Bianca Balti vs Ming Xi
(Italy vs People's Republic of China)
(1-0, 1 KO vs 0-2)
Results: BBU: Story: Vassago

BEFORE: Several experts believe Bianca Balti's upside is even bigger than Elisabetta Gregoraci's and tonight's Co-Main Event seems to suggest the Lodi native is ready to make a solid push towards the divisional elite. While Ming Xi remains winless on both sides of the Atlantic, she's made the Victoria's Secret "War In Heaven" grade which is something that automatically places her among BBU contenders. She's bounced around The Sirens' and Girls Friday's cards all over the world but never as pure cannon fodder type and Balti's lone career victory over compatriot Sara Tommasi suddenly doesn't look so impressive when you consider Ming's schedule. Then again, Balti is a current Sports Illustrated beach bunny and not many non-Americans can say that north side of 30 years of age.

Bianca Balti wears a brown bikini set and silver gloves. Dark brown hair tied in a loose bun at the back of her head. Ming Xi wears a navy blue bikini set and yellow gloves. Black hair tied in a high ponytail. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the lightweight division.

Round 1:
Ming doesn't really care about Bianca's upside and tackles the local favorite to the body where she scores several cleans shots before the Italian can actually respond in a proper manner. However her footwork gets exposed in the proccess as she remains glued to the canvas during the initial Chinese charge and allows Ming to really connect with the flesh here. Bianca tries to swing one over the top but fails to steer her efforts and has to yield real estate when Ming becomes even more aggressive and simply lays it into the immobile opponent. Balti spends the final minute of the round in constant retreat and that's not what the Rome crowd came her to see. They should be thankful that the Chinese girl didn't land a massive haymaker during her pursuit because that would have spoiled the party for good.

Round 2:
Bianca gets some advice from Martina Colombari during the break but remains in trouble since Ming's all over her seconds into the round. Apparently the Chinese model isn't bothered by Bianca's marketing campaign at all and she really tries to take her head off during a spirited leather rush. She had more success while piercing the Italian's body though and the head-hunting switch comes back to haunt her when Balti finally lets it rip and shows glimpses of raw power. She smacks Ming's temples from the back foot before connecting with the jaw moments later. A proper close range tussle ensues and even Georgie Thompson realizes the Italian model does a much better job in attacking mode which also fuels the crowd's response. Ming doesn't back off from the bruising encounter but has to clinch the older model come the final stages of the round.

Round 3:
Bianca finds more confidence to charge straight at the Chinese foe but Ming accepts the war of attrition script and outworks the local heroine in another bruising tussle in the center of the ring. Balti remains committed to her aerial attacks but Ming switches downstairs and pierces through the ribcage to stun the Italian woman into a familiar defensive struggle. A quick hook then splits Bianca's mitts and allows Ming to crash into her face with a brutal one-two follow up combo. Ugh! Balti's knees buckle and she leans forward to meet a crunching uppercut on the jaw THAT SENDS HER CRASHING DOWN ON HER KNEES!!! That wasn't in the local script whatsoever and Bianca looks as annoyed as anyone out there when she beats the slow count at seven. Did she really feel that? She sure did but Ming doesn't really have a devastating punch to dismiss her opponents just like that which enables the Italian beauty to mount immediate comeback. Perhaps Ming is also guilty of not crashing down on the wounded opponent but a proper brawl occurs in the final minute with both women sending punches left, right and center. Bianca gasses out first in her comeback effort and gets dropped to the ropes when Ming hauls in another one-two combo on the lips that leaves the Rome audience jeering at the bell.

Round 4:
Ming needs to react really fast as Bianca jumps into a wild jabbing frenzy that seems destined to fail until she bursts through the Chinese nostrils to sink the tourist into spasms early in the opening minute. Balti's true potential remains a mystery but the knockdown has apparently unleashed the demons and the Sports Illustrated beach bunny cranks it up when she has a clean shot at the fellow model's face. Cue in more vicious thumps that result in more blood spillage as there's no place to hide for Ming either. It's time for her to eat some juice and suddenly Bianca wraps her into a spot of bother with repeated hooks that bounce off her cheeks. Ugh! Ming gets pounded back to the ropes where she groans her heart out but simply can't halt the Italian rout. Balti's eyes are glued on target and she hammers through the leaky guard to swivel her head back & forth until the tourist can't take it anymore. MING COLLAPSES DOWN ON HER BACKSIDE deep into the final minute and effectively gets saved by the bell before the count reaches ten. Ugh! That's one big mess there in the Chinese corner as the cutmen have to wipe blood from the damaged nose while Bianca shouts something to the audience looking in a much better mood than at any point during this fight.

Round 5:
Ming's knockdown recovery is much slower than her opponent's and Bianca moves in to wreck more havoc upstairs. Her footwork was questioned earlier but she's got a wounded prey to deal with now and takes full advantage of that. She splits Ming's mitts in relentless fashion before knocking her head back which only opens the nasal wounds. Ugh! Poor tourist begins to leak blood again and disappears behind a tight earmuff but still gets pummelled back to the ropes where she screams out in pain when Balti's punches begin to threaten to break her nose next... She leans over the top of the ropes but gives nothing back and it's clear she wants to protect her bloody face at any cost which forces the referee to STEP IN AND HALT THE FIGHT before we require a surgery scheduled for the unfortunate Chinese model. Bloody TKO5 Bianca Balti!!!

AFTER: This fight could have gone either way without Ming picking up the injury but it wasn't accidental as Bianca really has some raw power to dominate her rivals in a very rough fashion indeed. She also has some questionable defensive skills that could get exposed down the stretch. Georgie Thompson wonders what's the recipe for having so many Italian-based hard-hitters but Bianca looks set to join the likes of Melissa Satta, Belen Rodriguez or even Elisabetta Gregoraci as the offensive match-up nightmare. Allthough there are some girls capable of outlasting her physically, surviving the early onslaught becomes the obvious problem. Someone like Sayuki Matsumoto or Rochelle Humes won't be bothered by Balti's SI pedigree but things are looking very promising nort side of 120 lbs over in the Azzuri land. And it's still not the best what the hosts have to offer tonight!

Final result: Bianca Balti def. Ming Xi TKO5.