TECH UNLIMITED VS BELL SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT

STABLE WAR #1 

Posted by Simguy on 1/21/2005, 6:43 am.

Site: St. Barth’s Island

Before: Flyweights coming into St Barth’s with momentum—both women coming off stirring victories and hoping to keep the ball rolling. Portman showing savage punching form in wrenching a close fight from Jess Simpson—is power starting to become a feature of her game? “I’ve always had good power for my size,” says Natalie in prefight. “I think that’s a bit of surprise for girls when they face me—they expect to get boxed, but when I hurt them, they’re like ‘Whoa!’” Cook looking every inch the well-traveled veteran in schooling young lacey Chabert in the latter’s FCBA debut—she’s anxious to show championship pedigree in this stable war. “It’s almost a coming-out for me in some respects,” says doe-eyed brunette/ “I’ve never had he push I’m getting at Tech: I never would have been a part of this event like this in the past and I know how fortunate I am. I hungrier than Nat—I can’t blow this chance and I don’t sense and I don’t sense that kind of urgency from her camp.” Natalie in purple bandeau bikini, battle-bun—Rachael in tawdry blue cashmere two piece. Ring set up outdoors, beach n’ bleachers style, small gloves both beauties.

During R1: Portman: Jab/right hand quick up top—has cook crouched and covered; Nat digs hooks while leaning her cheek in close to Rachael’s gloves for extra leverage, Rache getting rocked, eases a step back, looking to hook-out-the-crouch; Nat jumps in and beats her to a clanging left on the chin; puts slicing right on top and another batting left on eye to PUT COOK DOWN! Rachael blown to her backside at the ropes, shaking her pretty punching early, Quaking 8, Rache—ON COMES PORTMAN! Brutal lathering beatdown chases Cook at the skid along the ropes—Rache cringing, covering her head—Portman’s fists bouncing and clubbing off head and shoulders. Corner: Portman baring her teeth, getting up into Rachael’s ribcage—first boozy clinches from a stunned RLC as she grabs Nat up behind the elbows, Rest of the way—relentless waves of Nat Portman break on a hurting Rachael Leigh: Cook just clinching breathlessly, trying to stem the tide as Portman romps 10-8 to the finish line.

R2: Natalie blowing hard after a furious first, bops outside, goes to work with surgical cruelty with her jab. Cook turning, sullen as Portman tap-tap-taps that left eye her penetrating stick,  banging patiently away like a  crow on roadkill. This is why other fighters despise Portman: her relentless, coldblooded, systematic facials—she’s heartlessly busting up beautiful Cook, pounding that eye puffy in a bell to bell second.

R3: Signs of life from Cook—recovered from the first round blitz and the second round attrition—she crowds Natalie and swarms classy brunette on the inside. Rachael smart enough to know she can’t compete out in spaced—she gets right on Natalie’s chest, makes Portman fight in a phone booth. Rachael pinning Portman to ropes, rough-rubbing her head across Natalie’s face, under her chin, digging to breadbasket, then palming up and pushing—good mauling roughhouse to scuff Natalie up this round.

R4: Portman with a sleek lead right clean on the button, buzzes Cook’s legs: Natalie cleans up with a pair of rigid hook PAK-PAK on the ribs as Rache covers up. Natalie stepping to jabbing range, spearing Rachael’s face, hooking off the left foot—meanspirited little tucking lefts in behind Cook’s right elbow. Rachael busting up nicely, but still pressing—she’s getting spots inside, hustle-punching Portman’s midsection, forcing Natalie to bail and regroup at times.

R5: Cook coming forward—sweat and humidity turning her tawdry cashmeres into a wringing wet mass of cheesecloth, Rachael’s guard high—she’s willing to walk through Portman’s jab, take a body shot now and again to get to Natalie’s chest. Natalie grinding temples in there with Rache, joining Cook in the trenches more often than not: Portman willing to swap hooks to belly while leaning in—fight slowing, taking on a trudging, workmanlike feel. Competitive round, but it’s to Cook’s advantage to have Portman brawling like this.

R6: Rachael putting consistent, quality minutes together. Geometry of the ring changing” Rache in constant contact with Portman now—reaching under Nat’s arms, putting a head on Nat’s chest—grinding and rubbing her when not clubbing away on her. Portman walked to the ropes and smeared along them, Portman backed into corners, touched to the body, clouted to the chin. Natalie shipping the nuisance punching pretty well, but she’s getting constantly tapped, head and body, by a very busy Rachael Leigh through 6.

R7: Portman can’t disengage: Cook’s getting her way I there. Natalie pretty good on the inside—hooking Cook’s glistening ribs and protesting tummy short, swatting blows—but Rachael’s answering back, and answering with vigor.  Cook outworking Natalie—willing to pat down Nat’s biceps and hips. Clawing at her ribs, chugging two-gun to her belly. Natalie looking frustrated with the constant weight of Rachael’s face on her chest or snuggled against her neck—Rachael’s arms reaching round her waist or pulling on her arms.

R8: Portman fights a Nat Portman round—getting range at midring, right hand at her cheek as she steps and pops a stinging stick left side of Cook’; face, Rachael’s left eye closing, nose bleeding—during these minutes all she can do is turn on the spot, stare at the incoming and try to block as Portman bangs away. Coldhearted glare Nat to Rache at the bell as girls passed by shoulder-to-shoulder: Portman looking for signs of quit, not finding any despite the shutout.

R9: Cook right back on Portman’s chest, competing. Natalie glum at times, resting her cheek on Rachael’s shoulder, reaching tired around Cook’s squirmy body—Rachael’s arms in constant motion, slugging around Nat’s outstretched limbs, clawing and clubbing at tender throbbing rib meat. Rache showing a little brawn as Natalie wants to rest—Cook throwing a hard shoulder at Portman’s mouth to discourage clinch—packing a thick right/left to gut ton droop Nat forward with a gasp late this round.

R10: Close fight—girls wade out to brawl—once again Cook gets the toe-to-toe she’s been forcing all night long. Some pundits writing notes like “Duran/Leonard I” to remind themselves of how Rachael’s been able to compensate for Portman’s skill advantage today. Grinding swap, chins getting picked up little clouts inside, back-and-forth body shots test struggling tummies—girls wandering around mouth-on-shoulder with each other, working. All action fight storms to the finish line and beyond—little sluggers still digging away at offending trunk-lines as ref finally has reef’em apart. Comes back 1 point duke…RACHAEL LEIGH COOK!

After: Portman staring, pale, drained: that’s a definite upset loss by the former multi-time flyweight champ. Cook punching at the air, clapping, running fingers through her hair as she goes on a happy, random strut—huge win spots Tech to a quick 1-love lead and more importantly has Rachael on the first back to back win streak of her career. Natalie with that kicked-in-the-stomach cramped look of bewilderment: losing to Rachael Leigh Cook definitely not in the business plan this year.

Reposted by Archer 5/18/10.