WEEKEND PPV

Posted by simguy on October 5, 2013, 10:14 am

BEFORE: "I wanted Carmella because she's a fighter on the rise," Lilly says in prefight. "She's won her first championship - she's a solid veteran...and I know a lot of you guys are thinking - and writing - that my 'dominance-window' has closed and that I'm just another fighter these days. I don't think that, guys. Bantam's competitive as you know, but I'm still a top-of-the-foodchain competitor. Girls like me prove their status on girls like Carmella. So bring it on."

Decesare eager to get after Evangeline and take that next step. "I'm not one who thinks Lilly's lost a step," Carmella says at podium. "But as a group, the top girls have definitely closed the gap on her. We've obviously studied footage of Vandervoort's victory over Evangeline...I'm built along Laura's lines, similar style...we think the fight could play out much the same way. I bring a bit more to the ring than Laura does in terms of my will and overall skill, so we're very confident. For Lilly, it'll be like that fight, only harder."

Carmella in fighting pink bikini/little white belt on the bottoms; white gloves; black hair in dutch braid with scrappy bangs. Lilly in green sport bikini with black pointilist print; black gloves; hair in slick, tight battle-braid.

During R1: Lilly aggressively at Carmella from the bell: stubby-jabbing Carmy to ropes; battering her from there. Decesare on her heels, trying to cover up - she's showing back of right hand at left cheek/left hand across gut looks; earmuff fronts - slipping and rolling in the pocket while taking a beating. Lilly happy to bash away hip-to-head - using that brawny left shoulder/extended left elbow to reset. Midway through, crashing hook unhinges Carmella's knees...she's hurt, sitting in ropes for support. Lilly pours it on, but an overhand right allows Carmella to slip under and pivot off the ropes...Decesare loping around the ring in shaky-legged retreat, desperate to run the clock to bell.

R2: Carmella winning respect midring as Lilly's marching in: lanky bolo right uppercut takes Lilly heavily to gut; slashing hook kisses across mouth, halting Lilly's forward progress. Carmella pokes her jab to get a little distance...shifts-right in wide stance...extends left to measure and FEEDS Lilly a drilling right cross upside the head. Crowd reacting to the pop: Carmy got her willowy back into that blast. Lilly taking the power well, but punched into a distance of Carmella's choosing...Evangeline with fists curled into her cheeks, bobbing on the spot, out on the end of Decesare's punches. Result: Carmella sliding to her right, raking Lilly with a constant bath of long lefts and rights as Evangeline can't penetrate, but won't retreat out of range either. Stubborness costs Lilly...she's gradually reduced by the whip-shock of Decesare's lithe strokes. Down the stretch - one-two sets up a glorious, rubber-armed hook to breadbasket, shaking Lilly's knees...while she's bunching forward in hurt, Carmella calmly measures via extended left, POURS that rangy right hand to temple and DOWN GOES LILLY! Crashing blast drops Evangeline to all fours...Carmella strides past all lean and smoldering, taking in the wreckage.

R3: Both girls have hurt the other: they settle in to impose will. Glorious battle as Carmella bends in to fight pate-to-pate, fetching Lilly dip-n'-rip uppercuts in close, or whacking at her body via supple shellack with lots of hip-rotation. Lilly grinding away inside, fighting off Carmella's chest - her short, chopping punches hack at Decesare's willowy frame, limber arms, intent on beating down the resistance. Advantage Lilly: she gradually works Carmella to ropes - stubby jabbing her from close range, feeding her clubbing right hands to head, tearing up that tummy hup-hup-hup to bell.

R4: Similar strategy from Carmella: going right at Lilly to get respect, do damage. Carmy laying in with head and left shoulder on Evangeline - Decesare's lithe arms lapping punches at Lilly's firm gut. Lilly sponging it up, banging back in trade - systematically working Carmella to ropes. Once there, Lilly increases her margin of advantage - leading a straight, palm-down right to breasts as she leans in; hooking the tummy; stubby-jabbing inside to get Carmella upright and vulnerable. Relentless stuff from Lilly - a constant beating of Carmella's head and shoulders, set up pounding body-shock. As Decesare loosens, she answers back less and less - escaping off the ropes when she can duck under Lilly's overhand right and pivot back to midring. Round ends to the sight of Decesare laying on ropes, face-in-hands, just suffering as Lilly pounds away to glory.

R5: Carmella in a bit of a jackpot: she's losing the head-on-exchanges, and in the process spending up the energy she could have used to box. Decesare unable to shake pursuit, so she retreats on a line, pasting Lilly rangy right crosses/wide left hooks until the ropes, then it's battle on Evangeline's terms. Lilly brutal with her girl in these moments - touching Carmella the stubby jab; jolting her that vicious straight/palm-down right to chest, then leaning in to churn punches. Decesare wilting to her right along ropes - often just forming face-in-gloves until an uppercut drapes her ropeside, head lolling, hands disorganized. Carmella getting drowsy, staggering, no longer able to get out from under...sheer accumulation of thudding wallop cuts power to her legs, easing her to knees and elbows. Carmy beats the count ragged at the bell: face busting up, mouth open, eyes staring.

R6: Series of jackhammer right hands beats Carmella at ropes - first pounding at her chest to loosen the guard, then bouncing off her face/skull. CARMY GOES DOWN! Bludgeoning assault just beats Decesare to hands and knees: Lilly looking down in satisfaction, chest heaving from her own exertions. Decesare beats the count, digs in at apron: cue waves of relentless Lilly as Evangeline bores in. Carmella badly reduced, but executing that duck-and-pivot under Lilly's overhand right whenever possible: that allows Decesare to swing out into midring, get a little distance...as she retreats across the canvas, she pastes oncoming Lilly - straight right hands, limber hooks. Pursuit chases Decesare to ropes where she covers up, suffers punishment until she can slip out from under. Down the stretch, succulent bolo right uppercut takes Lilly HARD to midsection: she's cramped up, momentarily hurt...Decesare able to consolidate with a swatting hook across chops, then a wider, rangier right hand clap upside the head that puts Lilly wobbly-butt! Evangeline staring, stunned...Carmella jabs-face, bends into a go-home right with all her whippy back behind it, belting Lilly's head back and spinning her face-first to ropes! Carmella advancing on Lilly at bell...still Evangeline's round, though Decesare converts the 10-8 to a standard 10-9 with sheer ferocity.

R7: Lilly still a little rocked, sluggish off her stool: Carmella gets on her with a flicking backhand jab off the hip, pivoting clockwise around the poke. Evangeline grouchy - right hand up around left cheek to parry, left across her gut...she's not penetrating, just bobbin'-and-blockin', letting Carmella circle and get off. Decesare making the most of it - up on her toes, legs straight n' springy as she touches Lilly left hands, then feeds her bendy-backed right crosses, bolo right uppercuts, sidearm clappers. Lilly busting up, progressively broken down by Carmella's diligent work - Decesare never better as she lopes around, licking and strapping Vangie into stupor. Bell to bell Carmella leaves Lilly bloody-nosed, glassy-eyed...Decesare all hard-eyed and determined on the strut back to her stool.

R8: Carmella surges forward, driving Lilly before her. Deech getting her back into slinging right hands - belting wallops upside the head staggering Lilly, forcing bitter retreats on those proud legs. Deech leaning in head-and-left-shoulder to lap her hands to the Lilly breadbasket: Carmella going right at the most solid core in the division without a trace of respect. Carmella walking Lilly down with that long, licking jab, then leaning into her: Evangeline's legs tested time and again as Carmella pastes away rangy. Credit Lilly's conditioning - she gets strafed, takes it, answers back in spots. Not enough to win the round, but Evangeline's biting off harsh combinations, battering Carmy's ribcage and breasts whenever Decesare's right hands carry her close. Bell: both girls touched up, panting...neither can say she's broken the other's will through 8.

R9: Heartfelt slugging continues - Carmella taking the fight to Evangeline. Carmy's jab finding and punishing Lilly's face, keeping Evangeline on her back foot. Long, slinging right hands crash against Lilly's defences, or smash upside her head, testing her legs again and again. Carmella frequently extending the left to measure, then driving in with drilling rights...she's teeing off, trying to get Lilly off her feet. Evangeline proving durable, sponging up one whippy lick after another...she's hurt, but trudging through, answering back hot to ribs and head in combination. Decesare the busier, more active girl - her legs dictating terms as she moves in, out and around through 9.

R10: Lilly catches a second wind as Carmella's gassing out...Evangeline's over to offence. Steady pressure from the bobbing-crouch; stubby jabs prodding Carmella to ropes; stamping straight/palm-down rights slamming into Carmella's chest, setting her up for clubbing lefts and rights in volume. DECESARE'S WILTING! Carmy's legs rubbery, arms loose...she's getting battered along the ropes, taking groggily about the head and shoulders as she tries to keep her hands up. Carmella extending her left off the ropes, then leaning into that drifting right, but Lilly's taking it flush and pushing-through, punishing Carmella for even thinking about offence. Hard for Carmy-fans to watch...Decesare going out on her feet, head lolling, eyes staring...she'll eat a right uppercut, stumble numbly to her right, cringe as a right hand chops at her flank, shunt back into ropes as Lilly's hook chops jug. On and on - Evangeline just leaning in, establishing that straight, stamping right, then working, churning mitts onto reeling Playmate. Carmella battered senseless, but proving willful: she survives bell to bell torment, swaying on the spot for the decision. Comes back UD10 close, Evangeline Lilly.

After: Both women beaten to exhaustion - Lilly giving Carmella an appreciative hug in the aftermath of a savage brawl for supremacy. Decesare SO disappointed, but chatting things over with Lilly as the two share a moment before interviewers move in. "That girl gave me a hell of a fight tonight," a battered Evangeline admits in postfight. "When I chopped her down for the second time, I thought 'this is it - I've got her'. Usually it's just a matter of stacking 'em up and processing 'em for the finish once I get 'em hurt. Not Carmella: she firmed, and fought even harder after those knockdowns than she did over the first half. It's an important win for me. I proved I can still beat down a top contender; I showed my heart, my conditioning. I showed I can chop down the taller girls in the division - even someone as bendy and whippy as Carmella. Yeah: I'll take it!"