Kelly Gale vs Izabel Goulart
(Girls Friday vs BBU Independent)
(9-3, 8 KO vs 1-1, 1 KO)
Results: BBU; Story: Vassago

BEFORE: "I feel like my time to shine is NOW but well, Alessandra still holds onto the title belts so I'm just doing my thing!", Kelly Gale sounds a little downbeat ahead of tonight's contest but she's doing the best she can to enhance her elite options following a terrific stoppage of ACB champion Jennifer Hawkins last month. Izabel Goulart's BBU experience is very limited but she ticks off all the glamour boxes and one can argue she plays her own game while accepting a dangerous challenger like Gale: "Well, I don't have much time to build my career into that elite level. I joined the party a little late but since we're talking about Alessandra, once I beat her sexy stablemate up, that will be enough for her to answer my call! We've known each other for years and she's kinda run out of options given how she challenged Lisa Maffia for one of her last defenses. That's quite horrible! I have more fire in me than Maffia so WHEN I knock Gale out, I fully expect that shot at the straps!"

Girls Friday entourage refuses to acknowledge Goulart's ambitions and coach Lauren Berlingeri says Alessandra is still overseas recovering from her last FCBA PPV bout so she can't predict whether the reigning BBU lightweight champion actually has her Brazilian compatriot lined-up for any action in the foreseeable future.

Kelly Gale wears a light blue bikini set & yellow gloves. Long black hair tied in a sleek ponytail. Izabel Goulart wears a yellow bikini set & green gloves. Long dark brown hair tied in a curled ponytail. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the lightweight division.

Round 1:
Izabel wants to back her pre-fight talk with some meaningful action and delivers a quick strike up the middle to clip the fellow brunette's rack before slamming a left/right combo on the chin that drives the Swede backwards. Kelly has no time to secure a proper guard and succumbs to the early pressure as Goulart really puts the heat on to pound her opponent onto the ropes. Kelly tries to swing back from behind the guard but gets picked off and develops an early swelling around the lips as the older model is ruthless in execution here. She keeps pounding away upstairs and has the Swedish girl rocking on her feet but simply unable to escape the barrage and sinks on soft knees when she gets whacked on the chin a couple of times extra just before the bell.

Round 2:
More aggressive blows from Izabel send Kelly into checkdown mode and she finds some respite in mid-range however Goulart eventually manages to work the looping single-hand approach when the younger brunette loses her balance after a while. One simply can't hang back so dramatically like Gale without getting hit in the process and Izabel's fresh enough to neutralize the mobility aspect. She pounds the hapless foe onto the ropes and keeps blowing past her guard upstairs to rock the black ponytail back & forth until Kelly cries out in pain. A drilling hook on the chin opens the Swedish lass right up and Goulart NAILS her with a brutal hook on the left eye TO SEND GALE DOWN ON HER SIDE!!! Uh-oh!! Coach Berlingeri is furious here while Kelly battles back some tears to rise back to her feet at seven. She tries to escape the Brazilian rush thereafter but remains pinned in the corner and has Izzy racking up punches into her guts next. Forget the high guard; Goulart runs riot to bash the midsection during the final minute and leaves Gale aching her heart out at the bell.

Round 3:
Kelly's taking too much punishment here again but she barely escapes another looming double upstairs before finally finding some counter-response over the top. She loops several promising strikes and clips the older model's boobs but Izabel pours more pressure up the middle and even delivers an accidental head-butt while trying to drop the Swede back to the ropes again. The brief stoppage helps the youngster's cause and she uses some quick feet to escape the charging opponent alas Goulart keeps hassling her around the ring for remainder of the round and taunts her in presumably explicit Portuguese. That might be a special message for Alessandra Ambrosio already as Gale is lucky to stay off the ropes but is doing little to stop the Brazilian's rout otherwise.

Round 4:
Kelly engages in a surprising phone booth drill and tries to match Izabel punch for punch which seems like a last hurrah effort from the Girls Friday coaching staff already however the embattles Swede lands a couple of quick harpoons on the liver area to drop Goulart off her buzzing attitude. She doubles up with an uppercut drive to force Izzy into earmuff cover but more importantly keeps drilling her ribcage which finally neutralizes the wholesome attack. Goulart's footwork isn't as good as some fans expected so she can't quite force Gale into a futile pursuit but the close range switch enables her to shut the Swedish comeback down via a lenghty clinching struggle. Kelly gets a little more animated when she slips and almost takes the older brunette down with her but then lands another harpoon on the liver that makes Izzy gurgle right at the bell.

Round 5:
Izabel doesn't look so fresh in execution anymore and struggles to slice the Swedish guard up while Kelly keeps looping her strikes over the top to slowly but surely drag herself back into this contest. She frustrates the Brazilian with clear mobility edge and picks off some jug to further slow her rival down. Goulart keeps her eye on the big picture and knows she can lure Gale into random attacks given her advantage on the cards but Kelly's too patient to blow her fuse at this stage and prefers to chip away at her chances with more single-hand approach. Neither model's willing to go for it for remainder of the round and even Denise van Outen is puzzled whom this tactics suits better?

Round 6:
Izzy lashes out from both flanks to punish the Swede's midsection but then eats a nasty cross on the nose and bends to the side where Kelly hauls in the uppercut juice and LIFTS the Brazilian's rack against her chin. Goulart fails to regain her balance and when Gale scythes her upstairs there's no guard to speak of either... A nasty hook finds the jaw and SINKS the swimsuit legend on her heels before Kelly racks up a couple of hooks on the temples to send her tripping onto the ropes. Ugh! Izabel wants to jumps right back at her foe but Kelly is too quick for her and NAILS her on the jaw with a brutal hook followed by more head shots that drop Goulart into a desperate earmuff cover. The Brazilian babe is trapped here and soaks up a furious rally with Kelly working on speed dial to destroy her defense. She splits those green mitts repeatedly enogh for Izzy to cry out in despair when her lips turn into a swollen mess but the money shot CHOPS HER DOWN literally three seconds before the bell when Kelly pierces the liver and sends Goulart onto her knees!!! Huh! That's a close one but the bell actually saves the Brazilian's pride even though she looks downright hurtin' there, folks! Lauren Beringeri thinks the fight should be stopped regardless but Kelly calms her down: "I'll finish her off soon!"

Round 7:
Izabel gets a second chance to avenge that knockdown but eats a faceful of leather instead as Kelly gets vocal in her furious leather rush that wobbles the suddenly shocked opponent onto her heels. Kelly was touted as a huge prospect with a monster upside and she shows some of that right NOW as she pummels the swimsuit veteran into a standstill while bursting her lips into a bloody mess! My oh my, someone's pulled the plug on poor Izzy and you know the name! No way back for Goulart as she receives the punchbag treatment until her legs go full jelly around the forty second mark... SHE DROPS FACE-DOWN AT THE FELLOW MODEL'S FEET and some fans think she was knocked out of her senses while still standing... Forget the count, it's KO7 Kelly Gale!!!

AFTER: The victorious brunette yells out in anger and wants to make Izabel pay for all these pre-fight comments but the medical crew indicates the proud Brazilian is outta here so needs to be revived back in the locker room. "What a shame! I was looking for her apology here! Damn, she's not worthy of licking my boots now! But we'll spank her ass raw in the locker room yet! Grr..."

Denise van Outen talks to Kelly a few minutes after the fight and the Swedish stunner is still hot: "Look, it's bad enough Alessandra doesn't let me to go after her straps so I have to show my talents around that. I was send to clean the Goulart house but she gets ALL the love before the fight! I feel like I'm the BEST lightweight in this league NOBODY has heard of! What next? More ACB blondes I will so gladly beat up? Whatever! I'm still young... I will outlast Alessandra and all these veterans... no offense, Alex, but you're time is UP!!! (...) Okay, so can we cut this? My boss will be very ANGRY with me now! (giggles).

Alessandra Ambrosio on twitter: "Good job, kid! You'll get your chance... in like 2021?" 

Lauren Berlingeri catches up with Denise during the post-event VIP party and claims there's ZERO controversy between Alex & Kelly: "Poor kid feels so overlooked it's driving us crazy. You should have seen the stuff she's doing in the gym. She just kicked Izabel's butt and everyone knows how Izzy feels at home with these kickboxing & ju-jitsu training sessions. She's way tougher than most of you think BUT Kelly still destroyed her and she's a future BBU champion. The question is "when", not "if"!

Final result: Kelly Gale def. Izabel Goulart KO7.