Virani MacVicar vs. Lexi Mills – Round 4: The Cobra’s Perspective

As remembered by Virani MacVicar

After that tongue lashing from Thomas, I couldn’t want to get back to the action. I hadn’t been hurt in the slightest though 3 rounds of action, but realistically, I had barely put a scratch on Lexi and was 3 rounds down. In a title defence. It was time to focus up and get going. It was time to hit and hurt this Lexi girl.

The first problem to deal with was Lexi’s jab. Lexi had landed a bunch of jabs, but it was time to take that weapon away. I kept a high guard, but loose enough that I could react when Lexi threw a punch. Lexi was forcing me to adapt, which hadn’t been the plan, but the plan was out the window at this point.

Lexi glided around the ring keeping a her distance well. I planned on getting inside and unleashing hell, but that could wait for the moment. Lexi fired a pair of double jabs, the first one fell short and I parried the second with a quick turn of my glove to stop it short of the target…my chin.

A little bit more comfortable dealing with Lexi’s jab, I put my mind to the second part of the plan – landing power punches of my own. It’s going to take a bit of creativity on my end. Lexi is still being the aggressor, and dictating the flow of the fight. Lexi tries to change levels by going to the body, but I’m able to lean away from the incoming punch and land a right hand of my own as Lexi leans forward. Not the world’s strongest punch, but I’m showing that if she wants to hit, me she’s in range to get hit by me and she may want to be a bit careful of that.

I can feel the crowd cheering me on…they want me to win, they want me to turn this around…and I intend to.

This round is..better. Not perfect, but better. Lexi’s having less success and I’m having vastly more. I’m the kind of fighter that really needs to be landing punches to get going. Some fighters can do it with defence or movement, but I can’t. I have to dictate the fight by landing punches.

I know Lexi’s watching for the left hook. Everyone knows to watch for the left hook. My neighbor’s dog knows to watch for my left hook. So I have to be sneaky to use my best weapon, make them forget about it and then slide it in. So when Lexi doubles up on her jab, I see my opportunity to slide my left hook around her guard and make it thud home. Lexi backs off and doesn’t seem to be that hurt, but it was a solid connection. I’ll take that.

Lexi can feel the momentum shifting just as much as I can, but she’s stubbornly sticking with her strategy. No back-up plan, eh? Well, that’s a shame. Lexi’s going to try with the jab until she can’t jab anymore. But I’ve got the timing of Lexi’s jab sussed out. Still it’s time for something a little bit tricky. We settle back into the usual routine and I see Lexi set up for another pair of jabs. I move forward into the first jab, letting it glance off the top of my head but closing the distance perfectly. Lexi jabs uselessly again, but that one goes wide as I’m already inside the range. Instead of going for a homerun punch to the head, I go to Lexi’s midsection with a short right hook, that lands, making Lexi grunt.

Lexi and I grab on to each other in a kind of mutual clinch, but this works fine for me. I’m doing what I want to do in this fight. Finally.

Virani v. Lexi 17

After the clinch is broken up, for the first time, Lexi seems unsure, and unwilling to engage. She seems a little hurt to be honest, which I’m not really falling for. I don’t think I’ve landed anything solid enough to actually hurt her. Still, she’s more tentative now, staying at the edge of effective range and seeming to set up for a counter.

That’s not a strategy that works too well for Lexi. While I don’t manage to land anything too heavy, for the next 30 seconds or so, I’m able to land decent, glancing blows. After a left hand lands lightly and a follow up left hook is blocked, Lexi staggers uncertainly back towards the ropes. Again she doesn’t seem hurt, just kind of…demoralized.

As Lexi goes into the ropes, I start unleashing. Lexi’s guard is tight enough and her upper body’s movement is good enough to keep anything of real substance landing, but this is where I want this girl.

Virani v. Lexi 18
Lexi escapes as I hear the warning that there are ten seconds left in the round. Okay, that’s my cue. I’ve won this round, but this isn’t a fight I want to win by winning rounds, I want to win it by laying this girl flat on her back. That’s what the fans are here to see and that’s what I love doing.

I work hard, bobbing and weaving, throwing enough fakes to confuse Lexi before staggering Lexi with a wicked left hand/left hook. Lexi’s head jolts and I can tell her legs go a bit weak…but the bell rings just before I can set myself to land some more shots. Damn. Girl’s got a pretty decent chin on her.

I walk back to the corner, feeling really darn good about myself. On the big screen they are playing highlights of the round, and this time they are all highlights of Lexi getting smacked. It looks good on her.

“That is how you are supposed to box!” exclaims Thomas, setting up my stool and flashing a thumbs up.

“Now you just need to do is for the rest of the fight,” he continues as he takes out my mouthpiece.

“If I keep doing that it’ll be a short fight.”

“Just keep focused V. Long fight to go still.”

I nodded to Thomas, but I was thinking about how a spectacular knockout might salvage what had been poor performance.

Virani MacVicar
Virani MacVicar
Current Featherweight champion. A Canadian puncher known for her knockouts that has developed a more all-round style.