Before: Pressure on Mary to go ahead and take her cougar - confident young star stopping just short of guaranteeing a win. "The only thing I'll guarantee is that she won't be ponylashing me!" Winstead grins. "Seriously - I'm here to do well. I respect Kelly, but I feel I'm the fighter with a future - I just have to reach out and grab it." Rutherford's been in this position before - she's a favourite developmental blonde for up and coming brunettes and both girls know it. "Mary's raw," Kelly observes, "I think I've got a trick or two to show her. She grew in those Nichols fights - I do think she's more dangerous now that she would have been before Rachel - but I'm still more than a handful for her. I'm not going to guarantee a win either, but I will guarantee that Mary's going to be awfully disappointed in this fight!" Mary in cerulean blue bikini with ruffled cups, small white gloves; rough-and-tumble puncher's ponytail/messy bangs. Kelly in yellow bikini, small black gloves; smooth low ponytail long down her back.

During R1: Mary frisky, effervescent, bouncing in on balls of her feet - jab-jabbing to face, bringing the left back to her hip early. Kelly more conservative - feet flat, dukes up, punches more selective - she's pivoting and sliding away, placing her jab to Mary's mouth, sliding off to either side. Kelly unable to land her right hand against Mary's bouncing in-out footwork; Mary unable to punch her right past Kelly's raised guard. Winstead's activity gives her a harmless, free-flowing first.

R2,3: More of the same - Mary's energy and exuberance carrying the rounds; safety-first Kelly slinking around, trying to exploit Winstead mistakes. Mary doing yeoman's work with plugging rights to Kelly's breadbasket - prompting blonde clinches: Winny patiently imposing her strength and youthful vigour on older woman - taking Kelly to ropes. Rutherford not too proud to clinch, tieing Mary up to stifle brunette body work - stop and go action results as ref has to issue steady stream of breaks.

R4: Crafty Kelly bamboozles Mary this round, drawing warnings in the process. 1.) Kelly reaches in her small-gloved left to grab at Mary's left wrist - pinning the hand to Winny's stomach while leaning in and fetching her short right hand clouts to chin. 2.) Working inside and underneath - Kelly's left reaches in to pull at Mary's left elbow - exposing youthful ribcage to digging rights. Kel also clubbing away to left ear as she tugs Mary forward. 3.) Tight clinches result in subtle headbutting, Kelly to Mary - Winstead turning her face away with a grimace as blonde takes her to ropes. Ref giving Rutherford's arm a good shake as he warns her about this - but Kelly roughs Mary up for points in the fourth.

R5: Mary's not having it. Kelly trying to bully younger vixen - Mary standing her ground - rejecting Kelly's clinches with pumping rights and lefts sticky to midsection - brunette just loweriing her head and going at her blonde. Rutherford stepping out, circling, showing cranky expression: Mary back over to offence, gets that frisky jab back on Kelly, hounding her in retreat. Kelly able to step away from trouble and manage Mary's exuberance for the most part - but Winstead IS extending on long, spearing right hands sloped down into the Rutherford sternum, punching a grimace onto Kelly's pretty face at times.

R6: Kelly firms - standing her ground more, engaging Mary in spirited trade all around the ring. Girls squaring away conventional - locating each other with jabs, then trying to flow with combinations from there. Flat footed - each girl covering up to block when the other's getting off, then quickly transitioning to offence at the nearest opportunity. Both girls using the hook off the right (back) foot to force the other to temporarily suspend offence and cover up: good steady give-and-take resulting. Rutherford consistently whacking Mary right/left on her waist as Winny's covering up top: enough to separate the blonde in a close round.

R7: Same again - girls stepping to spots, electing to stand - each getting off in three or four punch bursts as the other crouches and covers. Mary the stronger this round - she's the one banking strong, shellacking right/lefts to the other's tummy, then shouldering Kelly back a step - Winny nudging and punchiing her way to close points in the 7th.

R8: Kelly won't have it - spitting her jab to get Mary covered up, then leaning in to pull the sidearm right in above Mary's hip, followed by a gouging little left uppercut to sternum. WINSTEAD'S HURT! Mary shouting in pain, hands at her temples, torso stooped forward: Kelly's eyes widen hungry as she pops hips-right, rakes Mary a series of left uppercuts against gloves and face to loosen Winstead's knees. Mary proving durable, weathering the storm - second minute sees her trade limber right hands to midsection, fighting Kelly to a standstill. Down the stretch, Kelly gets grabby with the left hand again, pinning Mary's left to her chest while leaning in close to fetch brunette chin right-handed clout: Mary's head tosses aside - she's bullied to ropes. Kelly's clever left reaches to pull Mary's head down - Rutherford scraping cruel right uppercuts off brunette hairline as ref gets in there barking.

R9: Mary scuffed up, got her buttocks wobbled last round - she comes out glaring, hardhearted to meet Kelly midring. Wide, swinging right roundhouse takes Kelly in her tummy - angriest punch from Winstead so far beats a shout of pain from Kelly, prompting her to tie up. Ref's break - Mary wading forward - walking barrage of rights and lefts shreds Kelly - rising blows punching at her breasts and face as she's backing away. Kelly hits ropes in disarray - Mary fierce in pursuit: brunette's teeth bared, eyes flashing as she pours it to wilting blonde. Nothing fancy - just a good, healthy lather beating at Kelly's head and shoulders: blonde yelping, covering up, ducking down, giving up her back. Winny REEFS hooks in behind Kelly's right elbow - brunette back (right) foot lifting up off canvas in her enthusiasm - then she's digging away righty behind the other elbow. POOR KELLY'S CRIPPLED! Kelly bleating in pain behind her gloves, cramped forward and taking and KELLY GOES DOWN! Rutherford weepy, hugging her ribcage - veteran sits on her haunches and elects to take a 10 rather than continue on against ascendant Mary. KO9, Mary Elizabeth Winstead.

After: Mary delighted, essentially forcing Kelly to quit: little doubt that Rutherford COULD have continued if she'd had the heart for it. Some in the crowd getting on Kelly - she's very stoic, stariing at her hands as she unwraps them, ignoring the odd boo or catcall. "I understand her decision," Mary says in postfight. "I was beating her terribly at the end, I was ahead on points - we both knew that. For Kelly, going the distance isn't as meaningful as it would be for someone just starting out. She knew she was in for some bad, bad minutes and did the smart thing - I don't blame her one bit." Good win for Mary - feisty little brunette's got a streak going - she's young, energetic, pretty - what's not to like? BLONDE! Mag reporters - concerned with the idea that a fair-haired veteran might have quit at the fists of a rookie brunette - flock to Kelly's dressing room for a statement. "I was legitimately hurt," Rutherford says quietly, shrugging defensively. "Mary was taking a baseball bat to my body and when I went down, I couldn't feel my legs. I tried and tried to get up, but I just couldn't breathe. People will believe what they want to believe, but I couldn't beat that count, and that's the truth."