BEFORE: "She's over-rated," Jessica shrugs in prefight. "Missy's not the powerhouse everyone's saying she is. She's basically had one good run: when you've been doing this year after year, always at the top of the lists, then talk to me. I'm going to expose Peregrym for the prelim tramp she really is and end the Missy-hype for ever."

Peregrym with an equally harsh appraisal of her opponent in rebuttal. "Talk about over-rated!" Missy snorts, "Jessica hasn't been a force - in the ring, or at the box office - for over a year. That said, she's still the 'name' - the girl everyone thinks of at bantam - and that makes her a must-do. It's not so much about the revenge factor - yes, she beat me early in my career, but I think we'd all agree that I'm not that fighter any more. Jessica's going to have start accepting her role as a second tier fighter, and I'm just the one to hammer that point home!"

Alba in black velvet bra and panties; long, low blonde ponytail; yellow gloves. Missy in shades-of-blue horizontally barred bikini top with solid electric blue bottoms; white gloves; shoulder length hair loose.

During R1: Missy: chin tucked, dukes up - right close to cheek, left just in front; elbows in. Jess showing sleek: left shoulder pointed at Missy; left hand dangling, tic-tocking gently side to side in front of Jessi's thighs; right cocked underneath chin. Missy probes for Jess with jabs: Alba fades out of range, lopes to her left, looking to time her girl. Tactical manouevre until midway point: hook to the body freezes Alba; right cross to chin has her baby-steppin' hurt to her right. Follow up hooks rake Jess to ropes: strafing flurry of withering, straight lefts and rights paste Jessica's front, beating aside her guard to spank face. Bell: nostrils flaring, chest heaving - SO close to stopping Jess KO1!

R2: Similar stances - Missy the aggressor; Jess sleek in retreat, always coiled to counter. Late the round it's Jess getting the decisive lick - walking Missy into a lanky left hook to jaw. Peregrym sent reeling to ropes, hands up weak about temples. Jessica steps to her beats her without mercy. Best punch of the flurry: buggy-whip right hand lashed into Missy's ribs just below the jugline - champ crying out in pain, cringing forward behind her mitts at the stroke of it. Bell: ALBA HOOKS CROTCH! Missy still doubled over, helpless: Jess dips left shoulder and cranks a succulent left hook to Missy's trunks, just to let her know who's boss and stuff. Ref jumps in hot; Missy drops to all fours; fight delayed as Alba is read the riot act.

R3: Bitter fighting as Missy pressurizes Jessica, breaking down Alba's organized, supple stance. Ensuing exchange of withering lefts and rights sees Jess eat a crunching right hand to chin: Alba punched off balance, scoots to her buns all blinking and startled. Jess up, takes her 8...Missy wades in to finish but finds Alba stubbornly defiant. Roaring trade at ropes - Missy on top, but unable to break Jess down. Gorgeous stuff with Missy in her conventional hands-up stance, leaning in to hook Jessica's body, then hammer her one-twos up top. Alba supple, limber in defence - leaning into ropes - rotating her torso down low and across: she's lashing and licking shots onto Missy's ribs and head - blonde giving good as she's getting. Bell: fighters still blazing away rangy - ref has to take a hand.

R4,5: Missy boxing smart, steadily chipping away at Jessica, dominating her, taking away the ring. Peregrym working behind the jab, keeping dukes up/elbows in: very hard for Jess to score momentum-changing counters against Missy's organized approach. Missy channelling Jessica to corners or ropes, then leaning in to beat at her body: biting, snatching hooks to ribs; a crowd-pleasing, digging right hand jammed in beneath Jessi's left breast. Against this, Alba employs limber uppercuts, or dip-n'-rip hooks to midsection: blonde picking up her brunette, then spinning off ropes to lope away. Constant grinding Peregrym pursuit: Jessica unbroken, but busting up, getting touched up through 5.

R6: Alba turns the tables. Starts with the up-jab off the hip - Jess snapping it out there, occupying Missy' high guard. Buggy-whip right hands lash to Missy's torso thereafter, scorching her, winning flinches from her: Jess scoring, then pivoting left all leggy and graceful. Missy a bit of a pylon this round - stepping-to, but not cutting off the ring, posing behind her gloves as lissome Jessica plays stroke-and-scoot for points.

R7,8,9,10: Missy just doing her thing: patient, professional attacks; constant stalking pressure; stiff, rangy, non-stop punches. Jab systematically punishing Jessica, dictating to her: by the 8th, Alba's eyes are puffy, beaten nearly to slits by Missy's hardhearted poke. Peregrym conscientious about Jessica's willowy torso, pounding away at it hooks and right hands, steadily degrading Alba's movement. Jess with a hounded, weary look to her: lips curled off teeth, eyes worried. From the 8th round on, her movement is laboured, accompanied by winces every time she needs to step away due to the pain of her ribcage. Missy boring in - jabbing face and chest, beating body both hands, then coming up top...consummate professional stuff, brunette leaving no stone unturned as she works her blonde to ribbons. Jess snatching back in spots - limber left uppercuts or sideswiping buggy-whip right hands - but these are increasing desperate and sporadic as fight progresses. Alba showing her new found grit in refusing to bend the knee, or quit during the numerous beat-downs she suffers along ropes - but it all adds up to a demoralizing UD10 wide, for the winner and STILL bantam champ - Missy Peregrym.

After: Jessica shopworn: beautiful face all puffy and shiny, body all banged up - she looks every inch the battered former champ. Missy all smiles and hugs in her corner: she gets it all back against Jess tonight - everything but the stoppage. "You know, I went for it early," Missy shrugs, "tried to get her out of there...but Jessica's still a dangerous puncher and a good improviser. I just found I was getting hit too much and giving her too many chances to do her thing. I backed off and boxed her butt - and she really had no answers. I'm sorry for my fans that I couldn't end her night, but going at her the way I did was the right thing to do." Alba grumpy, not taking the loss well: in days to follow, she disputes the loss, refusing to believe that Missy made the contracted weight (despite Peregrym's public weigh-in).