PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Eksem Von Ketler (ranked 417 p4p, 51 weight class) and Michail Podolski (ranked 449 p4p, 52 weight class). Von Ketler comes to the cage accompanied by Bonecracker- Shocore. Podolski has chosen Last Ride as his entrance music, which hasn't gone down very well with the crowd. Eksem Von Ketler has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Von Ketler
vs
Podolski

166 cm
30
139 lbs
22 - 10 - 0

168 cm
29
148 lbs
17 - 5 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
World class MT
Good gas tank

Sin City Allstars

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 22 - 10 - 0, fighting out of New York, Eksem Von Ketler!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 17 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Michail Podolski!
The judges for this bout are Dillan Fox, Yves DeLean and Alec Ball.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Nice straight punches there by Von Ketler. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Von Ketler.
Nice sprawl there from Podolski as Von Ketler shoots in.
Von Ketler scores with a crisp jab that stopped Podolski in his tracks.
Von Ketler is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Podolski.
Von Ketler misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Podolski.
Horrible takedown attempt by Von Ketler or perhaps it was just good defense by Podolski, which made it look bad.
Podolski ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Von Ketler moves away.
Eksem Von Ketler seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Podolski misses with a straight right.
Podolski connects with a solid leg kick.
Von Ketler definitely looks more muscular than last time we saw him fight.
Podolski ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Podolski thuds a left hand into Von Ketler's body.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Von Ketler misses with a body shot.
Von Ketler throws a left and a right that both miss
and Podolski finishes the little exchange by landing a big kick to the body.
Podolski attempts a leg kick but it's missed by a good margin.
Von Ketler seemed to be looking to counter by closing the distance.
Von Ketler avoids a low kick by using good footwork.
A telegraphed right hand from Von Ketler misses the target.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Podolski looks to throw the jab but Von Ketler is out of range.
Podolski looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Von Ketler tries to clinch but fails miserably
and Podolski counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Podolski throws a hook to the side of Von Ketler's head but Von Ketler sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
Podolski misses with a wild body shot.
Von Ketler is looking to counter the offense by Podolski and move into the clinch.
Podolski misses with an uppercut. Von Ketler saw that one coming.

Von Ketler clinches up with Podolski and pushes him back against the cage.
Podolski misses with a short punch on the inside.
Podolski misses with a short punch on the inside.
Podolski doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Podolski misses with a hook to the ribs.
Von Ketler misses with a punch on the inside.
Podolski tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Von Ketler's elbow.
Von Ketler stalling here - the referee won't stand for too much of that.
Von Ketler pushes Podolski back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Von Ketler.
Von Ketler tries to throw a body punch but Podolski avoids it by throwing Von Ketler back against the cage.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Podolski.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Podolski struggles to land a body shot inside as Von Ketler controls his hands.
Von Ketler lands a nice elbow.

It looks like Michail Podolski has been cut.
Podolski lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Podolski's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Von Ketler tries to pull guard but Podolski forces him back to his feet, against the cage.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Eksem Von Ketler. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Podolski pushes Von Ketler back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
Podolski misses with a short punch on the inside.
Von Ketler content to slow the pace in the clinch.
Podolski tries to throw a body punch but Von Ketler avoids it by throwing Podolski back against the cage.
Podolski misses with a hook from the clinch.
Podolski lands an uppercut.
Von Ketler misses with a punch on the inside.
Von Ketler tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Podolski's elbow.
Podolski's corner are urging him to control the action in the clinch for a moment, rather than mount any serious offense. I'm sure the crowd appreciate those instructions... not.
With the two fighters working up against the cage, Von Ketler just misses with a elbow thrown towards Podolski's brow.
Von Ketler misses with an elbow over the top.
Podolski swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Von Ketler tries a body shot but Podolski blocks it.
Von Ketler blocks a couple of punches on the inside.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Von Ketler throws an elbow but it misses.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Podolski.
Von Ketler creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
Von Ketler misses with a body punch.

Podolski's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Michail Podolski is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Podolski lands a slapping body shot.
Podolski lands a vicious shot with the stealth of a sniper and the strength of a viper. Are vipers that strong? I can think of lots of things that are stronger than a viper - not many rhyme with sniper though.
Von Ketler keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Von Ketler takes one on the button.
Von Ketler swings and misses with a shot to the body
and Podolski counters with a lovely straight right hand!

Von Ketler has taken the fight to the clinch.
Podolski wants to get back to striking at distance but Von Ketler won't allow it.
Podolski throws a head punch that misses.
Podolski tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Podolski blocking some punches.
Von Ketler blocks an elbow strike.

Von Ketler pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
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!
Von Ketler lands with a two punch combination before moving back out of range.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Von Ketler steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Podolski.
Von Ketler ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Podolski moves away.
Von Ketler throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
Von Ketler throws a right and a left that both miss.
Von Ketler wants to clinch.
Podolski is trying to counter with his kicks.
Nice jab there from Podolski.
Von Ketler scores with a straight right hand, right through his opponent's guard.

Von Ketler pushes Podolski up against the cage in a clinch.
Podolski lands a body punch.
Podolski goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Podolski blocks an uppercut.
Podolski misses with a hook to the ribs.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Michail Podolski dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Michail Podolski's cut.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action.

Von Ketler stumbles momentarily as he takes a strong leg kick from Podolski.

Von Ketler gets a clinch.
Von Ketler blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Good body shot from Podolski.
Von Ketler blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Podolski misses with a hook to the ribs.
Von Ketler blocks a couple of punches on the inside.

Von Ketler breaks the clinch.
Podolski misses with a body kick.
Podolski takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Von Ketler misses with a kick to the body.
Podolski swinging wildly here.
Von Ketler looked to counter that last move with a leg kick but didn't pull the trigger.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Von Ketler ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Podolski moves away.
Von Ketler misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Podolski.
Von Ketler checks a leg kick.
Podolski lands a pitter patter jab to the forehead of his opponent.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Podolski throws a leg kick which misses Von Ketler's front leg but catches the back leg as Von Ketler tries to avoid it.
Podolski lands a jab to Von Ketler's midsection.

Von Ketler moves into range and clinches up with Podolski.
Podolski scores with a hook to the body.
Podolski has been looking to improve his clinch game in recent weeks. Von Ketler seems to have the measure of him in the clinch so far, so let's see if Podolski can turn it around.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Von Ketler.
Podolski misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Von Ketler looking to stall.
Von Ketler lands an elbow inside that Podolski shrugs off.
Von Ketler blocks an uppercut.
Von Ketler blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Von Ketler blocks a body shot from Podolski.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Von Ketler.
The pace slowing considerably in the clinch, as Podolski takes a break from that fighting nonsense to think about the finer things in life.
Von Ketler tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Podolski's elbow.
A short left from Podolski.
Podolski misses with a punch on the inside.
Podolski misses with a punch to the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Von Ketler prevents a body shot from Podolski.

Podolski pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Podolski defending well as Von Ketler loads up on a big left hand.
Von Ketler tries to score a power double leg takedown but Podolski sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten Von Ketler somewhat.
Podolski has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Von Ketler swings for the body but Podolski moves out of range.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Podolski scores with a spinning back kick!
Podolski keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Podolski! But no joy.
Von Ketler ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.

Von Ketler rushes Podolski and pushes him back against the cage in a clinch.
Podolski lands a hook to the side of the head.
Von Ketler tries to throw a body punch but Podolski avoids it by throwing Von Ketler back against the cage.
Podolski tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Von Ketler's elbow.
Podolski dodges an elbow strike from Von Ketler.
Von Ketler blocks a punch to the side of the head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Podolski pushes Von Ketler back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
A bit of stalling here from Podolski.
Von Ketler misses with some punches.
With the two fighters working up against the cage, Von Ketler just misses with a elbow thrown towards Podolski's brow.
Von Ketler blocking some punches.
Podolski blocks the elbow strike.
Nice elbow from Von Ketler.
Podolski misses with the head strike.
Von Ketler lands a nice uppercut.
A hook to the body from Von Ketler.
Podolski lands with a light punch inside.
A bit of stalling here from Podolski.
Podolski lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Von Ketler or not.
Podolski lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Podolski misses with the head strike.
Von Ketler misses with a hook to the ribs.
A nice right hand lands inside from Von Ketler.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Podolski blocks an elbow strike from Von Ketler.
A right hand to the body from Podolski.
Michail Podolski seems to be working more effectively in the clinch in the fight so far.
Von Ketler blocks a body shot from Podolski.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Podolski goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Podolski avoids the elbow strike from Von Ketler, against the cage.
Podolski prevents a body shot from Von Ketler.
Podolski gets through Von Ketler's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Podolski blocks an elbow strike.
Podolski fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Von Ketler's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Podolski pushes Von Ketler back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
Podolski blocking some punches.
Von Ketler blocks a body shot from Podolski.

Von Ketler manages to break the clinch.
Podolski tries a low kick but Von Ketler avoids it.
Von Ketler tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Podolski manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Von Ketler uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Podolski.
Von Ketler connects with a looping left hand that seems like it dazed Podolski momentarily.
Podolski turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Podolski scores with a body shot.
Podolski connects with a looping left hand that seems like it dazed Von Ketler momentarily.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Michail Podolski showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Michail Podolski's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. And we move into the final round!

Von Ketler swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Von Ketler's corner calls for a 1, 2 combination and Von Ketler duly obliges.
Podolski lands a nice shot that snaps Von Ketler's head back.
Von Ketler throws out a leg kick but Podolski moves out of range and Von Ketler only half commits.
Podolski chopping away at his opponent's legs.
Von Ketler scores with a body shot.
Michail Podolski seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Podolski lands with a two punch combination before moving back out of range.

Von Ketler clinches up against the cage.
Podolski lands a right hand.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.
Von Ketler misses with some punches.
Podolski tries a body shot but Von Ketler blocks it.
A short left from Podolski.
Podolski lands with a right to the head.
Podolski working aggressively here.
Von Ketler blocks an uppercut.
Von Ketler working some nice short punches in the clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Podolski trying to land knees to the body.
A head punch on the inside from Podolski fails to land.
Good body shot from Podolski.
A short left from Von Ketler.
Podolski lands a left hand that snaps the head of Von Ketler backwards.

Podolski escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Von Ketler throws a two punch combo that lands nicely.
Von Ketler lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as Podolski backs up against the cage.
Von Ketler slips a jab and a cross from Podolski.
Podolski throws out a loose jab but Von Ketler uses good head movement to avoid it.
Von Ketler ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.

Von Ketler darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!

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

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Von Ketler is trying to work for a kimura but Podolski is defending well.
Podolski is looking to improve his position.

Von Ketler is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Podolski avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Von Ketler.
Von Ketler working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
Podolski gets back to full guard.
Von Ketler throws a big elbow that misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Podolski wants to control here, rather than go for any submissions from the bottom. At least for now.
Von Ketler in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Von Ketler throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Podolski works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Podolski utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Von Ketler throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Podolski wants to sweep here but Von Ketler controlling him for the moment.
Von Ketler in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Von Ketler accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Von Ketler trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.

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.
Podolski trying to keep a closed guard but Von Ketler is proving a slippery customer.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Podolski moves into range and throws a lovely three punch combination.
Eksem Von Ketler has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Podolski looks to score with a jab to the body but Von Ketler is just out of range.
Von Ketler tries to close the distance and clinch but Podolski swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Von Ketler lands with an overhand left.
Von Ketler wants to clinch.
Podolski slips under a jab.
Von Ketler jabs Podolski to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Podolski throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Von Ketler drops down looking for a counter takedown but Podolski sprawls and moves away.
Michail Podolski is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Von Ketler misses the shot to the body.
Von Ketler throws a couple of head shots and lands with the final one - a decent hook, which struck Podolski on the side of the head.

And that's the end of the fight!
Eksem Von Ketler showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Podolski has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 Dillan Fox scores the fight 28:29
Judge Yves DeLean scores the fight 28:29
Judge Alec Ball scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Michail Podolski!
A relieved looking Michail Podolski thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.
In defeat, Eksem Von Ketler stepped up to the mic, saying 'Didn't hurt'.