3. Gigi Hadid vs Sara Sampaio

Victoria's Secret "War In Heaven" Tournament - Round 1
Gigi Hadid (Seed: #7) vs Sara Sampaio (Seed: #26)
(Brazil vs Portugal)
(6-20, 6 KO vs 1-9, 1 KO)
Results: Lookout!; Story: Vassago

BEFORE: Gigi Hadid made the quarter-finals of the War In Heaven's first edition and this is the only reason why she is seeded #7 for the current event. She has lost 14 (fourteen!!!) fights in a row since knocking out Irina Shayk back in October 2017 and this record run of ineptitude gives her tonight's opponent a golden opportunity to break out of her own slump. Sara Sampaio hasn't won a fight since October 2018 which cost her the Girls Friday management in the so-called meantime and most pundits believe she should go back to BBU if she cannot beat the equally lacklustre Hadid tonight!

Gigi Hadid wears a turquoise bikini set & silver gloves. Long blonde hair tied in a curled ponytail. Sara Sampaio wears a yellow bikini set & red gloves. Long dark brown hair tied in a high ponytail. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the lightweight division.

Round 1:
Both models waste no time and just tear into each other from the bell to defy several odds that predicted a slow-burning affair between two bottom tier fighters. Gigi angles her shots into the brunette's face and claims the bragging rights when she bumps Sara on the chest and wobbles her on the heels upon impact. Sara tries to swing from the back foot but slices thin air and gets bulldozed to the ropes as Hadid works the jabbing attack on speed dial. She struggles to connect with a genuine haymaker but the work rate alone overwhelms Sampaio and keeps her pinned in the corner. Gigi drops a harpoon bomb just above the waistline and keeps plugging the subdued foe which allows her to run away with the scorecards. Sara barks in anger at the bell but she barely landed a single combo on target during the opening round!

Round 2:
Gigi tries to add more juice up the middle but eats a vicious hook over the top and grinds to a halt upon impact which allows the brunette to rattle her from both flanks in a sudden burst of jabbing menace. Hadid gets thumped on the temples and has to bail out of the jam but she trips over her own feet and gets blasted with more shots on the boobs as Sampaio gets aggressive in an unorthodox way. She reels the Brazilian onto the ropes anyway and plugs her in the breadbasket hole; Gigi's facial expression gives away the fact she is vulnerable down there indeed and Sara clubs her with the right hand repeatedly while digging the left forearm up high. Ref is fine with the concept so Hadid has to accept the beating but she verbally taunts her opponent after the bell to earn a mild ovation from the audience!

Round 3:
Sara drops more body shots to expose Gigi's vulnerable area and the Brazilian model simply isn't fast enough on her feet to avoid the heat. She gets busted in the tummy and cries out in pain which only fuels Sara's efforts to chop her down in half. Another stray elbow catches the blonde in the chest and wobbles her backwards but Sampaio still clobbers her onto the ropes with ease and seeks that liver-shattering harpoon that would do the trick on the spot. She becomes predictable while driving those shots but Gigi is subdued enough not to mount a counter and slumps into loud spasms while the brunette just cleans her up in one-sided fashion to forge ahead on the cards.

Round 4:
Sampaio gets in the groove and leans forward to attack the blonde's midsection again but Hadid catches her with the overhand counter and spikes her on the ear before a laser-quick follow up finds the chin. Ugh! Sara groans in pain and wobbles forward to meet another brutal uppercut that LIFTS her off the canvas and sends crashing down on her back moments later!!! Uh-oh!! Who did see this coming? The crowd is stunned by the sudden nature of Sara's departure and she can only get back onto all fours at eight and sits down on her heels when the ref shouts "TEN!!!" right into her face!!! KO4 Gigi Hadid!!!

AFTER: The four year wait is over!!! Gigi's 14-fight losing streak is over too!!! She has found a way to win one of these bouts again but this result probably says more about Sara Sampaio's chin resistance than anything else! Gigi blows several kisses to the crowd and openly supports Adriana Lima to beat Behati Prinsloo in the next fight to set up the all-Brazilian derby in Round Two next month!

Meanwhile poor Sara can barely hide the tears. She storms out of the ring even before the verdict is announced and one can only imagine where she goes from here. Perhaps a step back to BBU might solve her issues but the hits just keep on coming for the Portuguese stunner. If she can't beat an opponent on a 14-fight losing streak then it's almost a lost cause at this stage.

Official Result: Gigi Hadid def. Sara Sampaio KO4.