Post by Lookout! Boxing on May 31, 2019 21:48:45 GMT -6
Maria Menounos vs Lily Aldridge
(Mirage Boxing vs Lioness Club)
(14-18, 12 KO vs 7-6, 7 KO)
Results: Lookout!; Story: Vassago
BEFORE: "Let's make no mistake, I love Maria Menounos, she's a real gem and should have had a Hall of Fame career in FCBA however I'd love to beat her up tonight!", Lily Aldridge follows a curious logic ahead of her PPV return. "I feel like I'm heading the same path she did before, I'm like the BEST lightweight fighter nobody recognizes as such!", this could be a thin-veiled a dig at the Tractorpull's low-hanging fruit comments but truth be told, the same can be said about fellow Lioness lightweight Odette Yustman who remains a media favorite over in Nashville.
Meanwhile Maria Menounos seems happy enough to just get a call to compete at the PPV again: "So many kids around here these days. Feels like half of them weren't old enough to make the grade back when I ruled the division. Don't let these Tess Valmore comments fool ya, I'm a former champion alright and it's time I show everyone I've STILL got it!"
Uhm... selecting Roy Orbison's "You Got It" as entrance tune is truly an old school approach but things can only go up from here...
Lily Aldridge wears a light blue bikini set & silver gloves. Long dark brown hair tied in a curled ponytail. Maria Menounos wears a black bikini set & pink gloves. Long dark brown hair tied in a sleek ponytail. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the lightweight division.
Round 1:
Maria wants to make an early impression in this bout and Lily's happy enough to weather the early jabbing storm from the former champion. The crowd enjoys a steady dose of single-strike attack which allows Maria to find her range but she does little to actually hurt the Victoria's Secret model who can test her bendy skills outside of frequent sparring sessions against Odette Yustman. Maria actually lands a big hook on the jaw that makes the crowd gasp for air but Lily laughs it off and freezes the TV presenter in radar-watching mode before blasting her on the chin with a similar reply. Menounos is still very rusty on her feet so Lily weaves away into safety come the final minute where the older brunette's punches make no impact whatsoever and there's no reason for any concern in the Lioness corner right now according to the experts.
Round 2:
Lily goes in on Maria's body HARD from the onset and drops the Greek brunette on her heels before pounding more tummy flesh to send Menounos reeling onto the ropes. The targeted woman escapes the trap through a desperate deke but it almost feels like Aldridge is just toying around with the former champion as she allows her to step back to the center of the ring. She still riffles a couple of quick hooks upstairs while staying well clear of a sluggish response. Whenever Lily wants to inject speed into her actions, she leaves Menounos hanging and slicing thin air before a wicked hook on the brow ridge stuns the older woman and enables Aldridge to clobber her up the midde outright. She thumps her onto the ropes again and this time she doesn't let her off the hook anymore as she crashes into her chest and loops additional hooks on the temples that force Maria into a desperate earmuff come the final stretch. Another low hook pierces the belly button right at the death and Menounos aches in visible pain as she walks slowly back to her corner.
Round 3:
Lily fakes an overhand one-two before blasting the Greek woman to the body and it simply unravels Maria's stance as she struggles to soak up some raw power crashing into her guts. She wobbles forward with a whimper and just can't stay away from Lily ripping into her body from both flanks. She can't even lock a proper clinch to bide her time and gets completely fooled by a swift uppercut double that dissects her high guard... Ugh! She stumbles back with another loud yelp and fails to raise her arms in time as Lily SMOKES her with a jaw-breaking hook moments later... AND DOWN SHES GOES!!! Maria just crumbles down on her side and seems in all kids of bother as she tries to sit up... Talk about getting your butt kicked on PPV return but the former champion just stays sitting down on the canvas and the ref waves it off at seven as Maria makes no further effort to avoid her demise. KO3 Lily Aldridge!!!
AFTER: Just not good enough! Maria's punching resistance got badly exposed on her PPV return and quite frankly the Lioness camp hoped for a better showing here to build Lily's contender status. Guess May 2019 is not exactly a Greek heritage month as the NBA star man Giannis A. also failed to deliver the good for his team. Maria has reached the top before but she's still disappointed and admits she needs to do a better job next time. What next time you may ask? Well, Tractorpull has given up their hopes on Maria's revival already and she might well become a popular target for numerous upstarts going forward. Sometimes even former champions go out with a whimper and Lily hugging the fellow brunette and wishing her the best of luck looks a bit cynical when you consider the circumstances.
Official Result: Lily Aldridge def. Maria Menounos KO3.