Minka Kelly vs Kat Dennings
(Lioness Club of America vs Front Street Gym)
(45-20-1, 41 KO vs 25-10-1, 22 KO)
Results: Lookout!; Story: Vassago

BEFORE: Allthough there's technically nothing to be worried about Minka Kelly's Lioness bantamweight Alpha status the October defeat to young upstart Kira Kosarin has raised some important questions. It's common knowledge that Kosarin went after the former divisional champion all by herself and that suggests Minka is heading towards that uneasy spot on the pecking order where she'd be picked as a high-profile name which can be used as a platform for younger opposition. And even Erin Andrews can't find an answer why this match-up is billed as Main Event allthough some clues are there be spotted.

Meanwhile Kat Dennings keeps living the champion's dream - without actually being crowned a champion courtesy of stablemate Chloe Bennet's equally impressive run. Dennings hasn't lost a fight since August 2015 when Kendra Wilkinson of all people knocked her out in seven rounds. She'll try to bag the proverbial elephant outside of the Asylum Arena comfort zone tonight but she's full of confidence she can indeed pull off the upset in Minka's L.A. backyard.

The Staples Arena audience is fully behind Minka here while East Coast girl Dennings instantly becomes public enemy number one. This is an atmosphere Kat truly hasn't experienced back home in Philadelphia so let's see if she thrives on it or not.

Minka Kelly wears a leopard print bikini top, black hotpants and red gloves. Long dark brown hair tied in a sleek ponytail. Kat Dennings wears a light blue sports bra, white hotpants and golden gloves. Long dark brown hair in loose waves. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the bantamweight division.

Round 1:
Minka's southpaw stance gives Kat plenty of trouble during the opening round and the older brunette simply works the piercing jab to settle into the fight while thumping Dennings' face a little too easily. Erin Andrews believes this could be due to the hostile atmosphere inside the arena which Kat isn't used to following years of Asylum excitement. Allthough Minka's offensive approach escapes her usual counter-punching style, she meets little resistance in the early going so she only ups the work-rate to keep Dennings weaving around on the back foot. Another quick pounce knocks Kat's head back and leads into a double uppercut combo on the rack but before the younger brunette can properly respond, she gets whacked across the mouth and spins back to the ropes where the bell comes to her rescue.

Round 2:
Front Street coach Grace Park sounds clearly bemused during the interval but Kat reboots her tactics and jumps into a sudden jabbing frenzy that forces Minka to bring out her very bendy best. However the L.A. native isn't neccessarily in her prime anymore and gets beaten to the punch; Kat really sticks one on the jaw before piercing the solar plexus and blasting the veteran to the body thereafter. Minka dances around on her feet but fails to escape the close range heat as Dennings gets vocal and outworks the southpaw in the center of the ring. Kelly whacks her across the lips but this makes no impression on the East Coast girl as she stuns Minka with another vicious uppercut that slides the former champion onto the ropes. And Minka simply can't move away fast enough so Dennings lands another delicious combo straight up the middle that leaves the Staples Center crowd gasping in anxiety at the bell.

Round 3:
Dennings' confidence should be at all-time high and it is, she scampers across the ring to bury the older brunette under immediate pressure and Minka just can't use her agility to neutralize this aggressive push. The hostile crowd reaction doesn't matter either and Kat gets vocal as she picks her rival off from point-blank range and forces Kelly to fight on Front Street terms. The slugging tactics isn't best suited for Minka's veteran mentality anymore but she displays more than just shades of former championship glory and matches Dennings toe-for-toe until the Philly brunette wrenches a double combo into her breadbasket and sinks her on wobbly knees. Erin Andrews isn't convinced that Dennings punches harder than stablemate Chloe Bennet but Kelly remains uncomfortable with this Front Street pouncing and has to clinch the fellow brunette in order to limit the damage come the final minute.

Round 4:
Following a heated discussion with coach Claudia Schiffer during the interval, Minka responds to Kat's aggressive approach with an injection of pace as it becomes clear that outlasting the Philly brunette physically might not a viable option for success anymore. Dennings embraces the slugging drive from the former champion but remains committed to her tactics even though she gets repeatedly picked off by an improved performance from her opponent. Minka works the high jab to set up the left-handed insurance and there are some bruises visible on Dennings' face now which makes coach Park worried in the Front Street corner. However Kat refuses to back off and seek respite in mid-range, she pays a price for it in the closing seconds when Kelly tears a patch over her right eye and quite frankly Dennings looked unsettled against the hard-charging former champion from the get-go in the fourth.

Round 5:
Perhaps the Front Street entourage never anticipated Kelly switching into such offensive display so early but there's no holding back from Dennings as she tries to work her magic from the front. Both women engage in a wild flyweight-like punchfest which suits Dennings' style better but Minka's speed and precision answer the Lioness demand and Erin Andrews thinks these two would need a lenghty breather during the next round if this crazy pace holds up. The gash over Kat's right eye begins to bleed and Minka leans on the fellow brunette so much she almost head-butts her however the a piercing hook on the liver area drops her back and a follow-up piledriver squashes the ex-champion's lips to finally force a break. Both girls circle around each other for a while but decide to hit the pause button as the fight reaches half-way and it's still anyone's for the taking even though Dennings appears to be ahead on the scorecards.

Round 6:
Minka maintains the stalking pressure to neutralize Kat's elite potential but questions need to be asked how long can she slug it out like that against a much younger opponent? She's scored a few come-from-behind wins both sides of the Kira Kosarin disaster but Dennings might just be a bridge too far tonight and that appears to be the case when the southpaw magic doesn't make the desired impact anymore and has the Philly brunette riding the counter-punching assault come the latter stages of the round. Kelly's precision stumbles upon an improved high guard and the switch downstairs doesn't work either while Kat scores a couple of nasty hooks to further damage the older woman's lips. Minka wobbles to her heels and struggles to channel her supreme footwork while Dennings cranks it up late and pounds her back to the corner where she carves into her tummy and leaves her moaning in pain at the bell. Ugh! It's like Kat never left the Asylum Arena in first place and the L.A. crowd simply hates it!

Round 7:
Minka has hit a physical wall now and gets outboxed in close range to the point Kat simply rains punches straight through the middle and rocks the ex-champion's head back & forth while the anguished screams from coach Schiffer fall on deaf ears. The Philly brunette gets vocal as she smacks Kelly's lips into a complete mess and remains committed to the head-hunting drill until she sinks the veteran on jelly knees. Minka tries oh-so desperately to avoid the worst case scenario but Dennings is not to be denied anymore. She WHACKS the aching foe on the solar plexus and when Kelly bends forward with a loud groan, she BLASTS her on the exposed jaw to lift the Lioness stand-out off her feet... AND DOWN GOES MINKA!!!! She crashes down on her right side and mumbles her pain out but this truly appears to be one bridge too far for her. The Staples Center audience loses any hope for a comeback when the count reaches six and the ref waves the bout off soon afterwards since Minka remains deadmeat on the canvas with her eyes closed. KO7 Kat Dennings!!!

AFTER: If Kira Kosarin was strike one then Kat Dennings becomes strike two on Minka Kelly's seemingly unblemished LCA bantamweight Alpha resume. Some questions will have to be asked now or perhaps they have even been answered over in the Bradenton front office already? Whatever the case, there's a funereal atmosphere inside the Staples Center following one of California very own's demise. You can actually hear the celebrations from Dennings & Park who hug each other for a long while before Kat shakes her glove at the hostile audience. "This is the TRUE Philly Special, folks! And there's a lot more to come!"

Indeed Kat Dennings' rise to the elite has taken another step forward however Erin Andrews points out Chloe Bennet serves as the biggest obstacle to her bantamweight title ambitions. It's like a carbon copy of the Pax Portmanica days when Natalie Portman and Claire Danes prevented HISC stablemate Mila Kunis from a shot at the flyweight straps despite a nine-win hot streak. Let's face it, Chloe IS Kat's biggest problem right now and it's questionable whether the Philadelphia-native enjoys another winning run like that in her career. She remains unbeaten since August 2015 but it's all for nothing courtesy of Front Street's "Next Best Thing".

Final result: Kat Dennings def. Minka Kelly KO7.