Claire Holt vs. Nina Dobrev 
(Words: Front Street / Results: Lookout!)

BEFORE:

Pair of bantams going in opposite directions in the rankings of late. Holt, the former "it" girl of the division who was champion and knocking off Hall of Famers 20 months ago has suffered through a winless 2016 and is one for her last six. Dobrev, meanwhile, has turned things around since leaving Lookout! and landing at Medallion. The brunette beauty has looked revived under new management and has impressed against strong opposition. And, Nina's quite certain that the trajectories the fighters' respective careers are currently on will only accelerate tonight.

"The fact is," the brunette says with a smile, "Claire's been exposed. Give her credit. It took some time for people to figure her out. But, the blueprint's out there. And, I'm going to follow it right to my third straight victory at Medallion."

"It's cute that Nina thinks she's figured anything out," Claire says with a glare. "She's been nothing but a disappointment her entire career and it KILLED her to watch ME succeed, to pass her up, to become champion while she scuffled and got fired. And, now that I've hit a rough patch, of COURSE she's on the phone. Well, tonight, the only number she's going to be calling is 911."

ROUND ONE:

Holt aggressive early, wants to work forward behind the left and walk Dobrev down. This is vintage Holt. The Holt of the eight straight wins and title shot to start the career. The Holt of the 16-3 start. The champion Holt that got people talking about the Claire Holt Era. And, then, it isn't. Because, Nina isn't going to be walked down. She angles, turns, fouls Claire's sights, won't let her get square. And, in working those angles, the brunette gets to good spots and gets off in combination. Soon, Holt's bogged down and, instead of coming forward, she's boxing at range. And, this is where Dobrev wants to be. The brunette's putting punches together well, getting the better of things. And, then, she's not. Because, Claire Holt isn't a one-trick pony. You don't win sixteen of your first nineteen FCBA fights, earn two title shots your first three years, win the belt in your fifteenth fight, and then beat a pair of Hall of Famers back to back by being a one-trick pony. Holt can do this. And, as the round rolls to a close, she's boxing with and even out-boxing Dobrev in spots. By the bell, Holt's getting the better of things, and her late rally earns her the round close and the 10-9 lead.

ROUND TWO:

Holt may be ABLE to box at range, but, that's not what she WANTS to do. And, as the second begins, it's clear she's going to pursue the familiar strategy of working forward behind the jab and getting physical with her opponent. She's backing Nina up now, getting her square and BOOM! Dobrev switches the weight and lands a scintillating right hand counter and Claire is HURT! No question the brunette walked the blonde into that one. The only question now is, can Claire survive the round. Because Dobrev is ALL IN. She's throwing bombs at a retreating Claire, missing plenty, but landing enough hard shot to keep the blonde stumbling and retreating. Soon, Holt's on the ropes and taking heavy fire from all directions. Dobrev settles down once she has Claire trapped and begins setting up the hard rights with solid jabs. Holt's shaken again and again and the referee isn't going to watch much more of this. Blonde jabbing back. hanging on, trying to run clock. And, somehow, she gets it done. Holt makes the bell, but it's Dobrev's round wide and we're even at 19.

ROUND THREE: 

Holt just furious. Sits in the corner between rounds staring, not reacting to the advice from her crew. She got suckered. She knows it. And, she's not happy about it. And she channels the anger perfectly. Dobrev forward early, looking to follow up, but the blonde able to hold ground, mostly through force of will. Nina busier, landing more shot, but Claire firing back in counter, stinging the Bulgarian beauty with solid retorts. Dobrev continues pressing the offensive for awhile, but, eventually, thinks better of it and gets to range. Boxing. This is what the brunette wants. At punching distance. Holt, still shaking off the effects of last round, not going to try to force anything. She stays at range and boxes with, and, as the round goes on, does better and better for herself. By the final bell, Claire's more than holding her own, often landing more and better shot. But, Dobrev's early advantage plays, and she claims the third close to edge to a 29-28 lead. 

ROUND FOUR:

Holt's got the legs back now, and she's over to the offensive to start this stanza. Claire forward behind that left jab, but, it's the follow on rights that begin causing problems for the Bulgarian. The solid, hard shot again forces Nina back, just like in the second round. This time, though, Claire is wary of any traps her rival might be setting. She's deliberate, but resolute. Slowly, inexorably, the blonde backs up the brunette, taking command, taking control of the fight, forcing Nina to the defensive. Dobrev reduced to the counter now, and only able to do that in spots. Holt in rhythm, putting punches together, squaring the brunette up again and again. Nina's game, but she's taking a licking as the blonde gets rolling big time by the final minute of the round. Dobrev spending most of her time covering up as Claire begin feeling it. This is champion Claire Holt, and Dobrev's struggling just to compete at the bell. It's Claire wide and we're even on the cards at 38.

ROUND FIVE:

Holt offensive continues. Claire is just LOCKED IN right now, and nothing Nina does can disrupt her. Every punch leads to another and then another. Dobrev can pick some off, dodge some, but still plenty of clean, hard shots get through. Nina can't hold canvas, can't get off the defensive, and, frankly, can't even bother Holt over much. Dobrev's corner shouting at their girl to get off, but she can't. There's just too much shell coming from Holt. And, it's too accurate. Claire's become an absolute machine, and it's both awesome and terrifying (if you're in the other corner, at least) to behold. It's all working, all clicking, all of it. A more one-sided round on a pay-per-view between two highly-ranked fighters, you are unlikely to see. Holt is just THRASHING Dobrev to the point that, despite Nina not being visibly hurt, some folks at ringside are wondering whether or not the referee is going to stop this thing. He doesn't. And, whether or not he's doing Nina a favor by not doing so is a matter of opinion.When, mercifully, the bell rings, Holt's thrown the most dominating of shutouts, puffed up Dobrev around her right eye, and taken a 48-47 lead.

ROUND SIX:

Holt forward again. Again it's the jab to the head or the upper chest followed by the hard right hand. Dobrev in retreat again, countering in spots as she gives ground. BOOM! Neens does it again! She gets Claire stepping forward, switches the weight and lands a perfectly-timed right hand counter. And Holt is hurt again! The tide of battle turns instantly. The blonde offensive becomes a messy retreat. Claire's being banged around the ring on wobbly legs as the brunette goes all in to finish this right now. Dobrev winging away, getting a little sloppy in spots, but getting away with it, because Holt's doing little more than covering up and trying to stay on her feet. Nina just RIPPING punches as the round winds down, stepping into everything, looking for the one big shot that will win it. Claire jabbing back on occasion, but able to do little more than that. It's all about survival for the blonde, and, on that count, anyway, she's successful. The bell sounds and she's still on her feet, but Dobrev's claimed the round via shutout and evened things at 57.

ROUND SEVEN:

Dobrev still looking to finish. Early flurries back up Holt and convinced Neens that the legs aren't all the way back from last round. And, that's all the Bulgarian needs to see. Dobrev's sitting down on her punches again, banging away at a game but wobbly blonde. Holt again playing defense, keeping the guard high, giving ground, jabbing back in spots, running some clock. Nina more clinical now, knows she has time, setting things up better, using the jab, looking for that one opening and FINDING IT! A short right hook of a stiff left jab and DOWN GOES HOLT! Claire dropped to her back in the center of the ring, staring up at the referee as Dobrev scampers to a neutral corner. Claire shaking the head back and forth as the count begins, perhaps to try to clear it, perhaps to deny what's unfolding. Because. All she can do is watch the numbers get bigger. This can  NOT be happening...but it is. Holt can't get off the canvas and it's OVER! And your winner by KO7 is Nina Dobrev!


AFTER:

Dobrev triumphant. Her revival at Medallion continues with another impressive outing that's sure to have her in the title discussion sooner rather than later. "I TOLD you," Neens says with a grin. "I had the blueprint, and I followed it. Claire's been exposed. She's DONE as a factor in the FCBA. The Claire Holt Era is stillborn. There's only ONE number one 'Vampy D' girl, and her name is Nina Dobrev!" 

For her part, Holt inconsolable on her way back to the dressing room. This may not be Jamie Lynn Spears territory, but, you can see the 'Now Entering..." signs from here. Because, it's not that Nina Dobrev or any other FCBA bantam is in Claire Holt's head. It's that Claire Holt is. She's living there. And, unless something changes and soon, one of the most meteoric rises in FCBA history might just be followed by an even faster fall.