PT. 1

Originally posted by Simguy on 2/2/2007, 6:10 am

Before: Katie a Cat-Buster? “I’m flattered if that’s what people are saying,” gushes freshly scrubbed Holmes at the podium. “Fighting Catherine is a dream come true for me, but I feel like I’m not just ‘fighting’ with her: I’m really on a position to beat her now. I fought Charlize on guts alone—I new I wasn’t really ready to take her on, but that’s not the case now. My skills are improved, I’m coming off the best win of my career, and I’ve got jenny O’Dell mimicking Cat ion sparring—I’m in damn good shape for this test.’

Bell courteous, but aloof: it’s often said that as hard as she’s been on blonds over the years-Cat Bell reserved her frostiest side for rival brunettes in her own house. “I’m proud of Katie—I don’t thin there’s been another fighter who through sheer hard work and determination has made herself into such a force to be reckoned with. That said, I do have a problem with some of the things I’ve been hearing through the grapevine. I’m not going to get into a mudslinging contest here, because this is more related to BSE than it is to Katie specifically, but I will say this: I’m going to fight Holmes hard, and do what I need to do to put her down. If Jenny or any of the rest of them have a problem with how the fight goes, they can speak to me in person instead of whispering at a distance.” What???

Katie is pale silver.gray belted bikini, white gloves. Deep ddark tan, slick low ponytail. Cat in electric blue bikini, white gloves.

During R1: Katie in wide wide stance, pinging an elastic jab, keeping that right hand up, Bell stooping to jab at the gut, then up at face, stepping in all hard, then easing out to test Katie’s reflexes. Patient, tactical—both girls probing. Bell eventually settles on a quick double-jab to face; step-in low; clinch, walk Katie to ropes and maul her until the ref’s break, Bell putting body on Katie early, pushing her around, bullying Holmes for ugly points in the first.

R2: Katie displaying wonderful left hand technique. A hesitation jab: Katie lifts the left to forehead fight, feint-dabs it before knocking it against Cat’s pate. Katie I wide stance dips her head down/to the left, pops hips-right to get zest on a clouting hook. Backhand jab—pinging, elastic: hard, sticking jab off the shoulder with stepped-in leverage. Bell parrying, stepping out, eyes narrowing as she reads the various looks: Cat so preoccupied with Katie’s left, she eats a drilling straight right poke late—Bell momentarily stunned as Katie leans into a beaut. Holmes consolidates: slide-step a smidge right; lathering hook to breadbasket; clawing hook across breasts has Cat speechless, staring at the bell.

R3: Hard jabbing midring—both women in wide stances, able to cover a lot of ring with minor foot adjustments—very economical, classy stuff. Bell ducking down, stepping in her pokes—jabbing Katie hard to chest, backing Holmes up,  then coming in all grabby: Katie getting eaten up by swarming Cat clinches and bodied into ropes. Squirming stuff—Holmes burdened at the ropes: Bell landing clubbing, shoving shots; rubbing forearm in Katie’s face to push it aside—even pushing Katie’s torso over the top rope, prompting referee intervention. Holmes a little frazzled, getting roughed up, but staying poised: when she can maintain her stance, push off the ball of that right foot and get off in good order, she’s boxing with Bell in spots.

R4: All Cat, all the time—O’Dell scowling in her ringside seat as Bell imposes strength this round, Cat pounding Katie jabs, forcing Holmes to cover, then gobbling her up clinch-wise: textbook punch-n’-clutch puts Cat on top Katie—Holmes bodied to ropes. Bell very rough inside—constant tousle-scrub in Katie’s smooth face; constant pushing and writhing of arms setting up clouting, clubbing shots. Bell using her right hand in Katie’s left shoulder to stabilize while digging away batting hooks to ribcage: Holmes frowning, lips parting in complaint as she’s forced to clinch. Shoulder butts repeatedly knock at Katie’s chin and Cat’s forearms are getting up high, prompting referee warnings. At the break, Katie’s cheeks flushed—she’s angry, bytching at the ref: Bell all business back to her corner after a smearing shutout.

R5: Katie dips head low; right hand drops behind her ass, then swings wide as she twists lean frame into a WALLOPING blast upside Bell’s head, Lariat-punch sends Cat staggering backwards, wobbly butt, ears ringing as Katie pounces in follow up. Pinging jabs chase reeking Cat ropeside—she covers up face-in-gloves just in time to partially block another rangy right upside the head. Holmes weight on left foot—gorgeous straight-arm hook shivers against Cat’s body—tic-toc delivery with the right hand up top, left hand downstairs. Katie pushing Cat in her shoulders, maintaining distance: she’s jabbing into Cat’s facial guard, then STRAPPING paunch right/left. Jenny O’Dell on her feet, whistling and hooting: BSDE worked so hard on Kate’s ground game for this fight and Holmes is delivering. Katie shellacking away lanky to body off the jab, then stepping out, coaxing Cat off the ropes: Holmes scowling hungrily, circling left, now jabbing stiffly at cat’s face and looking for me right hands. Cat bleeding in her mouth, shellshocked, but regrouping: she’s moving her head, dipping down INSIDE the arc of Katie’s lariat right hand to slip it—but that’s what Katie’s wanted all night long. Uppercuts find Cat—jerky left-hand ones parting her breasts; clipping right-hand ones finding her chin as Katie eases to her back (right ) foot, catching Bell on the way in. When Cat backs away to regroup, Katie aggressively on her, knocking jabs against bell’s left eye and hounding her around the ring. Break: Katie wheels away from Bell, flashes a triumphant grin into the BSE corner, pumps her fist—crowd murmuring in stunned realization that Holes may have just put her foot up Cat’s ass in that round.

BELL/HOLMES conc.

Originally posted  by Archer on 2/2/2007,  6:11 am.

R6; Intriguing stuff as both girls try to work their respective agendas. Both jabbing beautifully from wide stances: Cat now set up her clinch-and-maul routine; Holmes to set up her shellacking right/left to waist. Cat wary now of Katie’s long, loping overhand rights, but understanding that Holmes needs to st her feet to get lariat leverage—Bell able to read and step-right in time to nullify such blows. Cat also wary of Katie’s sneaky little counter-right uppercut—the last line of defense for Holmes against bell’s punch-n-clutch, Cagey stuff—Bell using feints creatively to freeze Holmes—Cat’s able to get the better of it in a stop and go sixth.

R7: Cat changes up, stays outside pulverizes Katie with a heavy jab to left bicep, chest and face. Holmes frowning, getting suppressed this round: she’s very alarmed when a clean Cat right cross finds chin, tossing Holmes ‘ head aside at the halfway point. Cat waling Katie down, hopping-to, jabbing hard, then leaning into the cross: Bell’s got Katie anticipating ‘clinch’ when Holmes should be reading the right hand. Holmes outboxed, but taking some firm Bell punches this round: Katie’s legs proving lightweight-legit in the 7^th,

R8: Katie answers, refusing to be discouraged or intimated. That pinging, elastic jab polishing Cat’s left cheek/eye—Holmes frequently dab-feinting it before knocking it home, The dip-and-hook routine letting Katie clout Bell’s chin—Cat taking it well, but backing up awkwardly from it: she NARROWLY escapes the lariat right as Katie aggressively slugs on follow up. Katie stepping right, jabbing into Cat’s left breast or tummy—Holmes trying to bait cat into answering hot, hoping to nip Bell that counter-right uppercut. Real spy-vs-spy 8^th goes Katie’s way: Bell back to her corner frowning, face sore and puffy from holmes’ frisky touch.

R9: Cat’s timing off just a little bit: she’s rushing in to clinch off her jab, but Katie’s stepping back and walking Bell into punches with some consistency this round, even when tied up—Katie’s stepping back in good order, disengaging, then swiping her mitts across juggs and face as bell steps forward: nuisance scrubbing, perhaps, but scoring blows all the same. Katie’s effective shucking of the clinch allowing her to sidestep right and drop right hands over Cat’s left shoulder: bell soaking clout, taking it well, but not answering immediately as fresh-legged youngster lopes to frsj canvas. Down the stretch, it’s clear that Katie has cat under control—Holmes boxing lanky midring, touching Cat, sidestepping, pocketing points in the 9^th.

R10: Katie’s dab-feint jab knocking at cat’s left eye with authority now—Bell looking a little disheveled, sullen as she gets touched, reacts late. Bell a little disorganized, almost desperate as she falls in clinch: Katie fading back in good order, swishing her mitts side to side in lanky, buffeting scrub, then sidestepping to disengage completely—Cat unable to body up. Holmes with initiative—jabbing Cat’s face, then striding in right/left to midsection: Cat grunting on receipt—hands at temples—soaking up consistent leather to her body, Final moments see Cat stumbling forward, jugs sloshing: Katie wide-eyed, backing away. DRILLING Bell a hard right hand to jaw, then sidestepping nimble round Cat’s left shoulder at the break. Holmes lifting her mitts and bellowing—body humming with adrenaline a bell slouches crankily to her corner. Come back  “Tractorpull Special—DRAW!

After: Katie rejoicing—lifted up off her feet by an exuberant Jenny O’Dell: Holmes touching Cat for a draw is tantamount to an upset, Bell visibly angry, tight lipped as gloves are removed in TE corner: left eye very puffy—former champ was in a real fight tonight and she’s not happy about it. “Cat-Buster has a nice ring to it!” Katie bleats in postfight, perhaps a little over-enthusiastically given then scoring. “I trained to box Cat Bell and beat her at her own game, and I think I did everything I wanted to, tonight. I thought I was fresher at the end, I thought I was coming on and taking it to her, but I guess the judges were feeling a little nostalgic. Maybe they gave Cat the benefit of the doubt tonight, maybe they’re not quite ready to see her lose to me yet, but whatever. She knows I got the better iof her, and I know she’s classy enough to admit it.”

Bell toweling her sweaty mane across the ring, ill-amused when told of the Holmes commentary. “Is that what she said?” Cat says thoughtfully. “Well, I thought she gave  a great account of herself, but no, I don’t think she got the better of it. I thought I had an off night and let her slip away. I had the right approach—when I was on top, she was like a little girl in there with me, no real strength at all: it’s my fault for letting her breathe tonight and I don’t see me repeating that mistake.”

Reposted by Archer 7/24/09.