It seems an age since I was last here so apologies to any fans I might have. Life and writers block have both got in the way of my new stories but, finally, I'm back. This story picks up from the cyber fight I had with Cinnamon Cougar and covers the final of the 7th CLAWS senior boxing tournament in October 2021.
I have several more new stories in the works so please watch out for more from me.
Luv Ellen x
My encounter with Cinnamon had left me traumatised. I had managed to beat her and evict her from my shop but it had been a close-run thing and it was only her over confidence that gave me the chance. She almost had me beaten and I was haunted by the prospect of what she would have done to me had she won.
After I’d thrown her out of the shop, I locked the door and phoned the first person I could think of, Terri. As I tried to explain what had happened, I burst into tears. She reassured me, telling me to stay where I was and promising that she was coming to my aid and would be with me in half an hour or so. Then she hung up. In a state of shock, I collapsed to the floor weeping, hoping that she would hurry.
I must have passed out because it seemed only seconds later that the phone rang and Terri’s calming voice assured me that she was outside the back door and there was no one around. I got to my feet and walked over to the door and cautiously let my friend in before closing it quickly behind her.
Once inside she turned and looked at me in my naked and dishevelled form. A sad smile crossed her face as she said:
“Oh Ellen, look at the state of you. Give me a hug and tell me what happened.”
She spread her arms and I fell into them, weeping with huge sobs and pressing my face into her angora sweater as she cradled me against her chest. Slowly, between sobs, I explained what had happened. All the time Terri stroked my hair and spoke in soft, reassuring tones:
“There, there…Never mind, Ellen…You’re safe now…I’m here for you.”
Eventually I began to calm down. Terri settled me in my office chair and made us both a cup of tea. As I sipped my tea, Terri tended to my wounds. Truth be told I’d got off lightly. She’d drawn blood when she raked her nails across my tits and I had the beginnings of a fat lip but, despite all the slapping, my face was largely unmarked. Terri wiped the blood from my boobs with a wet wipe, smiled at me and said:
“You’ll live.”
I laughed and winced at the same time. My ribs were certainly bruised but the pain between my legs was easing. I slowly started to feel better and, once we’d finished the tea, Terri said:
“Let’s go and inspect the damage – and get you dressed.”
It was only then that I remembered I was still completely naked. My clothes, or what was left of them, were in the store room. Terri led the way and I followed her, my eyes shut, worried what I would see and what Carrie would say when she found out what had happened to the stock.
“Well, that could have been a lot worse.” Said Terri.
I cautiously opened my eyes. She was right. My jeans, sweater and deck shoes were still in a neat pile where I’d left them by the door. My bra and knickers were in tatters in the middle of the floor but most of the stock was still on the shelves, protected by the sheets, and what had been knocked off was, mercifully, undamaged. Apart from my underwear, everything was still intact. I slipped on my jeans, shoes and sweater and stuffed the remains of my underwear into my pocket while Terri busied herself picking up fallen items and straightening the arrangements on the shelves. Once everything was tidied up and I was dressed she said:
“Right, I could use a drink and I’m sure you could too – where’s the pub?”
It was already 8pm by the time we walked into The Smuggler’s Rest, my local – just 100 yards from the shop and, conveniently, half way between the shop and my cottage.
We settled in a quiet corner, Terri got us a couple of beers and, with her help, I began to plan my next few days.
Two months after I’d first met Lynne and Nat at the beach I was really getting into my new role as trainer to them and two other girls: Lynne’s friend Sue, a seasoned underground cat fighter, and Rylie, a young American exchange student who had been a protégé of one of Peggy Brown’s opponents back in to US.
The latest recruits to CLAWS had yet to fight in anger at the club but all were now included on the roster for 2022 and we training hard. I had a general combat training session scheduled with them at Marshall’s for the next day but it was obvious to both Terri and myself that I was in no fit state to host that session.
Terri, bless her, offered to do it for me but I reminded her that she was defending her senior boxing title in just three days’ time and should be resting and training herself. Terri, being Terri, didn’t miss a beat. She whipped out her phone and flicked through her contacts before hitting the call button.
“Hi Cass, how are you doing?...Yes, I’m fine, looking forward to Friday, are you coming?...That’s great. Look, you couldn’t do us a favour could you?...No, it’s not for me, it’s for Ellen…Yes, she’s fine – well, she’s been better but she’s okay…”
I scowled at her and she scowled back.
“…Yes, I’m afraid so…jumped in her own shop but she saw them off, I’m with her now…”
I gestured to Terri to keep her voice down. I didn’t want half the pub to know what had happened. Terri continued in a whisper:
“…anyway, she has a training session scheduled with her girls tomorrow but I think she should give it a miss. Could you be a love and take the session for her…thanks honey, that means a lot, we owe you…yes, she’s fine physically, just a little shocked, we’re having a quiet drink…Yes, I’ll look after her and make sure she gets home okay. See you Friday.”
With that she hung up and that was that, Cassy Langford would take my training session for me.
We finished our drink and Terri walked me home and tucked me up in bed. I half hoped she stay the night but she’d promised to be home by midnight so she let herself out. As she made her way out, I wished her luck for Friday.
“I don’t need it.” She replied, “With you in my corner I’ll wipe the floor with her.”
“What do you mean ‘with me in your corner’?”
“Sorry, hasn’t Gabi told you? She’s refereeing and she wants you and Suzi to be the corner girls. You’ll be in the blue corner so you’ll have Emma, Ildiko and me to look after.”
I guess I should be flattered but I wasn’t sure I shared her confidence, particularly given she was going up against a girl almost 11 years her junior who had almost beaten her last time out.
I still craved a night of passion with Terri but, once again, it was not to be. Yes, we’d shared a bed on both of our visits to Sian but in both cases, they had turned into four-in-a-bed romps with our host and her daughter. I had yet to get Terri alone and I fell asleep dreaming of a day when that might happen.
************
The next morning, I showered and checked myself for damage. My lip was barely swollen and a little foundation would cover the evidence of the slaps my face had received. Everything else would be covered up.
After breakfast I phoned each of my charges explaining that I wasn’t feeling great and that Cassy would take their training that evening. Then I set off to open the shop.
For an off-season midweek we had quite a busy day. I kept an eye out for my visitor from the previous evening but there was no sign of her, in fact I never saw her again. I may have winced once or twice during the day but my makeup did a good job and by the end of the day my swollen lower lip was back to normal. If Carrie suspected anything she didn’t let on.
Gabi did call me and filled me in on my duties for Friday night. She also confirmed I could bring two guests. Restrictions had eased a lot over the summer and, although the qualifying rounds of the senior boxing tournament had been fought in the open air in the ring in Jay’s courtyard, the final would be indoors. After 18 months the ring room at Marshall’s would finally see women fighting in front of an audience, albeit smaller than usual as social distancing rules still applied in doors.
My choice of guests was obvious, only two of my new recruits had expressed an interest in boxing. Sue was a catfighter from the underground scene, she was happy to wrestle but had no interest in putting the gloves on. Rylie, likewise, was keen to continue the wrestling she’d started back in the US a few years before. Even so, having spun the yarn to excuse myself from the Wednesday evening training session, I waited until Thursday morning to call Lynne and Nat and invite them along.
I was pleased when they both accepted and even more pleased on Friday afternoon when Lynne picked me up in her Golf GTi and then drove us to Nat’s before heading for Marshall’s.
***********
Friday, October 22nd, 2021. Tonight we would see the final of the 7th senior boxing tournament and the first one I hadn’t contested. The first three tournaments had been simple knockout competitions with eight fighters held over three days but the last four had copied the round robin format of the wrestling tournaments using just six fighters, each fighting all five opponents in five qualifying rounds before meeting again in a final face off where the final order (including the champion) would be decided. Normally the girls would have had two months between each fight but Covid restrictions had meant that this year the programme had to be accelerated and it had been just five months since the first round of qualifying. By the end of the evening either Terri or Shaz would be crowned senior boxing champion.
On the way I told the girls more about my history with Terri. How ‘miss Tee’ had spotted me fighting in Sian’s barn and decided she wanted to take me on. How she contacted Erica to arrange a ‘best of three’ challenge. How she beat me at boxing and catfighting but lost to me at wrestling. (I didn’t mention how I humiliated her by peeing on her unconscious body but I wondered whether the video of that fight had found its way into Ricky’s collection – if it had, Lynne didn’t mention it.) How she had then joined the senior boxing tournament in Emma’s place and had beaten me to take the title on a controversial decision. How I had won the rematch (Lynne had seen that one) but lost the senior wrestling title to her. Finally, I told them how, after all the acrimony between us, she had admitted she only challenged me because she admired me and how, following a trip to Sian’s the year before, we had become best friends.
I also told them briefly about the other two girls in our corner tonight. Both women had extensive league histories before joining the senior tournament.
Emma had joined the boxing league in 1997 when she was 27 years old. The solidly built strawberry blonde initially proved a formidable opponent but, after a string of early victories, she faded somewhat and it was 18 months before she claimed her first title win. A further three title wins followed before a run of defeats, including one at the hands of Ildiko in her first league match, saw her drop out of the league at the end of 2002. That same year she entered the wrestling ring for the first time when she took on, and humiliatingly defeated, fellow boxer Lorraine. At 32 Emma took a two-year break, during which she gave birth to daughter Chantelle, before returning to the wrestling ring in late 2004. A string of defeats saw her dropped from the rankings after just four matches. Six months later she returned to the boxing ring where she met with more success, scoring six successive victories before retiring as undefeated champion, aged 37, at the end of 2006.
Emma was both the reason why we had a senior boxing tournament and the reason I took up boxing in the first place. It was Howard who put up the purse for the first senior boxing tournament on condition that Emma, then just turned 40, would contest it. She did, and she won the title. Along the way she had to take on a rookie who’d been bought in to make up the numbers, a girl by the name of Ellen Shaw. Emma was only my third ever boxing opponent but for the first two rounds of our fight I had her on the back foot – then she simply took me apart. It would be five years before I faced her in the ring again in what was the 4th tournament and the first ‘round robin’ one. By that time, I’d become a skilled and experienced boxer, I was actually senior champion, but she took me out with a TKO in the fifth round – the only fighter other than Christine (who ultimately won that tournament) to beat me.
Having missed the 5th tournament following a riding accident, Emma challenged me to a fight to prove her fitness before coming back for the 6th tournament. Once again, she knocked me out – this time in the fourth round. Our final encounter occurred at the start of the 6th tournament when I finally managed a points win over her. Sadly, for me, that was my swansong. Emma made the final (losing to Terri) while I finished a lowly fifth and decided to call time on my tournament career.
This year Emma, now 52, has suffered a similar fate to me two years earlier. A knockout win over Donna and a narrow points victory over an out of form Terri had given her just 5 points in the qualifying rounds, leaving her bottom of the stack and facing the only woman she’d knocked out for a last chance at 5th place.
Four years younger than Emma, leggy brunette Ildiko had joined CLAWS in 2002 when the kick boxing club she had belonged to in another city had closed down. As CLAWS didn’t do kick boxing she joined the boxing league, where she was joined by Korean-Canadian and fellow refugee from the defunct kick boxing club, Lillian. The pair gave a number of kick boxing displays until Lillian left the club in 2010. In 2003 Ildiko began wrestling as well and, with the exception of a brief break from boxing in 2007, she fought in both leagues until 2013.
She won both titles on several occasions and, at the age of 40, she became only the second woman after Suzi to retire holding both titles.
The following year she took part in the 5th senior wrestling tournament where, despite beating me by 4 falls to 3 and knocking Clare out, she finished a disappointing 5th overall.
Three years later she took part in the 5th senior boxing tournament, replacing Nancy. She put on an impressive display, finishing 3rd in qualifying, but was denied the prise money by a determined Lorraine, who she had knocked out at the start of the tournament and who repaid the complement in the final.
The first time we met with the gloves on I managed to beat her on points but the second time, two years later, she knocked me out in the 4th round. Seemingly always the bridesmaid she was denied a shot at the title that year by Emma and now, two years later again, she’d been denied by Shaz – despite actually beating the newcomer on points. Three tournaments and three third place finishes in qualifying, would she take the third-place prize money for a third time in a row tonight?
We arrived at Marshall’s in plenty of time and I left Lynne and Nat with the other ‘guests’ while I headed for the blue corner dressing room to fulfil my corner woman duties. I was pleased to find all three fighters already there and getting changed ready for their matches. All three seemed excited and positive as we happily chatted while I taped their hands, fixed their hair, tied their boots and applied Vaseline to their eyebrows and nipples in anticipation of the beatings they were likely to receive. When the three fighters and I filed out to the applause of the small crowd I was pleased to see ‘my girls’ sitting in the front row near the blue corner looking excited at the prospect of the evening’s entertainment.
Gabi entered the ring room and climbed into the ring. She stood for a moment, an empress in the heart of her empire, before beckoning the first contestants and their seconds to join her. First into the ring with me was Emma, ready to face Donna, the only other blonde in the tournament, for the wooden spoon.
It seemed a bit strange looking out to the seats and seeing small huddles of women sitting in their ‘bubbles’ or individual girls with vacant seats either side of them. Instead of the usual 100 or so there were just 50 spectators but I knew these fights were also going out on a live stream to an audience of a couple of thousand.
While Gabi welcomed the audience, both physical and virtual, back to the ring room for the first true event in 18 months (the final of the senior wrestling tournament a year before had taken place without an audience) I took a moment to cast my eye over the faces staring at us from the seats. Most were familiar but I spotted a couple near the red corner that were new. An attractive black girl in her early thirties and a slightly younger looking strawberry blonde with the longest hair I had ever seen. Talk about Rapunzel – this girl could wipe her own arse on her hair (not that I’d recommend it, of course). I knew that, as a trainer next season, my main competitors would be the double team of Suzi and her former protégé Emily. They were already training Cerys, who seemed destined to become the new league wrestling champion, and a couple of other girls and I suspected these attractive young ladies were their latest recruits.
Welcome over, Gabi called the two fighters to the centre of the ring to introduce them:
“Ladies and gentlemen, in the blue corner, aged 52, standing 5’8”, weighing 150lbs and measuring 38C, 28, 44, Emma!”
The small crowd applauded as Emma slipped off her robe to reveal her near naked form with her trademark yellow string bikini thong. She had worn these (I assume she had more than one) in every fight she’d ever had at CLAWS. At the front the fabric formed a diamond shape pointing up to her navel. Two strings on each side ran from the corners and top of the diamond, over the top of her hips and joined at the back to form a single narrow band of fabric that descended into the cleft between her ample butt cheeks, re-emerging at the bottom of the diamond that covered the thatch of her pussy.
Gabi continued:
“And in the red corner, aged 42, standing 5’6”, weighing 135lbs and measuring 36B, 25, 36, Donna!”
Donna slipped off her gown to reveal a simple white cotton tanga thong that also disappeared into her arse and barely covered her clearly shave haven at the front. While it was less elaborate (and, indeed, simply less) than Emma’s outfit it was also instantly recognisable as an outfit she had worn in many of her league matches.
Gabi briefly reminded them both of the rules before sending them to their corners to await the opening bell. One quirk of the CLAWS rules is that, age aside, stats are taken at the start of the season, not before each fight. A glance at Donna told me that she had gained a few pounds over the summer and was probably closer to 140lbs and 36C-26-38 than the figures Gabi had given. I’m sure that a few of the spectators noticed that as well. None the less, Donna looked stunning. Both women had breast length blonde hair tied back in a pony tail but the younger woman had the advantage in looks, particularly as she stood in her corner bouncing impatiently on her heels, her small, firm breasts jiggling.
Despite finishing with the least number of points Emma had actually fared better than her opponent in the qualifying rounds. Two knockout defeats, in the 5th and 6th rounds respectively and a points loss at the hands of Ildiko belied her lowly status. Donna, by contrast, had suffered three knockout defeats, two in the 4th round at the hands of Shaz and Emma herself, and a devastating defeat to Terri where her second threw in the towel just a minute into the 3rd round.
I took a moment to remind Emma of this before the time keeper called seconds out and I left her to her fate.
The bell sounded for round one and the fighters moved out of their corners and began dancing around, feeling each other out. Nothing much happened for the first 90 seconds beyond a few jabs being thrown and easily deflected. But then Donna looked to liven things up and closed on the older woman, firing off a series of hard lefts and rights. Emma covered up, rode out the assault and then replied in kind, pushing the younger woman back into a corner and gaining the first point of the match as Donna took a standing count of eight. Clearly frustrated, Donna went on the attack herself and it wasn’t long before it was Emma taking a standing count after a right hook to the jaw saw her turning her back on her opponent. For the remained of the round they battered each other around the ring but neither scored another decisive blow and when the bell rang after three minutes the sweat-soaked pair gratefully broke off their attacks and retreated to their corners.
As she settled on her stool and I began to tend to her, I congratulated Emma on her performance. Personally, I felt she had had the edge throughout the round but with no knockdown and a standing count each it was no surprise the judges split the points and both women were on four points as the bell sounded for the second round.
Any slight advantage Emma may have had at the end of the first round quickly evaporated in the second as Donna came out guns blazing and quickly took control of the action. A right hook to the jaw after about 45 seconds put Emma down for a count of eight and, from that moment on, she was firmly on the defensive. A second knockdown followed a minute later and she went down for a third time 30 seconds before the round ended. Taking the full nine count to regain her feet, Emma was quickly in trouble again and the final bell found her backed into our corner, narrowly avoiding a standing count.
At the sound of the bell Emma dropped gratefully onto her stool and I set about the task of reviving and reassuring the former champion. There was no denying that the younger woman had owned the second round and it came as no surprise that she took all the judges’ points to move into a commanding 15-3 lead.
Emma already looked quite exhausted as she flopped on her stool. I fanned her, mopped the sweat from her brow and reassured her that she just needed to take the fight to the younger woman in the next round. I’d listened to Erica giving me the same sort of advice for years but I could tell from her expression that Emma wasn’t taking it in. Psychologically I think she had lost this fight even before she stepped into the ring. Compared to her opponent she looked old and tired. The spark that had driven her to so many victories in her league years had gone and there was nothing to replace it.
There was no let up for Emma in the third round as she was quickly forced to hunker down under a barrage of blows from Donna. As she started to wilt under the assault, Emma went for the cinch but Donna pushed her away. A left and a right to the breasts pushed my girl back onto the ropes and, as Gabi went to intervene, a left upper cut to the jaw dropped Emma to her hands and knees. Donna backed off to a neutral corner and Gabi started counting as Emma stared at the canvas, sucking in huge gulps of air.
Emma made the most of the count, pushing herself to her knees and just to her feet as the count reached nine. She indicated to Gabi that she was happy to continue but a glance at her pale face and unfocused eyes had me reaching for a towel as she hesitantly raised her guard and Gabi waved Donna back in.
Mercifully, Donna made short work of it, brushing Emma’s flimsy guard aside before delivering a left-right combination to the abs and jaw that left Emma hunched forward and exposed to the left upper cut that deposited her on her back. Clearly out cold, Emma made no attempt to move as Gabi counted over her.
At six Gabi decided it was all over, stopped counting and signalled for the bell. If nothing else Gabi had saved her the humiliation of being counted out. By stopping the fight Gabi had made it a TKO, not a KO. A subtle difference perhaps but a crucial one in what I already knew was likely to be Emma’s last fight.
At the sound of the bell, I was quickly in the ring and at Emma’s side. Fortunately, she was already stirring and in less than a minute I had her back on her feet and back in our corner, Gabi gave us another minute or so before moving to the centre of the ring and beckoning Donna and Emma to join her. Taking hold of their wrists she announced:
“Ladies and gentlemen. After one minute and ten seconds of round three I have stopped the fight. Your winner, by a technical knockout – Donna!”
She raised Donna’s arm to much applause and, to my surprise, no cries of protest about the rather unorthodox decision to stop the fight rather than count Emma out. Donna had been denied a clear knockout victory but she had still been victorious. Gabi lowered Donna’s arm and continued:
“And your gallant loser – Emma!”
Again, there was applause. As she lowered her arm, Emma turned to Gabi and whispered to her. Gabi nodded and raised her hands for silence. I knew what was coming even before Emma took a step forward and spoke – I’d been in this same position two years ago:
“Ladies and gentlemen, it has been 25 years since I first stepped into this ring. I was a young woman then, I’m an old woman now. My opponent on that day, and many others, sadly can’t be with us today but I know she’s watching on the live stream…”
She gazed into the overhead camera which had descended to hover a few feet in front of her face.
“…so I’ll just say: ‘Hi, Lorraine, I’ll miss our little encounters, maybe we’ll meet again one day.’”
Tears welled up in her eyes as she continued:
“Fighting a CLAWS has been a blast but it’s time for this old lady to call it a day. What you have just witnessed was my last fight in a CLAWS tournament. Sorry to go out with a whimper rather than a bang but you will not see me in this ring again. I think you all for your support. Goodbye.”
What she said came as no surprise to me. When I was taping her hands in the dressing room earlier Emma had told me that if she lost tonight, she would be calling it a day. For her, the fighting was over. Her only consolation was that her daughter Chantelle, now 19, had her sights on following her mother in the boxing ring. There was little doubt in my mind that we would see Emma at CLAWS again, but in the role of trainer, not fighter.
I crossed the ring holding her gown and put my arms around her as she turned to me in tears. I hugged her to me and she pressed her face to my chest, sobbing, as I wrapped her gown around her and led her back to our corner. As I did so her words echoed in my head – ‘…in a CLAWS tournament’. Just like me two years earlier, Emma had left her options open. Maybe we hadn’t seen the last of her after all.
Back in our corner I removed her gloves and passed them down to Nat, who was waiting next to the ring apron. Emma climbed out of the ring and took her seat as Ildiko stepped up and slipped through the ropes to join me.
Ildiko’s opponent in the battle for 3rd place was Marshall’s Chief Financial Officer, Emily. Five years younger than the Hungarian, Emily was returning to the ring after a six-year break during which she’d given birth to two daughters. It had taken her a while to find her feet, losing her first two qualifying matches against Donna and Shaz before scoring a devastating 3rd round victory over reigning champion Terri. Terri may have been a bit below parr (she’d taken a beating from Mandy at Sian’s place a couple of weeks before) but it was still a timely reminder of how Emily was force to be reckoned with.
Ildiko knocked Emily out in their qualifier but a further knockout victory over Emma has secured her 7 points and 4th place overall in qualifying. There was no doubt that Emily was back on form for her final match of the tournament.
The pair had met many times in both the boxing and wrestling leagues with Emily generally getting the better of their encounters. But more recently it had been Ildiko who dominated, including scoring a devastating knockout win over the younger woman just one minute into the third round of their qualifying match.
Once again Gabi did the introductions, this time starting with the red corner:
“Ladies and gentlemen, in the red corner, aged 42, standing 5’6”, weighing 130lbs and measuring 36C, 25, 37, Emily!”
Emily slipped off her robe. I have to admit that for a woman in her early forties with two children under five she looked in fantastic shape. Her breasts stood proud, her belly was tight and her bum, always pert, was as firm as ever, clad, as it was, in her ‘uniform’ of royal blue bikini briefs with white trim. Her shoulder length dark brown hair was tied in a short ponytail. She may have been out of the fight game for almost seven years but there was no mistaking she was back and meant business.
Gabi continued:
“And in the blue corner, aged 47, standing 5’9”, weighing 140lbs and measuring 36B, 26, 36, Ildiko!”
Unlike most fighters Ildiko (her name means ‘warrior princess’ in her native Hungarian) doesn’t have a uniform as such but favours a selection on tiny G-strings that barely cover anything. She keeps her pussy shaven but it’s not unusual for her to end a fight with her thong deep in her vagina and her labia majora on full display.
On this occasion when she slipped off her gown, she revealed a tiny purple thong with a small humming bird where the fabric joined at the top of her delectable bum crack. Her long black hair was platted into a single ponytail that stretched to the small of her back. She may have been five years older than her opponent but her regal bearing, pert B cup breasts and almost invisible outfit made her just as sexy as the MILF she was facing, if not more so.
Unlike Emma and Donna, Emily and Ildiko held nothing back and came out fists flying from the opening bell. Emily scored first, about a minute into the round, when a right cross connected with Ildiko’s jaw and sent her spinning into the ropes, Ildiko made a mad grab at the ropes to stop herself going down but missed and ended up on one knee staring out at the audience.
She was quickly back on her feet and took the fight to the younger woman. The frantic pace continued with Ildiko dominating the action until she was finally rewarded when a straight right to Emily’s left breast brought her guard down and a left hook sent her face first to the mat.
Emily was somewhat slower getting to her feet than Ildiko, pushing herself to her hands and knees before getting to her feet as the count reached eight.
The knockdown put Emily on the defensive and, while the pace dropped as the round drew to a close, Ildiko continued to dominate – using her height and reach advantage to good effect. Emily went down a second time when Ildiko’s right hook connected with her temple but she was quickly back on her feet and the round ended without further incident.
When Ildiko came back to her corner I congratulated her on her performance and busied myself mopping the sweat from her body and shaking out the tension in her muscles. The second knock down swung it in Ildiko’s favour and she went into round two leading by 8 points to 4, sadly that lead was short lived.
After her solid performance in the first round, the second round proved my girl’s undoing. She dominated the early action but then a wayward swing left her exposed. Emily slipped inside the older woman’s defences and pounded her tits, pushing her onto the ropes before a right cross to the temple knocked her to the canvas. Ildiko made it up at nine but she was clearly shaken and dazed.
It’s fair to say that from that moment on the round was Emily’s. Ildiko was constantly on the back foot as Emily powered into her. A further three knockdowns followed before the bell bought the carnage to a merciful end.
My girl staggered back to our corner looking thoroughly defeated and it was all I could do restore her confidence and get a smile back on her face before it was time for round three. With the judges’ scores added to her tally, Emily advanced to 18 points while Ildiko remained on 8. The time keeper called seconds out and the pair prepared to face off again.
The furious pace of the first round had abated and, initially at least, Ildiko held her own. She gave as good as she got but couldn’t land a decisive blow and put the younger woman down. Half way through the round she seemed to have regained her swagger and was dominating the action. I was confident she would claw back at least a few points from the judges.
But then things went from bad to worse. Throwing caution to the wind both women dropped the guards and went on the attack. I watched in horror as Emily’s loping right hook crashed into Ildiko’s temple just as she fired of a right upper cut of her own. Ildiko’s legs buckled and the blow intended to part Emily’s tits hit her square in the love box.
My hand instinctively went to cover my eyes as the Hungarian crashed to the mat and Emily’s gloved hands went to her crotch as she dropped to her knees. Tee’s law came into immediate effect. The bell sounded and Gabi started counting.
As the victim of the low blow Emily was, of course, exempt from this count and could stay down until the start of the next round but Ildiko has just 10 seconds to make it to her feet or lose the fight. As the count rose, I looked across at Ildiko, she had rolled onto her belly and was staring at me with a dazed expression on her face.
“Get up you stupid cow!” I screamed at her, “You’re being counted out.”
While Emily remained on her knees, Ildiko pushed herself up and staggered to her feet as the count reached nine. The bell sounded again to signal the official end of the round.
She made her way unsteadily back to our corner and collapsed onto her stool. The one thing we didn’t need at this stage was a low blow. I knew it and even if Ildiko didn’t, she found out soon enough as Gabi came over to caution her.
Gabi’s lecture on low blows reminded us all that Ildiko held the dubious distinction of being the only CLAWS boxer ever disqualified for delivering two low blows in the same fight. That decision had cost her her first title almost twenty years ago and, of course, Gabi had been the one who’d made it. Already 12 points behind, thanks to ‘Tee’s law’ Ildiko had just dropped another 6 points and was unlikely to collect many from the judges.
Sure enough, when the judges’ scores came in, they scored it 5-1 to Emily and suddenly it was Emily 32, Ildiko 9 as the call for seconds out came ahead of the bell for round four.
Emily may have had a commanding lead but the low blow seemed to have temporarily knocked the fight out of her and it was Ildiko all the way in the fourth round. Although she remained on her feet, Emily was constantly on the defensive and Gabi stepped in four times to administer standing counts to the younger woman. The round ended with Emily backed into the ropes and she narrowly avoided another standing count as the bell rang before Gabi could intervene.
Unsurprisingly Ildiko took all six judges’ points and closed the gap to just 13 points as they prepared for round five.
Just 13 points – it doesn’t sound much if you say it quickly. It’s also not an insurmountable challenge if your opponent is fading. But Emily had recovered somewhat between rounds and the fifth round was much more even. Both women were tiring and the pace of the fight had slowed considerably but neither showed signs of giving up. There was definitely more feeling each other out and shadow boxing but when they came together they mixed it up with determination.
The main action occurred around the two-minute mark when Ildiko’s frustration pushed her to attack her younger rival. Fists flashed and a right hook connected with Emily’s temple sending her crashing to the mat.
Sadly for my girl her punch lacked the power to put the opponent away. Emily was on one knee at five but took the full nine count to recover and burn a few seconds off the clock. The round continued without further incident and both girls seemed grateful to hear the bell and quickly went back to their corners.
The gap had closed and the single knockdown also gained Ildiko four of the judges’ points, giving her six to Emily’s two so it was now 34-25. No longer ‘just 13 points’ but even taking 9 points in a single round would mean dominating it and I wasn’t sure that, at 47, Ildiko had the energy left after five brutal rounds. Putting my own reservations to one side I gave her my final pep talk of the fight:
“Yes, you’re still behind but you’re gaining on her. Keep attacking. Two more knockdowns and you’ll be ahead. You can do this. Go for it, girl. Knock her down. Knock her out. I know you can. Just get out there and do it.”
I had no doubt that Suzi was saying something to Emily like:
“Hang on in there. You’ve just got to make it through the next three minutes. If you see an opening hit her. She’s as tired as you are. You’ve got this. You’ve beaten her three times for every one she’s beaten you. Stay calm. Keep out of harm’s way. You’ve got this.”
The main difference between us was that Suzi would have done that with Emily dozens of times, after all, she had been Emily’s coach for 17 years. By contrast I was new to this and I hardly knew the Hungarian beauty I was tending to. All I knew, from personal experience, was that Ildiko had a punch that could lay this old lady out and, hopefully, could do the same to Emily in the final round of the fight.
The bell sounded for the start of round six and my girl went out on the attack. For the first minute or so Ildiko chased her younger opponent around the ring. Emily defended well but, despite all her ducking and diving, Ildiko finally managed to land a solid blow to her temple that sent her to the mat for a count of nine.
A second knockdown followed a few seconds later and my heart leapt. Against the odds Ildiko had managed to close the gap to just four points. If she could hang on for the last 90 seconds or so she’d win the fight.
When the action resumed Ildiko went back on the attack and Emily was soon in trouble again but then – disaster! A desperate, wild swing of Emily’s right hook connected with Ildiko’s left temple and she spun around, staggering slightly. Gabi quickly stepped in and gave my girl a standing count of eight.
Ildiko gave it her all in the final minute of the round but, despite her best efforts, Emily was still on her feet when the final bell sounded. I immediately climbed into the ring, as a tearful Ildiko made her way to the corner, and hugged the brave warrior. We both knew that, irrespective of how the judges scored the round, she had lost the fight. She was five points behind and the standing count she’d taken would deny her the full six judges’ points she needed for victory.
Sure enough, when the final scores flashed up although my girl had taken the round by four points to two, she had lost the match by three points. Gabi called the fighters to the centre of the ring and announced:
“Ladies and gentlemen. Your winner and our 3rd place fighter in this year’s senior tournament. By 37 points to 34 – Emily!”
Despite expecting the result, Ildiko looked crushed as Gabi raised Emily’s arm in victory and hung her head when Gabi raised her own arm as ‘the gallant loser’ before walking despondently back to the blue corner.
Once again, I was there with hugs, a gown and a hanky to wipe away the tears. I felt for Ildiko – she had deserved to be in the final, instead she finished out of the prize money. What can you say in this sort of situation? “Better luck next time” really doesn’t cover it.
Two fights down and two defeats for the blue corner. Suddenly I began to fear a whitewash. Despite her confidence a few days earlier I was concerned that Terri might lack the stamina to defeat the young challenger. After all, she had only just scraped a victory earlier in the year and Shaz had shown herself to be a formidable opponent against the other tournament contenders.
To their credit both Emma and Ildiko stayed to watch the final fight. I had no doubt that they both felt like shit, they’d both taken and pounding and neither had anything to show for it. None the less they cheered, along with everyone else, when Terri and Shaz climbed into the ring. As Terri stepped up, I saw Lynne beckon to me and bent down to hear what she said:
“Why do they all have such tiny tits. Ellen? Can’t you box with big boobs?” She demanded. It was a fair question, particularly given the size of her own boobs, but this probably wasn’t the time to ask it. I knew Terri was sensitive about the (lack of) size of her breasts and hoped she hadn’t heard the buxom blonde’s question.
“I’ll explain later,” I hissed in reply, adding: “big boobs aren’t a great benefit in boxing, they’re easy to hit and they throw you off balance. That said there are some very successful busty boxers. I’ll tell you about them sometime.”
That seemed to satisfy her and I turned back to my final fighter of the evening to help her preparations. Thankfully Terri showed no signs of having heard Lynne’s comments. She simply gave me a nervous smile and said: “Well, this is it. Here goes nothing.”
‘No, here goes everything.’ I thought. Terri had been devastated to lose the wresting title last year, particularly given the way Judy humiliated her, and I knew she was desperate to win tonight. What I said to her was:
“You’re the best, you know that, go out there and show everyone.”
She smiled at that and then, as Gabi called the fighters to the centre of the ring to make the announcements, stepped forward with a confident swagger. Gabi introduced Terri first:
“Ladies and gentlemen. In the blue corner, aged 53, standing 5’9”, weighing 155lbs and measuring 38b, 29, 42, our reigning senior boxing champion – Terri!”
As the audience applauded, Terri slipped off her gown and gave them a quick twirl. Like Ildiko, Terri’s uniform was a style rather than a specific garment, albeit somewhat more demure than Ildiko’s minute G-strings. Today was a slight departure from her normal striped midi-briefs, but one she’d used a few times before, as she revealed a pair of white cotton knickers with a rose motive on the front and lilac lace trim. Her hair was tied, like Ildiko’s, in a single plait that stretched down her back to the waistband of her panties. Her breasts stood pert and firm and she towered over her younger opponent who Gabi now introduced:
“And in the red corner, aged 42, standing 5’4”, weighing 145lbs and measuring 38a-29-43, the challenger – Shaz!”
Again, the audience applauded as the shorter, stockier girl slipped off her gown to reveal her solid form. Clad only in black seamless sports briefs, her shock of brown hair tied back with simple hair tie like an auburn comet trail and the nipples of her A cups standing proud.
Both women looked in great shape for their age and, despite her obvious height and weight advantage, I suspected Terri would have her work cut out against the younger but no less experienced fighter. At least she didn’t have the smallest tits in this match, that should give her confidence if nothing else did.
Referee’s briefing over, the girls made their way back to their corners to await the opening bell. The time keeper called “seconds out”. Terri stood up and I took the stool out of the corner before leaning over the ropes to wish her luck and kiss her on the cheek just as the bell sounded.
As it turned out I needn’t have worried. Terri came out fighting from the opening bell and dominated the action, successfully putting the younger woman down twice in the first round. Shaz had her moments but was completely outclassed by the older woman and Terri took the round by 10 points to nil.
At the start of round two Terri went on the attack again. It was clear that she was looking to wrap things up quickly, perhaps realising that the longer the fight went on the more likely it was that the younger woman’s stamina would see her through. A third knockdown followed less than a minute into the round but then things started to go wrong for my girl.
A wild swing from Terri towards the middle of the round left her exposed and Shaz worked her way inside Terri’s defences to rain a series of blows on her breasts and abs, forcing her back against the ropes where she took a standing count. When the action resumed Shaz stepped things up a gear and for a minute or so, Terri was forced onto the defensive. Then, as the round drew to a close the champion saw an opening and a flurry of punches drove the younger woman back.
The round ended with Shaz backed onto the ropes and holding onto the top one to keep herself from going down but the bell came too soon for Gabi to intervene with a standing count. None the less, the judges awarded four points to Terri. After two rounds the champion had a commanding 14 points to 3 lead and she wasn’t about to let up.
When the bell sounded for the start of the third round Shaz seemed to have regrouped again and came out on the attack. For the second time in the fight Terri was forced to cover up and retreat. After about thirty seconds, a hard straight right from Shaz flattened Terri’s left breast and left the champion momentarily stunned. Terri’s guard dropped as a pained expression crossed her face and she instinctively clutched her wounded mammary. Shaz went on the attack pushing the champion back under a hail of punches. A right hook connected with Terri’s jaw and spun her round. Gabi moved to separate the pair but Shaz pushed forward and another clubbing right hook caught Terri behind the left ear and sent her sprawling to the mat.
My heart leaped into my throat. Terri was face down on the mat with her arms spread wide, facing away from me. I had no way of telling what state she was in.
Gabi grabbed the younger woman’s wrists and physically pushed her back into a neutral corner, remonstrating with her about rabbit punches and striking from behind, before turning her attention back to my fallen angel. If Terri failed to beat the count would Gabi declare the fight a no contest? I could only hope so but, knowing Gabi, it seemed unlikely.
Terri slowly pushed herself to her hands and knees as the count reached five. She paused for a moment and glanced over her shoulder at Shaz. The ‘Tee’ look, that combination of anger and outrage of a woman who clearly believed she had been wronged, on her face.
My heart leaped again as I realised that Terri’s blood was up. Shaz didn’t know it yet but I sensed she’d bitten off more than she could chew.
Terri got her feet as the count reached eight and, after briefly checking her over, Gabi waved Shaz back in. Terri immediately lashed out, landing a series of solid blows to Shaz’s breasts and abdomen. The younger woman lowered her guard to protect her body and a right upper cut connected with her jaw, sending her staggering back into her own corner where she took a standing count of eight.
When the count ended, Terri advanced menacingly from the neutral corner but Gabi insisted on her giving Shaz space and the pair met again in the centre of the ring. Once again Terri went on the attack, forcing the younger woman back until a solid right upper flattened Shaz’s left breast and a left upper cut dropped her to her knees for another eight count.
Back on her feet again, the younger woman tried to keep things open with a series of wild, uncontrolled punches which Terri easily avoided. Sensing she was getting nowhere, Shaz broke off the attack and, for a minute or so, Terri stalked her around the ring.
With a minute of the round remaining and realising she had to do something to avoid a whitewash, Shaz launched another assault, briefly pushing the champion back. But, in the process, she left herself exposed. Terri’s right uppercut connected again and Shaz went face down on the mat. She slowly pushed herself up to her hands and knees, a dazed expression on her face.
She almost got to her feet as the count reached seven but as her right knee left the mat she pitched forward again before rolling onto her side clearly out cold. Gabi counted to ten and waved her hands to signal the knockout. The bell sounded and Terri raised her arms in victory, at 53 years old she was still the senior boxing champion.
I stepped into the ring as a jubilant Terri made her way back to our corner and gave me a big, sweaty hug. Over her shoulder I watched Shaz roll over and slowly sit up, her face a picture of disappointment as she stated despondently at the mat, trying to collect herself.
Suzi was soon at her side and helped her to her feet and back to the red corner but it was a full minute before Shaz had recovered enough for Gabi to bring the two women together in the centre of the ring and announce:
“Ladies and gentlemen. Your winner, by a knockout after two minutes and forty seconds of round three, and still your senior boxing champion – Terri Brooks!”
Terri returned to the blue corner where I removed her gloves and slipped her robe over her shoulders. As she climbed between the ropes out of the ring she leaned across and kissed me on the lips before stepping down off the ring apron to be congratulated by her fellow fighters, Ildikó and Emma, and my charges. Stepping down to join them I rounded them up and led the five women back to the blue corner dressing room.
Once in the dressing room, everyone broke immediately into conversation, with commiserations for the girls who lost and congratulations for Terri being traded all round. Nat seemed particularly excited and implored me to teach her to box. She was hooked. While Ildiko and Emma stripped off and heading for the showers, Terri paused for a moment. She had overheard Nat’s imploring and eyed her up and down before saying to me:
“Ellen. I think you might have a future champion on your hands.”
“We’ll see,” I replied. At that moment the door from the chillout zone opened and in walked the club president, and Nat’s future boss, Jay.
“Good evening, everyone,” she said “another wonderful evening. Congratulations Terri on your victory. And what did you make of it, Natalie?”
Nat blushed before replying: “That was great. I really want to try boxing. I think I’ll be good at it.”
Jay looked quizzically at me and Terri. Terri said:
“I think she’ll be good at it too, and I think Ellen is just a person to coach her.”
Well, that definitely put me in a spot, particularly when the boss said:
“Okay Ellen, over to you, Natalie, you’ll be fighting in the boxing league in the New Year.”
With that the conversation turn to more urgent matters. Jay turned to Terri and asked:
“Will you be staying over tonight in the apartment?”
Terri hesitated for a moment before replying:
“I’m sorry Jay, but tonight I’ll be staying with Ellen. I owe her.”
I was caught off guard, Terri hadn’t said anything to me about coming back to the cottage. Jay looked at me and narrowed her eyes. I tensed for a moment. I thought she might just take a swing at me, but then she relaxed and said:
“Oh well, it’s an open relationship and I can’t fault your taste.”
I probably blushed as she continued:
“Please, both of you, come up to the apartment before you leave. There’s someone I’d like you to meet.”
With that she headed back to the chillout zone, leaving us to it.
While Terri headed for the shower, I led Nat and Lynne out to the chillout zone where we chatted with the other fighters who were enjoying a drink. Nat Seemed to get on particularly well with Donna and I quickly sensed a friendship forming.
When Terri came out of the dressing room, I thanked Nat and Lynne for joining me for the evening and explained that Terri would be taking me home. Lynne raised an eyebrow while Nat just looking smug, I had no doubt what was running through her mind.
Terri and I bid everyone goodnight and made our way up the spiral staircase to Jay’s apartment, leaving Nat and Lynne to mingle with the other girls.
When we walked into the apartment, we found Jay in the company of a fit looking blonde woman in her early fifties. The woman stood up and turned to face us. At first glance she looked like a slimmer version of Evie Walker with curly hair. Before she could speak, Terri said:
“Hello Maggie, it’s been a long time.”
“Hello Tanya, or is it Terri these days? Congratulations on your victory, by the way.”
“Thank you. I think it’s probably always been Terri if I’m honest. I’m done with pretending to be someone I’m not. Ellen put me straight on that.”
They embraced and then Terri hesitated and, turning to me, said:
“I’m sorry – you two don’t know each other, do you?”
She glanced at Jay, seeming to seek permission before continuing:
“Ellen Shaw, meet Maggie Halford, nee Martin. Maggie and I fought together at Gerry’s club almost 30 years ago. I don’t think we’ve seen each other since ’96, have we Maggie?”
“Pleased to meet you Ellen,” said Maggie, extending her hand for me to shake. “And, no Terri, I don’t think we’ve seen each other since you left Gerry’s. I’m impressed to see you’re still as good as ever.”
Jay obviously picked up on my bewildered expression and interjected:
“I’m sorry Ellen, I feel I kept you cossetted all those years at CLAWS but you never showed any interest in doing anything beyond fighting here. We weren’t the only club in the country and, as you now know, several of our girls fought elsewhere. As for Terri, she’s a tramp – she’s fought just about everywhere and everyone in Europe I can think of.”
“Hey!” said Terri as Jay gave me a knowing wink, “Not everyone.”
“Okay, name one person from the nineties topless fight scene you haven’t fought.”
Terri thought hard before saying: “Well, at the time you and Ellen for starters…”
“But you’ve fought us both since, haven’t you?”
“Yes, I can’t deny that, but I never fought Gabi – although I saw her beat Lesley all those years ago in Vienna. I wish I could have had a crack at her but it’s too late for that now.”
“Anyway,” Jay continued, “Maggie was a successful fighter at Gerry’s, although not as successful as ‘Tanya’ here. She’s here tonight as my guest because her daughter, Sarah, will be joining our wrestling league next year.”
For the next hour or so we enjoyed a glass or two of wine in Jay’s apartment as Maggie and Terri reminisced about their times at Gerry’s and Maggie explained that the strawberry blonde with the incredible hair that I’d seen earlier near the red corner was her thirty-two year old daughter, Sarah. Seeing Terri in action seemed to have awoken the fighting passion in Maggie. She admitted she hadn’t been in the ring for at least 10 years but, at 51, she was looking for new opponents. I immediately thought of Lynne and Sue and wondered if she’d be interested in sparring with them.
I’m sure Terri could have chatted with Maggie all night but it had been a long day and she was keen to get away. She made her excuses and we left Jay and Maggie to it, made our way out into the cold October air and got into Terri’s little Toyota for the drive back to my cottage. When we got there Terri grabbed her bag off the back seat and followed me eagerly into the cottage.
Finally, I had her alone – and she wasn’t about to go anywhere other than my bed!
