Posted by Simguy on 10/11/2003, 8:35 am.

Before: Rare bout between two “can’t miss” up and comers in the early development stage of their careers—both want to impress. “I could outbox Kaley,” states a confident Mendes, “but that’s not the statement I ant to send out. A lot of people rank Kaley ahead of me right now and that’s not right—I have to knock her out, hopefully after mauling her for a few rounds—to get the point across. Cuoco’s a nice kid: I’m Eva Mendes.” Cuoco unfazed by all the KO talk. “It’s just more big talk from an overrated Latina as far as I’m concerned. She sees blonde hair and a pretty face and automatically assumes I can’t fight with her. She’s wrong and I’ll prove it to her. If anyone’s going to get her ass stopped, it’s definitely Eva.” Smoldering stare-down-Kaley in black bikini top, black boy cut trunks, Eva in Boxeadora Int’l  battle dress (Black wet leather sports bra/matching mini-trunks & mini-skirt with gold tassels).

During R1: Eva deciding to come forward, pressure her blonde all over the ring—Cuoco makes her pay. Kaley grinning as she gets off—bat-bat-batting away crisp lefts and rights from outside, then stepping pretty to the side—Mendes taking off her face or guard as she covers up, leans in, Down the stretch, Kaley dancing circles around her girl, lures Eva forward and drops a brisk left/right across the face. Mendes faltering, shiny-eyed from all the leather—Cuoco gets another drilling right, puts the hook on top and EVA GIOES DOWB! Mendes staring into abuse, gets a rude introduction to the canvas—she’s up quick, takes her 8 all huffy with anger as the bell sounds. Big smile Kaley, hands high—she’s in complete control with her legs and stiff, straight combos early.

R2: Kaley keeps it up—scooting to her left while spitting out the jab, picking her spots to step in and beat to punch. Mendes the aggressor, forcing the fight, but she’s paying a high price as she walks in, takes a few sparkling lefts and rights off her beautiful face, then has to reset her feet as Cuoco shifts position.

R3: Kaley continues to apply polish, nimble to her toes, pre-emptive with her blows and putting punches together—it’s a dazzling display midring. Mendes stalking forward—reaching in a long heavy right to the body on occasion, surprising Kaley with a shocking jab on occasion, but Latina’s just trying to find her range, loading up on right hands and not really able to get position to throw it. Kaley takes her 3^rd straight.

R4: Kaley’s footwork the difference—Mendes looks to be the harder puncher when she can set her feet, but she’s not getting the chance very often as Cuoco sharks her up. In the exchanges—Mendes staking all on plowing right hands, but Kaley’s beating her to punches, then putting extra lefts and rights on top. Mostly tapping blows to cover her escape, but it’s still Cuoco moving her hands, bouncing her mitts off Eva’s exquisite features and outhustling the Latina minute after minute. Down the stretch, Kaley racks up an astonishing series of jabs and hooks to put Eva on her heels—a cracking Cuoco right hand caps the sequence, putting Mendes wobbly butt at the bell.

R5: Mendes out stalking again, using her hard jab to drive Cuoco to a corner—blonde bouncing side to side, cocky grin in place, looking to punch-with an beat her girl to blows. Mendes with the right at her cheek, crouching forward behind her jab—she takes a clouting right hand counter off her mouth, immediately turns on a crushing right to Kaley’s chin and CUOCO SLUMPS AGASINST THE ROPES! Kaley staring, hands in her lap—she’s out on her feet and HERE COMES EVA! Mendes getting into her blonde, shoulder-palming her upright, then LAVISHING the TV beauty right hands across the face! Kaley taking flush, turning drowsy to her right, left hand riding up limp across Eva’s upperback, then Mendes shoves her upright to repeat the bludgeoning. On and on—Mendes glowing as she’s able to heap on the rights—Kaley stupefied, helpless, shipping shellack on her face but not going down. ref lets Mendes score over and over again before finally wrapping her up and pulling her off. Devastating TKO5 Eva Mendes.

After: Cuoco crestfallen, face badly battered as Eva lands cheap over and over with her girl essentially out, if not cold. Mendes trumpeting and strutting—she soaks up some rigid Cuoco punishment “on purpose” in this fight. “I had to walk her down and get to her hard, so I knew I’d be taking some shots early on,” says a breezy victor. “We watched tapes of Raquel Welch vs Britt Eklund, you know, Raquel vs Victoria Principal, to get a sense of how to whittle a runner down—so that was my model.” Comparison apt—Mends fighting with the kind of seek and destroy attitude of the young Raquel, and maybe possessing a better right hand than the 20 something Welch did.

Reposted by Archer 1/19/10.