PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Mitch Bellard (ranked 3991 p4p, 4903 weight class) and Peter Petrov (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). This should be a great matchup!

Bellard
vs
Petrov

152 cm
26
140
5 - 2 - 0

178 cm
39
140
24 - 19 - 1

Good takedowns
Basic striking
Experienced

Good wrestler
Basic striking
Determined

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 5 - 2 - 0, fighting out of St Petersburg, Mitch Bellard!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 24 - 19 - 1, fighting out of St Petersburg, Peter Petrov!
The judges for this bout are Ivan Kurochkin, Vladimir Khabensky and Viktor Lagutenko.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Bellard uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Petrov.
Petrov with a nice cross.
A telegraphed right hand from Petrov misses the target.
No luck for Bellard with that takedown attempt.
A combination from Petrov does no damage.
Bellard changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.

Bellard looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into side control! Oh, that's bad for Petrov!
Bellard trying to control the action but Petrov is working from the bottom.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Petrov tries to improve position but can't.
You can see the frustration on Petrov's face, being in this tough position on the bottom.
Petrov is moving his hips around well on the bottom and has managed to get back to half guard.
Bellard thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Petrov moves into full guard.

Petrov is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Bellard defends well.

Bellard is trying to work a guillotine from the top, or something like that? Don't know how he thinks he's going to get a finish from there.
Bellard might be looking to lock onto one of his opponent's long limbs for a submission, whilst we're on the ground.

Petrov working for a triangle but Bellard defends it easily.

Petrov is active off his back here, looking for submissions.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Bellard advances to half guard.
Petrov is trying is best to control the position here.
Bellard tries to pass the half guard into mount. Petrov knows what he's doing though and prevents the attempt.
Petrov is looking for a sweep. Bellard is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Bellard trying to control from Petrov's half guard. Petrov has other ideas though and has regained full guard.
Bellard trying to control but Petrov is working from the bottom.

Petrov is looking for a triangle here but Bellard uses the submission attempt to pass into side control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bellard tries to land with some ground and pound but misses.
Petrov struggling a bit here.
Petrov tries to slip a leg under to move to half guard but Bellard presses down on the leg and jumps into full mount!
Bellard can't quite control the action as he would like just now, as Petrov is looking to escape.
Bellard is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Petrov is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.
Petrov is in a horrible position here, under a barrage of strikes, he's managing to avoid any damage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Petrov bucks up and manages to get a nice reversal! He's in guard on the top - nicely done!
Bellard is trying to control the position but Petrov postures up.
Petrov trying to control the position from guard on top but Bellard is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Petrov controls from within his opponent's guard.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Bellard is trying to control the position from the bottom.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Mitch Bellard will probably get the nod.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Petrov connects with a jab.
Petrov throws an ugly left hook that misses

and Bellard counters with a nice double leg into guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Bellard postures up and lands a big shot to Petrov's brow.

Petrov is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Bellard defends well.
Bellard is looking to pass into half guard but Petrov pushes him away with his feet and jumps on top - now Petrov is in guard.

Bellard looking for a sweep. Not yet Bellard, not yet.

Petrov got a little sloppy there for a moment and Bellard has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Petrov has managed to get both his arms back between Bellard's legs - danger averted.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Bellard keeping moving, preventing Petrov from controlling successfully.
Bellard looking to hit a scissor sweep but Petrov is one step ahead there.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Petrov being controlled here momentarily.
Bellard keeping moving, preventing Petrov from controlling successfully.
Petrov postures up.
Petrov controlling from the top position.
Bellard pulls Petrov in close to his closed guard and prevents Petrov from doing any damage or advancing position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.
Bellard keeping moving, preventing Petrov from controlling successfully.
Mitch Bellard overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

Petrov got a little sloppy there for a moment and Bellard has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Petrov has managed to get both his arms back between Bellard's legs - danger averted.
Petrov wants to control from the top but Bellard keeps moving.
Bellard being controlled here, momentarily.
We must be close to a standup if these guys don't pick up the pace.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Petrov connects with a looping left hand that seems like it dazed Bellard momentarily.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Petrov jabs at Bellard's body.
Bellard uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Petrov.
Petrov with a nice cross.
Bellard fails with the takedown.
Bellard avoids a punch combination nicely.
Petrov fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Bellard manages to avoid it.
Bellard drops down looking for a counter takedown but Petrov sprawls and moves away.
Bellard fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Petrov throws out a counter right but Bellard avoids it with no problem.
Petrov connects with a good right hand that stumbles Bellard. Bellard circles away out of range and recomposes himself.
Bellard fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
Petrov swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Mitch Bellard. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Petrov stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Petrov wants it to stay on the feet.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Petrov connects with a jab.
Bellard tries to score a power double leg takedown but Petrov sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten Bellard somewhat.
Petrov looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Petrov slaps away a takedown attempt from Bellard, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Petrov takes a swing at Bellard's ribcage but misses.

Bellard gets a takedown into half guard.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Petrov trying to hold on to Bellard's head to control him but Bellard postures up.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Petrov slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Peter Petrov showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! The crowd applaud as we get ready to start the final round!

Bellard shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Petrov counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Mitch Bellard is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Petrov catches Bellard with a nice straight right. He seems pissed - ooooh, it's on now! On like donkey kong!
Petrov has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Bellard takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Petrov misses with a jab, cross combination.
Petrov swings for the body but Bellard moves out of range.
Bellard showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Petrov.
Bellard has a takedown stuffed.
Petrov ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Petrov is a painfully thin specimen of a man. You do wonder whether a good body kick would snap him clean in two.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Bellard shoots in but no luck this time.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Mitch Bellard. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Petrov connects with a looping right hand.
Petrov is using his reach advantage to land shots from outside his opponent's range.
Bellard closes this distance looking for a takedown but Petrov circles away.
Petrov looks to land a combination. Bellard sees it coming but can only parry a couple of the shots.

It looks like Mitch Bellard has been cut.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A cross from Petrov lands.
Bellard closes the distance and clinches up with Petrov, looking for a takedown. Bellard pushes Petrov against the cage but Petrov circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Petrov fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Bellard manages to avoid it.
A punch lands to the side of Bellard 's head but he takes it in his stride.
Bellard doesn't succeed with the takedown
and Petrov counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.

Bellard is rocked!
Bellard drops his hands for a split second and Petrov immediately capitalizes on the opportunity by smashing a powerful hook into Bellard face, sending his mouthguard sailing through the air, much to the delight of the crowd. Petrov follows up with a right hand that knocks Bellard into next week. He's out cold and this fight is over!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 1:30 of round 3, we have a winner by way of KO (Punches). Peter Petrov!
A relieved looking Peter Petrov thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.