Phoebe Tonkin vs Odette Yustman

Celebrity Boxing After Dark
Phoebe Tonkin vs Odette Yustman
(BronzedOz Boxing vs Lioness Club of America)
(3-6, 2 KO vs 33-18-1, 26 KO)
Results: Lookout!; Story: Vassago

BEFORE: Former champion Odette Yustman has become the forgotten woman of the LCA's lightweight division in wake of the extended Brooklyn Decker scouting proccess earlier this season however there's no immediate demand for her services either as nobody seems to have the courage to challenge the 32 year old brunette into a proper fight anywhere around the FCBA.

Given these circumstances, the Lionesses have agreed to offer the former BBU lightweight champion Phoebe Tonkin a shot at the potentially biggest scalp of her American crossover career. The Sydney native has fought some of the biggest names around already, Charlize Theron, Kendall Jenner and Mary Elizabeth Winstead included, but always came up short of the ultimate signature success. Can she finally turn it around tonight?

Phoebe Tonkin wears a golden sports bra, green knickers and black gloves. Long light brown hair tied in a curly ponytail. Odette Yustman wears a red sports bra with black trim, black knickers and red gloves. Long black hair tied in a sleek ponytail. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the lightweight division.

Round 1:
Tonkin's the taller of the two brunettes and makes the most of that advantage when she riffles a steady jabbing assault over the top and forces the American into some quick escape routes during the opening minute. Odette's elite movements have won her numerous bouts before though and the aggressive Aussie jabbing doesn't interfere with the Lioness fight script at all; both women stick to their tactics in a largely half-hearted opener since Phoebe quickly realizes she doesn't land the neccesary juice to upstage the former champion. However she keeps hassling the older brunette in mid-distance almost hoping for a rare slip from Yustman, the Lioness gal reverts into single-hand response from the back foot but shows no signs of kicking into a higher gear especially that the Aussie tourist doesn't force her down that road whatsoever.

Round 2:
It's hard to judge who won that opening round since neither girl truly landed the big punches but an early tangle in the second allows Odette to pierce the taller girl's ribcage and stuff her on the heels much easier than anyone in the crowd anticipated. Phoebe got jumped with a quick switch downstairs and shows significant flaws on defense as Yustman rallies to clean out her midriff and drives her back onto the ropes. Tonkin fails to stretch her arms properly and has to clinch the American but Odette proves to be a slick customer as she sidesteps away from the stalemate and delivers a left/right combo upstairs. Tonkin's head snaps back on the spot and another brutally effective series shoves her behind a desperate earmuff with Odette picking her off from point-blank range and pulling away in numbers. Tonkin aches and groans behind that guard and somehow survives the onslaught but that was a very worrying display from the lanky Aussie actress on the defensive side.

Round 3:
LCA's coach Claudia Schiffer seemed really surprised to witness so much success in Odette's aggressive upgrade but Phoebe's reach advantage allows her to get back at the California brunette when she beats the oncoming lioness for a left/right hook herself. While Yustman's speed is downright impressive among the fellow lightweights, Phoebe shows some fine tools on offense and buries the older brunette under a steady barrage of aerial strikes. Odette's forced back into another defensive circle yet she prefers to weather the Australian storm during the majority of the round - seemingly handing the momentum back to the Sydney native. Tonkin tries to shut her down completely but only lands single punches thereafter and allthough she secures the artistic impression marks, she doesn't really hurt the Lioness veteran to underline her dominance. And we have a long way to go in this one!

Round 4:
Another pyrrhic victory for Tonkin in round number four. She tries to blitz the American but finds no room to work with when Odette slips and slides away from her grasp. While Phoebe was supposed to dominate the mid-distance slugging, Odette takes the defensive skills into exreme and almost could be accussed of avoiding an outright boxing drill here. Still, she ducks and weaves just outside of Tonkin's reach and threatens to deliver the counter-punching meance whenever the younger brunette loses her footing. Phoebe avoids the looming danger but she just can't catch the older woman with one of her countless hooking routes and looks downright upset at the bell. She's hardly been touched here in the fourth but most of her efforts have found nothing but thin air and that's like vintage Yustman on display thus far tonight.

Round 5:
Tonkin begins to lose her temper and shouts back at coach Schiffer before the bell; she wants the lioness let loose and well, she meets an injection of pace from the former champion early in the going that proves superior to her aggressive hooking route. Odette barges into the taller brunette's body and flicks a harpoon on the liver area that wobbles Tonkin on her heels and allows the California native to thump her up the middle for a good measure. The drilling left uppercut bounces off the jugs and follows through on the chin while another stinger from the right pierces the soft tissue around the navel to drop Phoebe on the ropes. She struggles to fend off the lioness heat in close range as Odette literally jumps at her and pierces her high guard with a furious jabbing rally. Yustman has shown little on offense thus far but Tonkin even less so on defense and she gets wrapped into a relentless body snatching galore in the final minute. Odette works on speed dial to match her strikes total thru four rounds and leaves the Australian tourist exhausted at the bell following all that pounding.

Round 6:
Phoebe makes an ill-advised decision to jump into immediate recovery mode instead of perhaps seeing out Yustman's offensive funk. Yes, she might have been ahead on the cards after four but one bad round doesn't spell disaster unless you get trapped in a proper slugging war of attrition. However Tonkin has supreme faith in her offensive skills and plain tries to knock Yustman's head off with a single push which ends in tears when she misjudges the initial approach and wobbles into a nasty left hook on the nose followed by a right follow through on the jaw... Ugh! Phoebe's arms drop to her chest and she screams out in pain when a scything cross finds her nose again and almost lifts her on her toes... Odette cracks another one on the brow ridge and has the Aussie fish-tailing on the spot... another low cross pierces the navel before a clean hook on the chest splits the guard wide open and anchors deep into the solar plexus... Uh-oh... TONKIN DROPS TO HER KNEES in slo-mo fashion before collapsing face-down at the American's feet!!! My oh my, that's a nasty one and the tourist remains face-down on the canvas even as the count reaches seven which prompts the referee to wave it off since the poor girl looks smoked out of her senses here! KO6 Odette Yustman!!!

AFTER: One could say Odette schooled Phoebe in elite boxing tonight, she defaulted the opening period of the fight before roaring back into contention when the Australian actress committed a couple of crucial mistakes on defense. Admittedly, Tonkin looked much better while running from the front but she just doesn't have the speed and agility to even match Yustman's elite numbers in that department. Plus it's notoriously difficult to lure the Californian into short fuse mode but LCA coach Claudia Schiffer tells the media they had everything about Tonkin covered regardless: "It wasn't a stay busy fight since well, Odette's been anything but busy this season and several pundits predicted she could suffer an upset defeat tonight. Well, think again! Odette's still the elite competitor and can wear anyone in the division out! (...) No, don't ask me about Brooklyn Decker! This isn't the time to discuss the other elite girl on our lightweight roster!"

While a victory always relieves some pressure, the prospects of Odette Yustman actually fending off the Brooklyn Decker hype remain a great unknown heading into the 2018 season. One could assume Odette is the biggest fan of Decker browsing the welterweight future but for now, she'll have to address the Alpha verification rumours whether she likes it or not. Taking one elite scalp after another would be the perfect response and the previously delayed Kaley Cuoco match-up might just be what the doctor ordered to remain on top of the LCA 130 lbs division.

Final result: Odette Yustman def. Phoebe Tonkin KO6.