but Solberg circles away.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Miilo Nurkkanen. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Nurkkanen doesn't succeed with the takedown
and Solberg counters with a one-two to the body.

Nurkkanen gets a takedown into half guard.
Solberg is looking to get back to is feet but Nurkkanen passes into side control.
Nurkkanen in side control, just content to control the action for now.
Solberg is trying to get back to half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Nurkkanen advances nicely into full mount.

Nurkkanen working for a submission but Solberg is keeping him at bay.

Nurkkanen stands up from the dominant position. He obviously fancies his chances standing.
Nurkkanen tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Solberg swivels and escapes.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Nurkkanen shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Solberg connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.

Excellent takedown into side control there by Nurkkanen.
Nurkkanen tries to move into full mount but can't pass Solberg's legs.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Solberg is looking to reverse the position.
A lull in the action here as Nurkkanen stalls from top position.
Solberg manages to get one leg in to regain half guard.
Nurkkanen performing his best blanket impression for a moment.
Nurkkanen has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
Solberg trying to control from the bottom.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.
Solberg wants to improve his position but Nurkkanen is controlling well.
Nurkkanen with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.
This is a sustained period of stalling by Nurkkanen.
Solberg won't allow Nurkkanen to pass to mount.
We've had a lack of effective grappling in the last minute or so, which could well see a referee standup.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Nurkkanen passes the guard and advances to mount!
Nurkkanen takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.

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 Miilo Nurkkanen.
I think Nurkkanen 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 Roosa Järviläinen scores the fight 29:29
Judge Marco Blurström scores the fight 28:29
Judge Ben Zyskovitsi scores the fight 29:28

The fight is ruled a draw!