PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Mickey Finn (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Zubair Tukhugov (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Finn kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is Von Bondies - C'mon c'mon. These two fighters really are very evenly matched on the feet - it will be fascinating to see who can assert themselves in that aspect of the fight.

Finn
vs
Tukhugov

182 cm
46
173 lbs
45 - 26 - 2

179 cm
27
185 lbs
8 - 4 - 0

Good wrestling
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

BJJ Purple Belt
Decent boxing
Powerful

Bullet Proof System
KAISER Nutrition - Q160/$250

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 45 - 26 - 2, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Mickey Finn!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 8 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Zubair Tukhugov!
The judges for this bout are Daniel Cesar, Matheus Silva and Paulo Santos.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Tukhugov tries to close the distance and clinch up but Finn swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Finn fails with the takedown
and Tukhugov counters with a stiff right hand.

It looks like Mickey Finn has been cut.
Finn cracks Tukhugov with a hook to the jaw. Both fighters smile at eachother and high-five before getting back down to business.
Finn's corner calls for a 1-2. Finn obliges with the 1 part as he scores the single shot and moves back out of range.
Finn punishes Tukhugov's body with a nice straight punch.

Finn dives in and scores a takedown into Tukhugov's guard.
Finn is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Finn postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Finn trying to control but Tukhugov is working from the bottom.
Tukhugov can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Finn controls the pace.
Finn throws an elbow that misses. Tukhugov uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Finn's guard. Nice move by Tukhugov!

That's one minute gone in the round.
Finn looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Finn pulls Tukhugov in close to prevent any damage.

Finn looking for a guillotine here but Tukhugov defends easily.

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.
Tukhugov preventing the sweep.
Tukhugov wants to stand and escape but instead Finn has hit a sweep and he's now on top in guard.

Tukhugov can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Finn controls the pace.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Tukhugov manages to escape and get back to his feet.
Finn dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Tukhugov displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Finn throws out the jab.

Finn manages to get an easy takedown there - catching Tukhugov on his heels. He'll look to pass Tukhugov's guard now, I'm sure.
We've been informed that Tukhugov has been working hard on his conditioning in the buildup to the fight.
Finn engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
Finn has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tukhugov keeping moving, preventing Finn from controlling successfully.
Finn throws a big elbow that misses.
Finn seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.
Finn throwing strikes from guard but Tukhugov blocks nicely.
The referee wants the fighters to be more active or he's going to reset them on the feet.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Finn is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Mickey Finn dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Mickey Finn's cut.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

Finn cracks Tukhugov with a right hand to the side of the head.
Finn is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Finn fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Tukhugov manages to avoid it.

Finn clinches up against the cage.
Finn blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Tukhugov has a couple of punches blocked by Finn.
Tukhugov fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Finn lands with a short punch from the clinch.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Tukhugov is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Finn is defending well for now.
Tukhugov swings wildly with an uppercut but Finn uses good head movement to avoid it.
Finn is looking to break free of the clinch but Tukhugov has double underhooks.
A frustrated look appears on Finn's face as he tries to break the clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tukhugov misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Tukhugov misses with some punches.

Finn pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Tukhugov is looking to clinch.
A quick step to the side and Finn tries to counter with a shot to the body but it doesn't connect.
Finn swats away the attempt to clinch by Tukhugov.
Zubair Tukhugov is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Tukhugov tries to clinch up.
Finn is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Tukhugov can do to turn this around?
Finn scores with a sloppy right hand. Tukhugov should have avoided that one.
Tukhugov walks straight into an uppercut. Luckily it didn't land flush.
Jab by Finn.
Tukhugov moves out of range of the strikes.
A looping hook to the body misses from Finn. Tukhugov does a little dance to reset his feet.

Finn closes the distance and after a bit of a stuggle, scores a takedown into Tukhugov's guard.
Finn is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.
Finn trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Tukhugov is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Finn makes a bit of distance and scores with some ground and pound, still in guard.
Mickey Finn overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Tukhugov is looking to stand up but Finn isn't so interested in that idea.
Finn pushing down on Tukhugov's thigh, trying to pass to half guard. He's managed it... Nice work.
Tukhugov looks like he's trying to stand up.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Finn in particular looking to stall.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Finn seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Tukhugov for as long as he can get away with.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Finn winds up and cracks Tukhugov with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Finn thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Tukhugov's head.
Finn perhaps working for something from half guard, or maybe not. It looks like he's just sitting there.
Finn drops an elbow to the side of Tukhugov's head.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Tukhugov blocking the ground and pound attempt from Finn.
Finn sitting and controlling from the half guard.

That's four 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.
Finn'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.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.
Finn is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Tukhugov really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Finn. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Finn throwing shots but Tukhugov is blocking nicely.
Finn not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Nice strikes from Finn there.
Finn stops Tukhugov from getting back to his feet.
Finn scores with a couple of good hammerfists.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Mickey Finn dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Mickey Finn's cut.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action. And we move into the final round!

Tukhugov wants to clinch.
Finn tries to clinch but Tukhugov moves out of range.
Finn shoots in for a double leg but Tukhugov sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
Tukhugov tries to clinch but Finn moves out of range.
Tukhugov is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Finn.
Finn swats away the attempt to clinch by Tukhugov.
Tukhugov scores with a hook to the body. Finn takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Tukhugov tries to clinch up.
Tukhugov darts in trying to clinch
and Finn counters with a straight punch to the midsection.
Nice straight punches there by Finn. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Finn.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Finn dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Tukhugov fails with an attempt to clinch.
Finn scores with a reasonable looking shot to the body. Tukhugov doesn't seem bothered though.

Finn scores a trip takedown into side control. Nice.

Tukhugov sneaks out the side door and pushes Finn away - he's back to his feet. The crowd show their appreciation for the escape.
Tukhugov tries to close the distance and clinch up but Finn swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Finn tries to counter with a takedown but Tukhugov is quick to defend against it.
Tukhugov moves in looking to clinch but Finn pushes him off.
This has been an exciting period of action!

Tukhugov gets caught napping as Finn dives in and scores a takedown. Tukhugov manages to retain guard.
Finn trying to control the position from guard on top but Tukhugov is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Finn missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Finn has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.
Finn missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Tukhugov working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Finn.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Finn seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.
Finn postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Tukhugov wants to stand and escape but Finn is having none of it.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Tukhugov is looking to clinch.
Tukhugov tries to clinch up but Finn circles away and keeps his distance.
Finn misses with a takedown attempt
and Tukhugov counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Finn tries for a takedown but Tukhugov circles away easily
and Tukhugov counters with a stiff right hand.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Mickey Finn. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Finn lands a jab to the nose.
Finn closes this distance looking for a takedown but Tukhugov circles away.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Finn fails with an attempt to clinch.
A little jabbing left from Tukhugov on the counter but it doesn't find it's target.

Tukhugov closes the distance and clinches.
Finn drops to a knee looking for a takedown but Tukhugov gets the underhooks and prevents it.
Tukhugov stalling in the clinch.
Finn is working on a leg, looking for a takedown but Tukhugov is defending well.
Tukhugov manages to get underhooks and slows down the pace for a moment.
Finn wants a takedown but no success here.
Finn blocking some punches.
A short uppercut from Tukhugov.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Finn softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Finn goes for a takedown in the clinch but Tukhugov prevents it.

Finn breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Tukhugov throws a couple of head shots and lands with the final one - a decent hook, which struck Finn on the side of the head.
Tukhugov uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Finn.
Finn tries to close the distance and clinch but Tukhugov swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Tukhugov moves in looking to clinch but Finn pushes him off.
Tukhugov is looking to clinch.
Finn scores with the left hand. Tukhugov knows he should have avoided that one.
Mickey Finn is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Mickey Finn is winning the standup battle so far.
Tukhugov looks to land a combination but Finn avoids it well.
Finn keeps the fight on the outside.
Finn appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Finn thuds his right hand into Tukhugov's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.
Zubair Tukhugov has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

Tukhugov gets caught napping as Finn dives in and scores a takedown. Tukhugov manages to retain guard.
Tukhugov wants to get back to his feet but Finn passes into half guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
Zubair Tukhugov comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Finn 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 Daniel Cesar scores the fight 29:28
Judge Matheus Silva scores the fight 29:28
Judge Paulo Santos scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Mickey Finn!
After winning the bout, Mickey Finn thanked all his fans and promised he'd do even better in his next fight. The crowd seemed to love his humility.