Thunder and lightning

An incredibly violent round of action

The bell rings for Round 9 to begin and our boxers have a similar state of mind.

Alesia thinks: “We’re in my territory. She will find this difficult.”

Chloé thinks: “Vanessa means well but she doesn’t get what I have to do.”

Thunderpunches

We only get a few seconds of calm before the Canadian unleashes a storm. After a few jabs, she charges towards Alesia and throws a rapid right cross that takes away the time needed to make any type of defensive move. PISH! A flush shot in the jaw.

Esther: “Potvin starts the round with bad intentions and the first effort is very successful.”

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Alesia is thunderstruck and her legs are a little wobbly.

Anna: “She’s hurt. That rocket of a right hand rocked her world and Chloé may have a clear advantage for the first time in this title match.”

The brunette knows this already. She continues the charge with the German backing up in an attempt to recuperate and avoid taking a fatal combination, or a one-shot blow that could send her to the floor.

It’s the girl in blue whose effort pays off. Alesia opens up to throw a right hand to defend herself, a mistimed punch launched under intense pressure. Chloé harvests her chin with a crunching left hook that stops the motion violently and makes her head turn.

A collective “oh!” comes out of the audience.

Esther: “The champion is in trouble! Potvin is on a roll and she may be working to build an opportunity to score one of her big knockouts.”

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Virani: “OMG. This doesn’t look good.”

Sophie: “HANG IN THERE, SIS!”

Virani: “I hope she can. This chick hits really hard.”

Sophie: “If only she can buy a few seconds. That’s all she really needs.”

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 38

When you’re in the boxing ring, you are very much alone. The opponent in front of you is professionally trained to give you a beating, and she will use every chance to do so. The referee is not an ally; only someone who may save you from a worse fate than defeat if you’re in trouble. When you are navigating tough waters, your mentality will either hasten that defeat or provide you with the strength to resist.

Although hurt, Alesia is instinctively able to dig trenches for a war. She pulls out new cards from her sleeves: holding, pushing, pulling, leaning in, leaning out. Everything to slow down the onslaught to avoid getting knocked out, even if it means being physically separated by the ref and given a verbal warning.

Lightning strikes

More than 40 seconds of negative tactics do enough to stem the tide. Alesia gives Chloé another push to make her go off balance for a moment. When she has her near the ropes, she winds up for a massive right cross. A clean, clear impact that makes the crowd cheer.

Esther: “Potvin just got struck by lightning! A super-fast right that caught everything in her jaw, for a painful collision!”

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 39-1

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 39-2

Regina: “That’s IT! You can do it!”

The two women traded big salvos in barely more than a minute, and the action becomes more contested. None wants to concede too much ground on the battlefield as the fight is very close. Missiles fly all over the place, with a few of the being very close to landing.

Alesia gets back into the defensive groove near the blue corner, dodging a straight left that might have been as powerful as Chloé’s usually potent right. She puts weight on her right foot and twists for an uppercut to the midsection. The challenger gurgles and the audience cheers further.

Esther: “Schumann is fighting back efficiently! Thunder struck and lightning hit back in this Round 9.”

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 40-1

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 40-2

Sucking it up

At this level in the boxing world, though, quitters are few and far between. You don’t climb to the Top 5 by thinking “I can’t do this”. You rather say “I’ll do it at any cost”. Pain? They’ll take it. Sweat? Easy shit. The women, in particular, are ready to endure the training, weight loss before weigh-in, or even a fight during “that time of the month” to fulfill the dream of being a champion.

Now, imagine what the Top 1 contender does in such a situation. She gives 110%.

That’s Chloé. She sucks up the pain and keeps making this a nailbiting battle until she can get a breakthrough. She does that early in the last minute of the round. Having resumed pressure, she sees Alesia finishing a combination with an incoming left hook. The challenger comes in and digs in with a short right hand to the ribs. PAFF.

Esther: “Chloé scores again! She isn’t going down without a fight!”

Anna: “She worked for years to get here. She certainly won’t kneel before anyone. Either you beat her or get beaten.”

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 41-1

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 41-2

Exquisite violence

It’s a frenzied and violent final minute of the round in which the two contestants land punches that give observers all kinds of reactions in the arena and at home. Some are on the edge of their seats. Others worried about their fighter taking a big blow. Casuals are munching on pizza without caring all that much. The geeks notice how two tiring women are still able to connect with exquisite technique and brutal power.

Until it’s Alesia’s turn to find a breakthrough. With 15 seconds left, Chloé throws a combination that is slightly more sloppy than before. The Diva tees off: she plants her feet firmly on the ground and puts every bit of her energy into a cannonball of a left hook. It’s accurate, getting 100% of Chloé’s right cheek. PISH!

Esther: “Schumann’s turn to score with a monster of a left hook, which makes Potvin’s arm flail around as though they were caught by a tornado’s wind!”

The crowd goes for another loud cheer in favour of the champion.

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 42-1

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 42-2

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 42-3

The woman with the best “seat” in the arena, Rebecca Linden, is the ref and even she is startled by the scene.

Rebecca thinks: “Maaaannnnn. I got 20 pounds on these chicks and I don’t fancy taking any of those punches. How can they even stand up after abusing each other that much?”

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 43

Champion and challenger ignore the pain, and redness that is building up on their faces, throwing hands until the bell rings. When it does so, the crowd erupts one more time to salute the demanding performance delivered by fistic artists.

Esther: “A spectacular round is now in the books, and the audience is raising the roof in Berlin. How do you explain Schumann’s and Potvin’s work in the last three minutes?”

Anna: “They threw caution to the wind, and they didn’t care. There’s a world title on the line, €1 million already split between them and a juicy winning bonus on the horizon at the end of the biggest fight of their respective careers. They’re going for it all.”

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 44-1

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 44-2

Motivation vs. tactics

Our gladiators sit down in their corners. It’s time to get a small water refill, a little facial treatment and, most importantly, advice from the coaches.

The visitor goes for motivation.

Vanessa: “Oof. Brutal round, but you fought well. I don’t think anyone could have stood in front of that chick in this kind of action, but you can. All we need here is to repeat to land the big shot that will end it. Go for it, Chloé. You haven’t done all these years of work to give half an effort in the final round. Get that title. Québec will be proud of you, but do it for yourself. Ok?”

Chloé: “Yeah.”

The German camp brings a bit more depth to the conversation.

Regina: “Some round.”

Alesia: “Do you think I’m getting the points there?”

Regina: “Too close to call. Except maybe that the judge from Belgium favours the champ in those circumstances. But we can’t count on it.”

Alesia: “Yeah.”

Regina: “Round 10 is a must-win. One last push, and I want it to be slightly more tactical. Lower your center of gravity. Let her make the first move, and react to dodge before throwing bombs on the counter. I want a laser focus. Accuracy and power generation. You can do that, right?”

The Diva nods. “I’ll perform.”

Regina: “Don’t think about a knockout. Think about precision. Let the moves flow, and remember what I told others in training. Final round of a championship fight, it’s close, the two boxers are getting tired but you must give that final effort to win.”

They stare into each other’s eyes.

Regina: “Do it.”

Esther: “The floor is yours for a scorecard update, Anna.”

Still even?

Anna: “Round 9 is the most difficult to score in the entire fight so far. Bombs landed on both sides, and a huge amount of bravery from the challenger to hurt the champion before getting hit back. I score it as a 10-10 for each side to have 86 points ahead of a decisive final round.”

Seconds later…

Sophie: “Boo!”

The analyst jumps when getting grabbed by Sophie.

Anna: “You little troublemaker!”

Sophie: “Hahaha!”

Alesia Schumann Chloé Potvin 45

Rebecca: “Seconds out!”

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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.
Chloé Potvin
CHLOÉ POTVIN
A Québec City fighter who follows the footsteps of many celebrated local boxers. A tough customer and contender in the Super Lightweight division.