Post by Lookout! Boxing on Sept 30, 2016 13:58:22 GMT -6
WELTERWEIGHT TITLE
AMANDA RIGHETTI (33 y/o, 5 ft 8, W: 66, L: 23) VS KATE UPTON (24 y/o, 5 ft 10, W: 26, L: 10)
(Words: Bonzo / Results: Lookout!)
Before: In her fifth title defense, Amanda Righetti will meet JMD phenomenon Kate Upton: blonde Upton, one of the sport’s most popular figures, has long been looking to branch back out of her JMD playground. There, she’s been enormously successful, amassing a 13-fight winning streak over the course of a year, giving up only three bouts in as many years, until she lost to McKinney in May. In the past, Upton’s already faced top competition from the welter division, including wins over Landry, Bloodgood, Patton, Atkinson and Govich, so while the quality of her JMD competition has sometimes been looked at critically, she’s no stranger to non-JMD top fights at the weight class. Her only regular title fight has been against Righetti, too, in late 2013, ending in a TKO loss to the redhead champ. Upton’s shed weight across the last couple of years, and she’s been on a rigorous workout plan for this fight, too – she’s coming in hardened, her statuesque, curvy body toned into powerful shape without giving up that trademark bigness. “Amanda would be bad-advised to think that my JMD experience hasn’t made me a much more dangerous fighter than last time out. My right hand’s better than ever, but it’s my stamina’s that’s really changed. I’m not counting on a lucky punch at all, I can go all the way and really hurt Amanda to the body. I’m young and hungry, and she’s, like, entering her last stretch, folks!” – Righetti, as firmly dominant as she’s ever been in the welterweight division, has been jubilant since her win over ultra-rival Bridget Regan in July, her ninth straight win. Pre-fight, Righetti looks unfazed, displaying calmness and curiosity at the media frenzy involving Upton at the weigh-in and press conference – “Kate’s a blockbuster, I know. Sure, that’s a great thing for the division. Me, I’m quite curious to see how, competitively, she’s changed since we last fought. Because, JMD or not, we don’t know whether she really has the technical skills, the stamina and the patience she needs to compete against me. I still kinda have my doubts about that.”
R1: Girls trade hooks early, both opting to stay in mid-distance, throwing wide-range jabs at each other’s defensive guards, stomping clockwise. Righetti nimble, her right foot planted firmly when she’s driving body hooks forward, taking skipping little steps backwards when Upton flashes a bulky left, managing her range. Upton’s upbeat, slowly assuming a more aggressive part, bringing her weight forward throughout first round. Amanda’s left stays passive, clutched into guard, her legwork trying to sidestep Upton’s roaring, rangy jabs. Righetti clearly shying away from blonde’s power, leggy as she’s still looking for ways to adjust to Kate’s height advantage, that wide, lanky body, trying to read her angles/rhythm. Later, Upton’s advances turn stiff, brawny: her left keeps Amanda’s guard busy, opening up for her right fist to pluck redhead’s ribs in brash, hungry style. Upton’s technique rough-and-gruff at this point – she’s got no problem flubbing some of her wide haymakers off mark when overall her pushy, aggressive work to Amanda’s ribs/arms/boobs bulls the redhead champ backward in impressive fashion. Most of the time, Righetti’s defense remains safe, especially up top, but she’s allowing Kate to drive herself into dense positions: the blonde traps her at turnbuckle at one point for some greedy right hands tapping into her chest, then claws a stunning, short-jab counter over Righetti’s straight-right onto Amanda’s lower right chin when the champ hunches low to break out over her right side. Last minute, Upton’s teasing Righetti with brusque, swinging haymakers pulled from the waist, her left clutched at chin – redhead not committing into counters, her body jerking into hasty pull-outs, drawing away from Kate’s pumping aggression. Upton impresses in the first round, stirring up the crowd with her raised right arm when she marches to her corner at bell – Righetti’s expression: poker face.
R2: Upton starts working behind fidgety right hands, dumping ‘em into Amanda’s shoulders/ribs, spanking meat, forcing Rigs into pivot-steps to the side – Righetti sets up in absorbing position, elbows tucked in, fully acknowledging blonde brawn, working just slightly off-ropes to counter thru the middle with short, jerking hooks pounding for Kate’s jaw. Upton’s active with her hands-on jab, but only serving it to close the range, allow her to wade in quickly, always loading up on rocketing right hands whizzing for her skull, soaking into Righetti’s mid-section – redhead’s slowly swept fully into ropes by Kate’s free-swinging left-right barrage during first minute, then cleanly DOUSES Upton’s fire with a bouncing left hook whipping Kate’s unprotected jaw to counter. Righetti uses her legs, rotating away from Kate’s hurried haymakers hunting her, jabbing back strongly for position, palming/jostling blonde shoulders – mid-ring, ‘Manda abruptly takes charge, timing another clobbering right on the spot, leaning in to mop past Kate’s own arm, detonating a thudding right on Upton’s mouth, puttin’ her blonde wobbly-butt on the spot. Although Upton’s been countered twice, she’s still bravely veering forward, looking to spank Righetti’s flanks with wide, lashing punches from outside range – Righetti’s having none of it, POUNDING into Upton’s rack with a long, hard, straight jab in response, driiiiving Upton into more backpedalling, jigging steps, making the blonde feel the power. Suddenly, Amanda lunges out ahead, feints a straight jab, but then leans into a wild, unexpected right uppercut bashing onto the left side of Kate’s mouth while ducking past Kate’s askew right hand sloshed from the waist up – whoosh, UPTON’S DOWN! Blonde’s head flopping back from impact, her body spasming into ropes: in an instant, she starts slumping, loosening, tumbles down near ropes, flopping hard on her butt. Upton’s hastily grabbing for the ropes behind her, hectically scrambling to rise – she’s punched wobbly, her legs fragile, but she appears busy, alert, back up in time…Righetti immediately squares up on her risen foe, shifting into processing mode, thumping jabs for Kate’s arms/ribs, bullying blonde backwards. Kate’s a disheveled beauty, looking cranky – she’ll still burst into some swooshing right haymakers, drive forward left hooks from rope-side siege, but Righetti’s jab contains her in defensive, pretty much helpless positions. Hammering beatdown applied to poor blonde during last part of round – Righetti’s rhythmic, pulsating jab whacks keep choppin’ wood on Kate’s body, her rights starting to pour smoothly right into Upton’s skull! Kate’s resilient, her legs getting their robustness back, but she’s wilting, stumbling, looking a decimated supermodel at bell.
R3: Upton wants to demonstrate she’s relaxed, easy despite Righetti’s last-round push, still searching for Amanda’s skull with poppin’ haymakers, shooting ‘em from the hips in wide, rangy trajectories, but bobbin’ more on her legs, baiting redhead with stop-and-go motions. Righetti answers with nimble head and sharp legwork, creating angles, misdirecting Kate’s aggression, leaning in/over/under Upton’s lashing strokes, clocking more and more shrewd, edged counters on blonde’s mouth/jaw/cheek through her fading guard. Proud blonde getting more or less plucked, picked up but proves a robust jaw – Amanda manages range and timing better, burying stiff hooks in Kate’s jugs, up-tempoing her jabs, boarding up her blonde in rope-side sieges. Upton finally accepts defense, no longer walking forward into Amanda’s faster, cleaner jabs: she’s setting up shop near ropes/turnbuckles, absorbing punishment, overhauling her guard. As a result, Righetti’s rid of Upton’s free-swinging fists, free to work her game plan, backing up a loosened blonde in systematic, trademark fashion. Amanda’s whoppin’ Kate’s jugs/ribs, as blonde makes herself tight/small/hunched, her elbows tucked in, looking miserable in wobbling earmuff position, emitting little wincing sounds when Righetti’s fists go berserk on her proud jugs. Upton’s protecting her head, trusting her legs to ride out the leather…during last minute, Kate’s increasingly stumbling into long, protracted clinches, bringing her mass/weight forward against her toned foe, battering out little moments of rest on ‘Manda’s wide shoulders, ramming in hooks to the body, bringing action further mid-ring. Redhead so hungry she’s impatient, hasting breaks – applies that trademark Righetti beatdown whenever she’s got the wiggle room, combining clean, clockwork jabs with timed, prepared rights. Final seconds…Amanda’s reaching under Upton’s arms big-girl, walking her to ropes in lumberjack fashion, jerking hooks around Kate’s elbows in the grasp to punish her ribs, methodically loosening up Kate’s guard with short, staccato jabs to drive her right past blonde’s arm, whack-rammin’ it cleanly on Upton’s left temple. As Kate’s head snaps back violently, she’s auto-piloting her torso to collapse into a tight, messy clinch, just pushin’ instead of punchin’ – at bell, she’s moaning, hugging her ribs, as Righetti looks her over callously, separating from her foe with a second wide round in a row.
R4: Righetti relentless in her forward drive, hounding Upton with jabs alternating to the tummy, to the guard…to the tummy, to the guard. When Upton’s guard twitches open for a mis-timed left counter, Amanda’s right hook smoothly flows into the break tidying up on Kate’s chin, followed by another sliding hook, two sturdy chops cramping up blonde challenger in pain/surprise. Upton’s stumbling backwards, hitting ropes in a fog…Righetti wades in with a snarl, reaching under Kate’s arms – blonde’s flapping, thrashing under Big Rigs’ weight pressing her into ropes. Amanda pumps ‘em right hands up close into Upton’s gut, shoving ‘em forward in brutal, jolting fashion while securing Kate’s shimmying hips in a tight-bodied clutch. Righetti slowly shifts to her right – steadying Kate with short, straight jabs to rack – leans in from the right, rolling a smooth right hand to Upton’s cheek, thudding on impact. But this time, KATE COUNTERS! Upton takes the shot well, twisting her own right hand forward in an instant response, clobbering Righetti’s head near left ear…slow-motion shows a roaring blast tossing redhead’s skull into a distorted motion. Righetti in shock, hurt: she’s spasming on the spot, doing unsure, prancing little backward steps, her eyes showing confusion. Upton’s goes to work: she bares her teeth, sloshing her girl whoppin’ lefts and rights in motion…stomping ‘em into Amanda’s lats, under her arms…big blonde applying wide, ample wallop as a spooked Righetti hops out, stalked, giving up her position. Second minute stays closely fought – blonde’s marching forward aggressively: doing muggy, pushy work on Righetti’s strong arms/shoulders/rack. Amanda’s laying in ropes for extended moments of spongin’ up leather, stabilizing her front, then starts countering short, explosive hooks again. Upton repeating her earlier mistake: proud blonde not budging from position, bravely walking/leaning forward at the wrong times, getting clipped upside the head by a lurking, straight jab thru the middle. Kate hauls off a wide swinging right hand to counterattack, zippin’ it so close, but narrowly misses Amanda’s lower jaw – Righetti reads the punch, leaning in for a thick jab to solarplexus, and then another thunderous jab and Kate bunches up hurt, stumbling rickety near ropes. Redhead extends that rolling jab, finding her systematic groove – using last minute to lay siege to Upton’s body in little set-piece battles all taking place near ropes, measuring her jabs into fast cadences. Kate’s sullen, but defends herself well – she’s under redhead control, but working behind a trim, proper guard, managing Righetti’s intruding right hand as well as she can. Credit to blonde challenger – she’s withstanding her third, straight round of prime Righetti pressure, looking messed up, but tough, competitive and perhaps just a bit little brazen at bell.
R5: Upton listens to her corner: still energized, but subduing the bravado, she’s luring redhead champ forward, bobbin’, weavin’, testing out a more focused, more precise jab…Righetti adopts strategy, advancing in circles behind her leading jab, but she’s not landing it as clean when Upton’s spiraling out of range, using her height and legs to better effect. Kate gives up ground steadily during first minute, allowing Rigs to lead her into strong rope-side foothold, but attempts to turn that into a position of strength: Upton’s reading Amanda’s measured jabs, bringing bouncy, jerking left hooks at her foe, pounding an aggressive Righetti off her sturdy, solid stance for the first time tonight. Redhead stubborn, staying in Upton’s range despite Kate’s whirling, whizzing off-rope hooks, her jab now vaguely put in check by an alert, wide-eyed Upton, no longer bringing her right hand into good positions. Kate pounces – she’s shrugging off a broad uppercut into her tits, then lunges out into little forward-leaps via rat-a-tat hooks catching Amanda off-guard. Her left-right, left-right combinations keep staggering the redhead, as Kate’s still firmly entrenched, switching ropesides, but not her position there. Righetti confused, not used to not being able to penetrate with her right hand as Kate ducks/dodges, counters with bold, straight left hooks. Her ropeside stance looks dominant for Righetti – she’s on top, her jab’s active, seeking out openings in blonde defense – but Kate’s nifty counters actually have her under firm blonde control. Later in the second minute, redhead reads one of Upton’s feints late, stepping in on her wrong foot for a body hook, catching a smiiiiting short right on her temple in receipt, and Amanda’s all baby-steppin’ in puzzled hurt. Upton turns aggressive now, pushing forward, stalking Amanda to the body, as girls collide in bearhug-like clinches – blonde’s busier in the grasp, making redhead champ take weight, rammin’ rights into her gut, then pushin’, shovin’ her girl away, trailing her with a meaty, left hook to shoulders. Third minute: Upton’s technical setup’s no longer shutting out Righetti’s jab as effectively, as redhead retreats, circling out of range, no longer accepting mock sieges at ropes. Girls slow down – Amanda’s pulsating, whacking jab establishes sober control, now denying Upton her clean off-rope counter positions, slowly whipping the blonde onto her heels in spots. Righetti’s stance firm and staunch: she dictates pace/rhythm behind chop-chop jabs chippin’ away at Upton’s guard, forcing blonde into reverse, as Kate brings back wide, swinging punches, doing only modest damage to redhead flanks/arms/lats. Amanda’s gettin’ into her groove, backing up Upton in big-girl fashion, but it’s not enough to make up for Kate’s shrewd earlier work, as blonde returns to the scorecards.
R6: Righetti’s trying to drive Upton to ropes, suppressing her via powerful jab – Upton staying disciplined, pumping heavy lefts herself, willing to body up on Rigs off-apron, showing heft/power. Kate willing to trade, but on her own terms, letting Amanda go off on thumping one-twos, one-twos, one-twos to the body, then reboots with a driving, rising right hand clocking the champ’s solarplexus into redhead’s forward motion. Righetti encounters more stubborn, stiff-necked resistance from blonde – she’s still hurting Kate to gut/arms/tits, but eating heavy receipts to chin, as Kate wades through, keeps punching to stay in counter range. Second minute, Righetti’s finally bludgeoned Upton to turnbuckle with committed, repressive rights, now curling those strong right hands alternating to gut/chin…gut/chin…gut/chin, as Kate’s cramping up grumpy, not bringing her right hand counters into target. Righetti not laying on a full siege: anticipating heavy receipts, she keeps Kate in range via jabs, bending in for explosive rights, but she’s bobbin’, weavin’, not committing, leaving range and angles for the blonde. Upton’s at ropes, but not laying in ‘em, bobbin’ her hips, not rushing her counters. Then, Kate exploits her leeway, smoothly rolls two thick jabs onto Amanda’s clavicle first, followed by a taut right hook…THAT PICKS UP Righetti from an odd sideway angle, bouncing off the redhead’s jawbone with a brutal snap, putting Amanda wobbly-butt. Third minute: a wide-eyed Upton turns bully and reverses positions, stalking her champ, palmin’, pushin’ her girl into top rope, shovin’ to stabilize, thumpin’ ‘em punches into redhead tummy – guh-guh-guh, Righetti gurgles in pain. Instinctively, Amanda opens up to trade, gambles a strong, yet sloppy right cross spinning onto Kate’s left shoulder with a whack – Upton’s clubbed backwards some inches, her knees bending through awkwardly. Amanda spreads out instantly with her jab, lunging in to confront, pushing forward with straight lefts into Upton’s jugs – suddenly, Kate sloshes her uppercut right to counter, juuuust as Righetti lowers her head, preparing for more wide body hooks into blonde’s flanks and arms…and Amanda steps right into it! Redhead gets wrong-footed on her way in, bashed on teeth when leaning all the way in for her own punch. Reaction’s delayed, as ‘Manda’s torso topples over before spilling aside out of control – Righetti’s friggin’ limp! She crashes down, pitching hard on her butt, her shoulders/back sagging into mid-rope. Amanda looks momentarily paralyzed: she’s a dazed, blinking beauty – then she starts rolling over to her right side with a moan, climbing in swoon, while greedy Kate’s pushed back to her corner, giddy with upset anticipation. But the champ beats the count! Righetti’s back standing, visibly pounded shaky, rickety by Kate’s sudden, swooping power – “She’s finished, ref, she’s finished,” Kate blurts out angrily, “Look at her, I beat her helpless, ref” – as Amanda gestures with her fists in defiance, bobbin’ her legs, shakin’ out her arms. Ref checks her out, letting the show go on: Righetti cowers away from Kate’s scouring jabs, wrapped up in tight earmuff near ropes, trusting her legs to ride out a thudding beatdown at ropes. Upton wades in for last twenty…ten…five seconds, zealous to finish the job – she’s doing damage to the body, hoisting her right hand ready to explode into vicious whacks, but Righetti’s simply refusing to go down, her legs and mid-section withstanding the punishment in striking fashion. Showtime at bell: ref almost has to pull the big blonde away from ropes and foe – when Kate walks to her corner, she’s pumping her right arm into the air, stirring up the crowd, nodding her head in approval.
R7: Thudding back-and-forth battle slowly takes its toll on both fighters – first minute’s all positional warfare, with Upton in firm, but calmed down control, no longer seeking the instant finishing punch against gritty champ. Leading behind a proper, tidy jab, she’s punching out moments of dominance, trapping Righetti for close body hooks, run-in rights that sputter to redhead’s guard. Amanda’s resilient, still looking remarkably stout and sturdy, but without the bounce in her legs: she’s putting together solid defense work in robotic, autopilot-like motions, usually led stiffly to turnbuckles/ropes at some point, settling in to absorb, then forcing sloppy clinches, body to body, one-step-forward, one-step-backwards. Second minute, Upton spreads out with a long, straight, mid-range jab keeping Rigs at bay, throwing in pulsating, uppercut rights to finish – Righetti’s still browbeaten, stalked in circles around the ring, but she grows more limber, responding into tentative, short hooks to Upton’s body, but only as hit-and-run counters when Kate’s on the prowl. When she’s increasingly irked by Amanda’s sullen, strong spanks ripping into her side, Upton shifts her weight forward belligerently – she closes range, upping the tempo again with sharp body hooks to either flank, forcing Righetti into dodging, trying to clean up on redhead’s skull with booming, buzzing right hands and overwhelm the champ with speed and fresh energy. Righetti’s back-in-ropes, looking hapless: her body shuddering under Kate’s twitching power, she protects her guard, giving up mid-section when trapped, allowing Upton to pummel her ribs/gut/arms with gusto. Third minute, Amanda rallies, gets a jab back into the competition – from that stooped-torso, off-rope position, she’s leaning in gutsy to bury short, hard lefts in blonde’s ribcage/tits, annoying the challenger. Slowly, Righetti’s punching out enough space to step out, tilting that body up: blonde loses her fast, chop-chop rhythm, bobbin’ more, starts spinnin’ her upper body/head out of range – she’s still tossing that right hand all-hefty but spilling it fidgety. Redhead starts landing harsh uppercuts in a stronger forward aspect, as action moves mid-ring. Upton’s startled, frowning, wrongly leaning into Righetti’s bogus forward-motions stiffly, trying to prevent momentum change – Amanda’s alert, her pressure subdued, but pinpoint – that way, the redhead catches Kate with clean whacks on mouth…jaw…collarbone, evading Upton’s swirling return counters. Amanda stalks Kate clockwise, creating angles, more range, shutting out Upton from inside with those hard-handed jabs, as blonde challenger has trouble closing the distance, her own jabs coming up short. Righetti builds up tightening pressure until the bell, but she’s no longer penetrating once Kate retreats into a tall, outside range behind closed guard, just chippin’ back wide, snappy lefts with that loooong arm to manage the distance – Amanda starts mounting a comeback, but totaled up, it’s still the blonde’s close round.
R8: Upton stays in that tall, rangy position that started working well for her last round, as girls check each other out, scouting, tiptoeing around on edge – Kate’s nimbly bobs/weaves in her chosen distance, then drives forward lanky, straight jabs through the middle to irritate redhead foe, using height to dictate range, pounce from her wide, tall position, her punches rushing hard to Amanda’s guard. Righetti proves stubborn: she tracks Upton with swift legs, brisk fists, hounding her with grim strokes to either flank in steady rhythm, embracing the blonde’s leg-game. Redhead plays the riskier tactic: as Upton stays out of range, twirling busy long-jabs from outside position, Amanda commits into jerking forward attacks – lunging in for heavy raids on Kate’s tits and tummy with either hand – then bounces out again fast past blonde’s short, whizzing counters. Second minute, Upton’s solidifying her rangy defense work, starts reading Righetti’s feints, catching her more plainly on the way in – she detonates a massive clout upside Righetti’s chest that bunches up the champ hurt on the spot, spooking Amanda to circle off. Later, Upton’s more aggressive, rotating inside behind wide, sturdy hooks – Amanda adopts a thick-legged stance and girls start trading hooks from the hips. Mid-ring, Righetti suddenly lays back sleepy, punched violently onto her heels by a plump haymaker thumping on her temple – Upton bares her teeth, starts to extend forward pressure with two, three short jabs to tits, preparing to flow into a sweeping follow-up right, lowering her head just as a dizzy looking Amanda abruptly yanks up an intuitive brutal left uppercut to chin, folding the blonde herself into a trembling body hug, her eyes shutting in pain. Righetti squeezes…squeezes…pushes her weight forward, burying two clunky right hands under Kate’s lats/arms – Upton looks sluggish and inert, her face twisted in pain, so Amanda consolidates from there behind a strong, rolling, tik-tok jab to face/guard, pulls up rhythmic right uppercuts for clean-up. Upton’s in Amanda’s range now, tripping backwards uneasily, her left arm outstretched, not punching back – Righetti takes over, driiiiving Kate’s butt into ropes with a punching jolt. Upton gets punched all hazy and foggy – by the bell, her wide, proud body’s lolling in the ropes, slumping under Amanda’s hard fists churning meat, as Righetti storms back into the lead after eight.
R9: Girls tiring, languid after bitter eight-round clash for the title: action slows down as girls stalk each other in circles, heading into the last two decisive rounds. Righetti’s first to open up, ripping a curved jab to Kate’s face/guard in pulsating fashion, marching her blonde challenger to corner in hard-hitting fashion. Upton duly retreats: working from a bendy, hunched rope position, she’s soaking up hard leather to the body, while picking out her resistance in spots, trying to mess up Righetti’s brawny rhythm with offbeat, dangerous right-hand counters, jolting body hooks to ribs/tummy. Kate’s spunk pays off: as in other circumstances tonight, she’s clearly on the defensive, absorbing end but spoils Righetti’s powerful position with irksome, precise counter work, keeping Big Rigs warier, prudent – Upton’s counters punch out just the right amount of an arm’s-length-range to build some wiggle-room where she can operate and manage Amanda’s aggression. Righetti’s stubborn, stiff-necked, but clearly frustrated at the lack of prolific penetration – blonde’s brazen resistance/stamina prevents her from laying on the kind of punching spree intended to finally put Kate on her back for good. During second minute, this gruesome, body work grinds to a standstill – girls punch/wrestle on the spot in confined-space battlefields all over the ring, both thrown off a steadier, proper rhythm. Kate and Amanda on the inside – heads resting on shoulders, right hands all busy, brutal below, ramming punches to waist/ribs/arms, as bodies keep jerking up and down, shuddering in hard attrition battle. No clear pattern emerges – Upton closes range whenever Righetti’s jabs spin forward for more order/control, forcing redhead into clinches, actually trying to wear the champ out in messy, inside slugging. Third minute, Amanda adjusts to Kate’s tack better, appears to emerge stronger from brute-force tussles via her ripping body hooks – finally she’s got Upton shoved into the ropes, rolling her fists into shattering combinations, landing a smooth, straight right-hand punch on Kate’s temple. Laying deep, the blonde rides out those moments, absorbing, rallying, usually snapping back an overhead right, press a clinch, immediately retaliating towards Righetti’s ribs/gut again with short left body hooks jerked inside. Late, Upton sneaks in a diagonal right over Amanda’s outstretched, pumped right arm that jolts back the champ’s torso some inches, stepping all wobbly-butt in her forward motion. Kate sidesteps a jumbled Righetti, working with short-hooks from her right side into Amanda’s flank/ribs, then hoists a thumping left uppercut from the hips, tapping the redhead’s right cheek askew just as Righetti spins her head off to the side. Final seconds, Upton’s got Righetti reeling, roped in at turnbuckle, peppering redhead guard with short, staccato jabs to bring in her right – then Kate gets caught by one of Amanda’s slapping straight-arm counters sloshed through the middle, baby-steppin’ in hurt herself, stung powerfully on her lower jaw. That way at bell, girls are hooked in another tight, messy clinch, hair sweaty, bodies shuddering, brawling for every inch – in the end, the ninth round’s too close to call, clearly a thudding, crowd-pleasing draw.
R10: Upton under pressure, narrowly down on the cards, compelled to win the last round: from the bell, she’s pushing forward eagerly, zealous, keeping her hands busy – she’s palming up on Amanda’s shoulders aggressively, pushin’ her weight, sluggin’ punches, feeding her redhead straight, rhythmic clouts with her greedy left to body, then shoving her right hand up to Righetti’s guard/skull, vehemently trying to cut off the ring, drive the champ into weak rope-side positions to back her up big-girl. Righetti responds with clever, experienced defensive work: not rushing into confrontations, she’s angling her jabs for precise counters, side-stepping a pushy Kate with limber legwork, stayin’ active, punchin’ back strongly to Upton’s tummy/tits when in range. During first minute, Upton’s relentlessly busy, hauling out her reserves, marching forward in circles, pumping a jab, whiplashing hooks left…right…left…right…but she’s not getting Righetti trapped or caged – Amanda’s got a sturdy jab measuring Kate’s attacks, picking up a startled blonde on her way in a few times, leaning in at precise moments, slowly dousing Upton’s fire with robust combinations to jaw/collarbone/tits…by the time the second minute starts, it’s Righetti’s who’s punched out a brawny stance on top of the blonde, those strong hooks smoothly rolling onto Upton like a friggin’ jackhammer, snapping back the blonde’s head in frightening little jerks. Upton starts to look tired, maxed out after early whirlwind tempo: she’s hovering in ropes mopy, hurt, gets repeatedly punched onto her heels, unable to work back adequate counters, just trying to bob forward in spots, tie up on Amanda bulkily. Second minute, Righetti’s firmly on top, with Kate hovering in various rope-side places – Righetti’s hands at nose-height as default position, body weavin’, feintin’ steps, not stayin’ inside but in hooking range as blonde can’t mount break-out attempts, so she’s firmly stabilizing Kate with little shoves, palmin’ up on her girl, hitting straight lefts to chest/solarplexus, thick rights flapping against guard, all as Upton only opens up for wide, low hooks into Amanda’s side during safe moments, cooped up, suppressed by Righetti’s systematic whacks. Third minute: Righetti ain’t dropping her output, obviously intent on keeping Kate under control or end her night before the bell, staying close without reducing the rate or power of those driving lefts – blonde’s increasingly stooping forward, tying up in desperation, yet unable to impede Amanda’s forward push. Later…Righetti clocks her challenger a hammering uppercut upside her left ear, steps-to close with wide eyes, steely determination, as blonde wilts into the top rope, then snapping forward into a clinging hold, cramping up under the impact…Amanda shoves Kate back to prop her up straight, looking to rip right hands onto Upton’s ominous, trembling guard. Down the stretch…twenty seconds to go…girls still locked in at similar positions by ropes, just near a turnbuckle…Amanda’s crowding, her jab grabbing at Kate’s guard belligerently…Kate suddenly swipes a short, rising left across redhead’s looming torso, narrowly zipping it past but still slightly touching Amanda’s lower left jaw…taken aback a bit, Righetti shifts weight to right leg, bending her head just slightly off to the side, pumpin’ back two, three straight jabs to tits for determent with her head turned off…Upton suddenly moves her torso a step forward out of the ropes…instinctively hoists a huge, haymaker right hand upwards…leaning in, she’s pushing her arm over Amanda’s jabbing one…and the wide, swinging punch detonates with a THUD on Righetti’s unprepared left cheekbone, right between her ear and nose…slow-mo replay will show Amanda’s head snapping back, her eyes shutting close in distortion…the champ’s legs/knees lock up in instant paralysis, her whole torso just flipping back uncontrollably…Righetti’s body collapses backwards as if hauled to the ground by a leash…she’s thudding down hard on the floor, landing on her back, legs sticking out over the ring margin a bit…her arms flop over her head in an instant…her head lolls just slightly to the side, eyes closed, lips mumbling…a baffled Kate gets pushed back hard by ref…he starts counting…Amanda’s still static…ref reaches three, four…Righetti’s got her eyes opened, flickering, clearly confused, trying to heave her chest up… Upton just stands there in her corner, breathing hard, recovering…she stares at Righetti and her shoulders twitching on the ground at six…eight, the champ rolls over to her right side…nine, she’s propping up on her right forearm, trembling, just not getting her body raised up…and the ref counts to TEN – it’s a dramatic what-the-fu’k-just-happened finisher that’s just ended the title bout, Righetti’s night and her title reign… a friggin’ last-minute KO10 for the NEW welterweight champion of the world, Kate Upton!
After: Once the ref’s finished his count, pure mayhem seems ready to break out for an instant as Upton – moving out of her corner with long steps – tries to pull up a still-bowed-down Amanda by her hair, clutching into her neck with a tight grip…immediately, officials and Bonzo gym members intervene – even Katrina Law’s jumping in – pushing, shoving Kate off their girl forcefully, preventing the worst for dethroned champ. Meanwhile, Righetti’s crawled to sit on her haunches, her shoulders slumping back into mid-rope, head slackened, looking puzzled…perplexed…punched out in stunning fashion, gets tended-to by her team. Welterweight title bout an unexpected back-and-forth battle going the distance: top model Upton withstands Righetti’s brawny early dominance against the odds, storming back to flirt with a knockout in the sixth, until Amanda hits back, well on her way to grind out a close decision in the tenth, until she gets caught a shocking haymaker with only seconds left to go, making the redhead suffer her first proper knockout loss since 2012. Upton – badly depleted by the ten-round battle, but full of bubbly energy all the same – storms to her first regular, non-JMD title, leapfrogging the division’s other elite names along the way. So what’s next for her? – “Soon, I’ll dominate the JMD division again, sure, but I have no problem dominating the regular one, too. The way I see it, this is like the beginning of a model takeover of the division. We’re younger, hotter, more exciting – who knows, welter’s true problem might be that there are just too many TV actresses around here”, she smirks, “It’s time to bring back the glamour!”
AMANDA RIGHETTI (33 y/o, 5 ft 8, W: 66, L: 23) VS KATE UPTON (24 y/o, 5 ft 10, W: 26, L: 10)
(Words: Bonzo / Results: Lookout!)
Before: In her fifth title defense, Amanda Righetti will meet JMD phenomenon Kate Upton: blonde Upton, one of the sport’s most popular figures, has long been looking to branch back out of her JMD playground. There, she’s been enormously successful, amassing a 13-fight winning streak over the course of a year, giving up only three bouts in as many years, until she lost to McKinney in May. In the past, Upton’s already faced top competition from the welter division, including wins over Landry, Bloodgood, Patton, Atkinson and Govich, so while the quality of her JMD competition has sometimes been looked at critically, she’s no stranger to non-JMD top fights at the weight class. Her only regular title fight has been against Righetti, too, in late 2013, ending in a TKO loss to the redhead champ. Upton’s shed weight across the last couple of years, and she’s been on a rigorous workout plan for this fight, too – she’s coming in hardened, her statuesque, curvy body toned into powerful shape without giving up that trademark bigness. “Amanda would be bad-advised to think that my JMD experience hasn’t made me a much more dangerous fighter than last time out. My right hand’s better than ever, but it’s my stamina’s that’s really changed. I’m not counting on a lucky punch at all, I can go all the way and really hurt Amanda to the body. I’m young and hungry, and she’s, like, entering her last stretch, folks!” – Righetti, as firmly dominant as she’s ever been in the welterweight division, has been jubilant since her win over ultra-rival Bridget Regan in July, her ninth straight win. Pre-fight, Righetti looks unfazed, displaying calmness and curiosity at the media frenzy involving Upton at the weigh-in and press conference – “Kate’s a blockbuster, I know. Sure, that’s a great thing for the division. Me, I’m quite curious to see how, competitively, she’s changed since we last fought. Because, JMD or not, we don’t know whether she really has the technical skills, the stamina and the patience she needs to compete against me. I still kinda have my doubts about that.”
R1: Girls trade hooks early, both opting to stay in mid-distance, throwing wide-range jabs at each other’s defensive guards, stomping clockwise. Righetti nimble, her right foot planted firmly when she’s driving body hooks forward, taking skipping little steps backwards when Upton flashes a bulky left, managing her range. Upton’s upbeat, slowly assuming a more aggressive part, bringing her weight forward throughout first round. Amanda’s left stays passive, clutched into guard, her legwork trying to sidestep Upton’s roaring, rangy jabs. Righetti clearly shying away from blonde’s power, leggy as she’s still looking for ways to adjust to Kate’s height advantage, that wide, lanky body, trying to read her angles/rhythm. Later, Upton’s advances turn stiff, brawny: her left keeps Amanda’s guard busy, opening up for her right fist to pluck redhead’s ribs in brash, hungry style. Upton’s technique rough-and-gruff at this point – she’s got no problem flubbing some of her wide haymakers off mark when overall her pushy, aggressive work to Amanda’s ribs/arms/boobs bulls the redhead champ backward in impressive fashion. Most of the time, Righetti’s defense remains safe, especially up top, but she’s allowing Kate to drive herself into dense positions: the blonde traps her at turnbuckle at one point for some greedy right hands tapping into her chest, then claws a stunning, short-jab counter over Righetti’s straight-right onto Amanda’s lower right chin when the champ hunches low to break out over her right side. Last minute, Upton’s teasing Righetti with brusque, swinging haymakers pulled from the waist, her left clutched at chin – redhead not committing into counters, her body jerking into hasty pull-outs, drawing away from Kate’s pumping aggression. Upton impresses in the first round, stirring up the crowd with her raised right arm when she marches to her corner at bell – Righetti’s expression: poker face.
R2: Upton starts working behind fidgety right hands, dumping ‘em into Amanda’s shoulders/ribs, spanking meat, forcing Rigs into pivot-steps to the side – Righetti sets up in absorbing position, elbows tucked in, fully acknowledging blonde brawn, working just slightly off-ropes to counter thru the middle with short, jerking hooks pounding for Kate’s jaw. Upton’s active with her hands-on jab, but only serving it to close the range, allow her to wade in quickly, always loading up on rocketing right hands whizzing for her skull, soaking into Righetti’s mid-section – redhead’s slowly swept fully into ropes by Kate’s free-swinging left-right barrage during first minute, then cleanly DOUSES Upton’s fire with a bouncing left hook whipping Kate’s unprotected jaw to counter. Righetti uses her legs, rotating away from Kate’s hurried haymakers hunting her, jabbing back strongly for position, palming/jostling blonde shoulders – mid-ring, ‘Manda abruptly takes charge, timing another clobbering right on the spot, leaning in to mop past Kate’s own arm, detonating a thudding right on Upton’s mouth, puttin’ her blonde wobbly-butt on the spot. Although Upton’s been countered twice, she’s still bravely veering forward, looking to spank Righetti’s flanks with wide, lashing punches from outside range – Righetti’s having none of it, POUNDING into Upton’s rack with a long, hard, straight jab in response, driiiiving Upton into more backpedalling, jigging steps, making the blonde feel the power. Suddenly, Amanda lunges out ahead, feints a straight jab, but then leans into a wild, unexpected right uppercut bashing onto the left side of Kate’s mouth while ducking past Kate’s askew right hand sloshed from the waist up – whoosh, UPTON’S DOWN! Blonde’s head flopping back from impact, her body spasming into ropes: in an instant, she starts slumping, loosening, tumbles down near ropes, flopping hard on her butt. Upton’s hastily grabbing for the ropes behind her, hectically scrambling to rise – she’s punched wobbly, her legs fragile, but she appears busy, alert, back up in time…Righetti immediately squares up on her risen foe, shifting into processing mode, thumping jabs for Kate’s arms/ribs, bullying blonde backwards. Kate’s a disheveled beauty, looking cranky – she’ll still burst into some swooshing right haymakers, drive forward left hooks from rope-side siege, but Righetti’s jab contains her in defensive, pretty much helpless positions. Hammering beatdown applied to poor blonde during last part of round – Righetti’s rhythmic, pulsating jab whacks keep choppin’ wood on Kate’s body, her rights starting to pour smoothly right into Upton’s skull! Kate’s resilient, her legs getting their robustness back, but she’s wilting, stumbling, looking a decimated supermodel at bell.
R3: Upton wants to demonstrate she’s relaxed, easy despite Righetti’s last-round push, still searching for Amanda’s skull with poppin’ haymakers, shooting ‘em from the hips in wide, rangy trajectories, but bobbin’ more on her legs, baiting redhead with stop-and-go motions. Righetti answers with nimble head and sharp legwork, creating angles, misdirecting Kate’s aggression, leaning in/over/under Upton’s lashing strokes, clocking more and more shrewd, edged counters on blonde’s mouth/jaw/cheek through her fading guard. Proud blonde getting more or less plucked, picked up but proves a robust jaw – Amanda manages range and timing better, burying stiff hooks in Kate’s jugs, up-tempoing her jabs, boarding up her blonde in rope-side sieges. Upton finally accepts defense, no longer walking forward into Amanda’s faster, cleaner jabs: she’s setting up shop near ropes/turnbuckles, absorbing punishment, overhauling her guard. As a result, Righetti’s rid of Upton’s free-swinging fists, free to work her game plan, backing up a loosened blonde in systematic, trademark fashion. Amanda’s whoppin’ Kate’s jugs/ribs, as blonde makes herself tight/small/hunched, her elbows tucked in, looking miserable in wobbling earmuff position, emitting little wincing sounds when Righetti’s fists go berserk on her proud jugs. Upton’s protecting her head, trusting her legs to ride out the leather…during last minute, Kate’s increasingly stumbling into long, protracted clinches, bringing her mass/weight forward against her toned foe, battering out little moments of rest on ‘Manda’s wide shoulders, ramming in hooks to the body, bringing action further mid-ring. Redhead so hungry she’s impatient, hasting breaks – applies that trademark Righetti beatdown whenever she’s got the wiggle room, combining clean, clockwork jabs with timed, prepared rights. Final seconds…Amanda’s reaching under Upton’s arms big-girl, walking her to ropes in lumberjack fashion, jerking hooks around Kate’s elbows in the grasp to punish her ribs, methodically loosening up Kate’s guard with short, staccato jabs to drive her right past blonde’s arm, whack-rammin’ it cleanly on Upton’s left temple. As Kate’s head snaps back violently, she’s auto-piloting her torso to collapse into a tight, messy clinch, just pushin’ instead of punchin’ – at bell, she’s moaning, hugging her ribs, as Righetti looks her over callously, separating from her foe with a second wide round in a row.
R4: Righetti relentless in her forward drive, hounding Upton with jabs alternating to the tummy, to the guard…to the tummy, to the guard. When Upton’s guard twitches open for a mis-timed left counter, Amanda’s right hook smoothly flows into the break tidying up on Kate’s chin, followed by another sliding hook, two sturdy chops cramping up blonde challenger in pain/surprise. Upton’s stumbling backwards, hitting ropes in a fog…Righetti wades in with a snarl, reaching under Kate’s arms – blonde’s flapping, thrashing under Big Rigs’ weight pressing her into ropes. Amanda pumps ‘em right hands up close into Upton’s gut, shoving ‘em forward in brutal, jolting fashion while securing Kate’s shimmying hips in a tight-bodied clutch. Righetti slowly shifts to her right – steadying Kate with short, straight jabs to rack – leans in from the right, rolling a smooth right hand to Upton’s cheek, thudding on impact. But this time, KATE COUNTERS! Upton takes the shot well, twisting her own right hand forward in an instant response, clobbering Righetti’s head near left ear…slow-motion shows a roaring blast tossing redhead’s skull into a distorted motion. Righetti in shock, hurt: she’s spasming on the spot, doing unsure, prancing little backward steps, her eyes showing confusion. Upton’s goes to work: she bares her teeth, sloshing her girl whoppin’ lefts and rights in motion…stomping ‘em into Amanda’s lats, under her arms…big blonde applying wide, ample wallop as a spooked Righetti hops out, stalked, giving up her position. Second minute stays closely fought – blonde’s marching forward aggressively: doing muggy, pushy work on Righetti’s strong arms/shoulders/rack. Amanda’s laying in ropes for extended moments of spongin’ up leather, stabilizing her front, then starts countering short, explosive hooks again. Upton repeating her earlier mistake: proud blonde not budging from position, bravely walking/leaning forward at the wrong times, getting clipped upside the head by a lurking, straight jab thru the middle. Kate hauls off a wide swinging right hand to counterattack, zippin’ it so close, but narrowly misses Amanda’s lower jaw – Righetti reads the punch, leaning in for a thick jab to solarplexus, and then another thunderous jab and Kate bunches up hurt, stumbling rickety near ropes. Redhead extends that rolling jab, finding her systematic groove – using last minute to lay siege to Upton’s body in little set-piece battles all taking place near ropes, measuring her jabs into fast cadences. Kate’s sullen, but defends herself well – she’s under redhead control, but working behind a trim, proper guard, managing Righetti’s intruding right hand as well as she can. Credit to blonde challenger – she’s withstanding her third, straight round of prime Righetti pressure, looking messed up, but tough, competitive and perhaps just a bit little brazen at bell.
R5: Upton listens to her corner: still energized, but subduing the bravado, she’s luring redhead champ forward, bobbin’, weavin’, testing out a more focused, more precise jab…Righetti adopts strategy, advancing in circles behind her leading jab, but she’s not landing it as clean when Upton’s spiraling out of range, using her height and legs to better effect. Kate gives up ground steadily during first minute, allowing Rigs to lead her into strong rope-side foothold, but attempts to turn that into a position of strength: Upton’s reading Amanda’s measured jabs, bringing bouncy, jerking left hooks at her foe, pounding an aggressive Righetti off her sturdy, solid stance for the first time tonight. Redhead stubborn, staying in Upton’s range despite Kate’s whirling, whizzing off-rope hooks, her jab now vaguely put in check by an alert, wide-eyed Upton, no longer bringing her right hand into good positions. Kate pounces – she’s shrugging off a broad uppercut into her tits, then lunges out into little forward-leaps via rat-a-tat hooks catching Amanda off-guard. Her left-right, left-right combinations keep staggering the redhead, as Kate’s still firmly entrenched, switching ropesides, but not her position there. Righetti confused, not used to not being able to penetrate with her right hand as Kate ducks/dodges, counters with bold, straight left hooks. Her ropeside stance looks dominant for Righetti – she’s on top, her jab’s active, seeking out openings in blonde defense – but Kate’s nifty counters actually have her under firm blonde control. Later in the second minute, redhead reads one of Upton’s feints late, stepping in on her wrong foot for a body hook, catching a smiiiiting short right on her temple in receipt, and Amanda’s all baby-steppin’ in puzzled hurt. Upton turns aggressive now, pushing forward, stalking Amanda to the body, as girls collide in bearhug-like clinches – blonde’s busier in the grasp, making redhead champ take weight, rammin’ rights into her gut, then pushin’, shovin’ her girl away, trailing her with a meaty, left hook to shoulders. Third minute: Upton’s technical setup’s no longer shutting out Righetti’s jab as effectively, as redhead retreats, circling out of range, no longer accepting mock sieges at ropes. Girls slow down – Amanda’s pulsating, whacking jab establishes sober control, now denying Upton her clean off-rope counter positions, slowly whipping the blonde onto her heels in spots. Righetti’s stance firm and staunch: she dictates pace/rhythm behind chop-chop jabs chippin’ away at Upton’s guard, forcing blonde into reverse, as Kate brings back wide, swinging punches, doing only modest damage to redhead flanks/arms/lats. Amanda’s gettin’ into her groove, backing up Upton in big-girl fashion, but it’s not enough to make up for Kate’s shrewd earlier work, as blonde returns to the scorecards.
R6: Righetti’s trying to drive Upton to ropes, suppressing her via powerful jab – Upton staying disciplined, pumping heavy lefts herself, willing to body up on Rigs off-apron, showing heft/power. Kate willing to trade, but on her own terms, letting Amanda go off on thumping one-twos, one-twos, one-twos to the body, then reboots with a driving, rising right hand clocking the champ’s solarplexus into redhead’s forward motion. Righetti encounters more stubborn, stiff-necked resistance from blonde – she’s still hurting Kate to gut/arms/tits, but eating heavy receipts to chin, as Kate wades through, keeps punching to stay in counter range. Second minute, Righetti’s finally bludgeoned Upton to turnbuckle with committed, repressive rights, now curling those strong right hands alternating to gut/chin…gut/chin…gut/chin, as Kate’s cramping up grumpy, not bringing her right hand counters into target. Righetti not laying on a full siege: anticipating heavy receipts, she keeps Kate in range via jabs, bending in for explosive rights, but she’s bobbin’, weavin’, not committing, leaving range and angles for the blonde. Upton’s at ropes, but not laying in ‘em, bobbin’ her hips, not rushing her counters. Then, Kate exploits her leeway, smoothly rolls two thick jabs onto Amanda’s clavicle first, followed by a taut right hook…THAT PICKS UP Righetti from an odd sideway angle, bouncing off the redhead’s jawbone with a brutal snap, putting Amanda wobbly-butt. Third minute: a wide-eyed Upton turns bully and reverses positions, stalking her champ, palmin’, pushin’ her girl into top rope, shovin’ to stabilize, thumpin’ ‘em punches into redhead tummy – guh-guh-guh, Righetti gurgles in pain. Instinctively, Amanda opens up to trade, gambles a strong, yet sloppy right cross spinning onto Kate’s left shoulder with a whack – Upton’s clubbed backwards some inches, her knees bending through awkwardly. Amanda spreads out instantly with her jab, lunging in to confront, pushing forward with straight lefts into Upton’s jugs – suddenly, Kate sloshes her uppercut right to counter, juuuust as Righetti lowers her head, preparing for more wide body hooks into blonde’s flanks and arms…and Amanda steps right into it! Redhead gets wrong-footed on her way in, bashed on teeth when leaning all the way in for her own punch. Reaction’s delayed, as ‘Manda’s torso topples over before spilling aside out of control – Righetti’s friggin’ limp! She crashes down, pitching hard on her butt, her shoulders/back sagging into mid-rope. Amanda looks momentarily paralyzed: she’s a dazed, blinking beauty – then she starts rolling over to her right side with a moan, climbing in swoon, while greedy Kate’s pushed back to her corner, giddy with upset anticipation. But the champ beats the count! Righetti’s back standing, visibly pounded shaky, rickety by Kate’s sudden, swooping power – “She’s finished, ref, she’s finished,” Kate blurts out angrily, “Look at her, I beat her helpless, ref” – as Amanda gestures with her fists in defiance, bobbin’ her legs, shakin’ out her arms. Ref checks her out, letting the show go on: Righetti cowers away from Kate’s scouring jabs, wrapped up in tight earmuff near ropes, trusting her legs to ride out a thudding beatdown at ropes. Upton wades in for last twenty…ten…five seconds, zealous to finish the job – she’s doing damage to the body, hoisting her right hand ready to explode into vicious whacks, but Righetti’s simply refusing to go down, her legs and mid-section withstanding the punishment in striking fashion. Showtime at bell: ref almost has to pull the big blonde away from ropes and foe – when Kate walks to her corner, she’s pumping her right arm into the air, stirring up the crowd, nodding her head in approval.
R7: Thudding back-and-forth battle slowly takes its toll on both fighters – first minute’s all positional warfare, with Upton in firm, but calmed down control, no longer seeking the instant finishing punch against gritty champ. Leading behind a proper, tidy jab, she’s punching out moments of dominance, trapping Righetti for close body hooks, run-in rights that sputter to redhead’s guard. Amanda’s resilient, still looking remarkably stout and sturdy, but without the bounce in her legs: she’s putting together solid defense work in robotic, autopilot-like motions, usually led stiffly to turnbuckles/ropes at some point, settling in to absorb, then forcing sloppy clinches, body to body, one-step-forward, one-step-backwards. Second minute, Upton spreads out with a long, straight, mid-range jab keeping Rigs at bay, throwing in pulsating, uppercut rights to finish – Righetti’s still browbeaten, stalked in circles around the ring, but she grows more limber, responding into tentative, short hooks to Upton’s body, but only as hit-and-run counters when Kate’s on the prowl. When she’s increasingly irked by Amanda’s sullen, strong spanks ripping into her side, Upton shifts her weight forward belligerently – she closes range, upping the tempo again with sharp body hooks to either flank, forcing Righetti into dodging, trying to clean up on redhead’s skull with booming, buzzing right hands and overwhelm the champ with speed and fresh energy. Righetti’s back-in-ropes, looking hapless: her body shuddering under Kate’s twitching power, she protects her guard, giving up mid-section when trapped, allowing Upton to pummel her ribs/gut/arms with gusto. Third minute, Amanda rallies, gets a jab back into the competition – from that stooped-torso, off-rope position, she’s leaning in gutsy to bury short, hard lefts in blonde’s ribcage/tits, annoying the challenger. Slowly, Righetti’s punching out enough space to step out, tilting that body up: blonde loses her fast, chop-chop rhythm, bobbin’ more, starts spinnin’ her upper body/head out of range – she’s still tossing that right hand all-hefty but spilling it fidgety. Redhead starts landing harsh uppercuts in a stronger forward aspect, as action moves mid-ring. Upton’s startled, frowning, wrongly leaning into Righetti’s bogus forward-motions stiffly, trying to prevent momentum change – Amanda’s alert, her pressure subdued, but pinpoint – that way, the redhead catches Kate with clean whacks on mouth…jaw…collarbone, evading Upton’s swirling return counters. Amanda stalks Kate clockwise, creating angles, more range, shutting out Upton from inside with those hard-handed jabs, as blonde challenger has trouble closing the distance, her own jabs coming up short. Righetti builds up tightening pressure until the bell, but she’s no longer penetrating once Kate retreats into a tall, outside range behind closed guard, just chippin’ back wide, snappy lefts with that loooong arm to manage the distance – Amanda starts mounting a comeback, but totaled up, it’s still the blonde’s close round.
R8: Upton stays in that tall, rangy position that started working well for her last round, as girls check each other out, scouting, tiptoeing around on edge – Kate’s nimbly bobs/weaves in her chosen distance, then drives forward lanky, straight jabs through the middle to irritate redhead foe, using height to dictate range, pounce from her wide, tall position, her punches rushing hard to Amanda’s guard. Righetti proves stubborn: she tracks Upton with swift legs, brisk fists, hounding her with grim strokes to either flank in steady rhythm, embracing the blonde’s leg-game. Redhead plays the riskier tactic: as Upton stays out of range, twirling busy long-jabs from outside position, Amanda commits into jerking forward attacks – lunging in for heavy raids on Kate’s tits and tummy with either hand – then bounces out again fast past blonde’s short, whizzing counters. Second minute, Upton’s solidifying her rangy defense work, starts reading Righetti’s feints, catching her more plainly on the way in – she detonates a massive clout upside Righetti’s chest that bunches up the champ hurt on the spot, spooking Amanda to circle off. Later, Upton’s more aggressive, rotating inside behind wide, sturdy hooks – Amanda adopts a thick-legged stance and girls start trading hooks from the hips. Mid-ring, Righetti suddenly lays back sleepy, punched violently onto her heels by a plump haymaker thumping on her temple – Upton bares her teeth, starts to extend forward pressure with two, three short jabs to tits, preparing to flow into a sweeping follow-up right, lowering her head just as a dizzy looking Amanda abruptly yanks up an intuitive brutal left uppercut to chin, folding the blonde herself into a trembling body hug, her eyes shutting in pain. Righetti squeezes…squeezes…pushes her weight forward, burying two clunky right hands under Kate’s lats/arms – Upton looks sluggish and inert, her face twisted in pain, so Amanda consolidates from there behind a strong, rolling, tik-tok jab to face/guard, pulls up rhythmic right uppercuts for clean-up. Upton’s in Amanda’s range now, tripping backwards uneasily, her left arm outstretched, not punching back – Righetti takes over, driiiiving Kate’s butt into ropes with a punching jolt. Upton gets punched all hazy and foggy – by the bell, her wide, proud body’s lolling in the ropes, slumping under Amanda’s hard fists churning meat, as Righetti storms back into the lead after eight.
R9: Girls tiring, languid after bitter eight-round clash for the title: action slows down as girls stalk each other in circles, heading into the last two decisive rounds. Righetti’s first to open up, ripping a curved jab to Kate’s face/guard in pulsating fashion, marching her blonde challenger to corner in hard-hitting fashion. Upton duly retreats: working from a bendy, hunched rope position, she’s soaking up hard leather to the body, while picking out her resistance in spots, trying to mess up Righetti’s brawny rhythm with offbeat, dangerous right-hand counters, jolting body hooks to ribs/tummy. Kate’s spunk pays off: as in other circumstances tonight, she’s clearly on the defensive, absorbing end but spoils Righetti’s powerful position with irksome, precise counter work, keeping Big Rigs warier, prudent – Upton’s counters punch out just the right amount of an arm’s-length-range to build some wiggle-room where she can operate and manage Amanda’s aggression. Righetti’s stubborn, stiff-necked, but clearly frustrated at the lack of prolific penetration – blonde’s brazen resistance/stamina prevents her from laying on the kind of punching spree intended to finally put Kate on her back for good. During second minute, this gruesome, body work grinds to a standstill – girls punch/wrestle on the spot in confined-space battlefields all over the ring, both thrown off a steadier, proper rhythm. Kate and Amanda on the inside – heads resting on shoulders, right hands all busy, brutal below, ramming punches to waist/ribs/arms, as bodies keep jerking up and down, shuddering in hard attrition battle. No clear pattern emerges – Upton closes range whenever Righetti’s jabs spin forward for more order/control, forcing redhead into clinches, actually trying to wear the champ out in messy, inside slugging. Third minute, Amanda adjusts to Kate’s tack better, appears to emerge stronger from brute-force tussles via her ripping body hooks – finally she’s got Upton shoved into the ropes, rolling her fists into shattering combinations, landing a smooth, straight right-hand punch on Kate’s temple. Laying deep, the blonde rides out those moments, absorbing, rallying, usually snapping back an overhead right, press a clinch, immediately retaliating towards Righetti’s ribs/gut again with short left body hooks jerked inside. Late, Upton sneaks in a diagonal right over Amanda’s outstretched, pumped right arm that jolts back the champ’s torso some inches, stepping all wobbly-butt in her forward motion. Kate sidesteps a jumbled Righetti, working with short-hooks from her right side into Amanda’s flank/ribs, then hoists a thumping left uppercut from the hips, tapping the redhead’s right cheek askew just as Righetti spins her head off to the side. Final seconds, Upton’s got Righetti reeling, roped in at turnbuckle, peppering redhead guard with short, staccato jabs to bring in her right – then Kate gets caught by one of Amanda’s slapping straight-arm counters sloshed through the middle, baby-steppin’ in hurt herself, stung powerfully on her lower jaw. That way at bell, girls are hooked in another tight, messy clinch, hair sweaty, bodies shuddering, brawling for every inch – in the end, the ninth round’s too close to call, clearly a thudding, crowd-pleasing draw.
R10: Upton under pressure, narrowly down on the cards, compelled to win the last round: from the bell, she’s pushing forward eagerly, zealous, keeping her hands busy – she’s palming up on Amanda’s shoulders aggressively, pushin’ her weight, sluggin’ punches, feeding her redhead straight, rhythmic clouts with her greedy left to body, then shoving her right hand up to Righetti’s guard/skull, vehemently trying to cut off the ring, drive the champ into weak rope-side positions to back her up big-girl. Righetti responds with clever, experienced defensive work: not rushing into confrontations, she’s angling her jabs for precise counters, side-stepping a pushy Kate with limber legwork, stayin’ active, punchin’ back strongly to Upton’s tummy/tits when in range. During first minute, Upton’s relentlessly busy, hauling out her reserves, marching forward in circles, pumping a jab, whiplashing hooks left…right…left…right…but she’s not getting Righetti trapped or caged – Amanda’s got a sturdy jab measuring Kate’s attacks, picking up a startled blonde on her way in a few times, leaning in at precise moments, slowly dousing Upton’s fire with robust combinations to jaw/collarbone/tits…by the time the second minute starts, it’s Righetti’s who’s punched out a brawny stance on top of the blonde, those strong hooks smoothly rolling onto Upton like a friggin’ jackhammer, snapping back the blonde’s head in frightening little jerks. Upton starts to look tired, maxed out after early whirlwind tempo: she’s hovering in ropes mopy, hurt, gets repeatedly punched onto her heels, unable to work back adequate counters, just trying to bob forward in spots, tie up on Amanda bulkily. Second minute, Righetti’s firmly on top, with Kate hovering in various rope-side places – Righetti’s hands at nose-height as default position, body weavin’, feintin’ steps, not stayin’ inside but in hooking range as blonde can’t mount break-out attempts, so she’s firmly stabilizing Kate with little shoves, palmin’ up on her girl, hitting straight lefts to chest/solarplexus, thick rights flapping against guard, all as Upton only opens up for wide, low hooks into Amanda’s side during safe moments, cooped up, suppressed by Righetti’s systematic whacks. Third minute: Righetti ain’t dropping her output, obviously intent on keeping Kate under control or end her night before the bell, staying close without reducing the rate or power of those driving lefts – blonde’s increasingly stooping forward, tying up in desperation, yet unable to impede Amanda’s forward push. Later…Righetti clocks her challenger a hammering uppercut upside her left ear, steps-to close with wide eyes, steely determination, as blonde wilts into the top rope, then snapping forward into a clinging hold, cramping up under the impact…Amanda shoves Kate back to prop her up straight, looking to rip right hands onto Upton’s ominous, trembling guard. Down the stretch…twenty seconds to go…girls still locked in at similar positions by ropes, just near a turnbuckle…Amanda’s crowding, her jab grabbing at Kate’s guard belligerently…Kate suddenly swipes a short, rising left across redhead’s looming torso, narrowly zipping it past but still slightly touching Amanda’s lower left jaw…taken aback a bit, Righetti shifts weight to right leg, bending her head just slightly off to the side, pumpin’ back two, three straight jabs to tits for determent with her head turned off…Upton suddenly moves her torso a step forward out of the ropes…instinctively hoists a huge, haymaker right hand upwards…leaning in, she’s pushing her arm over Amanda’s jabbing one…and the wide, swinging punch detonates with a THUD on Righetti’s unprepared left cheekbone, right between her ear and nose…slow-mo replay will show Amanda’s head snapping back, her eyes shutting close in distortion…the champ’s legs/knees lock up in instant paralysis, her whole torso just flipping back uncontrollably…Righetti’s body collapses backwards as if hauled to the ground by a leash…she’s thudding down hard on the floor, landing on her back, legs sticking out over the ring margin a bit…her arms flop over her head in an instant…her head lolls just slightly to the side, eyes closed, lips mumbling…a baffled Kate gets pushed back hard by ref…he starts counting…Amanda’s still static…ref reaches three, four…Righetti’s got her eyes opened, flickering, clearly confused, trying to heave her chest up… Upton just stands there in her corner, breathing hard, recovering…she stares at Righetti and her shoulders twitching on the ground at six…eight, the champ rolls over to her right side…nine, she’s propping up on her right forearm, trembling, just not getting her body raised up…and the ref counts to TEN – it’s a dramatic what-the-fu’k-just-happened finisher that’s just ended the title bout, Righetti’s night and her title reign… a friggin’ last-minute KO10 for the NEW welterweight champion of the world, Kate Upton!
After: Once the ref’s finished his count, pure mayhem seems ready to break out for an instant as Upton – moving out of her corner with long steps – tries to pull up a still-bowed-down Amanda by her hair, clutching into her neck with a tight grip…immediately, officials and Bonzo gym members intervene – even Katrina Law’s jumping in – pushing, shoving Kate off their girl forcefully, preventing the worst for dethroned champ. Meanwhile, Righetti’s crawled to sit on her haunches, her shoulders slumping back into mid-rope, head slackened, looking puzzled…perplexed…punched out in stunning fashion, gets tended-to by her team. Welterweight title bout an unexpected back-and-forth battle going the distance: top model Upton withstands Righetti’s brawny early dominance against the odds, storming back to flirt with a knockout in the sixth, until Amanda hits back, well on her way to grind out a close decision in the tenth, until she gets caught a shocking haymaker with only seconds left to go, making the redhead suffer her first proper knockout loss since 2012. Upton – badly depleted by the ten-round battle, but full of bubbly energy all the same – storms to her first regular, non-JMD title, leapfrogging the division’s other elite names along the way. So what’s next for her? – “Soon, I’ll dominate the JMD division again, sure, but I have no problem dominating the regular one, too. The way I see it, this is like the beginning of a model takeover of the division. We’re younger, hotter, more exciting – who knows, welter’s true problem might be that there are just too many TV actresses around here”, she smirks, “It’s time to bring back the glamour!”
