Originally posted by Simguy on 5/29/2004, 9:05 am.

Before: Melissa milking the moment—riding a swell of rumour and internet speculation based on the final ep of “Alias” in which George seemingly defeated Garner in hand to hand spy combat. “We felt each other’s strength during the segment,” George tells reporters, “and it became quite apparent that Jennifer isn’t all she’s been built up to be. She’s bigger than me, yes—but she’s not particularly dynamic. My agent and some close friends asked me if I felt as though I could take her for real and that’s when I knew: yes—I can, and will beat Jennifer Garner. I think fans will be astonished at what I’m able to do to her.”

Garner frustrated, resentful=--she lashes out at the press. “You guys should be ashamed ‘Alias’ is a TV SHOW. It’s a DRAMA. Melissa George has no business dropping my name in public—but you guys encouraged it—you gave her the forum. So now I’m going to swat this fly, but if she gets seriously hurt, just remember: this was all your fault.”

Garner in black bra and panties, Melissa in white.

During R1: George showing mobility—skirting the ring, trying to unsettle Garner’s pursuit with direction changes, trying to shake JG with feints. Jennifer stone-faced—right hand at her cheek, scuttling footwork, pumping jab—she’s on the attack, pressing George around the ring. Final minute—Melissa shows rattlesnake reflexes I countering a Garner jab with a sizzling right cross—blonde leaps to the immediate advantage. Licking left hook low, doubled up into the abs—Garner buckling forward—sneaky double-tap hook makes it look like Jennifer’s hurt by a body shot. Melissa stepping right and letting her hands go in clawing flurries—lefts and rights brushing and bouncing off Jennifer’s head and shoulders as brunette bends forward to cover. George steals a round with one good shot, one heinous foul and a gossamer cloud of flashy combinations to successfully bamboozle the judges.

R2: George on the attack this round. Melissa’s quick—able to dart in and out. Mel’s clever—using feints to freeze Jennifer, set her up—George using that instead of her jab which is shorter than Garner’s. And Mel’s hardhearted—roasting the body with good spanking bursts, but constantly flirting with the trunkline and below—Garner wincing, obviously preoccupied with the crotch music. On balance—Melissa not much of a puncher—clawing and slapping her punches, but she’s busy. Eye-catching and cute—and she’s actually doing a good job of tearing up the bigger woman’s belly in an attempt to drain some of Jennifer’s power. Garner shaking her head “no” at the bell, but she’s touched for a shutout this round—George dominating inside the brunette’s head in early going.

R3: George with clever feet, starts and stops, looks in then steps away—she lulls Garner into dropping her guard and gets that gambling right hand flush to the jaw once again. Garner stooping, covering up on the reflex—George right back to those trunks with a thumping left, doubled up cute to the ribs to cover the infraction. George stays on the midsection with Jennifer hunched forward—blonde with her chin out over Jen’s back, hands hustling up and in with rapid-fire giddyup. Garner shakes it off, starts to come forward behind a busting stick—but it’s too little too late—George runs the final 30 seconds with maddening grin, copping her third straight round and starting to make the pro-Garner crowd a little uneasy.

R4: Jennifer jabbing, looking to slide in close off it—big woman wants to tidy up. Melissa giving ground, not anxious to get shoulder to shoulder with Jen, when all of a sudden—Garner yelps out, staggering away, left eye blinking badly—George smirking catlike as she timed the intercepting thumb perfectly. Garner disconcerted, eye watering badly, closing—and George stays on it—looping the right hand over the top, doubling up her jab to land the second one, never sticking around long enough to trade. George with a sound fight plan tonight—bat away up top with nuisance flurries, prompting the Garner clamshell D, then score to the tummy and ribs with supple blonde leverage. George investing in the midsection consistently thus far—systematically chopping Garner down to size.

R5: Melissa faking a low blow Jen’s got to respect—George able to score that swinging overhand right on the swollen left eye, momentarily stunning the brunette. NOW George sails in—left to the trunks, left tucked up into the ribs, right/left/right legal on the abs. Smaller woman backing up the larger up with a combination of hurt and volume—Garner in no danger of going down, but she’s overwhelmed in spots—Melissa brilliant at making things look worse than they really are. Second minute—Garner’s back to the ropes—Melissa does a nice job ducking in and out, scoring with jabs face and body, opportunistic rights over the top, Down the stretch, Melissa attacking and regrouping when Garner times her, turns into a short-arm hook on the chin and GEORGE SCOOTS TO HER REAR-END! Melissa looking up in shock—Garner glaring down in satisfaction—Jennifer’s heavier hands finally prevailing, proving she can move the blonde if she can find her. George up at 8, legs aren’t back—she reaches in under Jen’s arms as Garner wades forward for some desperate, sloppy clinches to the bell. Jennifer complaining mightily to no avail—Melissa not too proud to glom on when hurt.

R6: Tide turning—Jennifer really spearing the jab, lowering trajectory to smash it against Melissa’s upper chest—blonde driven into head-long retreat this round. George desperate to avoid body on body contact—she’s running outrageously, even turning her back at times to get distance as the crowd howls in derision. Melissa also using shameless clinches as she bounces off the ropes to wrap Jennifer up—Garner stoic throughout, easily the aggressor this round, but once again, not doing the damage she intended.

R7: Melissa with a series of step-outs—luring Garner in, feinting her, then hooking her crotch—on the third infraction, George finally draws a stern warning—achy, wincing Jen given a moment to recover. Action resumes—Garner’s shy—Melissa with a little breathing room goes back to the sporadic flurrying offense—clawing and scraping at Jennifer’s defenses, digging at the belly or ribs, getting out of Dodge.

R8: Jennifer attacking behind her jab, low blows have made her wary of closing, so that’s a tactical victory for George, but Garner able to impose her will from the outside, putting Melissa on the run. Jennifer jabbing high, then stamping straight rights down into the body of her foe—she’s moving George with these shots, shunting her back—Melissa starting to grimace as Garner tracks her effectively in the late going.

R9: Jennifer spotting her jab, reining in the spirited blonde—Melissa getting tagged more often, and harder, than she has in any round previous. End of minute one—spitting brace of jabs sets George up for a pounding right on the ear—blonde sent sputtering to the topes as brunette hops after her, hands in punching position. Garner cleans up with heartless digging hooks amidships—blonde buckled forward, reaching for Jen’s hips, but Garner able to step back and keep punching. Garner’s eyes intense as she chops short rights, bangs away jabs, hooks the body—poor Melissa bending forward and back, rolling at the ropes and MELISSA TAKES A KNEE! George trembling, eyes welling up, lower lip huffing in and out—bell sounds to deliver Melissa from any more punishment, but it’s a hamhanded 10-8 Garner.

R10: Jenny G posts a rousing shutout—taking it to Melissa George all around the ring. Garner’s jab lighting Melissa up royally now—spanking away upper chest, shoulders, skull, bunting George to the ropes and keeping her defensive. Jennifer putting straight punching lefts and rights together, working up and down the torso. Doubling up jagged rights to pound through the guard with machine-like bursts. George mounting a ragged defense—spinning off the ropes to buy time, running when she can, but she can’t stop Jennifer from pounding her in one-sided fashion for long stretches. At the bell—George thoroughly abused—Jennifer’s left eye closed, but Garner lifts her mitts and struts in anticipation. Comes back UD10 Jennifer Garner.

After: Garner wins as expected, but not how—crafty, meanspirited little blonde managed to string things out nicely with guile, some sparkling right hands and meaningful body work. 5 rounds a piece, but Jennifer’s knockdowns the difference—was she surprised at Melissa’s fast start? “Not really,” says the brunette, dabbing herself with a white towel. “George’s only hope was to sandbag me. The judges gave her a lot of those early rounds, but she was hitting me low the whole time, then making it look like she was hurting me to the body. Anybody could see she didn’t belong in there with me but she obviously fooled a lot of people with her tactics. I’m disappointed I didn’t get her out of there, but down the stretch she was all used up. I definitely finished the stronger girl and I hope I’ve put all this nonsense to rest!”

George probably doing herself more good than harm with the effort—she goes the route, she hurts Jennifer hook or by crook, and the high profile bout might get her in with some names that might have overlooked her before.

Reposted by Archer 5/18/09.