Alesia Schumann vs. Anna Schwartz II – Round 2

Anna thinks: “I have to stay aggressive to keep her on the back foot. It’s risky but I don’t care. The hell with it. If I go down, I’ll go down fighting.”

The bell rings and Anna charges. She fakes the jab, changes her body’s angle and drops her left to throw a left uppercut. Alesia correctly guesses what is coming and tightens her guard, but the Killer Bee has a split-second advantage. Pish! On the jaw.

Esther: “Anna Schwartz makes a statement by attacking Schumann early and hard for the second round in a row. Who would have thought? Perhaps only her camp, which is determined to erase the protected fighter’s reputation.”

At ringside:

Virani: “Okay, I expect that Alesia will reset herself after an off round. Anna comes charging out, throws a decent fake and then wallops Alesia with an uppercut. What the hell is going on here!”

Katia: “I have the feeling more and more that Anna will be my opponent. She really owns Ally at the moment. Who would have thought that before the first bell!”

Anna thinks: “She’s stunned. Now is the time for a big shot.”

Big shot alright. the Berliner takes a step forward and unloads a huge right hook as Ally is out of her stance after taking a left uppercut. As her head comes back down, the black glove comes in for a big collision, snapping her head back.

Alesia: “Hmmppphh!”

Gasps are heard in the crowd. Anna’s fans cheer.

Regina thinks: “WTF is going on? Is this an alternate reality?”

Esther: “Schumann is hurt! She just took a monster of a right hook! I reckon that nobody in the weight class can afford to absorb the full force of such a punch. Is Schumann hiding an injury and unable to fight normally? She shouldn’t get pummeled this badly by Schwartz.”

At ringside:

Virani: “That was a huge shot from Anna. So early in the round too. Maybe this isn’t just a slow start from Ally…”

Katia: “Anna is on a roll! She’s absolutely destroying Ally. What a punch she’s landed! This won’t take long anymore.”

Anna took the early advantage again in this round and she is keen to keep Alesia under pressure. She faces more resistance after a few seconds.

The lady in black and yellow has a falling back Ally near the ropes and she goes for the jab to take the initiative. The Diva changes her body’s angle and digs in with a jab to the midsection.

Anna: “Urgh!”

Ally’s fans cheer.

Hans: “Be careful! She’s a dangerous counterattacker!”.

Esther: “This resembles the Schumann we know. Excellent timing on the counter to soften up her aggressive opponent. Whether that will be enough to keep the missile-throwing warship at bay is unclear, but a naval battle may have begun. Who will sink first?”

At ringside:

Virani: “That’s it!”  I’m usually not one to be shouting things during a boxing match. I’m on pins and needles at the moment though! Come on, Ally!

Alesia has just thwarted Anna’s plan with a strong jab to the body. She sets herself to escape by stepping to the left while pulling her hand back.

Anna thinks: “Not so fast, sister. You didn’t let me escape the last time. I won’t let you now!”

Just as Ally lifts her right leg as she moves sideways, the Killer Bee pivots and unleashes a short right hook that lands flush on the cheek. Leather meets the skin to make a loud sound. Half the crowd gets loud to cheer for Anna’s success.

Ally grunts again. This one really hurt.

Esther: “Schwartz is on fire tonight. She is having the fight of her life against the toughest opposition she ever had. Either that or Schumann did not take her seriously, or she’s injured. She wouldn’t be the first to show up unfit for a bout against someone who seemed beaten in advance and paying the price for it.”

At ringside:

Virani: “Oh my god, what is happening! I must be bad luck!”

Esther: “Schumann just took another bomb from Schwartz and DOWN SHE GOES! It’s the first time she gets knocked down since her KO loss against Lilly Sanchez in June 2017!”

The crowd gets loud as the local favourite dominates the fight easily.

Esther: “We have seen Schumann getting up after being dropped in the past. It may happen here. The big question mark is whether she will make this a real fight, or if she will just remain Schwartz’ punching bag as she has been in the last few minutes. If that’s the case, the night will be short because Schwartz is in the mood for a scrap.”

Regina thinks: “WTF is this? She barely did anything!”

At ringside:

Katia: “What the fuck! This is going way too easy for Anna. It’s like Ally had an overdose of valium before the fight!”

Virani: “It’s really hard for me to process this. Alesia just took a huge shot and her legs gave in. If the roles were reversed and Ally just knocked Anna down I would think it’s totally expected, totally normal. It’s hard to knock Alesia off her feet, but Anna just made it look easy!”

The ref points to a neutral corner as a triumphant Anna already is walking there.

Esther: “Schumann is in a sorry state. From favourite after knocking her last three opponents out to watching Schwartz wipe the floor with her… you have to wonder if she was made for the bouts that count. The last time she had a big fight, she lost a Silver belt.”

At ringside:

Katia: “I watched it all, Anna. You’re not going to do that to me. What about you, Virani? What do you make of this?”

Virani: “I think that I am a very bad luck charm.”

Alesia has gone down on a wicked left hook while she was out of position. Can she get up?

The ref approaches and starts his count.

Alex: “One… Two… Three… Four… Five…”

The Diva got up to her knees and she listens to the count.

Alesia thinks: “I’m waiting until eight. I need those seconds.”

The crowd cheers because it senses that she will get up and continue.

Esther: “Schumann is not out of this but she needs to fight so much better to fend off the aggressive Schwartz. No one could have expected her to be such a relentless attacker tonight.”

At ringside:

Virani: “Get up Ally! You can do this!”

While the ref gives Alesia a count, Anna looks on and gestures.

Anna: “Come on. Get up. We have unfinished business!”

Esther: “Schwartz is as confident as ever. Not that I blame her. If you send Schumann down, you have to feel good about yourself as you watch the count.”

Alex: “Six… Seven…”

Alesia gets up and lifts her hands high.

Alex: “Eight… Come to me. Are you ready to continue?”

Alesia: “Yes.”

Alex: “Ok. Box!”

Regina thinks: “Now she has to fight for real. Otherwise, this won’t last long. Hell, if I don’t see a reaction, she’s not coming out of the corner after the break.”

At ringside:

Virani: “Okay Ally, let’s show some of that defence and counterattacking we all know and love you for…”

Made fragile by the knockdown, Alesia still isn’t boxing the way she normally would.

The Diva backs up, moves sideways and tries to avoid getting hit, but Anna’s pressure is unforgiving. Into the second minute of the round, the Killer Bee surges forward with a stiff jab that catches Ally’s jaw and cheek.

Ally thinks
: “I have to make it to the bell.”

Regina thinks: “If she doesn’t fight back, I’m gonna stop this nonsense. This is insane.”

At ringside:

Virani: “Anna’s jab is just following Alesia wherever she goes. I would have thought that Alesia would do a much better job in defending from Anna’s best punch.”

Esther: “Schwartz keeps Schumann under pressure and she keeps throwing punches in a never-ending stream. Schumann blocks a few but she struggles to keep up with the pace, probably because she has taken a lot in just two rounds.”

Anna plants her feet and stops moving for a second to tempt Ally to throw something. Just as the Diva starts moving her hands, a big right cross comes out and smashes the middle of her face.

Part of the crowd gasps and part of it applauds.

Esther: “Schwartz gives her opponent no chance to get back into this one but you have to wonder what sleeping pills Schumann has swallowed before this fight. She is nowhere near her usual self but she only has 20 seconds to go before, most probably, getting a stern talk from her coach.”

In the dying seconds of Round 2, Anna goes for one last flurry as she has Alesia in a corner. The crowd is getting very loud because it wants a knockout.

Alesia blocks a few of the punches, but right before the bell, Anna lands a solid left hook in the middle of her face, hurting her some more.

Esther: “This match is turning into the most unlikely rout that I have called since joining Box TV. We cannot wait to hear what the coaches will have to say during the one-minute break. Now is not the time for a potty break!”

Ding! The bell sounds to end the round.

At ringside:

Virani: “Is the round over? I hope it’s over. Goodness, I can hardly remember a worse round in Alesia’s career. I hope Regina can straighten things out.”

Right before going to the corner’s let’s head to the special guests’ tables to know what the four think of two one-sided rounds. Speculation is rife.

Katia: “Hey, Virani, do you have any idea what is going on there? Ally wiped the floor with Anna in their first fight, and now it’s exactly the opposite. I have the feeling Ally is holding back, but for what reason? She’s not using her full potential at the moment. Maybe she’s on drugs?”

Virani: “Uh, maybe Alesia got an injury in training and she didn’t want to call off the fight?  It’s not that Anna’s a bad fighter, but Alesia is a level above her, I thought.  She can still turn it around – Alesia can land a couple of big punches and turn this fight on its head. Where is Sophie, by the way?”

Katia: “Mmmh, an injury? And she didn’t tell about it? Not really clever, and if this fight goes on like this Ally will get even more injured. I spotted Sophie in the crowd earlier, no doubt.”

At the other table…

Heidi: “I can’t believe my eyes. I would have at least expected a closer fight than this.”

Oskar: “To tell you the truth, I didn’t expect Anna to do so well. I knew she was very well prepared and thought she would do better than in the first fight, but she’s overdelivering right now.”

Regina: “What the hell is wrong with you? I’llstop this fight now.”

Alesia answers with a whisper that only her coach can hear.

Alesia: “You can’t do this. I want you to hide all emotions as I tell you why.”

Regina also whispers: “Huh… ok.”

Alesia: “This fight is fixed. I have to lose by knockout.”

Regina is in disbelief but she has to look calm.

Alesia: “Gangsters linked to Anna’s promoter kidnapped Sophie. They threaten to kill her. Anna has to send me to dreamland for real, I can’t just take a dive. I presume they placed bets against me to earn money.”

Regina: “I… I see. Does she know?”

Alesia: “No, but the ref does. He’s been threatened. He has to let her beat me up or the gangsters will go after him.”

Regina: “I see. To make sure we don’t give it away, I’ll give you instructions. Do the opposite and let’s get this over as quickly as we can.”

The coach now talks normally.

Regina: “We need a big shot to turn this around. Throw fast combinations to the head to force her to raise her hands high and block. When you have an opening, go for a left hook to the liver.”

Alesia: “Ok!”

Alex: “Seconds out!”

Esther: “Our apologies for losing the sound for a part of their exchange. Hopefully this is fixed now.”

Hans: “You’re doing great. I told you that you were good enough to beat her. This fight is ours. We can finish her in the third round.”

Anna: “Yes!”

Hans: “You need to increase the pressure so that she can’t escape and recuperate. Cut the ring, keep attacking and corner her. That’s where she’s the most vulnerable to power shots. You’ve seen it in her previous fights. Your accuracy will be lethal and she can’t take your punches for much longer.”

Anna:  “Great!”

He sprays her face with water as she doesn’t need any treatment. Anna is as calm as ever.

Hans thinks: “Great. She has no idea that this fight is fixed although she’s beating a better opponent easily. We’ll be done with this very soon and we’ll make a shitload of money on the bets.”

We go to Esther for the unofficial scorecard after two rounds. She doesn’t know either about the plot.

Esther: “The second round did not only feature a knockdown. It was extremely uneven and I make it a 10-7 for Schwartz. Equally important are the punch statistics in the first two rounds. Schwartz was far more active than Schumann and she landed a tremendous percentage of her punches, including two-thirds of her power shots. In the meantime, Schumann did little and we have to doubt whether she can continue for long. Something is wrong with the Bavarian.”

At ringside:

Katia: “Something is wrong with the Bavarian? You can say it again!”

Alesia Schumann
Alesia Schumann
Super Lightweight champion of the world, German champion and one of the pound for pound best. The Diva is known for her tactical strength and durability.