World champion Alesia puts on a boxing clinic
The second engagement is about to get underway in Berlin. Alesia and Chloé get on the move when the bell rings. Little does the visitor know what she’s about to experience.
The Québécoise, wearing the colours of her local flag, starts pretty strongly. She makes daring attacking moves to put the German under intense pressure. Powerful shots fired by a heavy puncher, who has 18 knockouts on record.
Alesia works sideways most of the time, with torso movement designed to roll with the shots.
Esther: “Schumann serves one of her eternal shoulder rolls, freshly reheated from the microwave. Quality defending against one of the most credible heavy hitters in the division.”
Anna: “Microwaved? I say that they are freshly baked.”
Esther: “Don’t try to out-pun me. You won’t win.”
Doing Diva things
It takes only a moment before the Diva fires back. She initiates a pivot from her left toes. The motion finishes with a left hook, with a white glove that says ‘hello’ to Chloé’s chin.
Anna: “This is Alesia Schumann at work. Turning defense into offense within a split second, to score with the punch you can’t expect when you haven’t even pulled your own hand back.”
It’s a frustrating second round for the challenger, who comes at the champion with excellent moves, only for her entrances in her zone to be greeted by masterclass defensive twists of the body.
Take this zippy straight left, thrown with as much speed and more force than a jab. The brunette sends it out perfectly, but the blonde leans out and back. At the same time, she raises her right hand to avoid contact and get ready for the counter.
Sophie: “So. Fucking. Good.”
Virani: “Agreed. I absolutely hated when she did it to me, and my punches are hard to avoid.”
Rinse and repeat
Once again, Chloé doesn’t have the time to pull out. Alesia dishes out the Mayweather-style counterattacking right hand by coming forward again after pulling back, picking her chin while she’s off balance.
Regina: “And repeat.”
Ally strikes two more times with the same right hand while Chloé is destabilised.
Esther: “One… two…. three… all on target to make sure that Potvin still knows how to count.”
Anna: “It’s basic math, Esther. You can’t hit someone thrice without starting with twice.”
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Madwoman
Chloé’s frustration emerges inside although she stays cool on the outside. She’s not the type to be easily denied or to say no to a good challenge. That’s how you rise to the number one contender status in boxing.
The Canadian stays intense and gets creative in Round 3, throwing combinations from varied angles and timings to create an opportunity to score. It doesn’t matter how many times she misses. It’s the big shot that lands which could pay off.
Midway into Round 3, she gets close to a fistic payday. She fakes a left hook, pulls it away and throws the right instead. Almost fooled, Alesia shoulder rolls her way out of trouble on the right. She feels red leather brushing against the side of her face, but it’s not a full impact.
Leyla: “It’s mad. Mad! How could she not take a clean punch there?”
Melanie: “I know I can hit her.”
Layla scoffs: “I’d give you a spanking. Alesia would take you to the cleaners. You’re not as good as you think.”
Melanie: “Is that a challenge?”
Leyla snickers: “Not for me.”
It only gets worse or better in Round 4, depending on who you’re rooting for. Alesia becomes unhittable in those three minutes, with the highlight of the round coming in the first part.
Chloé’s pressure is sufficient to bring the world champion near a corner but not enough to trap her in there. The girl in blue throws a threatening right hand after faking a step-back to hopefully catch the white-gloved opponent by surprise.
The Diva refuses to bite. She serves up yet another shoulder roll, this time directly inspired by training sessions with Zohana Patel in the gym. She drops her left hand on purpose to acquire the freedom to move, and throw a shot wherever she wants.
Lessons pay off
This move is the silver bullet. The Bavarian can do whatever she likes and she goes for the power option. A sharp twist of her entire body with 100% leverage, ending in a ribcage-crunching short left hook on target. PAFF.
Esther: “Schumann is making it look easy. Against Chloé Potvin, who isn’t only respectable. One of the toughest fighters in the world’s facial expressions betray pain as she gets hit downstairs.”
Anna: “Round 4 is drawing to a close and Alesia has been eating all points for three straight rounds. She’s got a big appetite at the dinner table, but also in this title defense.”
Esther: “I hear she has no problem finishing a plate at the restaurant.”
The rebel
When the round finishes, Alesia walks back calmly to her corner to avoid showing off. Her fans don’t show that restraint. They rise up and make deafening noise to salute impressive work.
In the red corner, Regina has very little to work with. Her fighter has been brilliant enough that “keep it up” is the only message she can deliver.
Regina: “Great stuff. I don’t think that Chloé thought you would tighten the grip so early in a fight. I just wanna warn you that this makes the situation dangerous. She’s a rebel and Vanessa will desperately plead for a huge response. You’ve got to be ready for it. You know what it means, right?”
Alesia: “Increase the difficulty level.”
Regina: “Right. Beware of one thing in particular. She’s been mixing up the angles as we got a little deeper into the fight, and she hasn’t repeated any of her moves. Not even once. There’s variety in her game. We’ve got to remain flexible.”
The Diva nods before getting water and a little facial grease.
The speech
It’s no time to panic in the challenger’s camp, but Vanessa wants to impress the urgency to not let the champion run away with an easy decision after this.
Vanessa: “Are you there?”
Chloé: “Well yeah.”
Vanessa: “It didn’t show.”
The stinging line makes her groan with anger.
Vanessa: “Where are you?”
Chloé: “In the ring with Alesia.”
Vanessa: “No! You’re in the opportunity of a lifetime! Do you remember your life as a teenager? What did this sport do to you? It saved you from a miserable life with a shitty family. It gave you a dream to win not only fights, but titles. Your work made you become a top contender. It made you a potential world champion and you’re HERE NOW, in the fight of your life. Seize the moment and DO IT. Yeah, she’s a great boxer, but you can only be the world champion if you’re greater. That’s how champs are made. Have fun and give EVERYTHING. NOW.”
Chloé feels goosebumps while staring at her coach. No greater challenge has been dropped at her doorstep.
The coach treats her before she gets up from the stool.
Vanessa: “Fight like your life depends on it, because it does. EVERYTHING IS ON THE LINE.”
Esther: “We just heard the corners. How about the scorecard, Anna?”
Anna: “Anyone who is surprised by me giving the last three rounds to Alesia must have been living under a rock covered by a thick blanket. It’s 39-37 for the defending champion, who used her defend-and-counter tactics to perfection in the last 9 minutes of fighting. Chloé isn’t in a big hole, but she should start digging herself out of it before it’s too late because Alesia is better focused than at any point than in any previous title defense.”
Rebecca: “Seconds out!”
Alesia,
Alesia Schumann is certainly putting on a picture perfect display of boxing. She is demonstrating that Boxing is as much about defense as it is about offense. Chloe is very frustrated, can’t seem to land a significant punch of any kind. She must be thinking, “Stand still so I can punch 👊🏻 👊🏻you!!” Alesia has no intention of doing so, knowing all too well how dangerous of a fighter Chloe is.
Mike
Sometimes you’re “in the zone” when competing. It doesn’t last forever, but Alesia had that for a little while here. It doesn’t mean Chloé can’t come back, but the hill is a little steep.
What a clinic Alesia has put on for the challenger! Chloe looks primed for a comeback and has the power in her gloves to do it.
She’s not happy and she wants to get even, lol
1 for Chloe, 3 for Alesia, it seems like an slightly favored but mostly equal fight to me in the halfway point and now Vanessa is the one giving the orders to Chloe. Even though Alesia has the slight lead, I am betting that whoever scores the first knockdown will be the key determinant in who wins in this matchup, especially with the judges. There is still time for Chloe to try to bounce back and potentially score that changing factor but the longer rounds normally would favor Alesia here. Everything is on the line for Chloe, but the same can be said for the champion too in a big first title defense like this. I think Chloe will have everything to lose once it is over, I think the statement will be everything to gain for the champion to pull out the win.
There is still time for the fight to get further “definition”, for sure. Not all won for Alesia, and not all lost for Chloé. Yet, the time to act for the challenger is now if she wants to have a good chance to capture the belt.
The Diva is starting to get serious against Chloe with supreme force! When she gets going, it isn’t easy to take her down. She’s fighting on full world champion level now!
I gotta give it to Chloe though, despite having trouble she’s been staying calm and not losing her cool for 3 straight round. Smart to not show your getting frustrating but you can tell it’s not fun, especially when Alesia lands that punch to the body at the end of the 4th round, shes definitely feeling that.
Great little speech from Vanessa, well kinda long lol, Chloe came all this way to win this belt so she can’t let Alesia beating her to the punch every time. She has to get serious and go all out!
Alesia is doing good of course but even Regina noticed that Chloe has been being a-bit unpredictable so Alesia has to watch out for that.
“Don’t try to out-pun me. You won’t win.” A pun off battle between Esther and Anne. Now that would be a interesting fight XD
At that level, you have to detach your actions from feelings. Had Chloé let the mood affect the way she fights, she’d be in big trouble. She’s only a couple of points down and while it’s time to react. It’s a challenge with Alesia showing up convincingly, but it’s not a lost battle.
Vanessa really went for that speech. I don’t blame her 😆
A pun off? I think that the bookmakers would have Esther as the favourite 😆
The Supreme Diva rules in the ring and on the scorecards. Unlike her last bout, where she fell behind on the scorecards, Alesia has taken control of this one, not so much with her punching, but with her defence and over ring generalship. Anna sums it up well:
Anna: “This is Alesia Schumann at work. Turning defense into offense within a split second, to score with the punch you can’t expect when you haven’t even pulled your own hand back.”
The Diva is dazzling this round, making Chloe expend a lot of energy as she misses with those red cannonballs. Virani can’t help but to make it about herself though. Sure Virani, your punches are hard to avoid. Uh huh. Less about you for now, the champ is in the ring.
The problem with facing Alesia, as Chloe is finding out, is that she takes your small mistakes and she punches you in the face. It’s not like The Diva is some light puncher either, Alesia’s right hand, is strong and its accurate. That right hand that Alesia lands is flush, and I guarantee that it hurts. Chloe is big and tough, but that’s not something you can take for so long.
At ringside there’s even more entertainment after another brilliant defensive move from Alesia:
Leyla: “I’d give you a spanking. Alesia would take you to the cleaners. You’re not as good as you think.”
Melanie: “Is that a challenge?”
Leyla snickers: “Not for me.”
Melanie is an ambitious one for sure :D.
That last left hand to the ribs and liver area after *yet another* miss from Chloe, is probably the most painful shot of the round, I mean just look at Chloe’s face! Not only does the Quebecois miss her punch, she suffers a brutal counter a second later. That’s the kind of thing that makes you want to shell up and throw less punches, of course that’s not exactly a path to victory for Chloe either.
In the corners Regina talks to Alesia about expecting a reaction – the challenger is down on the cards and desperate. It’d be mad to not expect Chloe to come at her fiercely.
Vanessa goes for the Rocky speech in her corner – there’s only so many times you can go to that well before a fighter tunes you out, but its appropriate in this situation – a desperate one by any stretch of the imagination. Can Chloe respond, or will she just press too hard and run into a big uppercut. I’d actually say its the latter, if I had to guess.
Chloé faced quite the predicament in this phase of the match. Missing punches drains your energy, and getting tagged by an in-form opponent at the same time drains you even more. The scorecard is the “cherry on top” of a sour sundae. Man, what a sentence.
Melanie surely won’t want to be at the same table than Leyla in future fights. She got verbally dismissed, LOL
With 40% of the fight already in the books, the score isn’t too bad for the challenger but falling behind further isn’t a viable option at all.
I think we can expect Chloé to be bolder soon, because two more rounds like that might just mean “you can only win if you score a knockout”. She now has to take more risks, which means that big counters are potentially more dangerous.
Let’s see how our experienced challenger handles it.
Creator’s notes
When she gets going, she seriously gets going. Alesia has one of those phases when she’s intractable. Chloé will need serious motivation to overcome this combo of technique and energy, starting from Round 5.
We also see that training camp work done with Zohana Patel has paid off in bolstering Alesia’s defense against a heavy hitter whose shots are among the most difficult to avoid. Sometimes replicating a style is important, but working on the fundamentals can be equally crucial.
You got a challenge, dear Chloé. Can you match or overcome the champion after this? Well, that’s how champions are made. They need to rise to the occasion.