Nicola Roberts vs Rebecca Ferguson
(Lioness Club vs BBU Independent)
(11-14, 9 KO vs 1-2, 1 KO)
Results: BBU; Story: Vassago

BEFORE: Nicola Roberts is one of the most experienced fighters in the entire BBU but she has never quite gotten over the "quality journeywoman" hump during her up & down boxing career. She headlines another Lioness Club undercard tonight against former 'X Factor' runner-up Rebecca Ferguson who vows revenge on the Girls Aloud corps after going down to Kimberley Walsh over two years ago.

Nicola Roberts wears a navy blue crop top, matching hotpants and silver gloves. Strikingly red shoulder-lenght hair straight. Rebecca Ferguson wears a silver bikini set with black trim and black gloves. Long dark brown hair straight. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the bantamweight division.

Round 1:
Rebecca's fired up for the Girls Aloud revenge mission and jumps early with a jabbing rush that slices through the redhead's guard and forces her into immediate defensive circles. Nicola isn't best known for her natural aggression and she got roughed up by Vera Brezhneva last time out so it's perhaps understandable why she looks so sluggish here in the opener but all credits goes to Ferguson for making her look so cumbersome in first place. The Liverpool girl slams more crisp shots up the middle and rocks Nicola's head back in the final minute before a late clinch finally salvages some Girls Aloud pride.

Round 2:
Another offensive drive from Ferguson splits the redhead's mitts and dumps her into immediate trouble in close range. Rebecca works her jabs on speed dial and even if she lacks precision, the aggressive effort alone is enough to send Roberts into a tailspin. Thankfully for the hosts, Nicola shows some nifty footwork to stay clear of Ferguson's pursuit however coach Mel B. becomes a little angry over the lack of production while Rebecca simply thrives on the cumbersome resistance. Still, she can't quite connect with her punches down the stretch and only skims off the redhead's forearms; Nicola settles down behind the high guard but her single-hand recovery isn't going to bother anyone, let alone an otherwise inexperienced opponent like Ferguson.

Round 3:
Nicola's mediocre defense has usually led to most of her defeats and Rebecca has watched the tape to understand she needs to bring the heat and overwhelm the redhead physically more than anything else. She bangs through the high guard early in the third and connects with the cheeks but then gets stuffed with a quick uppercut on the boobs and Roberts assumes the dominant position when she ravages the brunette to the body. Ugh! Rebecca's only victory to date has come at the expense of winless Diana Vickers and she lacks a proper defense herself; both women get tangled in a chaotic close range bash that eventually stops when they clash heads and force a sepearation. This isn't a front page boxing product at all and Charlie Webster thinks that more was supposed to be expected from Nicola but perhaps that Brezhneva beating still lingers on her mind too much? Whatever the case, Ferguson is happy enough to see out the clock in lacklustre mid-distance teasing which plays into the Lioness Club's tactical plan for the time being.

Round 4:
The local KO Club support finally triggers an offensive display from Roberts and she brawls the Scouse opponent into a hectic cover up when she scythes her across the mouth and adds a quick hook on the chin. Rebecca wobbles on her heels but refuses to yield real estate and both women engage in a furious jabbing assault that Nicola manages to swing into her favor when she blasts the fellow singer on the nose. She then adds another hook on the chin and drops Ferguson towards the ropes. The brunette doesn't have the agility required to escape the subsequent pursuit and remains glued on the ropes as Roberts punishes her from both flanks and underlines her dominance by bursting her lips into visible swelling come the bell. Ferguson has soaked up plenty of abuse here in the fourth but remains in good spirits and shouts abuse over at the Lioness corner which is rewarded by loud jeers from the audience.

Round 5:
Ferguson tries to rewind the tape back to the opening couple of rounds but her intended jabbing rush meets the improved defense and drags the Merseyside singer into an otherwise fruitless display. She leans on the front (left) leg but can't quite land that big punch and gets smacked on the reply when Nicola finds the overhand and begins to work around the swollen lips again. In a classic stand-off between two mediocre defenders, Ferguson soaks up more damage and gets pounded back to the ropes as Nicola gets a little vocal amid the intensive work load. This is a familiar script for the Girls Aloud veteran, she's basically unable to finish her rivals off with a single drive and relies on the sheer amount of pressure that dissects the defense over the long run. Rebecca manages to clinch her in the dying seconds but breaths very hard now and Charlie Webster begins to wonder if the fatigue is about to kick in already?

Round 6:
Who said a BBU fighter can't look tired after only five rounds out there? Especially when you've got a genuine free agent suffering from physical fatigue. Rebecca does look worse to wear as she struggles to match the redhead's approach and gets picked off straight through the middle in a one-sided jabbing performance. Nicola tries to unload the juice but the core strenght just isn't there and she takes her time before Ferguson is shoved back to the ropes. The Scouser refuses to apply a clinch here and blasts the redhead with a vicious uppercut on the chin however the lack of a proper follow up allows the Girls Aloud veteran to deliver more jabbing rush and bury the brunette behind a high earmuff come the bell. While Nicola pulls away on the cards, the lack of a haymaker punch - or even a knockdown - seems to frustrate coach Mel B. who's not impressed by this workmanlike performance from the Cheshire woman.

Round 7:
Roberts is fortunate to land the early hooking combo straight on the swollen lips since Ferguson was dreadfully slow to raise her arms in first place but the initial tangle actually drops the brunette on her heels and allows the redhead to cash in with another hook on the temple. Rebecca's guard leaks punches like skittles thereafter and finally dumps her into chaotic defensive circles the entire KO Club audience had hoped for since the opening bell. The Scouser basically trips over her own feet here and only then drops her guard low enough for Nicola to deliver the big hit... she slams her foe on the nose and just manages to nick in with the follow up on the ear that makes Rebecca scowl in pain.. she goes all wobbly butt and tries to avoid going down here but there's one more punch from the redhead that DRILLS her on the jaw and that's simply too much now... DOWN GOES FERGUSON crashing flat on her back with eyes closed! Roberts and coach Brown look relieved more than anything else and even though the X-Factor runner-up tries to beat the count, she only sits up at seven and complains about breathing issues to force a conclusion to this journeywomen battle. KO7 Nicola Roberts!!!

AFTER: This performance fits with Nicola's overall status; a truly hard-earned victory with mediocre artistic impression marks which should keep her as a popular choice for any aspiring bantamweight contenders. Still, she made it look awfully hard out there against a sub-par free agent and the blame for lack of genuine fireworks can't be shifted to the Vera Brezhneva beating from few weeks back. Either you have the big punch or you don't and there's a reason why Nicola was overtaken by Dorota Rabczewska on the internal Lioness Club pecking order a long time ago already. However both she and Kimberley Walsh will continue to serve as run blockers for the stable's bantamweight leader until they're literally forced to the ground and trampled over Johan Lomu-style. Meanwhile Charlie Webster reckons that Ferguson has missed a huge opportunity tonight and the boxing level of all these X-Factor graduates just isn't good enough to warrant the high publicity (but don't tell that to Jade Thirlwall or Fleur East).

Final result: Nicola Roberts def. Rebecca Ferguson KO7.