MALESE JOW VS MARIA VALVERDE


BBU International Bout from Black Swan Hall


Results: Lookout, Writing: Archer


Malese: 27 YO, 5’4 (1.63 m) BBU Record: 1-0-0, 1 KO since 2017, BBU Free Agent

Maria: 30 YO, 5’5 (1.65 m) BBU Record 1-1-0, 1 KO since 2017, Foxfire Atlantic Boxing


Site: Black Swan Hall, Cardiff, Wales UK


Before: It’s been a while since Foxfire Atlantic Boxing hosted a bout at its Black Swan Hall training center. The former ballroom of the great house has been turned into a modest venue arena with a ring in the center and stands erected around (with individual ringside seats available for premium ticket buyers). Tonight features Oklahoma-born American actress (of Chinese descent) Malese Jow. She be facing FAB flyweight boxer, Spanish film actress Marias Valverde.


“My first fight was in New Zealand against Freema Agyeman,” says Ms. Jow, “and now I here I am in Wales fighting a Spanish movie actress. I hope this turns out as well as the first one. I managed to beat Freema with KO in 8. I know I made mistakes, but I am learning and I really want to succeed in celebrity boxing, I am just grateful FAB picked me to fight Maria Valverde. Of course, I am planning to beat her, but it’s still an honor.”


Maria Valverde sniffs: “Of course it is an honor to fight me. I plan to establish myself as a force in the BBU and I welcome this fight as the chance to do it. I only hope that I will soon be fighting opponents of a higher class.”


Malese takes offense when she hears that last remark: “She’s a fine one to talk with only 1-1 record. If she really thinks she is an elite fighter she is deluding herself.”


Now it is Maria Valverde’s turn to take offense: “She calls me ‘deluded'?! No one even knows who she is! And she talks about me that way! She shall come regret that very much!”


The ill-will generated by the remarks is quite clear as the two meet in the ring for instructions. Malese is in a white bikini with black trim with black gloves and boots (white laces). Hair in a ponytail. Maria is in in a dark navy blue bikini with light blue gloves and boots (navy blue laces), her hair is in a battle braid down her back. Hot glares, hip bumps and chest bumping during ring instructions until referee speaks sternly to both to restore order. Glove “tap” is a loud “SMACK!” Then Mal and Maria turn on their heels and march to their corners. They’ll meet again soon enough as the bell sounds.


R1: Maria and Malese charged out of their corners and plunged into a furious barrage of punching. Most of these shots were aimed at the head, but Malese showed some good ability to keep her upper body moving evasively, thus dodging or blunting most of Maria’s punches. Malese’s punching were striking Maria’s head and face with noticeable effect. Marias face grew lumpy and reddened from Mal’s accurate strikes. Maria could only take so much of this and pulled back, trying to use her jab to keep Malese off, but Malese was now hooking her to the belly. Hunched up, gloves around her head, Maria just maintained a tight defense for the remainder of the round. By the time the bell ring, Maria was looking badly battered around the face and unsteady on her legs as she went back to her corner. Malese did not linger to gloat, she went right back to her own corner with firm strides.


R2: Foxfire Atlantic corner crew working hard on Maria Valverde during the break. She comes out cautiously, gloves up and defensive. Malese sees the defensive look and moves in ready to start working the Spanish flyweight to the belly, but even as her first hook strikes home, a crashing overhand right from Maria strikes Malese in the right eye. Malese is staggered. Maria then brings a left to the jaw and right to the chin. Malese falling back in obvious distress and Maria is pursuing striking at her body when Mal manages to get her gloves to protect her face. Malese is driven back to the ropes, Malese clinches desperately to break up the momentum of Maria’s attack and finally managed to make it out to center ring. However Maria keeps up the pressure with hard pouncing punches to the belly and breasts as Malese continues to maintain her high guard. Malese finally able to deploy her jab late to stabilize, but it’s much too little too late to keep Maria from winning the round wide.


R3: Now it was Malese Jow’s corner crew’s turn to patch up their battered boxer. Malese seemed to come out of the shock just as the bell rang. She jumped up and hastened towards Maria. Maria saw her opponent coming and apparently decided to catch Mal as she was unleashing her right. Maria leaped forward clearly aiming to clout Malese on the jaw, but, too late, she saw the right was a feint and her true punch was coming from her left. It crunched hard into Maria’s cheekbones and sent the her reeling away. Malese moved quickly to cut the dazed Maria off. Malese swatted Maria’s head around, but then stuffed a right hook into Maria’s belly that sent her shooting back into the ropes. Maria hit the ropes but managed to get her jab up and used to try to keep Malese back. Mal kept moving from side to side looking for an opening, but Maria resisted until Mal got her with a uppercut to the chin. Maria was forced into the ropes where she had to cover up and let Malese swing away to the bell. Maria was slow in peeling herself off the ropes, but she looked pleased that Malese had not been able to take her down. Nevertheless Malese had won the round wide.


R4: Maria shows toughness as she shakes off the effects of the bearing she took from Malese last round and comes right back at Mal. Quick, lightning strike rights and lefts shoot in over Malese’s gloves to knock her head back, Malese trying to duck down behind her gloves but now Maria striking hard to the stomach with strong hooks that are rising from down around her knees then come crashing into Malese’s midsection. Mal trying to jab Maria back, but Maria circling, firing away at a steady pace that keeps Mal’s head under constant pressure. Malese finally backing up, but Maria hanging with her to maintain the pressure though she now begins to mix body shots with the head strikes to keep Malese off balance. Long round for Malese Jow finally comes to end and Maria Valverde gets it on her side of the judges’ cards by a wide margin.


R5: Malese makes a determined comeback in this round as she forces herself in close on Maria. Maria standing her ground behind a jab to strike at Malese’s head and chest, but Malese just keeps coming. Now Maria finds her head and breasts under attack, Maria trying to maintain her position as she and Mal are going at toe to toe just bringing up hard lefts and rights into each other’s ribs, breasts an stomach. They are just grinding away at one another. Maria finally slackening her punch rate and dropping back, though not far. Malese just hammering away to the bell. She pulls out a close, hard-fought round, but she is breathing hard and sweat is dripping from her body. Maria not much better and doesn’t linger as she heads right back to her corner after the bell.


R6: Malese looking slow and sluggish coming out this round. Looks like she spent a lot of energy in that last round and hoping to get some of it back with a defensive round, Maria Valverde has other ideas, She senses Malese’s lack of interest in offense and immediately steps up the pressure with a heavy hooking attack to the stomach. Malese shuddering under these blows and tries to jab Maria back, but it’s a weakly organized jab and Maria storms through it with driving rights and lefts to the face. One catches Malese in that right eye and Malese comes to a shuddering halt, frozen with pain and shock. An instant later Maria rips a right and left uppercut into Malese’s wide-open chin, Malese just crumbles, shooting straight down and ending up in a heap at Maria’s feet. Maria gives the stricken Malese a look of disdain and then she struts off to the neutral corner, Referee moves in and starts to count. Malese struggles to push herself up off the canvas but ends up falling onto her back, knees bent upward, she’s not able to do more.


“EIGHT!...NINE!...TEN!,,,YOU ARE OUT!”


THE WINNER MARA VALVERDE DEFEATS MALESE JOW KO6.


After: Maria exultant in victory. Raises both arms out and drinks in the cheers of the crowd. She walks around the ring, eyeing the defeated Malese who is helped to her feet, and soon as she can be ri of her gloves, she’s over to Malese’s corner to confront Mal.


“You thought you could beat ME? HA! I leave you a hot pile on the canvas!” Maria cries as Malese looks at her through her good left eye (the right eye is nearly swollen shut).


“Yes, you won, you want something more?” Malese asks with defiance still in her voice. “Go ahead! I can take it!”


Maria looks annoyed: “What do you take me for—a bully? I have beaten you into wreckage. There is no point to walking a beaten fighter.”


Malese gets angry: “What you mean ‘wreckage’? I may have a lost but I am not ‘beaten’. Hoe dare you not walk me! I earned it!”


Maria looks puzzled: “I never heard of a girl demanding to be walked.”


“Congratulations, it’s my first time, too. Now are you going to walk me or do I have do it alone?” Malese cries.


Maris puts an arm around Malese: “You are a very strange girl, Malese Jow. I don’t know what to make of you.”


“Oh, just walk will you,” Malese said, “my eye hurts a lot.”


“Yes, I think you will have a very black eye tomorrow. I do not wish you any more pain, actually I think you have a lot of spirit, but not enough boxing skills as me. So you lose tonight.”


“I plan on getting more and then we’ll see who winds up as ‘wreckage’ ,” Malese said,


The crowd was pleasantly puzzled by this sudden sort-of friendliness between Maria and Malese so they cheered them both. After several stops for photo posing, the circuit of the ring was complete. Maria and Malese shared a hug and then went their separate ways.


Intriguing rookie flyweight contest. Back and forth action until Malese seemed to expend too much energy in R5 without getting Maria down. Ms. Jow probably needs to work on her fight pacing and conditioning. Maria Valverde gets her second win and looks ready to move on to more testing opponents as the new year unfolds. Black Swan Hall patrons leave smiling after a spirited bout and a surprising aftermath that creates some social media buzz.