Steffi’s reign begins
Moments after Steffi scored her career-high win against Alesia to snatch her world title belt, we have a post-match in Berlin. Unsurprisingly, the now-former champion is gloomy.
Esther: “This is a rare sight. Even in previous defeat, Alesia Schumann looked defiant. Today, her body language is that of a dispirited and devastated woman.”
Alesia: “I didn’t last three rounds. How bad is that. Pathetic.”
Sophie: “Don’t say that!”
Regina: “She’s right. You’re not pathetic. Tonight just wasn’t your night. One shot made this fight. You were doing everything well before that.”
Virani: “Look, there’s nothing I can say here to make it all better. But one loss is not a career. You got caught with a punch. It happens even to the greats. You won’t want to hear this now, but you’re more than capable of making this night nothing more than a blip in your career. You’ve got this, girl. You’ve always come back stronger from losses. This won’t be different. You’ve got friends around you, let us help you get through this. When you win your title back, we’ll celebrate even harder.”
Alesia: “Thanks. I appreciate it. But yeah. I have zero perspective tonight. It’s even hard to think straight.”
Oldest champion
Esther: “We see the German giving the American a word of congratulations, saluting her fans and exiting the stage before official particulars. Unusual from her, but I imagine she wants to be away from cameras for the time being.”
Anna: “What goes on through your mind when suffering defeat can be quite dark. Surely there will be critics who will complain about her not sticking around but I understand the feeling: you want the quiet time and space that only your dressing room can offer at this specific point in time.”
Veronica: “Referee Rebecca Linden stopped the action at 1:38 in the third round… in favour of the winner and NEW Super Lightweight champion of the world… Steffi ‘The Lady in Gray’ Slaaaaaterrrrrrrrrr!”
Maxim leads the way in applauding his protégée’s performance, and the crowd gives her a respectful response in return for a surprisingly dominant performance.
Esther: “At 45 years of age, Slater is now the oldest female boxing champion in history. She went in against the odds and scored a huge upset.”
Anna: “It’s Steffi’s moment. One she dreamed about for years. Defending a title is always harder than winning it, but no matter what happens in the future, no one can take this away from her.”
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Believe in yourself
Moments later, the new champion gets to deliver her state of mind.
Esther: “Congratulations Steffi. You just made boxing history by becoming the oldest female champion. How does it feel like?”
Steffi: “I don’t feel old tonight. I’m so thrilled! Becoming world champion is a dream come true. I thank Alesia and her camp for handing me a title shot. As I said before the match, she carried all the risks on her shoulders. She didn’t have to do this. I knew the odds were long but you can only achieve this by believing in yourself, as I do.”
Esther: “Does it bother you that she left the ring?”
Steffi: “Not at all. Losing a boxing match is a very personal experience. You got an opponent hammering you with her fists and then someone sticks a microphone in your face to ask you why you lost when you were expected to win. What matters, here and now, is that I won.”
Esther: “You had a difficult start but it seems that a punch in the side of the head turned things around in Round 2.”
Steffi: “Yeah, I don’t think she recuperated from that right hand and it was one-way traffic. But there’s more. I also felt physically stronger. When I held Alesia, she couldn’t escape and I was able to hit her. Getting rough inside gave me an advantage and I had plans to use more of that.”
Esther: “You must be well aware that there is a rematch clause in the contract.”
Steffi: “I expect her camp to trigger it. Part of the game, and I’m ready to confirm my status as a world champion.”
Esther: “Thank you, and congrats again.”
No excuses
Esther: “On to Regina Halmich’s reaction. Would you say that a punch in the temple was Alesia’s undoing?”
Regina: “Yes it was. She was dizzy and unstable on her feet after that. We needed to waste the third round but weren’t given the space to do it. Steffi finished quickly, before Alesia could recover. We’re not happy about this, but that’s boxing. One punch can win a fight.”
Esther: “Did you guys take Steffi lightly? Was this supposed to be just a tune-up?”
Regina: “That’s not how we work. No opponent is safe and we knew that Steffi was stronger at Super Lightweight than at Featherweight. Alesia worked hard in training camp, as she always does. She didn’t have an Apollo Creed moment if that’s what you have in mind.”
Esther: “Did the mind games affect your fighter? She did face pressure given her past record against a similar opponent who had nothing to lose.”
Regina: “There are no excuses. Give the new champion credit for the win. You saw Alesia starting strongly until she took a decisive shot.”
Esther: “Fair enough. Thank you.”
Esther Schouten closes the telecast with a statement inspired by Larry Merchant’s post-match reflections.
Esther: “Every once in a while, boxing offers us the sight of a great champion falling at the hands of an underdog. The likes of Mike Tyson and Lennox Lewis have suffered this type of defeat before bouncing back to cement their legacies. Alesia Schumann faces the same test of character after an upset. The response will define her ability to put her stamp on boxing history. Thanks for watching, and so long from Berlin.”
Here for you
In the dressing room, Alesia is given privacy. She showers in silence, too overwhelmed to think and make sense of the night’s events so shortly after their occurence.
Only one person knows that she can get in without her presence being an intrusion. That’s Anna Schwartz, who is now off-duty. She knocks on the door to warn that she’s about to enter.
Anna: “Hey.”
Alesia: “Hey.”
Anna: “I’m not here to give you ‘the talk’. I just wanna say that I love you and that I’m here for you.”
Alesia: “Love you too. I just wanna get away. I want a vacation. Far away from all this.”
Anna: “Yeah. Let’s do that. Wherever you want. Just us.”
The couple gets a few minutes of quiet time before Regina knocks on the door and gets in.
Regina: “Time’s up. Let’s have your check-up at the hospital. After that, you need a good night’s sleep.”
Alesia: “If I can sleep after that.”
Anna smiles: “She’ll sleep. I’ll tuck her in if I have to.”
Social reactions
The fight result went viral on social media. What did other boxers have to say?
@alesiaschumann was nearly unbeatable but Steffi found a way. I really don’t think Alesia has said her last word, though.
*Checks notes*
I LASTED LONGER THAN ALESIA SCHUMANN AGAINST STEFFI SLATER.
Think about that for a second.