Posted by Simguy on 4/5/2008, 9:16 am.

Before: “I’ll just say it,” Julie says at the podium. “Neve beat the heart out of Rachel in their series. McAdams hasn’t been the same since Neve got the best of her—she’s struggled to find her game, and she’s very vulnerable right now. I don’t have to tell you what beating Rachel McAdams would do for my career, I’m coming for her with both guns blazing!”

Rachel nicked by the brazenness of Julie’s podium-thrust: former champ clearly stung by the Neve issue. “It’s probably a good idea for Benz to steer clear of Neve and me,” a tight-lipped Rachel says. “I’ll admit Benz looked good pushing Connelly in the desert. I didn’t see O’Dell/McCarthy, but it’s hard to imagine anything being more barbaric than Julie and Jen fighting in the back of a pick-up truck—so I know Benz can bring it. I also know how hungry she is to bag her first a list name—so she’s dangerous. But if she thinks I don’t have the heart to match her heat—she’s going to stay a second-tier blonde when it’s all said and done.”

Special commentator Jen Connelly sums it up thusly: “Julie gave me a terrific fight ion North Africa, but when it came down to crunch time—she couldn’t close me out. I don’t remember much of that fight to tell the truth—but I do know that at one point Benz sort of suddenly said to herself “holy crap—I’m fighting Jennifer Connelly!’—and I think she froze up a bit. Deep down, Benz knows she’s not on our level, and I think that unless she really jumps on McAdams and takes a big lead—those same doubts are going to creep in here. Rachel’s A list: A list girls have deep reserves o pride and determination that the second tier girls just don’t know about. I like Rache in the fight—I really do. Julie’s a Jennie Garth blonde who’s in over her head.” Ouch!

Rachel in auburn locks; midnight blue crushed velvet push up and panties; white gloves. Scruffy ponytail with bangs for Benz; white lace push up; baby blue cashmere crochet bikini bottoms (tawdry) white gloves.

During R1: Mac touching Benz the jab, banging away rights and lefts off the lead poke: Julie covered up, absorbing. Mac stepping left, steering and controlling her blonde—pummelling the prepared defences up top to set up withering hooks to midriff/whistling right hand chops in above left hip. Benz just blocking and taking, turning on a little patch of a canvas midring: it’s all Rachel for a shutout.

R2: Benz answers, and answers with vigour. Rights and lefts to the midsection forestall Rachel’s offence: she covers up grunting, stooping forward. Benz in close—short, clubbing blows spruce up Rachel’s jugs: trade in hooks sees Benz score hard to jaw as Mac misses. Rache backing up, getting out-hit: she’s covering up earmuff, leaning inside the arc of Julie’s swings to help take the edge off. Benz methodical, punishing Rachel’s flanks and biceps—working hard to loosen the guard, then dig at the torso proper.

R3: Rachel’s turn. McAdams over to offence after Julie’s strong second: Rache jabbing stiff, coming forward behind her mitts: Rachel able to POUND the flanks—gloves bouncing off Julie’s body with authority, Loosening Benz up, Rachel’s able to place right uppercuts to solar plexus and chin: Benz put wobbly butt, well thrashed by Mac in the third.

R4: Benz’ turn. Brace of body blows—thumping rights and lefts in compact sequence—cramps Mac up, has her grimacing. Julie back to Mac’s rack with short-shrugging hup-hup, then she steps right to hook Rachel’s left eye from the angle. Julie frowning with concentration—working behind her jab, then stepping in to club at Rachel: great hard-working, methodical stuff. McAdams escapes shutout by trading late—exchanging tuff hooks and right hands as girls lean in mouth on shoulder at bell, Julie smiling as she turns away, knows he got the better of Rachel in another one-sided round.

R5: Rachel with a shutout, Crisp, banging action: Julie just huddled in earmuff, turning midring as Rachel beats her. Mac brisk—jabbing to fix Julie’s guard, then batting tic-toc off the flanks, looking to mop up uppercuts from there, Mac stepping right; she’s getting a n ice short, tomahawking right in over Julies left shoulder, just nicking it in the past the protective left wrist. Bell: Rachel forces hard eue contact; Julie resentful, looking achy and disheveled.

R6: Rachel hooking to Julie’s body—has Benz wilting, backing up: Mac able to come off the body with hooks to the head—DROPPING JULIE TO HER BACKSIDE! Benz exhaling through pursed lips—taking a moment before pushing up off her hindquarters: Rachel finally able to sustain pressure for more than a round. Rest of the sixth a long, slow retreat for Benz: Rachel jabbing her foe into compliance, then leaning in to beat her short, clubbing lefts and rights. Not fancy, but then, Rachel was never fancy pounding out umpteen defences of the bantamweight title.

R7: Spirited round as Benz jabs-with, negating Rachel’s poke and forcing shoulder-to-shoulder slugfest. Bruising fare—girls hunkered in close, digging at each others midriffs and breasts: just short, bouncing punches smacking off torso and arms. Rache mixing it up some—body-snatching to be sure, but also turning a cute little right uppercut to Julie’s chin that’s robbing Benz of initiative, McAdams able to outwork Julie in close-quarters, digging action; hard-working smile, Rachel Mac at the bell.

R8: Julie clouting Rachel an early short right hand, follows up with a clean left hook: McAdams clinches, suddenly knock-kneed. Julie shoulder-bumping like a veteran, disengaging before the ref’s break, then hooking Mac twice across her waist. thick chup-chup of Benz’ mitts on Rachel’s body crowd-pleasing: Mac shying away with a pained grimace, looking to use her legs. Benz walking Rachel down, locating her with the jab, then closing to work her over at closer ranges. Rachel earmuffed up, takes her beating like a woman: she’s mouth breathing, ragged after a hard 8^th.

R9: Rache shakes it off, retakes initiative with a harrowing assault on Julie’s waistline. Whacking rights and lefts belt Benz to ropes: she’s crying out now behind her mitts, cramping forward as Rachel beats her without mercy. McAdams hard-eyed—working the middle, then palming Julie’ shoulders to press her upright against cables: Auburn-haired minx taking it to the blonde in straightforward fashion. Julie crippled, unable to leg out: she shows her rugged side by absorbing dreadful body punishment, clinching when she can, and surviving yet another one-sided heat between these two.

R10: Rare hard fought two-way: girls ranging-in behind professional jabs to set up shoulder to shoulder. I’ll-hook-your-midriff—you-hook-mine erupts; both women really snatching hard at opposing thickness. Jugs? Both scrounging away in close with short, shrugging hup-hup—each buffeted in turn, Julie answering every McAdams right uppercut with a similar punch in turn—it’s very crisp, clean workmanlike fare as leather pops loud on meat. Rachel’s busier, stronger, heavier handed: Benz brave, but unable to get the better of things in this, the closest round of the fight. Comes back UD10 comfy—Rachel McAdams.

After: Shopworn beauties clearly exhausted as Rachel’s hand is raised: Benz pursing her lips, Walks away—snubbing McAdams as Rachel’s making a gesture to congratulate the blonde. Almost every round very one-sided for one or the other fighter—making the fight competitive in an overall sense: Rachel breaking Julie down in the 5^th, 6^th, and 7^th takes the fight from her blonde in these grueling mid-rounds.

Reposted by Archer 11/30/09.