Before: "This is where it gets good," grins Dani in prefight, thrilled to be in with Theron-slayer Lilly. "Me and Evangeline - slugging it out. I know she got a sample of B-grade slugging from Allison Mack - but that's not the kind of heat I bring. When I fight - I bring the whole kitchen. It's gonna be fun seeing how Evangeline handles the beef!" Lilly grinning at Dani's bravado - just as thrilled as Dani to be heading into a brawl. "Nobody stands with me toe-to-toe," Evangeline says. "Nobody. Not even Theron could handle it. Dani's deluded if she thinks she's going to walk into me and get her way. This could be the worst beating I've ever dished out, just because of the way Dani fights - I see her walking into more punishment than she's ever seen before. It's going to be a hell of a way to lose a championship, but you know - whatever it takes, I'm there." Dani in gunmetal blue bikini - small white mitts; long low ponytail with jaunty bangs framing face. Evangeline in pastel pinks and mauves, floral patterned surfing bikini - small white gloves - long curls tied back with bangs framing face.

R1: Minute's worth of spirited boxing midring - girls circling clockwise, spitting stiff jabs, looking to extend on crisp right hands. Dani catches 'Vangie a clouting hook - chases her to ropes: Fishel sets up on Lilly's chest. HAMMER AND TONGS! Evangeline baring her teeth - dipping side to side as she PASTES hard lefts and rights against Fishel's face - occasionally hooking the body. Dani dipping side to side, pulling murderous rights and lefts onto Lilly's head, shoulders, chest - she's also going body via the hook at points. Dani brawny with the left shoulder/extended left elbow - nudging Lilly up out of her crouch the better to hook and cross her. Non-stop, withering punching - both girls well lit up by bell. Vixens bat gloves in mutual appreciation: judges like the fact that Dani had top position at ropes throughout.

R2: No feeling out this time - girls bumping left shoulders midring, getting in close and working hard from opening bell. Dani stepping Lilly to ropes - by the minute mark, Fishel's pounding away a series of lefts and rights to inch into the lead: Lilly with a deft spin move off the ropes reverses position, takes back the points with a withering barrage of spanking hooks to Dani's midsection. Fishel tilting forward off ropes - Lilly leaning forward as well: vixens just working hard, bending knees, trading hammering, murderous lefts and rights. No clinching - very little the way of pauses - somone's either pushing or punching at all times. Girls trade top position during this non-stop melee - Lilly probably wins time of possession at ropes.

R3: Everyone knows the script by now: girls close, get shoulder to shoulder, beat each other mercilessly to body, hoping to get the other ropeside. At ropes, both crouch forward - plenty of room to swing away underneath as girls form a slugger's arch - audience just has to sit back and savour the mindless violence. Couldn't ask for harder work - girls grunting with the effort of giving or taking - gloves spanking loud off sweat-shiny bodies. Faces toggle aside from blunt clout up top - both turning into short, clobbering blows full and flush to jaws, cheeks, temples. Dangerous side to side dipping from both - either one could meet with disaster from this sort of posture.

R4: Dani stubs her face on Lilly's jab early: Evangeline able to pick Fishel up the right uppercut midring, then hook her chin - unhinging Dani's knees. Fishel loosened, stricken - she staggers away as Lilly walks her down tight lipped and hard-eyed. Ropes: Fishel covering up earmuff, hunching forward - some ringsiders crying out in astonishment at the horrible whack Lilly's dishing to waist. Evangeline's face pinched with effort - she's popping her hips, swinging away hooks and right hands downstairs - deliberately trying to cripple the little champion. DANI COMES BACK HOOKING! Fishel looking out of it, suddenly erupts to Lilly's chin - startling Evangeline, backing her off. Both girls chop in short rights to chin - both put immediately wobbly butt - they fall in hurt together, mouth on shoulder, scrounging for rib and tummy downstairs. Lilly able to shoulder Fishel back to ropes - probably taking a bit more paunch than she's giving. Bell: girls still plowing away - ref has to physically separate 'em.

R5: Dani starting to get lit up on the way in - Lilly's piston jab starting to bust Fishel up while paving the way for right uppercuts/left hooks. Dani absorbing, fighting her way to Evangeline's chest - girls taking turns being muscular with each other, walking the other around, pushing her back. Both using the extended left elbow a little too liberally for ref's taste: he's barking warnings for all the propping going on. SLAMMING body blows both ways - shocking loud sound of leather on firm beef. Lilly getting top position at ropes - her rhythm includes the aforementioned extended left elbow; quick shoves with the palms in Dani's shoulders; a caressing left cupping Dani's cheek in close, sort of pulling her forward. Fishel brawling bravely back - but her buttocks are in the ropes much of the round: Lilly's getting the best of it.

R6: Lilly hurts Dani early - that right uppercut midring, followed by vicious hooks, head and body: Fishel's forced ropeside. Lilly squaring away - crouching and bobbing, feet secure beneath her, weight forward. Constant clobbering abuse spanking against Dani's broad chest, rounded biceps, sturdy ribs, toned-up tummy. Lilly pouring in a constant stream of lefts and rights to torso, then busting Dani's chops. Most of the punishment coming in the horizontal plane - but Lilly occasionally coming straight up the middle, or featuring the uppercut to mix things up. Fishel busting up, lips parting from heavy body blows - but she's still firing back in spots - even wrestling Lilly to ropes at times.

R7: Lilly's ramrod jab punishing Dani - tracking Fishel's bobs and weaves: champ just can't get close with paying the price. Inside - Lilly's first and last, bookending the exchanges as Dani's now catching the right uppercut like clockwork. Fishel's sturdy legs stamping when buzzed, but she's taking Lilly's hardest blows, usually answering back hottest when Evangeline's scoring her best. Dani able to drive Lilly to ropes, but can't keep her pinned: Evangeline with strong swim moves or spins reverses position, muscling Dani to ropes and controlling the apron. Punch for punch attrition slowly but surely going Evangeline's way: getting hard to watch Dani get clobbered as hard, as cleanly, as frequently as she is in these exchanges.

R8: Dani lands a drifting right hand, startling Lilly early - Fishel enjoying a moment of one-sided domination as she bounces punches off Lilly's head and shoulders, driving her to ropes. Girls hunker down, scrubbing tousle in close, taking turns hoisting leather amidships. Patient work here - girls leaning in with left shoulders - hands low to protect throbbing midsections - palms touching and nudging offending ribs and hips, just trying to feel the openings. Lilly able to reverse position off a torrid right uppercut punches Dani's head back and dislodges her mouthpiece: Fishel stunned as she's bodied into ropes and fed half a dozen pumping lefts and rights to paunch as Lilly proves stubborn in even Dani's best rounds.

R9: Midring - Dani trying to penetrate - getting rejected. Lilly upright, straight punching - she's nailing Dani the one-two, getting a left uppercut onto Dani's chin, then crossing to chin to send Fishel tottering back on her heels. Fishel blinking, rallying, heading back on in - little warrior a little broken down at this point - just wading in with little head movement: Lilly's eyes bright and hard as she gets off muscular, pounding the stocky champ senseless. Twice, three times, four - Dani regroups and wades into murderous fire - buttocks wobbling cranky, form degrading more and more each time. Fifth trip inside, Dani grunts from a pair of tucking hooks smashed against her tummy: she stoops forward, gloves under her chin, eyes squinting in pain. Left uppercut Lilly - taking Dani on her overhanging forehead; left hook CHUPP! tucked in thick behind Dani's right elbow; left uppercut clean to chin between Dani's loosened mitts. FISHEL'S HURT! Dani stumbling forward - Lilly sidesteps, putting Fishel face-first to ropes. Lilly pounces, teeth bared - she squares away and goes at poor Dani with TORRID intentions. SMASHING lefts and rights beat the light from Dani's eyes - she's all dug in sturdy, upperbody sloshing around on her hips, guard loosening, head jerking around from withering blasts. Lilly won't let up - hooks take Dani thickly in the body, beating tummy into submission, hammering lungs breathless; right hands land sick in behind left elbow; right hands club to chin or clip it via the uppercut. DANI GOES DOWN! Seconds left in the round - but may as well be minutes. She's a little heap of ex-champ at Lilly's feet - right cheek to canvas, left knee up as right leg extends out straight. KO9 in brutal fashion, Evangeline Lilly.

After: Lilly exhaling a relieved breath - new champ battered and worn herself, but setting a murderous pace Dani just couldn't keep tonight. "I've got nothing but respect for Fishel," Lilly says in postfight, jostling belts on her broad shoulders. "She went out the way a champion should - she left nothing in the gym and gave me all she had. I hope she's ok: I'm gonna be a champ for a long time and I want her rested up and ready for a rematch down the road. It'll be my pleasure." Lack of knockdowns disguising the extent of the beating tonight - Fishel badly, badly punished - face lumpy and sore - she's very slow coming-to - officials taking their time to bring Dani around in stages after this brutal affair.