Mandy Capristo vs Frankie Bridge (nee Sandford)
(Lioness Club vs Double A Boxing)
(5-6, 5 KO vs 4-15, 4 KO)
Results: BBU; Story: Vassago

BEFORE: It's all about Mandy Capristo in the build-up to this fight; the glamorous singer thinks she's actually the best Lioness Club flyweight on the roster but veteran Sugababe Heidi Range somehow got the stable nod for the Contenders Six tournament leaving the blonde in pursuit of a similar high-profile opportunity to kickstart her career. She's scored a couple of good wins last season but still has to rely on former coach Gina Wild throwing her a German PPV lifeline tonight. BBU TV's Georgie Thompson notices that Mandy was actually picked ahead of Black Eagles regular Sandy Moelling so coach Wild does seem to favor her former understudy over the current one which is awkward at best. But you can't ignore a talent like Capristo after all.

Meanwhile Frankie Bridge continues to wander around the lower echelons of the flyweight pecking order despite scoring a huge TKO upset over the seemingly unstoppable Cher Lloyd last September. However the East Londoner failed to back up that mighty result when she got punched out by Romanian dance star Inna so it's almost business as usual for The Saturdays singer who simply can't build any momentum during her extended BBU career. She vows to channel some bandmate revenge tonight though as Capristo last forced a medical stoppage on Vanessa White and Frankie says Mollie King won't be required to step in and salvage The Saturdays' pride after tonight's contest.

Mandy Capristo wears a red bikini set and black gloves. Long dark blonde hair tied in a half-up ponytail. Frankie Bridge wears a violet bikini set and silver gloves. Shoulder lenght dark brown hair straight. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the flyweight division.

Round 1:
Both girls settle into a mindless bash during the opening minute which immediately wins them support of the Hamburg audience however Frankie gets the better of her opponent when she lands a double combo on the lips and wobbles Mandy onto her heels. The inferior reach doesn't prevent the brunette from cashing in upstairs as Mandy became too careless in allowing the smaller girl to enforce the phone booth-like stance; Frankie whips the blonde's ponytail into repeated circles as she keeps her focus on pounding that pretty German face into a pulp! Oh yes, it's payback time The Saturdays style as Bridge gets vocal when she forces her foe to cover up behind a tight earmuff and it only gets worse for Capristo who trips back to the ropes where she eats more quick strikes from the lithe tourist. Frankie almost goes all-in here but she keeps the blonde staggered on the ropes for remainder of the round and that leaves the Hamburg crowd speechless at the bell.

Round 2:
Lioness coach Mel B. works tag team with Gina Wild in Mandy's corner and perhaps the former Monrose singer needs a wake-up call delivered in her native tongue? Whatever the case, it works early in the second when she takes advantage of her superior reach and whacks the smaller girl over the top to knock her head back repeatedly. Frankie groans in discomfort but refuses to yield an inch and tries to brawl herself back into contention. She misses with her hooking approach several times but eventually lands a nasty combo on the nasal ridge and staggers Capristo into quiet whimpers instead. This doesn't speak well for the blonde's punching resistance and Bridge quickly drills the breadbasket to boost her chances; the German is totally exposed downstairs and soaks up a solid rally before escaping into mid-distance safety. Frankie yells out in delight and displays that pretty smile of hers but it only rubs Mandy the wrong way; the clock runs out before the local heroine can do something about that cheerful English mode though.

Round 3:
More loud noises in the Lioness corner during the break but Mandy takes care of business herself as she beats the brunette for the opening punch and rattles her cage with methodical swarming in the opening minute. Frankie still refuses to back off and keeps hassling the blonde upstairs but only breaks her stride when she drills that exposed midriff again. Mandy has visible issues with covering those low punches and Bridge almost leaps straight at her when she finds her groove in the second half of the round. Both girls bump each other off before Frankie recovers first and sticks more punishing strikes to the body; Capristo falls back to the ropes and loses her momentum for good as she's forced to circle around in avoidance to close out the round.

Round 4:
Georgie Thompson remains puzzled why Frankie seems to be the more aggressive of the two as even her revenge mission doesn't justify Mandy's back & forth struggles thus far. Another close range tussle favors the East Londoner early in the fourth and Mandy needs to brawl herself out of trouble instead of running this bout from the front like many experts anticipated she would from the start. She swings over Frankie's head and gets stuffed with a belting hook on the liver area that exposes her vulnerable defense downstairs one more time. And the English singer follows through with more crippling blows that bend the German forward with more squeals before Bridge blasts her on the chin with a crunching uppercut! AND DOWN GOES MANDY!!! What a disaster for the partisan audience as the blonde hits the deck flat on her back leaving both Mel B. and Gina Wild tearing their hair out in the Lioness corner. Frankie dances back & forth on her toes while Mandy scrambles back upright at seven... and there's more juice coming from the tourist now as she intends to knock Capristo's head off with immediate effect! She's found more success pounding the younger girl to the body though and the late charge proves fruitless as Mandy dances her way out of trouble in desperate fashion before the bell eventually comes to her rescue.

Round 5:
Frankie's in that Cher Lloyd bubble-bursting mood now and she literally leaps at the rattled blonde but she can't quite land that haymaker punch despite plenty of effort during the opening minute. Mandy shows some impressive footwork to escape the brunette's heat but she's in a desperate need of some proper offensive pounding and that comes at a premium with Bridge swinging around her head repeatedly. When the brunette finally decides to push for the hitherto successful body assault, she gets clinched into a stalemate as Mandy bides her time and even punches her foe to the kidneys to further delay proper action. Frankie fails to enforce her dominance in mid-distance down the stretch and the defensive circles earn the blonde more valuable time before the bell even though she basically defaults the round at the brunette's expense.

Round 6:
Both Mel B. and Gina Wild think that Mandy can knock Frankie's lights out at any stage but the English tourist displays supreme confidence in wake of that earlier knockdown. She keeps hassling the blonde around the ring with more aerial strikes even though she doesn't land them as efficiently as before. Mandy fights back from behind the guard but manages to stay away from the brunette's attacks until Frankie finally slows down and prefers to sit on her undisputed lead on the scorecards. This fuels Mandy's response though and suddenly the German blasts through Frankie's guard and wobbles her onto her heels with a nasty cross on the nose. Frankie tries to immediately punish her in close range but eats a wild hook on the brow ridge and gets brawled back to the ropes when Capristo pushes with the mindless bashing again. She outworks the brunette and rocks her head back repeatedly before a drilling hook on the solar plexus renders Bridge breathless come the bell.

Round 7:
Mandy gets more aggressive again and while Frankie keeps head-hunting her from mid-distance the initial tangle favors the German who clubs her foe with a quick one-two on both temples before adding a crushing hook on the nasal ridge. It opens a small tear and fuels Frankie's recovery but the blonde's superior reach comes to the fore as she bashes through the English guard and sinks Bridge on jelly knees come the one minute mark. Frankie moans her heart out but still tries to haul some juice over the top, she bounces off the fellow singer's forehead and eats a mighty hook straight on the mouth which half-spins her to the side. Mandy rips a quick hook on the exposed liver WHICH SENDS THE BRUNETTE CRASHING DOWN ONTO THE CANVAS!!! Ugh! The crowd roars in delight and even Frankie herself seems to be shocked over the whole thing. She gets up at six but doesn't have the neccessary spark to mount immediate response and Capristo blasts her mitts aside to haul in a nasty hooking series straight into the older girl's face! Frankie gets wrapped into a proper barrage and bends backwards while the blonde simply pounds her into the corner thereafter and rains punches all over the subdued girl... AND THE REF JUMPS IN TO STOP THE FIGHT!!! Frankie slides down in the corner and begins to moan her heart out again but she's been thumped so badly here in the seventh she doesn't even argue the somewhat premature stoppage! TKO7 Mandy Capristo in come-from-behind fashion!!!

AFTER: Mandy gets a collective hug from both Mel B. and Gina Wild but she's on her last legs after that heavy push in the seventh that drained her physically inside and out. She was behind on the scorecards when she enforced the stoppage but Georgie Thompson thinks that Frankie would have been allowed to continue if the fight had taken place outside of Germany. It doesn't really matter anymore as Mollie King might now be called into action to salvage The Saturdays' pride since Mandy has taken two of the band's scalps over the past several months. However Frankie does look like an improved fighter even if the results pretty much stay the same. This wasn't a classic tomato can beating she took tonight and once she's brought back to her senses she tells Georgie how angry she is that she let "that German slag" off the hook. Better luck next time!

Final result: Mandy Capristo def. Frankie Bridge TKO7.