ROBYN LAWLEY vs CASSIDY FREEMAN

(Punchaholics Anonymous vs Lioness Club of America)
(Words: Vassago / Results: Lookout!)

BEFORE: "I'm not really interested in the title picture this year anymore", says former champion Cassidy Freeman before her highly anticipated PPV return, "However I know Robyn has some big plans and my boss has told me we need to get this girl sorted out sooner rather than later just like we did with Bianca Kajlich. Sure, I had Estella Warren lined up but then she got whooped badly and well, Robyn has that middleweight presence written all over her and in few years time she might rule the division with an iron first. She has all the tools and well, it sounds like I'm on the Punchaholics PR crew here (laughs) but I really value her very high unlike some other Top 10 ranked fighters... (winks)"

Cue in the towering 6'2" Maria Sharapova version of SSB celebrity: "I'm glad to be attracting so much attention, though to be honest it feels a little bit gimmicky, rather than earned. Of course, if I take this one, I think my merit in people's eyes goes up quite a bit! But it hasn't changed much of my routine. I show up, I play with Christina, I work out, and I go over strategy, which is the only thing that has gotten more complicated for this fight."

Lawley stays clear of the pre-fight mind games knowing what this opportunity means to her career prospects. Sure, her stablemate Christina Hendricks has emerged as the divisional title contender but with Amanda Righetti struggling for action lately and Bridget Regan still nursing the Sarah Lancaster upset wounds, the 130 plus division seems wide open like rarely before. If Hendricks stumbles over Lancaster there's every chance the Punchaholics will fillbuster the challenger picture now that the Front Street Gym has little to offer in wake of the lightweight brigade going overdrive and LeeLee Sobieski sticking to familiar tomato cans over and over again.

Cassidy Freeman wears a black basque top, black knickers and golden gloves. Red hair tied in a curly bun on top of her head. Robyn Lawley wears a Brooklyn Decker-like yellow bikini set and black gloves. Long light brown hair tied in a high ponytail. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the welterweight division.

Round 1:
Lawley's fresh off the Sports Illustrated gig and breaths even more confidence than her boxing results warrant so she leaps after the former champion with no hesitation, slams a couple of hooks on Freeman's tummy and tries to go for the uppercut as she leans on the redhead but there's a counter from the actress which finds a left hook on the temple and sways the Aussie with another right on the cheek before pummeling through the arms. Freeman bounces off the SI exposed chest, whips more jabs around the elbows and Lawley's rooted to the spot with the ex champion lashing out at her and showing glimpses of those devastating skills that send several of her peers packing beforehand. Robyn winces early, realizes she's fallen into a trap here and jumps back to the ropes with Cass right after her, throwing leather over the top and keeping the brunette busy on her toes, dancing around in avoidance for remainder of the round.

Round 2:
Freeman storms out of her stool and intends to give the brunette more trouble; Robyn sticks to her aggressive plans too and a vicious leather trading ensues in the middle of the ring with the champ lacing her rival on the ribs gut getting some back on the face and she's forced to step aside but Lawley uses that towering height and reaches after her regardless. Freeman ducks low, throws a jabbing combo to the ribs again but she's nailed over the top with Lawley crashing off her temple with a big right hook, a follow up from the left bangs the redhead on the nose ridge and wobbles the former champ even further. The early signs are the Aussie model didn't just show up here to collect a paycheck and Cass reverts into a settling down mode and picks off her rival from the back foot throwing menacing single leather to somehow work around that superior reach. Lawley slows down too, perhaps she's happy with what she's achieved thus far just staying toe-to-toe with the P4P overall contender but the sheer boxing performance suffers because of this now.

Round 3:
Finally a more aggressive charge from the champion who ups the tempo of her attacks and has the model weaving on her toes, for one of the heaviest fighters around Lawley's surprisingly quick on her feet and when she tames the initial onslaught, she settles into counterpunching the actress over the top which exposes her above average strenght as well... Freeman decides to close in and punish the hot prospect but a wrenching hook on the liver stops her half way there and a sudden uppercut on the chin bursts the guard wide open... Lawley's arms are simply too long for the redhead to react in time and a crushing left/right combo sends Freeman shimmy shake... A lethargic looking leap proves equally dangerous though and semingly without much effort Robyn just powers into the older woman's face again romping short jabs and stacking Freeman up to the corner... more quick jabs follow and Cassidy's head rocks left and right as she's unable to handle the model's towering presence and when Lawley switches for a hook on the liver the ex-champion HAS TO TAKE A KNEE IN THE CORNER to completely stun the crowd! Just how good is this kid anyway? Cassidy looks as shocked as anyone to be honest and indicates to Claudia Schiffer she soaked one in too many but jumps away from the corner to prevent a looming disaster! Robyn's back to her methodical approach now and shows no signs of getting carried away, she keeps the  redhead at bay and it's rather obvious Freeman ain't gonna do nothing in mid distance here tonight!

Round 4:
Lawley's unorthodox attire has her chasing the redhead opponent at the start of the fourth but Cass responds in a similar manner as she realizes that allowing the brunette to pound her from mid range ain't the way to go here. Both gwomen square off in the middle of the ring again and as Lawley clips the chest and looks to repeat body attack scenario thereafter, Freeman slices her on the mouth with a double combo, catches the temple and halts the Aussie charge for good. Freeman cracks an overhand right on the temple, wobbles the brunette on her feet and buries a gutwrencher on the soft tissue, bounces off the rack too and forces Robyn to step back from the close range heat. The model circles around trying to settle back into her stride but Cassidy works the single hand and picks her off with couple of shots on the nose instead to see out the recovery round.

Round 5:
Freeman shows more aggression early but is swallowed up in mid range again and Robyn's catching some respite after being unable to knock the actress out following that third round shock. Speed across the canvas is pretty even but Cassidy looks somewhat desperate in her swings around the model's head with Lawley offering single strikes in response but visibly seeking to stay clear of the close range. Freeman's more frustrated as time goes by, she simply can't find that opening against such a tall opponent and only grazes the flesh before eating an overhand right on the mouth as she loses her footing briefly. However Lawley refuses to charge at her and keeps dancing back and forth before the actress realizes she's not getting anywhere in mid-distance and the model is perhaps trying to wear her out in veteran-like fashion despite being seven years her junior. A true handful of a bout for the LCA entourage at half-distance with the SI bound model still ahead on the scorecards!

Round 6:
Cassidy needs a  rushing breakthrough here and finally nails Robyn with a massive overhand on the cheek, follows up with a left hook on the chest and that gets the crowd going again. Lawley leans on her though and uppercuts the rack herself but the redhead slices her across the mouth, snaps the head back and pours in with more leather on the face, splits the mitts open and spikes the brunette on the nose, forcing her back. But the model refuses to buckle, throws a series to the head herself; Cass ducks low, bangs more uppercuts on the chest and has Robyn moaning for a change, rips into her guts and cleans out the tummy which finally relieves the brunette of her aggression and mid range dominance. Alas a lenghty clinch follows and prevents a serious comeback from the champ; Lawley's not giving an inch to the betting favorite and keeps her foot firmly in Freeman's door after six!

Round 7:
Freeman's visibly upset over the previous round, she lashes out at the brunette but Lawley responds; blocks off the initial jabbing and cross hooks the high guard, reaches for the mouth again and snaps the older girl's head back, rocking her on the heels in the proccess. Robyn pours in around the elbows and Cassidy's low guard is suddenly vulnerable, she drops her arms but still gets nailed on the ribs before the model nails her on the chin with a quick uppercut and looks like the former champion's strenght is starting to deteriorate as Lawley ups the work rate, bashes to the body and dances around the single hand response. Freeman can't seem to land anything noteworthy  anymore and eats more straight jabs from close range, steps back to the ropes but lawley's all over her and pounding to the stomach in gung-ho manner. Freeman soaks up that pressure before a late clinch but only the bell comes to her rescue as the fight threatens to end in a huge upset with the SI model completely comfortable with her plan and execution thus far!

Round 8:
Lawley seems to be setting up the grand stand finish as she stalks the redhead from mid distance again while Freeman has to go all-in regardless and the burst of speed for once catches the Aussie model napping; Freeman nabs her second - if last - breath and clobbers the midriff, we haven't seen much of that from the Lioness girl thanks to Lawley's superior reach but the opening minute onslaught rocks the younger woman into a yelping struggle with Freeman charging in to the body. And the veteran resilience pays off as Robyn wobbles back to the ropes and misses the key stopping hook whilst being ransacked on the chest instead. Freeman bumps into those SI worthy melons and hammers wildly at the guts thereafter finally thriving on a proper close range charge with the big Aussie leaning over the ropes to find some separation. A big hook on the liver bends her sideways though and when she lifts her head there's Cass thumping a heavy uppercut to sink her on jelly knees just about for the first time tonight! Suddenly the bell is what the Punchaholics are looking for here as Freeman digs really deep into her famed endurance to somehow stay in this fight albeit still down on points.

Round 9:
Freeman charges at the brunette knowing she's got to land that haymaker to somehow stop the Aussie camp from icing this fight out on the scorecards. Easier said than done but not when you've beaten the likes of Amanda Righetti before; she pours in with more jabs on the body, shatters the mitts and spikes the brunette's rack big time in a fashion Kate Upton would be proud of.... Lawley struggles to stretch her elbows in close range and wraps her arms around the redhead but more jabs from the actress keep her subdued and when the former champion shrugs her off, a right-on-right exchange bursts into the model's nostrils with Freeman thundering her on the counter straight on the ear with a vicious follow up... Lawley aches and groans and the knees give way underneath her, it's almost a slow-mo fashion here and Cass finds one more punch on the exposed lips with the arms long going south... DOWN GOES LAWLEY crashing on her side and that shot to the ear really smoked her! Freeman halts the upset headlines as Robyn tries to get up at six after staring down at the canvas for a while but she's knocked woozy and collapses with all her 6'2' presence on her back as the count reaches ten! The world class famed one punch destruction is back! KO9 Cassidy Freeman in crazy come-from-behind fashion!!!

AFTER: That last combo sucked the life out of the Punchaholics entourage but there are like three women in the division who can find a single punch to turn the whole fight around... "Yep, we're not talking prime Theron and peak Bell anymore", the winner confirms after the fight, "There's Amanda, there's Bridgy and well, that OTHER redhead too! But tonight was tough! AGAIN! There's so much talent right now I'm glad I got my chance when it was possible to avoid these Elle Mac clones. Robyn is like an improved version of Decker. I had a handful with Brooklyn before but at 6'2" Lawley is crazy tall and crazy good. She's straight out of those middleweight old school tales... she's gonna be HUGE for the division and if I were Sarah Lancaster I'd be worried already. Those Punchaholics might shut out shop pretty quickly! And I'm sure they won't back off from a proper welterweight action after one loss like some other stables did! (winks)"

Final result: Cassidy Freeman def. Robyn Lawley KO9.