Yvonne Strahovski versus Miranda Kerr ( Australian Pride)

'Australian Pride Fight'
Venue: ANZ Stadium
Location: Western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Attendance: 80.000 (estimated)

Yvonne Strahovski vs Miranda Kerr
(Lookout! Boxing vs Downunder Boxing)
(FCBA: 47-23, 33 KO vs 8-2, 8 KO)
Results: Lookout!; Story: Vassago

BEFORE: There's no official silverware on the line in this bout however it doesn't really matter. This is the official Australian Pride Fight destined to crown the best female boxer on the continent and perhaps the entire Southern Hemisphere. Yvonne Strahovski holds the honor of the being the country's best pound-for-pound fighter however Miranda Kerr officially laid down the gauntlet after knocking out Anna Torv in Brisbane last month. There's only as much ducking as Strahovski could afford to possible to deny the Aussie boxing fans the dream match-up and the ANZ Stadium (the former Olympics venue) hosts the fight that should be the most-talked about event for months if not years to come all across the female celebrity boxing universe.

Both these women were born in Sydney so hometown bias shouldn't be a deciding factor by any means and there's simply too much at stake to waste time for the usual trash-talking. Besides, Yvonne is well known for her respectful approach to all her opponents not named Mary Elizabeth Winstead while Miranda's laid-back demeanour has become legendary ever since she made her mark as double bantam- and lightweight champion over in the BBU. It's been more or less confirmed the Aussie and European markets simply weren't big enough to sustain Miranda's demands anymore and one can only wonder where are the model's limits if she can somehow upset the four-time FCBA lightweight champion? There are only few girls nobody bets against and Yvonne has earned herself that respect among the pundits basically leaving Mary Elizabeth Winstead as the sole boxer around the world who can claim she's actually superior to the Aussie actress in the Charlize Theron post-peak era of boxing. The odds in Vegas give Strahovski a clear edge over Kerr and FCBA's #1 writing expert - Tractorpull's Tess Valmore supports them as well.

Yvonne Strahovski wears a golden bikini top, green knickers and golden gloves. Long blonde hair tied in a sleek ponytail. Miranda Kerr wears a pink bikini set with white trim and white gloves. Long light brown hair tied in a sleek ponytail. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the lightweight division.

Round 1:
Yvonne lands all the big punches early on and even Miranda's banatmweight past which makes her a much more lithe fighter among the lightweights doesn't cover up for the blonde's power supply advantage. One simply doesn't make Vonnie look so obsolete under any circumstances and Kerr has to brace herself for a notorious onslaught that she fails to fend off during an otherwise frantic opener. It's all about setting the early tone and building a lead on the cards and there's no stopping Strahovski who dominates the delightful mid-range tussle however she fails to land that truly big punch to rattle the model off her comfort zone. Miranda finds her groove come the final minute and threatens to halt the blonde's charge yet her single-strike assault simply isn't good enough to make the late recovery possible.

Rounds 2 & 3:
Miranda gets more aggressive and slugs it out with the blonde in the center of the ring blow for blow which affects Yvonne's execution on the long haul. The model's high guard also improves and enables only the single punches to bounce off her face as Strahovski still pushes for the ultimate separation but lacks the pure leather to back the model into the ropes. Kerr is solid as a rock on her feet and offers the much-needed diversity when she smacks some harpoons into the blonde's guts which further affect the Lookout fighter's production. Strahovski gets a little annoyed when all these low shots find the target but a brief moment of wrestling gives her more reasons to be worried about as Kerr bumps her on the heels and ends each round with a scything cross on the lips that wobble the four-time champion backwards and leave her more worn out of the two.

Round 4:
Yvonne resumes the head hunting pursuit and beats the brunette to the initual punch which proves pivotal as she then follows it up with a nasty drive on the guts that leave Miranda gasping for air for the first time tonight. Another ribcage-busting series wobbles the model on her heels and that's the way to go it seems as Strahovski finally finds her rhythm in these harpoons and buries them straight into Kerr's soft belly tissue - and there's hardly any of that in first place. The body assault forces the younger woman to seek a clinch but Vonnie keeps the power on and digs her shoulder into the model's chin to gain separation - a swift hook on the jaw catches Miranda off guard and allows the Lookout champion to rain punches in close range that snap Kerr's ponytail back & forth before dropping her on the ropes for good. That's the first time one of these women found themselves in such a spot of bother tonight and Strahovski takes full advantage of the circumstances. She connects with more head hunting jabs and almost shuts Miranda's eyes closed as she keeps digging... twenty seconds before the bell Kerr begins to groan in visible pain and that fuels the blonde's efforts which are eventually rewarded when she hauls in one uppercut too many... Miranda's gloves collapse on the spot and a vicious left hook on the ear SENDS HER CRASHING DOWN ON HER RIGHT SIDE!!! What a run from Vonnie! She decks one of the most dangerous lightweights around after a lenghty spell of dominance during this round! Kerr looks as shocked by the experience as anyone around the ANZ Stadium but she gets back onto her feet at seven - still looking a little misty in the eyes. The clock comes to her rescue and expires immediately after the referee's command but Vonnie shakes her glove in delight and knows exactly how important that knockdown is!

Round 5:
Vonnie goes for the kill but Miranda's too experienced in her own right to get blown away like that. She recovers well from that potentially critical knockdown and digs into her lithe footwork to escape the blonde's heat. Obviously she gives the scorecards away by default but there are higher needs taking top priority right now and she still does well enough to limit the damage to single punches as Yvonne's ferocious push for the KO success meets little success. The Lookout fighter eventually thinks better off it after it becomes clear she won't finish the model off and that allows Miranda to stretch her elbows a bit come the final minute. The fight takes a tactical turn during for remainder of the round but there's no denying that Strahovski owns a clear advantage at the half-distance mark and looks set to confirm her status as the nation's best female boxer these days.

Round 6:
Many people around the ANZ Stadium wonder whether Miranda switches into KO pursuit mode now but she still has the dominant footwork at her disposal and has regained her composure to the point she can hassle her way back into this one. That's only possible because Vonnie takes her foot off the gas a little and allows the model to dominate the opening minute with ultra-accurate hooking assault in mid-range. Too many clean punches are landing on target and as Vonnie jumps forward with a counter-punching drill, she bounces off the top of the model's forehead and gets wrapped in a wicked uppercut on the jaw that makes her wince for the first time tonight. Kerr follows it up and pierces the solar plexus for a good measure before a quick harpoon on the liver area stings the blonde for good. Yvonne gets rooted to the spot but soaks up more assault to the body and disappears onto the ropes when Kerr's steady assault overcomes her resistance. Miranda storms right back into contention and pounds away at the blonde's midriff in such esteem that the ref has to wrestle her away at the bell to prevent any illegal striking.

Round 7:
The fight turns into a war of attrition and one has to give credit to Miranda for catching a second wind in her sails while Yvonne looks to be breathing just that little harder after a heavy offensive push during the early stages of this Pride contest. The slugging drill gives the model a fat lip before the one minute mark but she loops more promising hooks to the body and removes more strenght from the four-time champion so the blonde's punches don't carry so much weight as the seconds tick away and come the final minute, Kerr is able to dump her rival on her heels and leave her moaning even louder than before. A well-placed hook then pierces the liver area one more time and only then Strahovski finally yields real estate amid more painful squeals. Miranda gets visibly animated upon this sight and hauls in more shots to the body rendering the Lookout blonde completely helpless right at the bell. It looks like Vonnie is hurting badly in the guts and makes a clear gesture that something's wrong when she hugs her aching ribcage and slumps on the stool with eyes closed.

Round 8:
Miranda reigns supreme in another hectic tussle in the center of the ring but Yvonne is much slower on her feet and just can't fend off these piercing shots to the liver area. Allthough she lands a crisp double combo on the model's swollen lips, she gets bend forward when Miranda dissects her low guard and begins to carve visible pink patches on the otherwise pale midriff. Ugh! Strahovski slides against the model's waist and tries to force a clinch but Kerr's left arm wrecks havoc downstairs and just bounces off the blonde's ab muscles repeatedly to the point STRAHOVSKI YELLS OUT IN PAIN AND DROPS ON HER KNEES in a huge turn of events!!! Miranda quickly struts back to her corner and just stares down on the fallen opponent. It's a painful recovery for Vonnie and she looks deeply upset and hugs her ribcage repeatedly again which may indicate Kerr has fractured some ribs out there! This time the clock saves the blonde from immediate demise but the anguished look on Strahovski's face suggests she's in extreme physical disarray and Miranda finally allows herself a wry smile as she talks to Downunder Boxing head trainer Nikki Visser during the interval. Will this Australian Pride Fight actually go the distance now? The odds have taken a dramatic U-Turn since the opening bell...

Round 9:
The early scorecards advantage seems to have all gone to waste for Strahovski now following that second knockdown but what's worse, Kerr has no intentions of delaying the official verdict as she storms at the wounded blonde and resumes the ultra-effective body assault. Yvonne gets very protective downstairs which leads into an extended jabbing exchange but the model then stacks her up with a quick hook on the eye and fakes another overhand swing so the actress finally exposes herself where it hurts her the most. Miranda's quick arms are too quick for the blonde's reaction time at this stage and a brutal hook on the liver folds the older woman into spasms before another drilling procedure wrecks her ribcage into a mush... Ugh! Vonnie screams out and instantly hugs the right side of her midriff and that leaves the home run finish for the supermodel who slams a vicious right hook on the jaw AND SENDS STRAHOVSKI TUMBLING ON HER BACKSIDE in a blink of an eye... Good lord, Yvonne rolls into embrional position and the damage to her ribcage proves pivotal in her failed recovery as she just can't stop aching her heart out and remains down on her side as the count passes her by! What a comeback! Your new undisputed Queen of Australian Boxing, Miranda Kerr via a massive KO9 performance!!!

AFTER: Miranda refuses to gloat over the fallen blonde but you could buy Rupert Murdoch twice over with that beaming smile of hers! The ANZ Stadium audience seems to have found themselves a new favorite however Miranda has competed in the AWUBA/ACB competition much longer than Strahovski before finally leaving the country in pursuit of her international career. And what a career that is!

After soaking up every single ounce of applause for the best part of a minute the swimsuit model finally focuses her attention on the fallen opponent and it doesn't look well for Vonnie at all. She sits down on her heels and hugs her ribcage on the right-hand side which may well indicate a significant rib injury. The painful look says it all as well. This wasn't your everyday boxing contest - even without the high-profile Australian Pride tag. You just don't see Strahovski getting demolished mentally as well as physically in the ring these days... not courtesy of someone not named Winstead anyway.

However both women remain in good spirits, Miranda offers Vonnie a helping hand and they exchangs hugs before the blonde raises the brunette's arm in the air signalling who's won the national bragging rights tonight... "I'll get you next time, hun!", she smiles back to Miranda who responds: "I'm sure you will... but maybe when we're both retired!" She winks back at the actress and Yvonne needs to be escorted for medical evaluation which should reveal the extent of her rib injuries.

'Green & Gold' Magazine's Sarah Cumming interviews your winner and wants to know all about Miranda's FCBA lightweight title ambitions: "You know, I leave that to Anna Torv and her management. They're the ones obsessed with all this silverware. I'm just taking it one at a time. I'm no way near the numbers when you compare Vonnie and Anna to me, this was only my 11th FCBA fight. They told me I need to get to 20 fights alone to even be considered a complete fighter (laughs). Besides, it doesn't get better than this. Beating Yvonne Strahovski in front of a sell-out Sydney Stadium? Are you kiddin' me? That's worth MORE than all the lightweight titles combined! This will be the reference point for years to come! This city, this nation hasn't seen anything like this and probably won't see again until Yvonne challenges me for a rematch (laughs). What are the odds for that to happen? I guess her ribs need to heal first though (laughs again)."

Final result: Miranda Kerr def. Yvonne Strahovski KO9.