High-level brawl: Alesia Schumann vs. Katia Nagel – Round 8

Katia thinks: “I need to be a little faster to score against this stance. Here we go.”

Ding! The round begins.

Alesia and Katia circle for a few seconds before engaging. Both fake the jab to make the other move forward, but they mutually resist the mouse traps. Until Katia throws a half-jab and pulls back her left hand. Ally moves her right to block it, but the Berliner sends a zippy jab between her eyes after making her open her guard. Paff!

Virani: “Wow, nice adjustment already by Katia.”

Sophie: “She’s too smart for her own good.”

Esther: “Back to square one in this puzzling game, it seems. Nagel uses her astuteness to open a breach in the puzzle to insert a piece of her own. She knows how to play.”

Cecilia: “And that was one of the most refined wordplays I have heard in boxing broadcasting. Alesia didn’t make a big mistake there. Katia only made a slightly smarter and faster move to find the opening and put a glove between her eyes. Well done.”

Lacie: “Yes, girl, right in the face! Get your combinations going now!”

Ally thinks: “Nee nee nee. You’re not getting this round, bitch!”

The Diva dances on her toes with her new stance, daring Katia to charge as she backs up near a corner. She sets her left arm a bit looser. The Berliner throws a jab to force Ally to raise her upper body, creating a clear opening to the body. Then she comes forward with the right cross towards the midsection.

Alesia steps a bit to her left and uses the angle to throw her left hook as Katia’s right arm moves down. PISH!

The crowd cheers.

Esther: “Bait and switch. Fight off the ropes. You don’t even need to have your eyes open to know that Alesia Schumann is in the ring when you hear these words. Putting on a mask and playing those little games to disguise intentions is her speciality. I bet she’s a snappy dresser at Halloween”

Cecilia: “The punch itself was flawlessly executed. Tempt your opponent, get that angle and unleash at full range. It sucks to be on the receiving end although you made an excellent move to try and corner your opponent for a clean hit.”

Akane: “Look at the focus in Ally’s eyes.”

Anna: “Yep. So intense. And Katia has a racoon eye!”

Katia thinks: “Shit. If she takes this round, I might lose. Gotta fight back quick.”

She applies pressure on Ally to try and take the upper hand once more, throwing combos to hopefully crack that defensive shell. The Bavarian blocks and dodges most shots but she finds herself in the ropes in the second minute of the round.

Katia thinks: “Here’s my chance.”

She fakes a right hand. Ally rolls her shoulders to block, but the punch doesn’t come. When she comes back to her original stance, Katia is already throwing a right, for real this time. Ally does the shoulder roll again, but this time the punch comes in much faster, and the glove smacks her on the side of the head.

Part of the crowd encourages the fighter in black: “Katia! Katia! Katia!”

Lacie: “Come on, Katia, that’s the way! She can’t hide her head completely behind her shoulder!”

Virani: “Get off the ropes! Damn, I’m so nervous right now!”

Sophie: “If you’re too nervous to bite your nails, I can do it for you.”

Regina thinks: “Ally is making little mistakes. She gets most things right but we still have a little work to do.”

Esther: “Nagel strikes hard with a straight right after a good feint. Once mastered, the philly shell is very hard to unlock but Nagel has the kind of eagle eye to force a mistake, fly at full speed and attack from a higher position than her potential prey.”

Cecilia: “Katia tells us that she isn’t out of this fight despite a setback in the previous two rounds. Alesia may have an edge on the scorecards at the moment, but she cannot take the win for granted.”

Esther: “It’s a war in the trenches between these two in Round 8. With 30 seconds left, there is no clear winner yet and the judges may have a tough job ahead.”

Cecilia: “I like filling an unofficial card. If we get it wrong, at least we don’t get blamed for a bad result. Anyhow, Alesia and Katia are still going strong, showing us their tremendous fitness levels in the business end of this fight. That’s a good thing. Nothing has been decided yet.”
Ally keeps stepping back in a philly shell. She is close to a neutral corner when Katia sends her a pawing jab. She quickly distorts her body to the left, with her right hand springing out to smack the exposed left cheek.

Anna: “That’s it, baby!”

Akane: “Yes! Take this round and we’re in business!”

Esther: “Your opinion with 10 seconds to go?”

Cecilia: “It looks dead even to me.”

The two fighters know that the round is close and they are reluctant to engage in the last 10 seconds, for fear of taking the single punch that will give their opponent the points.

Alesia thinks: “Fuck it. I think I can win it although it’s close. Go ahead and sort this one out, judges.”

Katia thinks: “I think I can win this one. Not taking chances. Who knows if she has an uppercut coming.”

After 10 quiet seconds, the bell rings and Rebecca sends them back to their corners.

Esther: “These two have had tense moments, and they may not be personal friends, but they still show respect when they see an excellent opponent.”

Cecilia: “That’s boxing. Kill each other’s brain cells and still get along after you’re done.”

Virani: “Nice moment… I’d like to save a moment for the end of the fight, but I can’t hate the respect that these two are earning for each other.”

Insanely tight: corners

Esther: “Round 8 goes in increasingly thick books and we head to the corners for what are most likely crucial talks from the coaches.”

Cecilia: “Both have to be concerned that in such a tight affair, one mistake can cost everything in the most important fight of both women’s careers.”

Regina: “How are you doing?”

Alesia: “Still got plenty of energy.”

Regina: “Good. We could be slightly ahead but you have to stop making the defensive mistakes you made in the previous round. They allowed her to keep this battle close. We want to go ahead decisively.”

Alesia breathes deep.

Regina: “You know how the philly shell stance works. Use your legs a lot more to move your upper body. It’s essential to avoid getting hit. There wasn’t enough of that movement in the last round.”

Alesia: “Got it.”

Lacie: “Okay, girl, take a seat. I need to work on the swelling.”

Katia(as she feels the pressure of the cold steel): “Damn! Not so hard! It hurts!”

Lacie: “Sit still! Your eye will close if I don’t cool it down! Now listen, the last round wasn’t bad. I think it was even, but you will probably still be behind. There are only two more rounds to fight, and you need to win them to get that belt! How do you feel?”

Katia: “I’m fine.”

Lacie: “Do you still have enough gas in the tank for the last two rounds?”

Katia: “Yes, I’m still fresh.”

Lacie: “Okay, in the next round get your feet going! Be quick, quicker than in the previous eight rounds. Set her up with feints and jabs, but avoid being predictive. When she got enough in her face she will feel that she is losing the round. She will come for you, and she will make mistakes. That’s when you need your best weapons. Be quick, and win the round. What will you do?”

Katia: “Be quick, and win the round.”

Lacie: “Exactly. No go and make me proud!”

At ringside

Virani: “So, Sophie, do you think that Alesia will keep going with the Phily shell, or will she go back to her regular style? I can see arguments for doing both.”

Sophie: “The plan they discussed before the fight to keep the shell after making the switch, but who knows with these two? They don’t mind making sudden changes if it seems necessary.”

Esther: “Did you think it would be hard to score Round 8 at home? You had a point because the upcoming numbers show that it was as tight as a pair of skinny jeans in anorexic sizes.”

Cecilia thinks: “Did she really say that?”

Cecilia: “The number of punches thrown and landed was almost the same on both sides, reflecting the action accurately. Katia’s jab fared better and Alesia had the edge in power shots.”

Cecilia: “From a qualitative point of view, both fighters were even, showing the same amount of ring generalship.”

Esther: “Therefore, we agree that this is a 10-10 round without a winner.”

Cecilia: “Also, keep in mind that several rounds were close earlier in the fight, which means that the three official scorecards could swing in any direction.”

Esther: “Imagine being a judge and knowing how close the action is, with the final result probably giving someone the title and influencing both careers. No pressure!”

Rebecca: “Seconds out!”

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.