Vanessa Hudgens versus Malu Trevejo

BEFORE:

'Nessa stepping up to a bantam here in this battle of Latin brunettes, and Malu, for one, thinks that's foolhardy on Hudgens' part. "'Nessa's cream of the crop at fly," Malu admits with a smile. "But, I'm just a bigger, stronger, harder-hitting girl. And, she's going to find out that flyweights aren't going to trouble a fighter like ME."

"She may be a little bigger," Vanessa says with a smile. "But, I've beaten bigger, better girls. Bigger. And, better."

ROUND ONE:

Malu wants to get physical early...and, for some reason, 'Nessa's willing to play that game. Rather than her normal jab and circle, Hudgens stands and fights, much to her corner's dismay. And, dismayed they are by the results, which are...not good. Hudgens is never hurt, but that's the extent of the good news. The bad? She takes an absolute THUMPING from the younger Cuban beauty, who simply walks Vanessa down, backing her up again and again with hard shot. 'Nessa fires back in spots, lands some good stuff of her own, but she's taking by fair the worst of it, as Malu gets what she wants and piles up points and punishment right to the bell. When it rings, she's taken the first wide to lead 10-9.

ROUND TWO:

Hudgens hears it in the corner, and she takes the loudly shouted advice to heart and begins moving. But, Malu's clearly ready for this, as she well should be. She doesn't chase 'Nessa, instead working the feet, cutting the ring, bringing her to battle, and getting off heavy, accurate shot when she does so. At other times? Well. It's Hudgens in open ocean and that's not a recipe for success...unless you're Hudgens. When she's dancing and bobbing and weaving and circling and jabbing and stopping to pop before slipping away? Yeah. That's not going well for you. Add it all up, and you get a close, two-way round that, at the bell, goes narrowly to Malu, giving Trevejo an early 20-18 lead.

ROUND THREE:

Hudgens gets in rhythm early. To paraphrase Hawk, "Good for HER, bad for YOUUUUUUU!" Now, 'Nessa's jabbing and circling, slipping and dipping, ranging all over the ring. Malu's trying to cut, but the more-experienced brunette has the geometry down now and she's playing it perfectly. On occasion, Trevejo is able to create a short exchange, and she does well in those, but 'Nessa limits them very well and spends the rest of her time taking the younger woman to the woodshed, peppering her with punches, making her miss, and generally giving her a beating. At the bell, the momentum has clearly changed, with Hudgens winning it wide and cutting Trevejo's lead to 29-28.

ROUND FOUR:

Hudgens on the move. Malu cuts the ring and BOOM! A right hook from Trevejo and 'Nessa is STEPPIN' IN FENCE POST HOLES! That quickly, the fight swings again, and it's the Cuban beauty who's in command. Malu firing off everything in the magazines, determined to sink the S.S. 'Nessa for good and all. Hudgens backed to the ropes and taking, keeping the guard high, putting the body on sale. Trevejo buying some, but not in bulk. She's working upstairs, looking to finish this thing while the finishing is good. But, the crafty Hudgens rides it out, taking a beating to the bell, but remaining on her feet. It's Malu with the shutout and the 39-37 lead, but judging by her STOMPING back to her corner, she's not happy not to have ended things.

ROUND FIVE:

Malu after 'Nessa in a big way, walking her down, winging away with both hands, determined to end this thing. Hudgens playing this very intelligently as usual, giving ground, countering in spots, playing for time as those legs slowly come back under her. By midway through the round, the older brunette has shaken the damage and is back on the move, forcing Malu to back off the throttle. The last ninety seconds of the round see 'Nessa slowly make up the stagger, outboxing the Cuban, peppering her face with jabs and follow on rights, frustrating her attempts at putting together any real offense. At the bell, it's close, but it's Hudgens, and 'Nessa's cut the deficit to 48-47 at the half.

ROUND SIX:

Malu pressuring, but doing so very soundly. She's working the feet, cutting the ring, bringing the older woman to battle and working her to head and body. For 'Nessa's part, she's using those legs, ranging around, snapping the jab, scoring in combination at times. It's good, two-way stuff, with neither fighter getting all of what she wants...BOOM! Right hand, HUDGENS! 'Nessa times a PERFECT one-two and Malu is HURT! Trevejo wobbles, nearly goes down and 'NESSA OPENS UP ripping a combination of TEN PUNCHES that sends Malu crashing to her back! Hudgens bouncing to a neutral corner. Ref counting down on Malu, but it's a formality. Cuban is both down AND out and it's OVER! And your winner by KO6 is Vanessa Hudgens!

AFTER:

'Nessa matter-of-fact as usual in the post. "This girl...she can beat some people, I guess," Hudgens says with a shrug. "But, she's not in MY league. She's nowhere CLOSE to my league. She needs to go back and fight second-level bantams...because she's NEVER beating the best and fittest flyweight in the FCBA."