Gemma Arterton versus Adriana Lima (Lightweight Championship)
(Words: Front Street / Results: Lookout!)

BEFORE:

Lima no stranger to fights against Front Street, as she's had six of them against four different fighters, and, among those six bouts are two with tonight's opponent, Unified Lightweight Champion Gemma Arterton. In those bouts, Adriana is 1-1, and she has little doubt how the rubber match is going to go. "I have respect for Arterton, unlike Decker, who's spent as much time as she can ducking me. However, I have beaten her before, and tonight, I will do it again."

"Adriana's top shelf, no doubt about that," says Gemma, "But, I'm currently on an even higher shelf, one with just one fighter. And, there's a reason for that."

ROUND ONE:

Big surprise early as Lima, who, while she can be plenty physical, is definitely second-best in that category tonight, opens up aggressively, coming right after Arterton. Gemma was definitely not expecting same, and she has a ton of trouble adjusting. She's thrown over to the defensive immediately, and, despite her best efforts, can't get in gear. Lima's all over her, landing with both hands and in combination, in perfect rhythm right out of the gate. Arterton's not hurt, but the Brit's taking plenty of leather and the points are adding up quickly. Gemma makes several efforts to slow things down, but Lima's not having it. It's a chance she's taking, but one she believes is worth taking, clearly remembering that her win over Arterton came in the second round, while the loss came in a fight that went seven. And, for one round at least, the strategy pays off. Adriana takes the first going away and leads 10-9.

ROUND TWO:

It's not broken, and Lima has no intention of fixing it. Adriana's right back after Arterton, and, again, Gems has no answers. She's trying different things, but nothing's working. Lima's unexpected hyper-aggression is carrying the day, leaving the champ preempted and back-footed for another entire round. Lima's corner all smiles and encouragement as the Brazilian beauty lands punches in bunches, getting combinations put together beautifully while reducing the champion to one-punch stuff. As the round goes on, not only can't Gemma get in gear, she can't get out of reverse. Lima's actually taking canvas as she continues a surprising romp that doesn't look to be ending any time soon. In the final minute, the challenger turns up the pressure even more and eventually has the champion on the ropes taking fire. Again, Arterton's not hurt, but, again, it's Lima wide and Adriana's now up 20-18.

ROUND THREE:

Lima keeps coming. Arterton, though, is beginning to find answers. Gems has changed her level, gotten her high up. She's playing the defend-and-counter game with the chin tucked, making Adriana pay for her aggressiveness by landing sharp counter punches in the resultant openings. But, the British champion's new strategy does not slow the Brazilian challenger down. Lima's committed to the fight plan, and she stays right with it. Yes, she's taking more fire, and, yes, the round is much more of a two-way affair than the first two, but, Adriana's still effective. She's still scoring. And, that's the key, since, if she can claim this round, she's going to create a numbers problem for the champion. That's because, while losing the first two rounds of a ten-round fight is never ideal, fighters can and do rally back from a 20-18 deficit to win on the cards all the time. A 30-27 deficit, however, is another animal altogether, not just because there's an additional point to make up, but also because there's one fewer round in which to do it. That 30-27 hole is, statistically and historically a very big one. And, that's one of the reasons that both women turn up the heat in the last 30 seconds of this stanza, trying to grab a close round. But, it's the challenger who claims it narrowly, creating that dreaded 30-27 gap.

ROUND FOUR:

More aggression from Lima, but Arterton makes another adjustment. More aggression of her own. Gems begins stepping to, creating firefights and infighting. Body punching becomes a major theme of the day, and now Arterton's physicality comes into play. Now, it's the champion who's getting the better of things and forcing the challenger to give ground. Adriana, however, does so grudgingly, banging back hard and making the Brit pay for every centimeter of canvas she takes. For the second consecutive round, it's a very nearly run thing, with both fighters scoring points and neither able to gain any sort of control. But, as the round goes on, it's Gemma who's getting a bit more done. Not a lot more, mind, just a bit. But, in this case, a bit is enough. It's enough to stop the challenger's run. It's enough to finally get the champion on the board. And, it's enough to cut Lima's lead to 39-37.

ROUND FIVE:

Gems now rolling. She's backing up Adriana with hard shot, throwing the challenger to the defensive, and keeping her there. Now, it's Lima who can't get any offense going, as she's reduced to single-shot stuff here and there while Arterton's calling the tune with flurry after accurate flurry. This is the best stuff of the fight so far from the Brit, who's finally gotten into the rhythm the Brazilian was clearly trying to disrupt with her surprising early efforts. Now, though, Gemma's got all the pieces falling into place and that means tons of leather falling into Adriana's face. The challenger is game again, working hard to hold ground and make the Brit pay a price for taking it, but the price is far too low and the reward far too high in this stanza, which is simply all Arterton all the time from the opening seconds to the final bell. And, when that bell rings, Gemma's grabbed the round wide and cut the challenger's lead to just a single point, 48-47 at the half.

ROUND SIX:

Arterton roll continues. Gems has now taken the fight from Lima and she has no intention of allowing the challenger to take it back. Adriana doing everything she can to get back on the offensive, but it's not enough. Gemma using that physicality to impose will. She's backing Lima up, forcing her to cover up, shaking her at times with heavy fire. Things go from bad to worse about half way in. Arterton staggers the challenger with a right hand and then DROPS HER with a solid flurry! Lima finds herself in a sitting position in the middle of the ring, staring up at the referee as he begins the count. It looks to be over, but, it isn't. Adriana able to shake it off and get to her feet at eight. Referee gives her the mandatory, then waives on Gemma. Arterton all in to finish, battering Lima around the ring. Adriana hanging on, doing just enough to keep the ref at bay for the remainder of the stanza, but Arterton's grabbed a 10-8 round and leads this thing 57-56.

ROUND SEVEN:

Gemma dominant. Lima still shaky, unable to hold canvas. She's in retreat from the opening seconds, as the champion stalks, looking for the finisher. Brazilian grimly fighting on, trying to slow the Brit down, but, again, can't get it done. Everything was going so well, and, it's all gone sideways so quickly. Arterton clinical now, just working Adriana over, head, body, back to the head. Lima again all one-punch stuff, while Arterton puts together combinations and generally gives the Brazilian a beating. By the final minute, despite her best efforts, Adriana's trapped on the ropes, where she takes another thorough going over. She's rolling with punches, picking them off as best she can, firing back in spots, but it's not nearly enough. Arterton's in complete control, piling up a ton of points. At the bell, she's grabbed her fourth straight round, this one by a wide margin, and she's now up 67-65.

ROUND EIGHT:

Desperation stuff for Lima. She's again fighting in retreat, getting backed up by the heavier punches of her rival. She's got to do something to stop the bleeding here before it's too late, but nothing is working and the blood just keeps flowing. Adriana doing everything she can to slow Gemma, clinching, retreating, circling, trying to punch for respect, but, the champion just keeps coming. It's disheartening stuff for the Brazilian, but, to her credit, she doesn't lose heart. She keeps working. Keeps trying. Keeps setting those feet and trying to land something. And, then she DOES! It's a blistering right hand that catches the champion flush. Arterton wobbles and Lima throws in every reserve she has for a blistering flurry and DOWN GOES ARTERTON! Adriana just about done, nearly stumbles over the champion on her way to a neutral corner. Gemma on hands and knees, looks to be finished, but, like Lima before her, she pushes to her feet, beating the count. Ref gives her the mandatory and waives on Lima, who's got little more than fumes in the tank. Adriana using everything she's got, throwing punches in bunches. Arterton retreating in a high guard, goes to the ropes looking to ride it out but THE REF LEAPS IN AND WAIVES IT OFF! Too much landing from Lima and not enough coming back from Gemma and IT'S OVER! And, your winner by TKO8 and NEW Undisputed Lightweight Champion is Adriana Lima!

AFTER:

Absolutely no protest from the Front Street corner. Fact is, Arterton simply wasn't doing enough and the referee was correct in his decision. For her part, Lima is jubilant. It was almost a year ago that she was in this same spot against arch-rival Brooklyn Decker. That night, she came up short. But. Not tonight. Tonight, the Brazilian came up big and claimed her third different title, albeit her first lineal one. "She's better than Decker," a gassed, breathless Adriana says in the post-fight. "She's as good as anyone I've ever fought, and she had me in trouble. But, I never quit. I never gave up. I kept throwing everything I had at her. And, finally, I got her. And, now, I'm Unified Lightweight Champion. And it feels GREAT!"