Dove Cameron vs. Ariel Winter

BEFORE:

No doubt a huge fight between two of the top young flys in the FCBA, so big that it's not even tarnished by management's decision to turn Winter away from the chase for the flyweight belts, meaning this one can't be billed as any sort of "eliminator". And, both fighters are just fine with that, because, in their minds, it doesn't matter. "Here's the thing," says Dove with a smile. "I was always going to KNOCK Ariel out of the title chase tonight. So, either way, the top contender coming out of this fight was going to be ME."

"Yeah, I'm going to be focusing on JMD in the future," says a hard-eyed Ariel. "But, tonight, my complete and undivided attention is on DOVE. And, that's not going to go well for her."

ROUND ONE:

Cameron with the stick and move as Winter stalks, looking to close and bang. No surprise in either of these fight plans, or the fact that both blonde and brunette do VERY very well when they are fighting on their chosen terms. Cameron's excellent moving and boxing, while Winter is an absolute LOAD in the phone booth. Thus, the result of any round and the fight overall was always going to come down to who gets more of what she wants. And, in the first round, that's Dove. She's moving very effectively, staying out of the traps the brunette is laying for her, remaining, mostly, in open ocean where she can get that jab on, build combinations off it. Ariel has moments when she's able to close, bang some body, score some points, but, when the bell rings, it's Dove wide to lead 10-9.

ROUND TWO:

More Dove. The blonde's gotten into rhythm early, and she's staying there, popping that jab in Ariel's face over and over again as the brunette looks to close and bring her power to bear. But, Cameron's not having any. She's determined to fight at range, and she's making that happen in a big way, getting even more of the fight than she did in the first. Winter's moments of closing and banging are limited more and more as the round goes on, but, to her credit, the brunette doesn't get frustrated or slow down. She keeps stalking, working the feet, looking to crowd the blonde, force her to trade. But, mostly, she's unable to do that, and Dove's got such control by the final thirty seconds that she spends them, basically, legging around the ring burning down the clock. When the bell rings, Cameron's got it wide again to lead 20-18.

ROUND THREE:

Cameron on the move, circling, jabbing, stopping to pop, then getting right back to the circle. Winter a bit more aggressive in the stalking now, finding more success. She's crowding Cameron much more effectively, cutting off her escape routes, forcing her into heavy exchanges, and coming out on top in all of them. Winter hooking a TON of body this stanza, clearly thinking about both scoring and taking some of the bounce out of the blonde's legs. For her part, Cameron doing some tying up, trying to bring these exchanges to an end with clinches, then slipping away to get back to her jab. Result is the first good, two-way round of the bout, one that both women have a chance to win. In fact, there's very little in it when the bell rings, but it's Dove who's done just a bit more and extended her lead to 30-27.

ROUND FOUR:

Winter building on last round's gains. She's penning up the blonde now, closing, banging, getting physical in there. Dove bangs back in spots, and does OK when she's doing that. But, mostly, Cameron is looking to escape, tying up, trying to slip away. But, Ariel's very skilled on the inside. She punches free of some clinches, shoves out of others, is more than willing to lever with the shoulder and go body when necessary. For about two minutes, Ariel totally controls the proceedings and piles up a ton of points. Dove finally gets some space in the last minute, and she's able to get some work done, but, in the final seconds, Winter's all in her grill again, working her over with heavy shot right to the bell. When it rings, the brunette's on the board, taking the round wide, but Cameron remains in the lead 39-37.

ROUND FIVE:

More from Ariel. Oh, Dove's trying to make some adjustments here. She's circling wider, using a drop step, working the left more frequently, but Ariel's got this geometry down now. She continues to cut the ring extremely well, bottling up the blonde, who finds herself fighting on Winter's terms again and again. And, for the second round in a row, Dove does OK when she bangs back. She's not getting the better of things, but she's scoring. Mostly, though, she's looking to get out of these situations using clinches, and that doesn't work as well. Winter does an excellent job of keeping Cameron cooped up and working her over in the process. And, this time, there's no last-minute respite. Instead, the assault continues to the bell, which marks the end of a second-consecutive wide round victory for Ariel, who now trails by on a single point, 48-47.

ROUND SIX:

Winter right back at it. Crowding Dove, backing her up and DROPPING HER! Cameron sent to her right side with a short hook. Winter to a neutral corner to watch and wait. But, Dove frustrates her hopes, pushing to a sitting position at six, then getting to her feet at eight. Ref gives the blonde the mandatory and ON COMES ARIEL! Winter letting Cameron HAVE it with both hands, driving her back into the ropes and keeping her pinned on the cables. Ref watching closely, but Dove showing veteran wiles in there, slipping and blocking, doing just enough offensively to prevent a stoppage. For Winter's part, she's piling up points and punishment all in the service of finishing this thing, but, once again, the blonde frustrates her, hanging on to the bell. It's a 10-8 round for Ariel, though, and Winter has her first lead 57-56.

ROUND SEVEN:

Winter all OVER Dove to start the seventh. Blonde in full retreat, backing and covering, jabbing in spots, but mostly taking a thumping as she trades anything and everything in the larder for time, time to get those legs back under her. One thing she's NOT going to get, however, is space, because Winter is right in her grill, working body, head, body, banging away with both hands, sitting down on everyth...BOOM! Right hook, CAMERON! Dove a BEAUTIFUL counter and Winter is hurt! Ariel stumbles backward and GOES DOWN after a three-punch flurry from the blonde! Now, it's Dove to a neutral corner as Winter tries to push up off all fours, stumbles back to the canvas, tries it again, drops again, and finally pushes to her feet...TOO LATE! The count has passed Winter by and it's OVER and your winner by KO7 is Dove Cameron!

AFTER:

Massive win for Dove, who may now be first in line for her first shot at the gold. "I TOLD you before the fight that none of that nonsense mattered. The only thing that mattered was me PROVING I'm better than her, which everyone should have known before the fight. Because, in this division, I'M as good as it gets, and that gold is going to be MINE."