CASSIDY FREEMAN VS BROOKLYN DECKER
Welterweight Title
(Words: Vassago / Results: Lookout!)

BEFORE: To quote the poet, Brooklyn wants to bag the elephant tonight. Front Street has bragged about earning four title shots in four years and now they get two on one night. And many people were shocked that Cassidy's entourage hand-picked the Sports Illustrated finest to her second ever battle for the crown having gone down to veteran Tricia Helfer over two years ago in the lightweight category. But a quick look at the welter rankings indicate Cassidy's defense options are running thin, there's one very obvious candidate aside from Brookie given the long-standing wrath towards a certain Polish Princess. And Brooklyn's done with the Models Inc. and targets some real opposition. Brawling a gruesome decision over Bar Refaeli was the last straw and now Brooklyn's just one win away from Front Street's finest hour. Let's make no mistake about that, Anna T.'s chance is probably her last one given her age and no Gemma wins over The Goddess are worth more based on who's at their prime and who's not. Cassidy's at all-time best and so is Brooklyn given her schedule and mere two losses in the last three and a half years. After tonight she's gonna claim her stakes as the Next Goddess and puts some Academy Award winners to shade...

All Decker in the build-up but it's always been that way with her. Cassidy settles for low key entrance, one doesn't beat Amanda The Great and needs to brag about it further... no less with Taylor Cole either... the champion's wary of her limits and Brooklyn's the hottest prospect around with Bridget R. nowhere to be seen after a slump in recent months... can Brookie do to Cass what Bridget did to Amanda? It's all about the match-ups they say...

Cassidy wears all black apart from a white & red strip on boy-legs trunks, black ribbon holds up a curled red hair-do on top. Brooklyn in orange bikini straight from SI heyday and black gloves. Blonde hair tied in a very loose ponytail which she bends back & forth around her neck during the introductions. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the welterweight division with the unified divisional title on the line.

Round 1:
Most of the people in the audience expected a somewhat sluggish start but that's not in the blonde's vocabulary as she storms out of her stool to dig into Cassidy's boobs like she's done nothing else in her life. Redhead surprised by the early onslaught and has to cover up her rack as Brooklyn works the jabs before switching on the head and swinging around the temples. Cassidy in a familiar single jab work rate, the response hardly bothers the challenger though and Brooklyn keeps picking her off and grazing the cheeks, the sheer amount of leather clearly on her side but Cassidy looks like she wants the model to punch herself out, a clubbing hook on the left cheek might indicate otherwise as Brooklyn jumps into close range late and digs more punches around the elbows; the champion almost too calm in approach, lets the challenger to run away with the round at will.

Round 2:
Cassidy gives Brookie one of those "Is that all you got?" looks and closes the distance before thumping the ribcage to finally put some pressure on the challenger, both girls settle for a single jabbing onslaught, pounding away at each other bodies but as Cassidy clips the boobs in a brief switch, Brooklyn swings around on the chin, bounces off the gloves and eats a drilling hook on the navel which forces her back. Redhead in a methodical pursuit, fakes the high approach to keep the blonde weaving around but settles into more shots on the ribcage down the stretch, outworks the model in a vicious but short brawl and forces her to circle back in the dying seconds again.

Round 3:
More of the same from Cassidy, quick jabs bounce off the blonde's ribs, not too heavy to cause immediate trouble but irritating once stacked up. Brooklyn holds her nerve and still works the high response, clips the redhead's jaw a couple of times but fails to land that big shot to halt the champion's actions downstairs. Still, it's a slightly different approach from the redhead, perhaps those George Foreman comparisons which Brookie was so proud of lately aren't that laughable after all? The girl's VERY durable for a swimsuit model and not exactly a quitter, the methodical dissecting of her midsection might be just what the doctor ordered and Cass is still agile enough to avoid the heavy overhands as Brooklyn looks a little annoyed by the repeated stalking of her ribcage, barks in anger after another missed hook on her part which was a hairline away from cleaning out the champion's nose but the round ends with Cassidy pumping a couple of hooks on the blonde's navel instead.

Round 4:
Brooklyn looked annoyed at the conclusion of the third and now ignites some speed into her actions, leaps after the redhead with a jabbing cavalry, wants to bury the champ under the heavy leather but bounces off the guard far too often at first, dives to the side and finally catches the temple with a left hook, then ducks underneath a similar reply and pierces the mitts with a right hook on the nose that makes Cassidy wince a little. More piercing jabs follow as Brooklyn settles in close range and outworks the champion with a quick combo on both cheeks, slips by another response and powers through with a clubbing double on the nose, rocking Cassidy back to the ropes. Redhead tries to fight back from the back foot but grazes the top of the model's shoulder and fails to cover for another wrenching hook on the mouth... a loud gasp in the audience as Cassidy's head snaps back and Brooklyn bumps into her chest to bounce her off the ropes and straight into an uppercut piledriver that whips the head to the side... Cassidy drops her arms and gets wrenched on the temple from the left hand side with the blonde gurgling in delight as the champion spins around and crashes into the turnbuckle AND SLIDES DOWN ON HER KNEES... Ugh! Tess Valmore's up in the front seat dropping all her notes to the ground and looking utterly shocked as the champion takes her time in getting up, we don't get to see her face but she's up at seven and apparently OK to continue... a huge close call as Brooklyn pumps herself across the chest and looks to clean out her clock for good, more jabs target the face but a desperate cover enables the champion to see out the round despite the blonde's best efforts and now the Front Street corner leads the applause as Brooklyn turns back to watch the champion slump on her stool.

Round 5:
No immediate response from the champion who seems to have really felt that little onslaught from the blonde model; Brooklyn's more than aware of the golden chance to score the biggest victory of the whole crew, knocking out Cassidy in her prime is simply huge and would neglect everything the Polish Princess has ever done in FS colors, a thumping assault has the champion seeking respite and covering up, single hand response grazes the shoulders instead of the temples again and Brooklyn digs her mitts into the body as she can't quite pierce the guard anymore but does all she can to impress the judges and make the redhead look obsolete... Cass in wayward hooking attempt, trying to break the blonde's momentum, skims off the cheeks but doesn't even snap the head back properly as Brooklyn wrenches her on the tummy and slows down again in the final minute. Overhand strikes bounce off the cheeks and the champion's guard begins to buckle, blonde with that little extra power to keep the redhead dancing but than a staggering hook nails Cassidy on the eye and leaves her sagging on the ropes, Brookie with a right hand on the temple... just missed as she catches the top of the forehead but doesn't follow through with all that power and wobbles into a clinch that makes the LCA people gasp in pure relief.

Round 6:
"Brookie's halfway there!" Tess Valmore becomes vocal in the stands and the model looks convinced she can knock the champion out. Another pacey approach leaves both women bumping into each other and Brooklyn smacks the cheeks seeking more damage but Cassidy barks in anger herself and throws a hook on the temple that makes the model wince and miss her subsequent effort. A wayward hook goes well above the redhead's shoulder and Cassidy works the facial jabs in close range, leans on the model and tags the temple to wobble the challenger back. Brooklyn refuses to step away, leans forward herself and seeks uppercut connection, bounces off the forearms and eats another hook on the temple which spins her to the side with a loud groan. Cassidy powers through with yet another cross hook on the nose and increases the blonde's volume, rips one from the other side and just beats the model for that overhand, nails her on the nose again and makes her wobble forward straight into an uppercut on the jaw THAT WHIPS BROOKLYN BACK AND SENDS TUMBLING TO THE CANVAS... the blonde's legs shoot up in the air and she nearly flips over her head as the champion displays some raw punching power herself. That was one blow to the nose too many for the 21st Century Goddess and Brooklyn just rests on her knees checking up for any nasal damage before beating the count at eight... thunderous look from the Ohio native as Cassidy breaths some hair from her eyes. She stalks the blonde with more facial leather but Brookie finally thinks better of it and circles back instead of going all-in and risking a whirlwind knockout, Cassidy is visible improved commitment, thumps the model to the body late in the going but there's one heck of a durable challenger against her tonight and Brooklyn just spreads her arms as she walks back to her stool, the perfect plan seemingly requires immediate adjustments but the blonde doesn't look all that put off by the knockdown. 

Round 7:
Maybe Brooklyn's in a good enough shape to shrug that knockdown off but Cassidy has found a second breath and overwhelms her opponent's movement, refuses to give her any sort of respite and hassles her on the body again. Brooklyn seeks more facial breakthrough but has to cover up low and eats a few hooks on the cheeks as the champion dominates the mid-range exchange before shifting up for a proper facial assault. Brooklyn digs some into the ribcage but has to yield real estate, redhead bumps into her cleavage with a wayward elbow and clatters one onto the nose that really opens the blonde's eyes down the stretch. A brawling skirmish follows, Brooklyn traps Cassidy's left arm and refuses to let go, pushes her into the ropes and works some veteran's tactics to dwarf the redhead's momentum. Still, Cassidy digs into her liver area but fails to chop her down and Brookie bumps her mounds right into Cassidy's somewhat inferior rack to press her against the turnbuckle, calls ref into action but after the command the blonde springs back into safety and tries to upset the redhead before mounting another late charge. Cassidy still catches her with a couple of hooks on the cheeks but Brookie shakes her head in reply, indicates that didn't hurt her at all and she's probably damn right about that.

Round 8:
More power punches from the model who drops the defensive tactics and lays it into the redhead, single jabs turn into a proper combos and suddenly both women pound away at each other in the middle of the ring, a true war or attrition ensues come the minute mark with heavy slaps leaving bruises on each midsection. Brooklyn yelps in a higher volume but refuses to buckle, Cassidy with almost a painful look in the eye as she tackles the ribcage before switching up high, not exactly a correct choice as Brooklyn keeps ripping her guts up, wins the battle of heavy slugging after thumping the navel clean and brushing an uppercut effort to the side, a quick hook on the eye snaps Cassidy's head back and forces her to back away, Brooklyn doesn't chase her down and has to gasp for air as she was pummeled around in that exchange as well, both women eventually circle away after a test of late endurance and there's seemingly no breakthrough on the body anymore and Brooklyn's ab muscles are truly the models' galore finest, she stalks the redhead in the final minute but lacks precision whereas Cassidy looks puzzled by the blonde's tremendous punching resistance.

Round 9:
Cassidy in another sluggish start, tries to stalk the blonde with single leather but all those hours with Andy Roddick's personal coaching staff pays off for Brooklyn as she rips into the redhead's ribcage with a flying combo, fakes the facial approach and bangs away at the breadbasket instead, shrugs off the clinch by another cleavage bump and traps the right hand in armlock before slamming a couple of hooks on the exposed temple; Cassidy bumped off from close range, wobbles to the ropes but throws one from the back foot, only grazes the nose and Brooklyn with a powerful overhand clean on the nose... Cassidy's rocked and falls onto the ropes, lucky enough not to go down as there was indeed some cover but she bounces straight off into a clattering uppercut on the jaw that closes her eyes and renders the knees soft... Cass goes shimmy shake and drops her arms, tries to wrap one around the ropes not to go down again but there comes the Foreman punch that nails her on the mouth and SENDS SLIDING ONTO HER KNEES in almost slo-mo fashion... Champion's down on all fours and Brooklyn gurgles in delight, places both gloves around her head to wait patiently if Cass indeed gets up... aaaaannndddd she does!!! The hair's a mess and a couple of nasty shiners on the left cheek indicate it was anything but plain sailing for her tonight but she's up at seven and rests on the ropes, Brooklyn in a loud shriek and nervous look back to her corner, she undoes her loose ponytail but literally scratching her gloves on the head in pure frustration and shouts back to her foe: "I had you down and out!", Cass in a cheeky smile of disapproval but her chest pumps up and down and she only knows how much that cost her... a brief pause to adjust the model's hair, Brooklyn's more disappointed than annoyed.. or both even... just hopes to keep the champion trapped on the ropes and sends more facial leather but all the adrenaline has evaporated and there's no real power behind her shots, the fatigue kicks in after all but another bump on the chest has the champion buried on the ropes and Brooklyn doesn't even mind her bikini kinda loosened up and threatens to exposed her boobs as she walks back to her corner staring at her feet.

Round 10:
The Sports Illustrated Goddess has taken the fight to Cassidy longer than Amanda and Taylor combined which speaks volumes itself and according to Tess Valmore she MUST be ahead on the cards after that second knockdown... but what next? Punish the redhead so she spits out her fighting spirit right at the death or protect the cards instead. Front Street corner has the final say: "Forget the unwritten rule of boxing. A challenger can beat the champion through a decision. You got this! Just three more minutes and we're home and dry!". Cassidy in a well-known laid-back manner... but she's up well before the interval ends and gives the blonde a long stare in a "Do you really believe you can win this!" kinda fashion; it's not some Thursday night Boxing on the Beach against Bar Refaeli after all. And we're off into a career defining three minutes of the blonde's career... forget Lawrence and the original Goddess from South Africa... Brooklyn settles in a single thumping to the body, tries to waste some time and force the champion into action... Cassidy like a poacher seeking easy meat, drills the high guard but makes sluggish connection... and then all hell breaks loose as she springs onto the cleavage and pummels the arms aside; Brooklyn's mounds haven't been tested at all tonight but she gets thumped from the side and covers up briefly to allow the redhead to close in, a quick jab on the temple doesn't rock the model off her stance but she has Cass so close and riffles a hook on the temple, skims off the forehead again and wobbles forward, still has chance to bump into the redhead and wobble her or enforce a clinch but then a piercing left hook nails her on the eye and spins to the side, Cassidy with immediate follow up to clean out the temple from the other side and has Brooklyn trying to escape.. but the model has her eyes closed as she tries to slip underneath, suddenly struggling to find her feet and Cassidy lets a cross hook go with a loud scream... send in the cavalry... Brooklyn gets smoked on the mouth and.. oh, dear her mouth guard flies right through the ropes moments before SHE HITS THE CANVAS HARD, crashing onto her side with eyes closed... Have you ever? Champion unloads the barracuda of all punches when she needs it the most and has the model trying to lift herself up off the elbows... Brooklyn pounds the canvas with the tips of her boots and tries so hard not to let the eyes fade away into a mist... She's up on her knees at six and shoots back upright at nine... oh man, she refuses to go down even if half of the division would be knocked out cold - including the Polish Princess - and the other half confined to a stoppage at the very best... Nope, Brookie ain't done here yet but the eyes do look misty.... alas she gives Cass that stare one more time and the champ seems impressed as she plays around with her mouth guard... a brief pause to place the model's piece back where it belongs; respect is one thing but the will to knock the Sports Illustrated's finest is something else... Brooklyn nods back to the ref and is send out to salvage anything out of this round... but Cassidy roars in confidence and splits the mitts with a piercing combo, slams one on the jaw and whips the blonde's head back, the feet just don't respond to the call anymore and Cass bats away at the pretty face, slams another cross hook on the nose and buries the model sagging on the ropes and unable to mount any comeback... a riffling left hook nails the challenger on the eye and stumbles her to the side before the onslaught concludes with a heavy uppercut on the jaw... Brooklyn's arms go numb AND SHE CRASHES ONTO HER LEFT SIDE with eyes closed, rolls over onto her back and covers the face with both gloves... Cass spits out her piece and can only watch as the proud model mumbles into spasms and can't make any sort of recovery... KO10 and STILL the welterweight champion Cassidy Freeman!!!

AFTER: Funereal atmosphere in the Front Street corner, Brooklyn was closer to the biggest victory of her life than the Tennessee Titans were to winning Super Bowl XXXIV when Rams' linebacker Mike Jones made the iconic tackle. It just defies belief! A quick look at the scorecards indicate that the blonde model was ahead 85-83 after nine rounds... Cassidy leans over the ropes and affords herself a smile after a really lengthy pause to catch her breath, she might be at her prime but that was one of the hardest earned victories of her career. In fact some people are still gobsmacked by the way she tore Brooklyn apart in that final round.

Meanwhile Brooklyn's on her knees and just stares at the canvas, a dime for every thought running through her mind right now.. given Front Street's extended roster she might not be offered such a big chance before she turns 30 anymore... three minutes away from the ultimate glory... the Foreman punch, the choking cheap shots... there's gonna be a lot to analyze after this fight...

Cass has her gloves removed and looks back at the model being rendered frozen on her knees and no one has the courage to assist Brooklyn back upright... the old-new champion approaches her and lifts up by the wrist as the eyes finally catch some spark... a long stare between the two and Cassidy lifts Brooklyn's arm in the air to pay a respect to her performance tonight... "Gurl, you'd blow the doors off Taylor Cole...", Brooklyn nods in approval but still the eyes just look sad... in what was probably her most inspired fight to date - since the previous shot at the lightweight title ended in a five minute cameo disaster - she came up just short... and may forever be haunted by "what might have been stories".

More from Cassidy in post-fight interview: "I know our management was focused on Brooklyn for a long while. She has all the tools to become the natural replacement for Charlize. But I don't think Front Street has the courage to push her all the way. They always seem to hold back something on her. I've said to her in the ring she'd wipe the canvas with Taylor Cole and that's a girl who won some awards based on her results just last year. I mean, look at the welters around, there are Amanda and Katrina, Bridget at her prime... miss you honey.. and well me at my prime.. and there's Brooklyn about to kick herself through the door... she's moved away from the Models Inc., that's all good, I mean Kate U. had her shot like ages ago and faded away since... I just hope the very rare chance for all those swimsuit girls doesn't get wasted for the sake of some Polish Princess pounding away winless jobbers... The whole division deserves something better than this! (...) My next title defense? Well, look at the rankings, all the names are there... you don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure it out!"