PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Thoth Chontamenti (ranked 1110 p4p, 727 weight class) and Boris Balkan (ranked 166 p4p, 113 weight class). Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Chontamenti
vs
Balkan

204 cm
28
275
14 - 6 - 0

207 cm
27
260
9 - 8 - 1

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Cardio machine

Excellent grappler
World class MT
Good gas tank

Voodoo Nutrition

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 14 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Thoth Chontamenti!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 9 - 8 - 1, fighting out of Amsterdam, Boris Balkan!
The judges for this bout are Shigeki Fujiwara, Yasuomi Hirokawa and Hirohito Nitta.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Chontamenti slips under a jab from Balkan.
It looked like Chontamenti wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Balkan looks to land a left hand but Chontamenti moved out of range nicely.
Chontamenti tries to counter with a takedown but Balkan is quick to defend against it.
Balkan lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as Chontamenti backs up against the cage.
An inside leg kick from Chontamenti misses.
Balkan misses with an uppercut.
Chontamenti misses with a straight right.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Balkan! But no joy.
Balkan misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Chontamenti.
A lazy left from Balkan finds it's target.
Balkan shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Chontamenti defends it nicely.
Chontamenti blocks a jab.
We can't be sure of the tactics at this early stage but we have heard that Balkan has been working on his takedowns a lot in the buildup to the fight and we can only assume he's going to look to take this to the mat.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Chontamenti misses with a straight right.
Balkan now looks to counter with a shot at the body.
Chontamenti looks shocked there as he takes a right hand to the temple.
Boris Balkan seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Balkan scores with a hook.
Balkan ducks under a wild hook from Chontamenti.
A punch combination from Balkan misses.
An attempted straight right counter from Chontamenti misses the target.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
A telegraphed right hand from Balkan misses the target.
Chontamenti is looking to counter punch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Chontamenti misses with a low kick.
Chontamenti moves forwards but Balkan connects with a nice, crisp jab.
Balkan ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Balkan throws a body shot but no joy.
Chontamenti drops his hands momentarily and Balkan takes advantage with a crisp shot to the head.
Balkan throws a big shot that misses.
Chontamenti feinted there with a counter leg kick.
Chontamenti on the wrong end of a nice hook.
Balkan scores with a hook to the body. Chontamenti takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
Balkan misses with an uppercut. Chontamenti saw that one coming.
A quick step to the side and Chontamenti tries to counter with a shot to the body but it doesn't connect.
Balkan connects with a right hand. Chontamenti shakes it off.
Chontamenti walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Balkan checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Chontamenti has been working on his boxing with his coaches at The Rubber Guard Emporium in the buildup to the fight.
Good shot there by Chontamenti.

It looks like Boris Balkan has been cut.
Balkan might want to mix his strikes up a bit more. He's just going for head shots at the moment and that can become a bit predictable.
Balkan loads up on a big right hand but Chontamenti slips the punch.
A slow jab from Balkan misses its intended target.
Chontamenti throws a shot from downtown. Balkan moves away and avoids it.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Balkan fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Chontamenti looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Balkan looks for a takedown but Chontamenti sprawls well.
Balkan throws a hook but Chontamenti avoids it easily.

Chontamenti shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Chontamenti showed some decent athleticism there.
Balkan wants to improve his position but Chontamenti is controlling well.
Chontamenti stalling.
Balkan is trying to get back to full guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Chontamenti trying to control the action but Balkan is working from the bottom.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Balkan works his way to full guard. Good work.
Chontamenti is fighting to break Balkan's control of his arms but Balkan is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.
Chontamenti passes into half guard.

Chontamenti is working for submissions here but there's nothing on.
Chontamenti is keen to just control but Balkan is a slippery customer.
Balkan is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.

Chontamenti wants to work for an arm triangle but Balkan is really keeping half guard well and defending the submission attempt.

That's four 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.
Balkan wants to control but Chontamenti is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Chontamenti stalling away here and it's allowed Balkan to slip out his trapped foot and regain full guard.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Balkan has a closed guard, preventing anything of note from happening. Perhaps he's looking to stall.
Chontamenti trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Balkan trying to control the position.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.
Chontamenti trying to control the position from guard on top but Balkan is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Balkan slips under a jab.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Boris Balkan dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Boris Balkan's cut.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Balkan displaying good standup as he scores with a three punch combination.
Balkan misses with a few strikes there.
Balkan connects with a nice looking jab.
Chontamenti misses the shot to the body.
Balkan checks the leg kick.
Balkan connects with a right hand. Chontamenti shakes it off.
Balkan throws a hook but Chontamenti avoids it easily.
Chontamenti slips in close and lands a nice hook before moving back out of range.
Balkan scores with a punch to the head.
Balkan wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
Balkan uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Chontamenti.
Chontamenti takes a step towards his opponent and connects with a left hand, before circling away.
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!
The fighters circling - Chontamenti throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Balkan misses with a hook.
Balkan looks frustrated there after his takedown attempt is stuffed easily.
Chontamenti uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Balkan.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Balkan throws an off balance right hand
and Chontamenti counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Chontamenti throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Chontamenti thows a left - swing and a miss!
Balkan swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Balkan jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Chontamenti fires out a quick counter leg kick but Balkan just manages to avoid it.
Chontamenti's hands are dropping dangerously low here and Balkan connects clean with a right hook that sends him down to one knee! Chontamenti scrambles back to his feet.
Balkan lands a glancing blow to the side of Chontamenti's head.
Balkan thows a left - swing and a miss!
Chontamenti half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Nice jab there from Balkan.
Balkan's corner calls for a 1, 2 combination and Balkan duly obliges.
Balkan scores with a hook.
Chontamenti on the wrong end of a nice jab.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Balkan tests Chontamenti's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Jab, jab by Balkan - just one landing.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The fighters circling - Chontamenti throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Balkan throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Chontamenti counters with a straight right hand.
Balkan misses with a hook. Chontamenti ducked under it nicely.
A left and a right from Balkan both land. Nice combination.
Balkan lands with a good body shot.
Balkan connects with a hook to the side of his opponent's head.
Chontamenti ducks under a wild hook from Balkan.
Balkan scores with a nice strike.
Chontamenti misses with a leg kick.
Chontamenti looks frustrated there after his takedown attempt is stuffed easily.
Chontamenti closes the distance and takes a jab right on the nose as he does so.
Balkan pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Chontamenti drops down looking for a counter takedown but Balkan sprawls and moves away.
A telegraphed right hand from Balkan misses the target.
It looked like Chontamenti wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Balkan throws a hook but Chontamenti blocks it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Chontamenti bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
A slow jab from Balkan misses its intended target.
Chontamenti swung with a counter punch to the body but it didn't connect.
Balkan has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Sloppy strikes from Balkan. Those never looked like landing.
Chontamenti was looking to counter that last move with a shot to the body but he didn't commit.
Chontamenti scores with the left hand. Balkan knows he should have avoided that one.

That has opened up Boris Balkan's cut even more.
Balkan misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Chontamenti.
Chontamenti takes a swing at Balkan's ribcage but misses.
Chontamenti throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Balkan missing with a left hand there. Chontamenti was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Chontamenti waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Balkan.
Chontamenti tries for a takedown but Balkan sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.
Chontamenti displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Balkan throws out the jab.
Balkan lands a straight punch to the body, keeping Chontamenti at a distance.
Chontamenti slips a straight right by Balkan.
Balkan with a body punch. A glancing blow.
Balkan dips to his left and cracks Chontamenti with an uppercut!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A swing and a miss from Balkan.
Balkan throws an ugly left hook that misses
enabling Chontamenti to counter with a crisp jab.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.

Balkan decides to change it up a bit and drives through with a nice takedown into half guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Chontamenti is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Balkan's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Balkan's back!
Chontamenti gets his hands free as Balkan looks to control.
Balkan rolls, trying to escape but Chontamenti keeps control of the position.
Chontamenti is trying to control but Balkan is trying to escape here - he's now mounted.

Chontamenti has control of Balkan's right arm, working for a kimura. It's a bit of a token attempt though and Balkan regains control of the situation pretty easily.
Balkan is wriggling around trying to escape.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Boris Balkan showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Boris Balkan's cut.
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!

Chontamenti displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Balkan throws out the jab.
Balkan misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Balkan throws a hook to the side of Chontamenti's head but Chontamenti sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
Boris Balkan seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Nice uppercut there from Balkan.
Balkan throws a shot from downtown. Chontamenti moves away and avoids it.
Chontamenti ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Chontamenti went nuts there looking for a big combo counter but none of the flurry connected.
Chontamenti takes a jab right on the kisser.
Balkan throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Chontamenti moves out of range of the strikes.
Balkan slips a jab from Chontamenti.
Chontamenti misses with a straight right.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Chontamenti lands a really nice looking cross but Balkan seems unphased.
Chontamenti throws a low kick but Balkan moves out of range easily.
Balkan lands with a straight right. Chontamenti didn't see that one coming.
Balkan scores with a big left there. The judges will like that one.
Balkan misses with an uppercut.
Chontamenti looks like he's developed a pretty tasty lump over his left eye. He'll need to avoid taking much more damage to that.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Balkan misses with a straight right.
Chontamenti swung with a counter punch to the body but it didn't connect.
Chontamenti slips a jab from Balkan.
Chontamenti steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Balkan.
An attempted straight right counter from Chontamenti misses the target.
Balkan throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Chontamenti sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Chontamenti is trying hard to land a takedown here. Balkan sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Balkan scores with a nice strike.
Balkan throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Chontamenti throws an overhand right that lands on Balkan's shoulder, as Balkan tries to avoid the shot.
Balkan moving in and out of range nicely, whilst landing the scoring shot.
Chontamenti avoids the body shot from Balkan.
Chontamenti slips under a jab from Balkan.
Balkan throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Chontamenti cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Balkan throws a body shot but no joy.
Balkan darts in and out, connecting with a jab.
Chontamenti is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Balkan.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Chontamenti moves out of range of the strikes.
Balkan thows a left - swing and a miss!
Balkan cracks Chontamenti with a right hand to the side of the head.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Nice jab there from Balkan.
Balkan connects with a looping right hand.
Chontamenti slips under a jab.
Chontamenti fails with a takedown attempt.
Chontamenti blocks a jab.
Chontamenti tries to move into range but Balkan moves to the side and lands with a nice right hand.
Chontamenti staying out of range there.
Chontamenti swung with a counter punch to the body but it didn't connect.
Chontamenti showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Balkan.
Chontamenti misses with an uppercut.
Boris Balkan is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Balkan cracks Chontamenti with a good jab.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Chontamenti throws a body shot but no joy.
Balkan wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
Balkan swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Balkan throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Balkan lands a pitter patter jab to the forehead of his opponent.
Balkan throws a right and a left that both miss.
Balkan connects with a hook to the side of his opponent's head.
Balkan uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Chontamenti.
Balkan just misses with a punch to the body.
An attempted straight right counter from Chontamenti misses the target.
Balkan fakes low and throws an overhand right that catches Chontamenti on the side of the head.
Chontamenti uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Balkan.
Balkan uses good footwork to get in and out and land a nice right hand before Chontamenti has time to react.
A jab from Balkan misses.
Balkan misses with a wild combination.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Balkan throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
A big right from Chontamenti misses.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!

Balkan drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.

Chontamenti working for a triangle but Balkan defends it easily.
Balkan is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.

Chontamenti has his foot on Balkan's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Balkan works his way back into a safe position though.
Thoth Chontamenti has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Balkan slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.

Chontamenti had isolated an arm as going for a kimura. Balkan defends it easily.

And that's the end of the fight!
Boris Balkan comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Balkan has outworked and out performed his opponent in all aspects of the game today. He was simply too good and the decision should be no more than a formality. 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 Shigeki Fujiwara scores the fight 27:30
Judge Yasuomi Hirokawa scores the fight 27:30
Judge Hirohito Nitta scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Boris Balkan!
Boris Balkan seemed lost for words in his post fight interview but he remembered to thank his fans and directed everyone to his website.