Yasmin Verheijen vs Stella Maxwell
(Lioness Club vs BBU Independent)
(3-1, 3 KO vs 2-0, 2 KO)
Results: BBU; Story: Vassago

BEFORE: BBU TV's Denise van Outen believes that fights between beauty pageants and lingerie models provide natural rivalry that improves the quality of any boxing card around Europe. The Paris audience gets to witness one here tonight as two highly-touted prospects clash in what could become a real sleeper pick for Fight of the Night starring former Miss Netherlands Yasmin Verheijen and Victoria's Secret own Stella Maxwell.

Verheijen made a sensational start to her BBU career last spring racking up three wins before Jodi Gordon knocked her out on home soil down in Australia. Meanwhile Maxwell pounded out veteran journeywoman Jenny Frost and fellow model Georgia May Jagger and enters tonight's international test on a slightly higher note. There's a touch of Benelux derby with this match-up as Stella was born in Brussels and lived in Belgium until she was 13 years old. Van Outen is quick to remind everyone we don't have a genuine Belgian on the BBU roster and the British citizen is as close as it gets to making that happen.

Yasmin Verheijen wears an orange bikini set and blue gloves. Dark brown hair tied in a sleek ponytail. Stella Maxwell wears a white bikini set with black trim and golden gloves. Long blonde hair tied in a curly ponytail. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the lightweight division.

Round 1:
Yasmin is over two inches taller of the two girls and she makes her superior reach count early in this bout. She's hungry for some ring action as she gallops into the blonde's guts and flicks a quick uppercut that bounces off the chin to put Maxwell on the back foot inside the opening minute. Stella swings plenty of hooking efforts from behind the guard but misses the target badly and only grazes the brunette's guard before another harpoon series nails her around the elbows and reels backwards against the turnbuckle. Yasmin traps her in that precarious spot for remainder of the round and rips a nasty combo on the chin when she splits the high guard wide open and leaves the blonde model in serious trouble at the bell.

Round 2:
That was a bad opener from Stella but she struggles to make her efforts count thanks to Yasmin's superior size and reach. She loops several promising hooks from the back foot but becomes too wary of the overhand response and caves in behind a tight earmuff when the Dutch girl blasts her across the lips with a quick combo. Yasmin jumps forward and almost tackles the British model to the ground however that was a little careless from the taller girl who gets wrapped into a lenghty clinch as Maxwell recovers her balance and prevents another shutdown struggle in the corner. The referee lets them duke it out in this contest of strenght and Lioness coach Mel B. is visibly upset about that one but Yasmin has only herself to blame she got carried away with the close range attempt.

Round 3:
Verheijen's back to her preferred mid-distance and hassles the blonde around the ring with repeated aerial swings. Stella probably realizes she's facing a much tougher test than Georgia May Jagger tonight and spends most of the round backpedalling in somewhat annoying fashion but she's earned her boxing spurs through the Victoria's Secret gym and comes in slightly above your regular newcomer average. In fact, Yasmin begins to lose her temper down the stretch as she's not impressed with the blonde's tactics at all but that mental distraction affects her execution and she's unable to split Maxwell's guard during the final minute anymore. Denise van Outen points out that Stella's footwork is indeed superior of the two which could become vital later in this fight but one shouldn't expect a 5'11" tall Verheijen to steal the artistic impression in that department.

Round 4:
Perhaps Yasmin doesn't hit as hard as Elisabetta Gregoraci or Melissa Satta but she keeps missing more punches as the time goes by and the waiting game applied by Maxwell apparently suits her plans. She was pretty aggressive in blowing the doors off Jagger last month but shows signs of wiley veteran dodging all the aerial attacks from the visibly anoyed Dutch opponent. This could yet come back to haunt her if Verheijen delivers a proper combo but for now the beauty pageant begins to wear herself out in fruitless pursuit and as much as the French crowd gets annoyed by this tactics, it helps Stella to avoid serious punishment which she got a preview of during that difficult opening round.

Round 5:
Mel B. tries to calm the brunette down during the interval but Yasmin vows to finally "knock the bimbo's teeth out" as she storms into another aerial rally that has Maxwell ducking and weaving on her feet. But this time the blonde Angel gets CAUGHT with a vicious hook on the left ear and wobbles forward with her gloves collapsing by the wayside. And Yasmin SMOKES her with an uppercut double that pierces the jaw and immediately snaps the blonde's head backwards before a follow up hook finds the right temple AND SENDS MAXWELL CRASHING FLAT ON HER BACK moments later. Uh-oh! That's more like it from the Dutch power puncher who finally takes full advantage of that towering frame of hers. Stella grunts in pain as she embraces the quick trip to the floor but recovers surprisingly well at six and dismisses the brunette's effort: "Is that all U got, honey? My mother punches harder than that!" And she steps back in the familiar dancing escape thereafter which makes Verheijen's knockout plans impossible to execute and quite frankly all this futile pursuit doesn't help her stamina at all despite a wide lead on the cards at half-distance.

Rounds 6 & 7:
Lioness coach Mel B. has seen it all in the ring and she orders Yasmin to take it easy and protect her lead from now on which should finally trigger a proper aggressive response from the British model, "I know you want to knock her out so badly but use your brains for once, kid!" Thankfully Verheijen nods back in approval and looks to have settled down in her comfort zone following that knockdown. Stella has noticed the change of tactics here and realizes the time to attack is now - as if the knockdown wasn't the best indication already - and gallops into a steady jabbing galore that lands on the brunette's body but fails to really bother her on the long haul. What's more, Yasmin sends spicy overhands and keeps nicking them on the temples which slows down Maxwell's attacks towards the end of each of the next two rounds. This is a prolific veteran boxing stuff and even Denise van Outen is curious to know what the training regime for the Dutch pageant was during her lenghty break from the ring following that Jodi Gordon defeat. Meanwhile it's Stella who begins to lose her temper and looks frustrated each time her hooking approach meets the stubborn high guard and makes no impact on the brunette whatsoever.

Round 8:
Stella yells out in delight as she finally beats the pageant for the overhand tangle but as she cuts Yasmin's lips up, her eyes glare into a standstill a little too long and she drops her left hand too low searching for that all important follow up - and that's when she gets CAUGHT with a classic haymaker to the jaw and sinks on jelly knees as Verheijen romps clear with a vicious left/right combo that finds the nose and sends the blonde into spasms. Maxwell bends forward and tries to lock a clinch but Yasmin's just too quick here and drills a nasty uppercut on the jaw to seal the deal! Stella half-spins with a whimper and CRUMBLES FACE-DOWN ON THE CANVAS with her arms spread above her head. Ugh! She's not coming back from that one so cue in the standing ovation! KO8 Yasmin Verheijen in ultra-impressive fashion!!!

AFTER: Perhaps the height and reach difference was too much for Maxwell to overcome at this stage of her career but Denise van Outen still questions her strategy aimed at physically wearing the Dutch pageant out. It's always a very dangerous plan against a classic power puncher who might not move as fast but is lethal when landing her shots clean. The first round was just a preview, the knockdown in the fifth the final warning and the eight round demise an ineviteable formality to prove Maxwell wrong on all accounts.

She's still one of the hottest prospects around the division but she could really use a regular stable programme help - acting as Victoria's Secret sparring partner can only lead to as much success as defined by the likes of journeywoman Jenny Frost and fellow free agent Georgia May Jagger. Yasmin lived through that difficult period herself but forming a special bond with Girls Friday-based Jessica Michibata eventually led to her signing a six digit contract with the Lioness Club and the future suddenly looks very bright for the former Miss Netherlands. And let's be honest, Stella is too valuable marketing-wise to let her waste her prime years chasing free agency scraps!

Final result: Yasmin Verheijen def. Stella Maxwell KO8.