(Japan vs France)
(5-3, 5 KO vs 4-13, 4 KO)
Results: BBU; Story: Vassago

BEFORE: Jessica Michibata hopes to avoid fellow former Girls Friday member Monika Pietrasinska's fate and escape the classic free agency losing bug that seems to be running around the league these days. Add Maria Ozawa to the mix and Mr. Harry Keegan looks like a pure genius over in the Tyneside! Kate Abdo rates Michibata's chances very high tonight as she takes on former Bond girl Berence Marlohe - she of a five fight losing streak herself. 

It's not exactly a top contenders fight but Michibata remains a crowd favorite in the Wembley Arena which could fuel her recovery mission regardless of those betting odds already. Anything other than the Japanese model's victory would be considered an upset and only Berenice tries to ignore that media buzz as she enjoys a coaching help from Tech Europe's Laetitia Casta tonight. That's a curious tandem in the French corner indeed with Jessica relying on sparring sessions with former stablemate Pietrasinska in the recent weeks according to various reports.

Jessica Michibata wears a navy blue bikini set and black gloves. Long light brown hair loose & straight. Berenice Marlohe wears a red bikini top, white hotpants and navy blue gloves. Long dark brown hair tied in a sleek ponytail. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the lightweight division.

Round 1:
Jessica wants to impose her presence in the ring as quickly as possible and jumps into a jabbing drill that forces the older brunette into immediate retreat. Berenice's confidence must be rock bottom according to Kate Abdo and showing her weakness at this stage of the fight is anything but the correct thing to do. However the French actress simply yields real estate whenever Michibata threatens to slam a hooking combo upstairs which leads into an extended prowl that only fuels the model's aggressive approach. She finally traps Berenice with a solid combo and ducks underneath a sluggish overhand response while belting the older woman to the body. Marlohe reels onto the ropes but then beats the charging model with a cross hook on the jaw and mounts a successful recovery picking Jessica off with numerous jabs to close out the round.

Round 2:
Michibata doesn't look all that quick across the boards and when Berenice abandons the ultra-defensive tactics, the Wembley Arena crowd is handed a proper mid-range slugfest where both women score promising punches up the middle. Berenice clips her opponent's jugs with an uppercut rally and avoids getting laced over the top before blasting the model to the body with a harpoon switch. Jessica gasps for air and tries to adjust her footing but Marlohe keeps plugging away downstairs and backs her into the ropes where she settles down with more ribcage punishment. Ugh! Jessica really needs a spark on offense here but struggles to stretch her elbows and locks a very underwhelming clinch to force a brief stoppage in action. She remains trapped in the corner thereafter and eats a piercing hook on the jaw that drops her behind a tight earmuff in the dying seconds.

Round 3:
Jessica jumps into a recovery mission herself but Berenice's up to the challenge as well so both women trade quick punches in the center of the ring that meets a loud reaction from the audience. Precision remains in demand though and neither girl can break the other one's stride so they circle away into safety before mounting a second try. Jessica finds the success on the rebound and whacks the actress across the lips but then fails to follow through on the jaw and gets tackled to the body instead. Marlohe shows some core strenght thumping the Japanese model butt-in-ropes where another clinch eventually halts her progress and results in meaningless wrestling contest come the final minute. Kate Abdo reckons Jessica would be better off applying some lithe footwork into her game since the downtempo action only favors the Frenchwoman thus far.

Round 4:
Apparently Jessica has come to the same conclusions as Kate Abdo in the booth and scampers across the boards to beat the older brunette for pace during a wild jabbing scramble. Berenice tries to match the model's intensity but gets whacked on the nose a couple of times in the process and leaks more crisp punches from point-blank range thereafter. Michibata barks in her efforts to pound the Frenchwoman back to the corner but eats a scything cross on the nose instead which makes Marlohe go off like it's Bastille Day. She tears a small cut under the model's left eye and snaps her head back repeatedly while escaping the potential trap and knocking Jessica onto her heels. Ugh! Maybe the experts have written Berenice too quickly here? It's a desperate lunge alright but she takes advantage of Michibata's streaky background and pummels her into spasms through sheer power supply. She misses that key haymaker right at the end but Jessica looks rattled enough to warrant all these loud cheers in the audience!

Round 5:
Berenice channels on her Jekyll & Hyde approach and delivers the early juice while Jessica seems to be still pondering what exactly happened there in the fourth. She soaks up a gut-checking drive and gets wrapped in more head-hunting dismay down the stretch as the former Bond girl tries to open that cut under the left eye again. She lacks the elite execution though and falls into a clinching trap which only annoys interim supervisor Casta who forces the ref into action. Both women are separated but Berenice lashes out at the model to the body and continues to stalk her around the ring thereafter with Michibata swinging high and wide off the back foot. She literally stumbles into the ropes where the older brunette whacks her up the middle again and it's all Berenice in the dying seconds as she cleans out the model's breadbasket to leave her gasping for air at the bell.

Round 6:
Jessica's aggression continues to be streaky but her main problem is Berenice's attitude; the French veteran has smelled blood here and goes in hammer & tongs with the Japanese model that leads into that cut under the left eye leaking more blood come the one-minute mark. Ugh! Jessica refuses to back off but she doesn't carry enough power to really sink her foe with a proper headliner and gets swamped into a phone booth-like slugfest with Marlohe pushing on with her body shots to eventually come away on top of that exchange. Kate Abdo thinks Jessica could really use some stable support again while Laetitia Casta appears to be doing a great job with her compatriot who remains very much in line for a possible upset!

Round 7:
Berenice comes flying in with another head-hunting drive and the sweling around the wounded left eye becomes even more concerning for the Japanese mode who can't lock the older brunette out of targeting her at will. She seeks the slugging breakthrough but gets stuffed into a clinch and Berenice slips by to punish some tummy afterwards. Both women wrestle each other towards the ropes where the action stalls for a while but it's still Jessica who gets tracked into the corner thereafter and she simply fails to throw the Frenchwoman off her stride when she bounces off the high guard instead of slicing it like she used to back on Girls Friday duty. The production drops as they trade jabs in another phone booth tangle before Michibata finally swings one on the mouth to make the Bond girl think better off it.

Round 8:
Durability has been usually one of Jessica's strenghts but Kate Abdo gives all the credit to Berenice who looks in a great shape here as we head into the eight. Maybe Laetitia Casta worked behind the scenes down in Cannes in recent weeks with Marlohe's BBU career seemingly on the journeywoman ropes. That's not the case tonight and Michibata learns about it the hard way when she gets outworked in close range again; her head snaps back repeatedly as she gets tagged on the wounded eye which helps to wilt her resistance with every punch landing spot on target. Ugh! She wobbles onto her heels and aches out in pain while Berenice WHACKS her on the mouth with a quick hook before adding another brutal strike on the left temple... AND MICHIBATA CRUMBLES ONTO HER BACKSIDE with a loud whimper... Berenice has finally broken her resilience and allthough the model gets up at seven, she looks damaged beyond repair according to Kate Abdo. Marlohe duly takes advantage of this situation and pummels the aching foe back to the ropes where she buries her under a barrage of head shots that render Jessica into hot mess reality. She doesn't give anything back and when her gloves slide by her waist, THE REF CHARGES IN TO STOP THE BEATING!!! TKO8 Berenice Marlohe!!!

AFTER: It's a huge win for the French veteran who enjoys a warm hug with Laetitia Casta before taking a roughed up Michibata for the Walk of Shame which meets a standing ovation from the Wembley Arena audience. There is some love for these Frenchies in the UK after all! Jessica tries so hard not to show any emotions and cites that eye swelling as the reason behind her tearful post-fight interview with Kate Abdo suggesting she needs to perform a soul-searching mission back to native Japan where Ayako Hamada could offer her elite career a much needed revival. Because Michibata seems to be struggling with the same confidence issues as Monika Pietrasinska lately and even working as Sayuki Matsumoto's understudy sounds like a better solution that getting banged up by fellow free agents over here in Europe. Will Jessica swallow her pride and ask for Ms Hamada's coaching help now? Watch this space!

Final result: Berenice Marlohe def. Jessica Michibata TKO8.