Before: Promotion all about Ashley - Casta in the background, a far cry from her Parisian footprint, but Ring Mag foreign correspondent puts it in perspective: "Scott's got a lot of WB clout behind her Stateside, but Casta's really coming along as a fighter. She got good, tough rounds in Europe, really emerging as a solid contender and she comes back here a plausible threat to win a championship. It might not look like it from the hype, but Scott's stepping up in class tonight."

Ashley in black push up, black velvet boy cut trunks, Laetitia in red underwire bikini top, red velvet boy cut trunks, hair back.

During R1: Casta clinical as she puts it to Scott for all three minutes. Laetitia relaxed outside, left hand down, right coiled at her chest - she's stalking right, stopping, placing vicious right hand whip-licks against Scott's abs and left flank. Pure attrition, Casta keeps landing along the waistline with sandbagging single shots - Ashley grunting, breaking down. Middle minute, Laetitia steps it up, getting into Scott with thumping left/rights against the waist, shaking the kid's legs, making her stagger sideways upon impact. All Casta down the stretch as she stubs her jab to Scott's chest, shoves the straight right hand down into the sternum, mops up with the slinging left hook thick in the side. Scott wobbly butt en route to her corner - Casta really raiding the breadbasket this round.

R2: Methodical look from both women - hands up at temples, circling each other, then taking turns. Scott getting off left/right to the waist, then bringing her mitts back to her eyebrows - Casta taking her whacks at the beltline and recovering her guard in similar fashion. Bashing give and go even until late - both girls venturing upstairs - Casta's hook is blocked while Scott's lands flush, nearly sitting Laetitia down. Casta clattering back to the ropes, fakes like she's going to cover up, then dives in to clinch, bogging Ashley down at the bell.

R3: Shutout Casta. Laetitia basing everything in Scott's supple midriff - body attack a clear component of the gameplan. Casta starting with the right hand potshots, but graduating to combination punching, mixing the hook in, then doubling up the hook, finally putting the right hand on top to shake Scotty with 4 punch rips. Ashley windblown, getting banged up and forced into retreat around the ring - defense is intact, but she's getting whalloped with nothing going the other way.

R4: Shutout Scott. Ashley loping to her left, using the ring, lifting a snapping jab off her hip to steer Casta midring. Laetitia with her guard at her temples, trying to crowd and bang but she's getting picked up tough. Ash scoring some pretty single shots - nice jagged right uppercuts thick in Casta's breasts or sharp against her teeth, whippy left hooks in behind the right elbow. Good spanking connects from both women through 4 - they're tanning each other up.

R5,6: Good hard fought competitive rounds, but Casta's experience starts to show as she edges into the lead. Laetitia really committing to Ashley's body, preventing the American from getting leggy - Scott with her dukes up, mouthbreathing, tilting forward as fluid blows stroke her ribcage and waistline. Casta also getting Scott's back to the ropes and having some nice moments, crowding in close with the left shoulder in Scott's chest, picking her up with supple right uppercuts in tight. Laetitia able to melt around either Scott flank, turning her girl - little angles and tricks just enough to maintain French initiative throughout.

R7: Ashley showing a crisp, flicking jab off her hip early, has Casta perfectly positioned at the end of the punch and a single tearing right cross drops the French woman to her buttocks for a thunderous 8 count! Following minute one of the worst of Laetitia's career - Casta ragged on shaky pins, covering up and getting belted from pillar to post. Scott gritting her teeth and unloading on her girl - sweeping lefts and rights, gouging hooks up underneath, just battering Laetitia around the ring. Final minute, Scott's punched out - Casta's swooning - an exhausted American palms up on her girl's head and shoulders, touching her, then laying in tired single shots across the abdomen or swatting wide to either ear. Casta weathers the storm in her tight defence, blocking everything at the bell.

R8: Scott's shot - Laetitia steps on the gas! Casta really managing energy well, catches Scott flat footed, and once again strokes home crippling leather with a limber, relaxed delivery to that midsection. Scott groaning, wilting to the ropes - Laetitia opens up but stays disciplined - working both flanks, then jerking up the middle with clipping uppercuts. Casta patient, grinding her foe down - using her shoulder and palms to constantly jostle and molest her foe while maintaining distance. Scott bludgeoned senseless, but also showing her mettle - she soaks up tremendous French bombs this round, just keeping her hands at her eyebrows and sucking it up.

R9: Scott achy, busted up - Laetitia's done a good job of sapping those young legs of spring with a murderous body attack. Casta stays on top, using the jab to steer Scott to the ropes, using the wide right hands against the waist to paralyze and demoralize her foe, then piling on with slinging combinations and shoving. Casta cocking her whole body to the left, then just torquing into her hook - doing the same thing on the other side - she's getting vicious leverage on her punches as Scott's resistance melts. By the final minute - Ashley's out on her feet, gloves up but limp - Laetitia's able to simply punch through the guard as American tilts and sways dangerously. Incredibly, Scott won't go down - trembling glassy eyed at the ropes as Laetitia sashays back to her corner.

R10: Round of the year candidate as Laetitia storms over to finish and runs into a young fighter who hasn't quit just yet. Ashley sliding along the ropes, just sticking her jab out there, preventing Laetitia from walking in and as the French woman reaches to corral her opponent, Scott chops in a ruinous counter right hand! Laetitia suddenly wobbly butt - Scott wrapping up and muscling her girl to the ropes - American comes up firing out of the clinch. Gorgeous, galloping, long armed strokes up underneath - Scotty just pouring it on, face pinched with exertion. Casta beaten to a seat in the ropes, ramshackle, numb from the assault, but she's not going down! Scott heaping it on, palming her girl's shoulders then whalloping in harsh sidearm rights to the waist - Ashley screaming with effort as she hauls in her best punching. Midway through, Scotty running out of steam and LAETITIA starts to punch! Casta nipping Ash with a little left hook out of the tight guard, then fitting the meanspirited right uppercut to the solar plexus as the French woman weaves and counters side to side. Scott starts to step back - Casta slugging as she steps forward, right crosses and left crosses banging away at Ashley's chin! Scott battered the length of the ring and it's CASTA setting up big girl! Laetitia cocking her body to load up, then unleashing vicious rights and lefts, bashing away at the body and jaw of her opponent. Lights dimming in Scott's swollen eyes as she goes on autopilot, just trying to gut out the round. Bell sounds, Casta falls into her opponent in mutual exhaustion - comes back UD10 by narrow margin...Laetitia Casta!

After: Casta turning back a determined youngster in a raucous, hard hearted affair that saw both girls teeter on the verge of destruction. This thing all tied up after 7, but Casta's experience showing down the stretch - she gobbles up the championship rounds of a powerpunching orgy that sends both women to the hospital for a little routine patching up. Numbing body attack key to Laetitia's victory - veteran took her foe's talented legs out of the picture, made it her kind of fight the rest of the night.