(IMAGES BY BI PHOTO LAB)

Posted by simguy on 7/20/2001, 7:47 am

(Thanks to FightFan for this repost)


Before: Virginie finally gets her girl - critics wonder whether Ledoyen will be sharp as she could be after holding out so long for Dushku. Big fight for Eliza who wants to preserve her standing on the leader board - she can't afford to let Ledoyen get happy tonight. Dushku the prohibitive favourite - she's got the balanced skills and defence, Virginie essentially relying upon her whip-action power to cash in chin. Ledoyen in black bra style leather bikini, Eliza in red bra style leather bikini.

During R1: Eliza trying to take a look early - Ledoyen puts her left thumb on Dushku's chest, measures her for some painting right strokes on the jaw to force Eliza into retreat. Dushku adjusts, adopts an Emanuel Burton look - hands low, slight crouch, she starts to dip and counter heavy to the body. Ledoyen missing over the top, or glancing off Dushku's clever shoulder-turns - Eliza rolling with the French right hand, slinging back hard rights on the jaw or belly, dipping to her left and scraping short left hooks up against Virginie's ribs. Ledoyen's legs buckle in the final moments as she looks forlorn - all Dushku at the bell, sliding side to side, biting at exposed torso with either mitt. At the break - Eliza steps back with a grin, blows on both fists like they're smoking six-guns - Ledoyen slumped and hurting on the ropes doesn't appreciate it.

R2: More of the patient, chopping counter attack from Eliza - Ledoyen's wide punches leave her rib cage vulnerable and Dushku's helping herself. Dushku right in front, crowding just a little to make it difficult of Ginie to extend on punches, always moving her head and dragging punches into Ledoyen's rapidly bruising midriff.

R3: Ledoyen finds a useful punch, licking the right uppercut off her hip to find Eliza's face and back the brunette up this round. Eliza not punching, waiting for the perfect spot as she stands, gives Ledoyen shoulder, moving her head and clowning a little at the ropes. Virginie doing all the work, never lands clean, but she pins Dushku to the ropes and gets off to take the points.

R4: Eliza returning the shutout - she looks like she can punch with Ledoyen and come away unscathed - French girl obviously frustrated at her low connect percentage. Meanwhile, Dushku's CHEWING her up inside, dipping over side to side, licking her fists up hard into Virginie's ribs, then pivoting over to turn her girl. Ledoyen sullen, mincing as she sits gingerly on her stool for the break - Dushku's systematically crippling her to the body.

R5: Ledoyen comes out to change things this round. Warned early for forearm smashing Eliza's arms, Ledoyen clinches Dushku behind the neck and spins her to the canvas Muay Thai style - Eliza up and red faced - war breaks out. Dushku getting stupid for the first time in the bout, just going toe to toe and the wild melee suits Virginie who starts to land that crashing right hand. Midway through, Ledoyen bends into a slinging right off the face as Dushku's just loading up her right and ELIZA'S HURT! Dushku stumbling back into the ropes with a glazed expression and Virginie closes to finish. Big sweeping lefts and rights from either side, Dushku keeping composed, right hand at her cheek, left across her gut - she bobs and rolls at the ropes, making Virginie miss and in the final minute - starts to make Ledoyen pay. All starts as Dushku bobs deep to her left side under a Ledoyen swinging right - Eliza answers back with the bone-jarring left uppercut to the chin and Ledoyen staggers back, stops punching. Dushku grim about her work, comes at Ledoyen's waist with lumberjack rights, goes to the jaw with blockbuster lefts - getting her body behind everything. Ledoyen banged the length of the ring hits the far ropes in a stupor - crowd on it's feet as Dushku puts punches together to leave Ledoyen in ruins at the bell. Ref has to pull enraged Eliza off - both girls rung up bad this round, but it's Virginie who looks out on her stool.

R6: Ledoyen comes out to fight - face still looks groggy, vacant, but she's backing Dushku up early with flailing offense from both hands. Dushku bobbing, using her defence to set up attack, starts to answer back to the body as she slips under Virginie's predictable haymakers. Virginie breaking down at the midway point, mouth open, wrecked by the body work and Dushku knows it. Eliza coming forward - left hook on the cheek, left hook to the liver buckles Ledoyen's legs. Dushku wrestling briefly with Ledoyen's arms, then again touches Virginie's cheek with the left, shifting her hips and BURYING the hook in under Ledoyen's elbows and VIRGINIE GOES DOWN! Ledoyen gutshot to her haunches - sobbing in ragged breaths, hugging her broken body as Eliza Dushku prances away. KO6 Eliza Dushku.

After: Dushku breaking her girl down and stopping her - fought textbook style against Ledoyen who offered numerous openings to a patient and able adversary. "She caught me in the fifth," admits Eliza, sporting the shiner as a result of said punch, "but we expected that. The key was just to keep at her, discouraging her in every round, beating her up every round. Oh, the third? I wanted to let her get off, spend up some energy - I knew I'd be stopping her sometime in the second half and I didn't want her still punching lively. Lucy would have been life and death with this girl - Liu doesn't have the discipline to take apart a slugger like this."