PHOTOS COURTESY BI PHOTO LAB

Unified Lightweight Title

Posted by Simguy on 6/2/2001, 3:37 pm.

Before: Berry coming in off the most memorable hijacking of the year against Charisma Carpenter, but she expects to box the naturally bigger woman Charlize. “If I get an opportunity, I’ll work it,” says Halle in preflight, “but I’m just going to be patient, let her make mistakes, and outclass her. That’s my game.” Theron blithely unconcerned about Berry’s pageant skills and recent power, “She looked good against a bantamweight--but I’ll be shrugging that stuff off if she brings it. I hope she does gamble a bit--I’ll trade right hands with her any day.” Charlize in white string bikini, Halle in yellow.

During R1: Cautious opener--Halle doing the dancing Theron the stalking as girls fence jabs at long range. Berry doing a nice thing late--flicking pitty pat jabs just to get Charlize leaning to the right--Halle’s able to extend on hard right crosses to the ear to take the round in clean punching.

R2: Halle loosening up, dropping her hands when she’s outside and beginning to use the ring. Charlize keeping up, but whenever she tracks Halle down, she covers up, tries to body up and lets Halle get off and get out. Slick slapping combinations as Berry swats away at the shoulders and ears as Charlize leans in, then Halle steps out neat to make her go away. Theron unhurt, but also completely ineffective as Berry mocks her at the bell.

R3: More tentative, licking jabs from well outside, neither girl wants to risk getting herself out of position, Theron driving Berry backwards with spearing right hands between the breasts, scores heavily to the waist with a lashing left hook in the dying seconds--Halle hanging on at the bell.

R4: Charlize starting to win whenever the girls stand and trade jabs in set piece exchanges--Berry doing better when the girls move to new territory, often able to walk Charlize into the lead right hand. Theron takes over late with some punishing jabs upstairs--Halle blocking with a high guard, but she is driven hard into the ropes nevertheless, clearly on her heels.

R5: Halle jumps in a lead right on Charlize’s mouth, but pulls straight back and gets NAILED a comeback left hook from the champ. Berry pitching forward, nearly goes down, but stumbles across the ring to stay on her feet as Theron walks her down. Charlize getting big at the ropes, swinging wide lefts and rights--Halle absolutely brilliant bobbing and rolling to make the champ miss. Midway through, Berry with a hand at Charlize’s hip spins under the blonde’s left hook, pushing Theron face first to the ropes and CRACKS sneaky right hand on the cheek as Theron tries to turn around. CHARLIZE IS HURT! Didn’t see the punch--she covers up with gloves at her temples and blunders into Halle to smother. Berry orderly in retreat stepping back and ripping hard, alternate lefts and rights up into Theron’s golden midriff or clouting at the ear as the blonde stumbles forward. Halle punching the stuffing out of Charlize as she backpedals, then another sidestep puts Theron face first into the ropes AGAIN. Charlize still with the earmuff guard turns around and Berry blasts away! Whip action lefts and rights around Charlize’s guard, bashing away at the jaw and ears as the blonde breaks down--at the bell Theron is stunned, head getting jacked back and forth as Halle LATHERS away with both mitts. Halle caught up in her own success, stands in front of a boozy Theron and taunts her with “THAT”S what I’m talkin’ ‘bout!”--Theron glassy-eyed doesn’t respond.

R6: Theron shows remarkable resiliency, shaking off the lithe power of her foe last round and coning out to post a stiff jabbing shutout this round. Halle dancing around the perimeter of the ring, gives away long stretches of the round by running--Theron allowed to recover, gets her legs under her and she hounds Halle to the corners with the heavy stick, getting off with licking hooks into the side whenever Halle leans forward and covers up.

R7: Halle trying to step left around her jab, but Theron hard to box that way--both girls busting the left against each other’s mouths from outside in a stalemate. Final minute, Halle hooks off the jab successfully, but eats a chopping right hand on the cheek that sends her reeling, Theron stalking her foe to the ropes once again, squaring up and this time ignoring Halle’s head to rip away instead to the waist. Berry hurting, pitches forward to clinch at the bell, tall-tale wobble in her truniks as the bigger woman gets to her this round.

R8: Halle roaming, Charlize stalking--Theron more and more looking like the aggressor in this fight, Midway through, Charlize snapping away at Berry’s breasts and face with the jab, suddenly clips a short right hand across Halle’s chin and BERRY GOES DOWN! Pinpoint accuracy swivels Halle’s pretty head and deposits her on her backside in a heartbeat--Berry up for an 8, but rubbery-legged. Charlize patient, just stalking in with gloves at her lips--Halle pokes a jab into Theron’s chest--once again that short right hand counter darts off Theron’s shoulder, clips Halle’s chin and sprawls her to a seat at the ropes, Berry staring up from the floor, shaking her head at Charlize’s crippling one-shot power. Halle takes another 8 and fades to the ropes for one of the longest minutes of her career. Methodical shove and slug from Charlize as she gets on top, rides her forearms on Halle’s neck and upper back and crams lefts and rights into the brunette’s aching rib cage to the bell. Halle sent to her corner humming in pain--Theron’s got that gleam in her eye.

R9: Halle showing a nice step in, dropping down to stuff the jab to Charlize’s belly, then stepping back out to escape--but she doesn’t work much off it. Berry gradually gives up on the set up punch to simply run--Theron legging after her not falling for any more counter punching trcks, wins the round by default. Some tough swiping hooks across Halle’s breasts land with flat clapping smacks--putting a discouraged look on Berry’s face at the bell.

R10: Halle bac on Charlize’s tummy with that Mayweather sudden bell touch, then stepping back out and to the left--Theron following. End of the first minute--Halle feints to the belly, then snaps the hook in as Charlize’s bites on the fake, cracking the jaw flush and putting a deep bend in the champ’s legs as Charlize is stunned by the shot. Halle hooking again to the jaw, cracks Theron’s head to the side and convinces the blonde to go to the earmuff defense--Charlize leaning forward, hurt and taking as Berry goes for it late. Fluid cluster punching from Halle as she unloads on the blonde--smacking rights and lefts bounce hard against Charlize’s flat stomach--ripping double hooks pound away around the guard to get at the jaw--Theron just falling forward, walking into punishment, but also seemingly taking it all in stride. Berry posts a busy shutout to finish strong, but can’t get the blonde down or even hurt--Charlize straightening up at the bell and slapping gloves with her challenger in acknowledgement. Comes back UD10 Charlize Theron.

After: Halle ahead after 5, and grumbling a bit about the scoring, but Berry elected to run rather than box for much of this fight, refusing to capitalize on a truly effective 5^th round that had Theron seriously hurt. Charlize so strong down the stretch, walking her prey down and punishing her whenever Berry stopped to trade. Knockdowns in the 8^th stole Halle’s pride as Charlize salted away the fight with the 10-7 round. Theron a victim of her own success in the press afterward--Halle really not seen as a “hard woman”--the kind of puncher that could threaten Theron physically, it’s the kind of criticism every dominant champion receives when she starts to rule with an iron fist.

Reposted by Archer 7/19/12.