BEFORE: "People forget - Kate can really box," prohibitive favourite Evangeline Lilly says in prefight. "She took Jenny McCarthy apart with her skills, and Jenny's got good physicality, so you never know. I THINK I'm too violent for Kate - I THINK I fight at too brisk a pace for her to do her thing, but we won't know until we hook up. I'll press her early, and if she's having trouble with it, I'll beat her with my work rate, but I'll be ready for whatever comes. One thing's for sure: Kate's tricky. I'm not married to plan A if Kate's got the answers." Beckinsale similarly respectful at podium. "Evangeline is my most physical opponent since McCarthy," Becks admits. "But whereas Jenny was a stupid, blunt instrument in the ring - easily confused and victimized - Lilly fights with a great deal of natural intelligence. I WILL box her, whittling her down, frustrating her spirit. The physical specimen who starts the fight won't the Evangeline Lilly who finishes it. I plan to demoralize her - break her will - before putting the polish to her."

Becks in lime green bandeau top, boy cut bottoms with a big twist tie on left hip; black gloves; hair loose. Lilly in fluorescent green bikini with very dark green pointilist patterning; black gloves; hair in slick french braid.

During R1: Lilly in pursuit mode; scuttling footwork, spitting jabs to locate, then scouring lefts and rights, beating at all things Kate. Becks in scramble-mode: lips curled back off teeth as she scoots the perimeter, looking to flurry-and-go. Scraping, poking lefts and rights from Kate - she's trying to brush Lilly off, then get away from her. Evangeline applying insane pressure with her legs - she's got Becks practically jogging away at times. By the final minute, Kate's becoming more available for Lilly's fists - Evangeline able to push Beckinsale against ropes, then whack-bat her bodkin straight-arm rights or lefts. Becks mouthbreathing, hunching forward behind mitts, trying to block body blows on her elbows at the bell.

R2: Kate doubling the jab, tripling it - anything to keep Lilly off. Same scampering stuff as Beckinsale's desperate to disengage, but Katie able to catch Lilly with significant punches this round. Stiff jabs scuff at Evangeline's features, and a stinging right hand scores under the left eye. Left uppercut picks up 'Vangie's chin midway through, allowing Becks to squirt off to the side. Scrubbing flurries pre-empt Evangeline as she's trying to pin Kate to ropes: Becks employing rapid punch-and-go tactics to stay off ropes. Lilly unhurt, but scuffed as Becks commits reserves early to sustain pace.

R3: Beckinsale already slowing, succumbing to relentless Lilly pursuit. Evangeline doubling her jab - stubby little pokes knocking Kate ropeside: as she leans back with hands at temples, Lilly's feasting to the waistline. Thick, pounding rights and lefts bounce of Kate's midsection - Lilly crouching, bringing mitts back to her chest on follow-through as she takes what's offered. As Kate stoops forward behind mitts - Evangeline looks to hook behind the elbow, or dig uppercuts - giving Becks a liberal dose of shoulder-bump to keep her pinned down. Classic high-octaine Evangeline bump-n'-slug: steady pummeling visibly reducing Kate in the pocket, leaving her a threadbare, panting beauty at the bell.

R4: Lilly hustling across the ring, punching and bumping Kate into ropes, then fighting off Beckinsale's chest to dig over a dozen body blows into paunch. Kate gurgling, reaching 'round Lilly's elbows - Evangeline shoulder bumping violently, keeping hands-free. More abuse to paunch, then creeping barrage up-torso: Lilly mounting offensive operations all over the Beckinsale torso now, taking whatever's on show. Digging hooks free up the jugs; jugs free up the flanks; flanks free up the chin. Kate spellbound, butt-in-ropes as she stoops forward/leans back, growing drowsy under the constant thump of Lilly's meat-grinder offence. Ref steps in as Kate goes limp - force of Lilly's rising body blows actually keeping Kate up. TKO4 in brutal fashion, Evangeline Lilly.

After: Beckinsale beaten tender, gingerly stepping to her corner with attendants on either arm: classy Brit just simply unable to sustain pace or fight her fight in the face of Lilly's pounding miler's pace. "Basically, Kate's best weapons are her legs," Lilly analyzes in postfight. "Her body's toned, but it's not a fortress - I knew I could dig in there, get her hurt and basically take her legs out of the fight. That happened pretty early - then it was just a matter of beating her helpless. She tried, but...she's just not used to the kind of pressure I bring in a fight."