Odette Yustman vs. Amber Heard 

(Words: Front Street / Results: Lookout!)

BEFORE:

Blonde/brunette tilt is a poster fight, but it's more than that. It's a contrast in careers. Yustman, of course, is a former Unified Lightweight Champion and Queen of the Ice Hotel and has been a top contender for years. Heard is one of THOSE girls. The potential is there, and more than flashes of it have been shown. But, her last four campaigns look like this: 4-0, 0-4, 3-1, 1-3. Yeah. Consistency is lacking, as is traction. And, if Heard, at 34, is ever going to make her move, well, there's no time like the present. And, it's clear the blonde knows it. "My time is coming," says Amber with a nod. "It's been a long TIME coming, but it's almost here. HER time has passed."

"Amber is nothing special," says Odette with a smile. "Lots of girls have the ability to win fights here and there in the FCBA. But, only the best of us can do it consistently. And, Amber is NOT among the best of us."

ROUND ONE:

Both ladies are rangy and both decide to start this one AT range doing some boxing. And, that goes well for one of them. And the other one is Amber. Heard's giving up some reach here, and she can't figure the geometry necessary to deal with it. Instead, Odette grabs the advantage early, getting that long jab on and using it to control the blonde, set her up for hard right hand follows. Amber tries to angle, get to some spots where she can get some offense going, but she mostly fails in those attempts. Instead, it's the brunette who's calling the shots, and far too many of those shots are landing cleanly in the blonde's face. Heard is never hurt, but there's no question she's being touched up from the opening seconds to the closing bell. And, when that bell finally rings, there's no doubt about the cards. Yustman. Wide. And up 10-9.

ROUND TWO:

Heard starting to figure this out, now. She's getting the head tucked a little, moving the feet more, angling, getting to spots where she can get off. Blonde not trying to penetrate, mind. She still wants to work at range, and that's just fine with the brunette, who's more than a little comfortable boxing. She's putting punches together every bit as well as she did in the first round. The difference now is that Heard's getting her own offense in gear, and, instead of a one-way rout, we have a good, two-way fight going on, with both blonde and brunette having their moments and neither managing to hurt the other. Instead, the boxing continues for the entirety of the three minutes, in what's a busy, crowd-pleasing round. At the bell, it's close, but it's Amber, and we're even at 19.

ROUND THREE:

More two-way stuff as things become quite tactical. It's all about whether Amber can get to her spots and get off. Odette's working to prevent that with the long left jab, and, when she's able to do so, she has the advantage on the ground. But, when Heard is able to work the angles and geometry to get where she wants to be, to spots where she can land hard shot, it's the blonde who gets the better of it. Thus, it comes down to who gets more of what she wants, and, for most of the third, the answer to that is...no one. Things are nip and tuck nearly the whole way, and no one creates any space until the last thirty seconds, when Yustman puts together a couple of flurries that toss Heard to the back foot. Amber's unable to rally back before the bell rings, and, as a result, Odette grabs it close and moves back into the lead 29-28.

ROUND FOUR:

Odette getting rolling again. She's getting busier, keeping the jab in Amber's face, controlling the blonde with it. Heard working hard, but being mostly frustrated in her attempts to get any offense going. Instead, she's being suppressed with lots of accurate fire that keeps her on the defensive, keeps her seeking spots to punch from, seeking, but not finding. Meanwhile, the brunette is piling up points. She's smooth and fluid, getting punches put together. She's not hurting Amber, but she's getting a LOT of good, accurate leather home, and, sooner or later, that's going to have an effect. Of course, it's already having an effect on the cards. As the final seconds tick away in the fourth, there's no question about it. It's Yustman and wide, too, and Odette extends hear lead to 39-37.

ROUND FIVE:

Amber showing more movement. She's doing all she can to slip that accurate jab of the brunette's, angle to spots, get off in combination. And, since the blonde's now able to do that again, we've gone back to the two-way stuff we saw in the second and third rounds. Odette still scoring well when she's able to extend, keep Amber at bay, while Heard gets the better of things when she's able to get the geometry she wants. And, just like in the second and third, there's not a lot in it, since both fighters are getting enough of their own terms to pile up points. We get off center in the last few seconds, when Heard lands a hard combination that forces Odette to cover up. The blonde then lets the hands to, backing up the brunette and beginning to take command, but the bell rings before she can follow up. As it is, though, Amber's got the round close and she's cut the lead to 48-47 at the half.

ROUND SIX:

Same again, with Odette working well at long range and Amber angling in slightly, getting to where she can get off, and then landing nice combinations. Impressive stuff from Heard, in that she's boxing with one of the better lightweights in the FCBA. Yet another flash of the blonde's famed potential as she moves well, slips and dips, angles forward, lands a combination before Yustman's footwork gets her back to the range she wants and the brunette gets back to work with the jab. Again, it's good two-way stuff with neither fighter able to...BOOM! Right hand, AMBER AND DOWN GOES ODETTE! Heard angles in, lands a left and then perfectly-times a BLISTERING right and Yustman is down on her back...and not just down, but OUT! Odette never moves a muscle as the count passes her by and it's OVER! And your winner by lightning-strike KO6 is Amber Heard!

AFTER:

"It's just like I said," says Amber, flashing a lovely smile. "My time is coming. Hell, after tonight, it's not just COMING, anymore. My time is HERE!"