PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Anton Chekhov (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Pelle Hermano (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Chekhov comes to the cage accompanied by КАТЮШA. Hermano is bouncing up and down as he enters the arena, backed by Deadhead. Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Chekhov
vs
Hermano

169 cm
36
142 lbs
40 - 16 - 2

150 cm
32
148 lbs
23 - 10 - 1

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Insanely flexible

Excellent grappler
World class boxer
Good gas tank

KAISER Nutrition - Q160/$250
Hellbent

Sully's Bar & Grill
Bullet Proof System

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 40 - 16 - 2, fighting out of Los Angeles, Anton Chekhov!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 23 - 10 - 1, fighting out of Amsterdam, Pelle Hermano!
The judges for this bout are James Ackerman, Richard Clark and James Glass.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Hermano shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in side control! That's better than Hermano was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!
Chekhov is positioning himself to get back to half guard.
Hermano grinds an elbow into Chekhov's temple.
Hermano is maintaining the dominant position - no doubt Chekhov will start to get frustrated soon if he's not already.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Hermano throws a knee to the body but it doesn't do much damage.
In the pre-fight buildup videos we saw Hermano working his ground and pound in the gym.

Hermano is trying to land an Americana. He has the arm isolated but Chekhov is keeping cool and he's avoided the danger for now.
Hermano grinds an elbow into Chekhov's temple.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Chekhov tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Hermano sitting in side control, looking to soften his opponent up with elbows and hammerfists but Chekhov is avoiding damage well and looking to escape the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hermano misses with a strike but at least he's keeping busy, looking to cause some damage - that will still help him when it comes to the judges scorecards.
You can see the frustration on Chekhov's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Chekhov is in a bad position, trying to hold on for dear life but he is really struggling to maintain any sort of control.
Chekhov takes an elbow right on the bridge of the nose and winces in pain.
Hermano lands a nice forearm strike.
Chekhov managing to avoid any damage from the strikes thrown by Hermano.
Chekhov has been talking about how he's improved his wrestling in the run up to the fight so let's see if that's enough to sway the balance.
Hermano has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
Chekhov is trying to control Hermano's posture but Hermano avoids it.
Hermano is chipping away with strikes.
Chekhov tries to work a leg under to get back to half guard but Hermano wriggles his own leg back out and remains in side control.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hermano misses with the ground and pound.
A control attempt from Chekhov but he's now mounted!
Hermano throwing sloppy strikes here. Perhaps if he tightened up his striking from such a dominant position, he'd be able to finish easier.
Hermano working away from the top, dropping strikes.
Hermano misses with a series of strikes from mount. He'll no doubt be working on his ground and pound when he gets back to the gym.
Chekhov is in all sorts of trouble here.
Chekhov regains half guard.
Hermano missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Chekhov is looking to control Hermano's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Chekhov avoid being mounted?
Hermano working Chekhov over with strikes.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Chekhov is looking for a sweep. Hermano is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Hermano takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Chekhov is looking to control Hermano's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Chekhov avoid being mounted?
Chekhov avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Hermano.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Chekhov is looking for a sweep. Hermano is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Hermano scores with a couple of good hammerfists.
Hermano thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Chekhov tries to roll over but Hermano keeps him under control.
Chekhov taking some punishment here, with Hermano in his half guard.
Chekhov is looking to improve his position.
Hermano working over Chekhov with some ground and pound. Chekhov looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Hermano is looking for a kimura but Chekhov is holding onto that half guard position, so it's hard for Hermano to get the leverage.
Hermano not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Chekhov wants to improve his position but Hermano is controlling well.
Hermano working over Chekhov with some ground and pound. Chekhov looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Chekhov has hold of Hermano's hands but Hermano slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Chekhov tries to get to full guard but Hermano has control of the leg.
Chekhov preventing any damage for now, controlling his opponent's head.

Hermano wants to work for an arm triangle but Chekhov is really keeping half guard well and defending the submission attempt.
Chekhov is looking to improve his position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Pelle Hermano dominated that round.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action.

Chekhov punishes Hermano's body with a nice straight punch.
Hermano has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Hermano throws a jab when Chekhov was well out of range.
Chekhov with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Chekhov swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Hermano.
Chekhov connects with a body shot.
Hermano tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Chekhov looks to land a right hand but Hermano moved out of range.
Hermano uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Chekhov.
Hermano tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Chekhov paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Hermano misses with a wild body shot.
Chekhov ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Hermano moves away.
Hermano pushes Chekhov away with a front kick.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Chekhov ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Hermano moves away.
Hermano is definitely looking for the counter takedowns here.
Chekhov looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Chekhov throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Hermano now looks to counter with a shot at the body.
Chekhov scores with a nice body kick.
Chekhov connects with an inside leg kick.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Hermano swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Hermano connects with an inside leg kick.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Chekhov moves out of range as Hermano strikes.
Donk. Chekhov catches Hermano right on the button with a cross.
Chekhov tries to land a leg kick but Hermano saw it coming and moves away.
Hermano unleashes a big counter combination but Chekhov bobs and weaves and avoids any damage.
Anton Chekhov is winning the standup battle so far.
Hermano fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Hermano needs to keep his hands up - Chekhov had a free shot at his head there.
Chekhov throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Anton Chekhov is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Hermano scores with a kick to the body.
Chekhov misses with a hook.
Chekhov misses with a leg kick.
Nice shot by Chekhov.
Hermano misses with an uppercut. Chekhov saw that one coming.
Chekhov feints with a shoulder and throws a nice leg kick to Hermano's calf.
Nice takedown defense from Chekhov. No joy for Hermano on that attempt.
Chekhov scores with a jab to the body.
Chekhov misses with a wild body shot.
Chekhov shakes his hands off, looking to compose himself, but takes a jab to the jaw whilst he does it.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Hermano misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Chekhov lands with a thumping leg kick.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Chekhov throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Chekhov wants to slow Hermano down by chopping away at his legs.
Hermano avoids a low kick by using good footwork.
Chekhov wants to land a leg kick but Hermano is out of range.
Chekhov is using his height advantage well here, landing a good percentage of his punches.
Hermano throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Hermano on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
A good leg kick by Chekhov.
Hermano throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Hermano misses with a low kick.
Nice defenses there by Chekhov.
Hermano moves away from the strike by Chekhov.
And Hermano tries to counter it with a takedown but Chekhov pushes his down on his head and steps out.
Hermano throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Hermano is really struggling to land any decent head shots against his taller opponent.
Chekhov throws a body punch but Hermano moves out of range.
Chekhov is looking to wear down Hermano with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Chekhov uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Hermano.
Chekhov just misses with a punch to the body.
Hermano moves out of range of the strikes.
Chekhov slips a jab and a cross from Hermano.
Chekhov scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
Chekhov lands a nice leg kick that just misses Hermano's sensitive parts.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hermano misses the shot to the body.
Chekhov is using his reach advantage well here, landing the more effective single shots from range.
Hermano looks to throw the jab but Chekhov is out of range.
Chekhov scores with a straight right hand, right through his opponent's guard.
Chekhov just misses with a punch to the body.
Chekhov punishes Hermano's body with a nice straight punch.
Hermano cracks Chekhov with a right hand to the side of the head.
Hermano avoids the body shot from Chekhov.
Jab from Hermano.
Hermano uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Chekhov.
Hermano scores with a nice looking left hook and follows it up with an uppercut!
Hermano fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Chekhov looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Anton Chekhov seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Chekhov throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Hermano throws a decent looking leg kick but it doesn't land clean.
Hermano's leg has a nasty welt from taking a succession of leg kicks. That must be slowing him down.
A telegraphed right hand from Hermano misses the target.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Hermano dives in and grabs Chekhov's left leg, looking for a takedown. Chekhov pushes down on Hermano's head and hops out.
It looked like Chekhov wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Chekhov ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Hermano moves away.
Chekhov misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Hermano.
Chekhov swings and misses with a hook to the body.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hermano misses with a body shot.
Chekhov throws a chopping leg kick but Hermano manages to avoid taking any serious damage.
Hermano throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Chekhov thumps Hermano with a low kick.
Hermano throws a push kick but Chekhov slaps the foot to one side.
Chekhov cracks Hermano with a good jab.
Good standup being displayed there by Chekhov as he connects with a hook.
Hermano is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Chekhov.
Chekhov misses with a low kick.
Hermano looks shocked there as he takes a right hand to the temple.
Hermano throws out a loose jab but Chekhov uses good head movement to avoid it.
Hermano tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Chekhov paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Hermano displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Chekhov throws out the jab.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Chekhov throws a jab when Hermano was well out of range.
Hermano feints the counter takedown.
Chekhov misses with a body shot.
Good shot there by Chekhov.
Hermano keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Chekhov scores with the left hand. Hermano knows he should have avoided that one.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Anton Chekhov dominated that second round.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! This is the final round!

Hermano missing with a left hand there. Chekhov was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Chekhov jinks towards his opponent looking like he wants to counter with a mid kick but doesn't commit.
Ouch! a nice leg kick from Chekhov, right into the meat.
Oooooooooooh, not good. A low kick from Hermano lands where it shouldn't have, right in the... well, you know what he did? He kicked him in the penis. He's injured, injured bad. The referee sends both fighters to their corners and Chekhov has 5 minutes to recover. He's OK now though... a thumbs up from Chekhov and we're back underway with a touch of gloves.
Hermano takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
Chekhov bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
And Chekhov counters with a quick kick to the body but Hermano blocks it.
Hermano does a little shimmy and throws a leg kick. The leg kick missed by a considerable margin though, making him look a little bit silly for doing the shimmy.
Chekhov misses with a looping right.
A nice side step and Hermano releases a counter shot to the body, but it doesn't find it's home.
Chekhov throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Hermano sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Hermano connects with a right hand. Chekhov shakes it off.
Hermano on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Chekhov. Chekhov obviously looking to wear him down.
A clash of legs there as Chekhov blocks the low kick.
Hermano lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.
Chekhov feints a straight left to the body, then turns around with a flashy move and hits Hermanos jaw with a dramatic spinning back fist!
Chekhov misses with an uppercut.
Chekhov checks a low kick. Bone on bone - not my idea of a good time.
An attempted straight right counter from Chekhov misses the target.
Chekhov connects with a single shot there.
Hermano avoids the body shot from Chekhov.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Chekhov takes a body punch but keeps moving.
Hermano is looking to clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hermano throws a series of punches but Chekhov avoids them all with ease.
Chekhov scores with a kick to the body.
Chekhov lands with a good body shot.
Hermano takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.
Chekhov throws a leg kick but Hermano checks it.
Chekhov throws a low kick but it's checked well by Hermano.
Chekhov throws a low kick but Hermano moves out of range easily.
Hermano with the counter takedown but Chekhov avoids it easily.
Chekhov ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Chekhov misses with a body shot.
Hermano slips under a jab from Chekhov.
Chekhov moves out of range of the strikes.
Chekhov slips a jab from Hermano.
Chekhov throws a body kick that sends a sickening thudding noise reverberating around the arena.
Hermano takes a body kick right on the floating rib. Ouchie.
Hermano lunges at Chekhov with a hook that half lands and is half blocked by Chekhov's hand.
Hermano walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.
This has been an exciting period of action!
A swing and a miss from Chekhov.
Chekhov is looking to land body kicks.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hermano throws a low kick but Chekhov moves out of range easily.
Chekhov throws a body shot but no joy.
Chekhov slips under a jab.
Chekhov displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Hermano throws out the jab.
Hermano moving in and out of range nicely, whilst landing the scoring shot.
Hermano displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Chekhov throws out the jab.
Hermano tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Chekhov was well out of range. Poor timing from Hermano.
Chekhov throws a looping overhand right but Hermano ducks down to avoid it.
Chekhov looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Chekhov throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Despite the aggression on Hermano's face he doesn't fully commit to the counter.
Hermano blocks a jab.
Hermano lands a jab to Chekhov's midsection.
Hermano shoots in looking for a takedown but Chekhov manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Hermano's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Chekhov blocks a jab.
Chekhov thumps Hermano with a low kick.
Hermano throws a low kick but his opponent is out of range.
Hermano chopped to the floor by a nice leg kick but he springs right back up before Chekhov can pounce on him.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hermano takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Hermano misses the shot to the body.
A jab lands there for Hermano.
Chekhov throws a nice outside leg kick.
Hermano ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Chekhov slips a jab and a cross from Hermano.
Hermano takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Chekhov swings for the body but Hermano moves out of range.
Hermano lands an overhand right.
Chekhov buckles his opponent's knee momentarily with a nice leg kick.
Chekhov bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Chekhov takes one on the chin but seems OK.
Hermano motions for Chekhov to come forward. Hermano throws a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Chekhov lands with a kick to the ribs.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.

Hermano shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.
Chekhov manages to get to full guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Chekhov is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
Hermano throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Chekhov works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Chekhov trying to control the position.
Hermano trying to control but Chekhov is working from the bottom.
Chekhov avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Chekhov will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Hermano postures up.

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 Anton Chekhov.
I think Chekhov 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 James Ackerman scores the fight 29:28
Judge Richard Clark scores the fight 29:28
Judge James Glass scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Anton Chekhov!
Our winner, Anton Chekhov, made sure he spent some time buttering up the crowd during his post fight interview, which will no doubt bring him a few more fans.