Evangeline Lilly vs. Elodie Frege
(Words: Front Street / Results: Lookout!)

BEFORE:

Nobody at bantam plays a harder schedule than Frege. Silk. Munn. Olsen. Alba. Pink. McAdams. Spears. All have appeared on the French beauty's schedule. And, now it's time for Evangeline Lilly, a five-time bantamweight champion who's as physical as anyone at the weight. But, as usual, Elodie far from cowed. "She is a champion, yes," says Frege with a lovely smile. "So were Pressly and Alba, and I defeated both."

And, while the French beauty who's proven a lot still may have some things to prove on this night, Evangeline Lilly? Not so much. Again. Five-time champion and a girl who's been among the top handful of bantams for over a decade. Nothing to prove, but, perhaps, something to gain. Because, the last of those five title reigns ended nearly six years ago. And, amazingly, Lilly has had but a single chance to recapture those belts in all this time. And, there's no question she wants to rectify that situation. "No disrespect to this girl, because she can fight, but, this is about something more than Frege. I want those belts back in 2016. Robbie was the first step on that road, and Frege is the next."

ROUND ONE:

Anyone who knows these two fighters knows exactly the terms we'll be fighting on. Lilly likes to get physical, to close distance, to use all that sturdy power packed into her 5'5" frame. Frege, meanwhile, can stick and move, but she prefers another tactic. The pocket. So, it's absolutely no surprise that the first round turns into an Evangeline Lilly siege operation. Frege's happy to give ground and go to the ropes, happy to play defense and use those sneaky, effective counters she's so good at while conserving energy. Lilly's just as happy to burn some in pursuit of breaking down Elodie's defenses and bringing her heavy guns to bear. And, both women prove very good at the tactics they've chosen. No surprise considering the caliber of fighter we're dealing with. Lilly gets plenty of work done, especially to the Frenchwoman's body. Elodie, though, actually has the better of things, avoiding and blocking a lot of Lilly's stuff and scoring enough in the counter to claim the first round.

ROUND TWO:

Lilly right back after Frege, and Elodie immediately to the pocket. The siege on the ropes, which took up about two third of the first round, encompasses all of this one. Lilly concentrating on body now, staying mostly away from the head, which Frege can protect so slickly and use all the resultant misses to set up those sharp counters. Instead, this is whacking beef with leather. Thump. Thump. Thump. Frege responds by tying up, forcing Lilly's head down when she drops it, and whacking flanks of her own when she gets the opportunity. And, what was mostly body work in the early going becomes an almost complete investment on both sides in the final minute. Winces of pain can be seen on both fighter's faces as the final seconds tick away, but neither falters. Both hang in tough and keep tenderizing right to the final bell. When it sounds, the change in tactics has had its effect. It's Lilly close and we're even at 19.

ROUND THREE:

Frege adjusting. She's not leaning back into the ropes now. Instead, she's become more compact, elbows tight, head down, protecting the body, leaving less of it for Lilly to hit. Evangeline responds by going back upstairs, cuffing hard hooks off Elodie's tight guard, looking to split gloves or create openings by buffeting Elodie's head from side to side. But, Frege continues to defend well and, with Lilly now working upstairs again, she's getting more opportunities to counter and not wasting any of them as usual. Instead, the Frenchwoman takes advantage of any opening she's given to land hard, accurate counter punches. Lilly, though, ships that shell and keeps on banging away. She even goes back to the body some in the late going, able to fit some flank punches behind the elbows and get a little more investing in French beef taken care of. It's, once again, a near thing, but, Frege claims the points and goes back in the lead at 29-28.

ROUND FOUR:

Siege of Frege continues. Lilly patient, but active. She's working hard, but staying very sound, chipping away at Elodie's defenses, finding chinks in the armor, and taking advantage. Meanwhile, Frege, out of that compact defensive stance, succeeding on the counter, making Evangeline pay for every mistake. Once again, it's good, two-way stuff. And, then, about a minute in, it becomes one-way stuff. The game changer is a short uppercut from Lilly that perfectly cleaves the Frenchwoman's defenses, snaps her head up and unhooks the knees. Frege slumps forward onto Lilly, and, only by clinching does she remain upright. The former champion immediately goes to work, blasting the dazed Elodie with a barrage of leather that sends her back against the ropes and then stumbling along the cables. Evangeline working hard for the finish, but can't quite get there. The referee seems about ready to stop it several times, but never does. Frege is able to stabilize the front just enough to prevent a total rout. She rides out the storm, but is looking scuffed on her way back to the corner. It's Lilly wide, and we're even at 38.

ROUND FIVE:

Lilly more aggressive to start the fifth. She's still smelling a finish here, and she's determined to get it. Frege out of the crouch now, back to leaning back in the ropes with the gloves high, body on sale, looking to counter as Lilly tries to solve her defenses. And, the additional aggression from Evangeline, as it will in these situations, makes that easier. There are more openings of which to take advantage, and take advantage, Frege does. But, by increasing her work rate and committing more on her punches, Evangeline also gives herself more opportunities to land the finisher she's looking for. And, in her case, she only needs one. She finds it about two and a half minutes in. This time, it's a short right hook that lands on the left side of Frege's jaw, swivels the head, and cuts power to the legs. Elodie pitches forward past Lilly's left shoulder and crashes face first to the canvas. The count is nothing but a formality. Frege is out, and your winner by KO5 is Evangeline Lilly!

AFTER:

Lilly has been there before and acts like it in the post-fight. "She's not easy to fight," the Canadian says with a nod. "Really slick, and she hits harder than people think. But, when I bring the power, there aren't many bantams who can stand in front of me. As a matter of fact, there aren't ANY bantams who can stand in front of me. And, that includes YOU, Minka."