Win A Free Copy Of WMMA (Competition)

[Adam Ryland]

http://www.greydogsoftware.com/cornellverse/images/uko_banner.jpg

Here's your chance to win a free copy of the upcoming Adam Ryland \ Grey Dog Software game World of Mixed Martial Arts ("WMMA"), with our new competition Ultimate Knock Out!

The rules are simple. From the 1st to the 7th of November we will be holding an eight-person elimination tournament featuring some of the top female competitors from the WMMA universe, with the matches simulated and reported using the WMMA game engine. All you have to do is correctly predict the winner - everybody who guesses correctly will be entered into a prize draw, with the winner receiving a free copy of the game on the day of release (to be announced in the coming weeks).

Entering the competition couldn't be simpler: all you need to do is e-mail us at wmmacontest@greydogsoftware.com with the name of your prediction in the subject line. We will only accept one entry per person (for obvious reasons!) and all entries must have reached us by the time the tournament starts on November 1st.

We will now introduce the fighters...

[Adam Ryland]

Name: Sayoko Ebisawa
Nickname: "The Phenom"
Age: 28
Height: 5'8
Fighting Weight: 130lbs
From: Kawasaki, Japan
Style: Muay Thai
Pro Record: 16 - 1

Adam says: "Generally considered to be Japan's most dangerous female fighter, Ebisawa has a tremendous all-out-attack mentality and can be absolutely devastating at times, especially if she gets a chance to throw her lethal knee strikes. However, if taken down, her lack of ground game could be her undoing."

Betting: 2-1 JOINT FAVOURITE

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[Adam Ryland]

Name: Karen Curtis
Nickname: "The Demon"
Age: 27
Height: 5'4
Fighting Weight: 136lbs
From: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Style: Sambo
Pro Record: 13 - 1

Adam says: "Small but powerful, Curtis' main asset is that she is a true all-rounder, with hardly any weak points to her game. Superb when in close, she is at her most dangerous when she has her opponent grounded and her deadly submission skills can be called upon. Perhaps the only chink in her armour is that her lack of height is reflected in a lack of reach - a good, tall striker might be able to pick her off with long-range shots."

Betting: 2-1 JOINT FAVOURITE

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[Adam Ryland]

Name: Jenny DeNeuve
Nickname: "The Electrifying"
Age: 24
Height: 5'5
Fighting Weight: 122lbs
From: Greater Sudbury, Ontario
Style: Kick Boxing
Pro Record: 7 - 0

Adam says: "The least experienced competitor in the tournament, DeNeuve is nonetheless a dangerous fighter due to her fine stand-up, and has the potential to knock people out. Although her ground defense is suspect, she is not to be taken lightly when she is on the attack - her grounded strikes can end a fight. Physically quite small, she does risk getting overwhelmed against bigger fighters."

Betting: 3-1

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[Adam Ryland]

Name: Sarah Vaughan
Nickname: "The Arizona Animal"
Age: 30
Height: 5'7
Fighting Weight: 133lbs
From: Phoenix, Arizona
Style: Submission Fighting
Pro Record: 18 - 6

Adam says: "A veteran fighter, Vaughan is a throwback to the time when competitors tended to be fairly one-dimensional. In her case, she is extremely dangerous on the floor, but poses virtually no threat when standing. That said, she still has to be considered one of the top fighters around due to the fact that her ground game is simply so lethal that if she can get a takedown in, she can finish the match swiftly. Whether she would get a chance to take the fight to the ground against strikers like DeNeuve or Ebisawa is another matter though..."

Betting: 5-1

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[Adam Ryland]

Name: Katherine Williams
Nickname: -
Age: 27
Height: 5'6
Fighting Weight: 127lbs
From: Boston, Massachusetts
Style: Submission Fighting
Pro Record: 13 - 4

Adam says: "By far and away the best pure athlete in the tournament, Williams is a dangerous submission fighter with exceptional conditioning. She isn't a threat when standing, but neither is she so poor that she is going to be overwhelmed by anybody. Her big weakness is when an opponent gets in close and physically bullies her with grappling, which is why she prefers to use quick takedowns whenever possible."

Betting: 7-1

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[Adam Ryland]

Name: Naora Kikuchi
Nickname: "The Japanese Buzzsaw"
Age: 24
Height: 5'11
Fighting Weight: 139lbs
From: Nagoya, Japan
Style: Muay Thai
Pro Record: 9 - 1

Adam says: "A tall, leggy fighter, Kikuchi is known primarily for her deadly kicks, which have the enviable combination of power, technique and reach, and can end a fight in the blink of an eye. She also loves to get in close and use her Muay Thai skills, and has knocked out more than one opponent with knee strikes from that position. She would be rated higher, but her lack of experience and poor defense against both takedowns and ground attacks weaken her case to be the eventual winner. However, those kicks mean she is the dark horse for the tournament, and could KO her way to victory."

Betting: 8-1

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[Adam Ryland]

Name: April Watson
Nickname: "The Blonde Bombshell"
Age: 29
Height: 5'3
Fighting Weight: 120lbs
From: Atlanta, Georgia
Style: Muay Thai
Pro Record: 13 - 5

Adam says: "She may be tiny, but April Watson packs a punch, and is one of the premier strikers in the tournament. Fists, feet or knees, she can damage an opponent with any of them. Her weakness is that she is fairly one dimensional - should an opponent avoid her strikes and take her to the floor, she is unlikely to be able to offer much resistance. However, if she is lucky enough to avoid any of the submission artists in the field, she could go all the way to the finals."

Betting: 8-1

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[Adam Ryland]

Name: Rachel McGuiness
Nickname: "Yellow Peril"
Age: 25
Height: 5'5
Fighting Weight: 121lbs
From: San Diego, California
Style: Greco-Roman Wrestling
Pro Record: 9 - 2

Adam says: "A solid fighter, McGuiness can hold her own when standing, is very difficult to best at grappling, and is tough to beat on the ground. However, she perhaps suffers from being a "jack of all trades, but the master of none" - she doesn't have the knock out ability or submission threat that most of the other women have, and so may struggle to end fights. That makes her a long-shot to win the tournament, but there's always the outside chance that her solid, reliable game will allow her to beat her opponents on points at every turn."

Betting: 10-1

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[Adam Ryland]

Tip

Just a small tip; remember that while the favourites may give you the best chance of successfully predicting the winner, they will also likely give you the least chance of winning the prize draw - because they will get the most votes. Voting for one of the longer-shots will of course do the opposite - less chance of predicting the winner, but a small prize draw if they do.

Graphics

I just wanted to note that the graphics are a bit grainy because they were converted to JPG, the actual screens are a lot sharper than that in reality!

[Adam Ryland]

Voting for the tournament is now closed.

The Tournament Begins!

The randomly generated brackets for the tournament are as follows, in order (i.e. first match winner fights second match winner, etc).

April Watson vs. Naora Kikuchi
Jenny DeNeuve vs. Sarah Vaughan
Katherine Williams vs. Rachel McGuiness
Sayoko Ebisawa vs Karen Curtis

The first match will be simulated later today. All matches will be three rounds of five minutes inside a cage, "Unified Rules".

[Adam Ryland]

April Watson vs. Naora Kikuchi

Round 1
The fighters touch gloves, then circle. Kikuchi throws a low kick, but it was without any conviction, it seemed designed more to keep Watson from coming inside. Kikuchi works an angle, then comes in with a one-two combination, Watson responds with a crisp uppercut that wasn't far off from connecting. Kikuchi backs off slightly, maybe a bit relieved not to have taken that one on the chin. Neither fighter appears to be looking for any sort of takedown or grapple, this is all about the striking. Watson circles and throws a series of high jabs, but Kikuchi blocked them with ease, using the gloves. Kikuchi fakes a high kick, then storms in with a wild looking right hand and a series of body shots. Watson covers up and rides out the storm, clinching to stop any further blows. It was a nice attack from Kikuchi though, best action of the round. They stay clinched for a while, exchanging occasional punches to the ribs, then are separated by the referee. It looks like we're going to the judges though, as there's only a few seconds remaining. Kikuchi throws a leg kick that connects, albeit without too much force, and the round is done.The 1st round ends. Blurcat.com scores 10-9 Kikuchi.

Round 2
Watson isn't hanging around, right from the start Kikuchi is forced onto the back foot by four hard shots, although none of them get through the gloves. Kikuchi circles, steps in, then unloads a combination of punches, but Watson weaves out of the way and scores with a beauty of a right hand, glancing above the right eye. That was some lovely counter punching from Watson, the timing had to be perfect and it was. Kikuchi is looking a bit frustrated, and uncorks a ragged-looking uppercut that missed by several inches. Watson really should have taken advantage of that mistake, Kikuchi was wide open for a moment there. Watson hits a high kick, catching Kikuchi on the shoulder. Jab from Kikuchi finds the mark, but it didn't have much power behind it as she was leaning backward too much. Watson fires off a couple of straight punches in response, but only finds gloves. They clinch, and the fight enters a lull. Kikuchi scores with a knee from the clinch, it landed around the hip area of Watson, who responds with a couple of shots to the ribs. The time runs out with them still clinched though. That's the end of the round. Blurcat.com sees it 10-9 to Watson.

Round 3
Watson is bobbing and weaving, trying to find an angle of attack. Jabs and an occasional low kick from Kikuchi are making that hard though. A crisp right hand from Watson stings the gloves of Kikuchi, and she follows up with a kick that crashed into the ribs. That really connected, great strike. Watson looks to be growing in confidence, and comes in again, using the right hand lead once more. Kikuchi was ready though, and fires off a high kick. It connects with the side of the jaw, Watson did not see that one coming! She staggers and falls to the floor, totally unbalanced. Kikuchi is right in there; hammer fist to the side of the head, and another! There's a third. Watson is in big trouble. Vicious punch. The referee leaps in, that is all she wrote! That kick caught Watson out, and from there onwards there was only going to be one outcome. The official time of the TKO is 0:47 of round 3.

Naora Kikuchi advances to the semi finals.

The next match will be held tomorrow.

[Adam Ryland]

Jenny DeNeuve vs. Sarah Vaughan

Round 1
DeNeuve starts fast, firing off several crisp jabs that keep Vaughan on the back foot. A solid left hits gloves, but it's really just a set-up for DeNeuve to step in and use an uppercut. Not sure how much of it caught Vaughan, but certainly enough to to make her grab a clinch to stop any further punishment. Great start to the round from DeNeuve, it has been total domination so far. The clinch is broken, and the two fighters exchange some long range jabs that are easily avoided. Vaughan is looking a little lost so far, DeNeuve is controlling this round by virtue of her crisp accurate punches and higher aggression levels. A looping left from Vaughan, but it's wide of the mark. DeNeuve leads with the left, then moves in and gets in a wicked right hand that grazes the cheek. Vaughan was fortunate there, if that had landed properly it would have been over. Vaughan comes back with a leg kick to set up a one-two combination, but the round is coming to a close and it's going to be too little too late. The one bright spot for Vaughan is that although DeNeuve clearly won the round, she didn't actually turn that dominance into any sort of real damage. The round ends. Blurcat.com gives that one to DeNeuve by 10-9.

Round 2
The fighters come together right in the center. Vaughan throws out a jab, but DeNeuve bobs out of the way and uses a right hand to glance a blow off the side of the ribs in response. DeNeuve works an angle and storms in suddenly with three crisp jabs and a looping overhand punch, Vaughan covered up quickly but at least one of the jabs hit home. DeNeuve is making Vaughan look sluggish in comparison, such is the speed and crispness with which she is delivering strikes. Vaughan hits a low kick before back-pedalling to avoid a clubbing blow. Vaughan glances at the referee, not sure why. They meet in the center to exchange a flurry of strikes that gets the crowd on their feet. DeNeuve got slightly the better of it, she definitely snuck through a right hand that rocked Vaughan slightly. Vaughan initiates a clinch, and the action grinds to a halt. Vaughan looks out of ideas, she is being repeatedly lured into these exchange of strikes, but DeNeuve is clearly winning them. Vaughan needs to find some way to deal with them. Not much time left in this round. The referee separates them. DeNeuve tries a speculative high kick, but Vaughan saw it coming and was well out of range by the time it came. Vaughan tries to work an angle, but DeNeuve is having none of it and fires off a straight right hand to keep her from stepping in. Comfortable round for DeNeuve, she will probably be disappointed not to have done more damage given her dominance of the striking in this round. The second round is over. Blurcat.com sees it 10-9 to DeNeuve.

Round 3
Flat start to the round, thirty seconds of circling without any actual contact. The fans begin to get a bit restless. DeNeuve is the first to try something, stringing together a couple of jabs and a low kick, but Vaughan blocked the first two and avoided the latter. A lunge from DeNeuve is meant to set up a punch, but it's clumsy and just leaves her off balance. Vaughan is quick to react, and gets a great shot to the side of the face in before DeNeuve can cover up. That landed above the left eye and has left an ugly red mark. No cut, but that will start to swell and could give DeNeuve some problems later on. DeNeuve moves in for a right hook, but takes a hard kick to the knee, then is forced to retreat so as not to get caught with the two right hands that follow. Vaughan is staying on it though, and glances three shots off the gloves of DeNeuve before they wind up in a clinch. That punch above the eye, or maybe the mistake that led to it, seems to have completely thrown DeNeuve off, since that moment she has been comprehensively out-struck and is now in danger of losing this round. They struggle in the clinch, neither fighter managing a great deal more than minor blows. DeNeuve goes for a trip, but Vaughan cleverly spins out of it and the two fighters are back to circling. Not a great round for purists, it has all been a bit disjointed, but that one shot from Vaughan may prove decisive. As the round comes to an end, they wind up back in another clinch, with nothing coming of it. The 3rd round ends. Blurcat.com sees it 10-9 to Vaughan. All three judges give a score of 29-28 in favour of Jenny DeNeuve.

Jenny DeNeuve advances to the semi finals.

[Adam Ryland]

Katherine Williams vs. Rachel McGuiness

Round 1
A touch of gloves to start the round, and we're underway. McGuiness lets rip with a vicious straight right almost immediately, but it's easily avoided. Williams sneaks a jab through the guard and catches McGuiness on the left cheek, but the follow up right hook only finds gloves. They get close to each other and end up in a clinch, from which Williams manages to get the better position, pushing McGuiness up against the cage. Right hand to the ribs from Williams. McGuiness hits a couple of knees to the side. There's a struggle for supremacy going on, it's difficult to see who is winning it. Williams tries a knee of her own, but that is the opportunity that McGuiness was waiting for and she sweeps the standing leg to take Williams down to the ground, in side control. Excellent takedown. Williams covers up to defend against a pair of back-hand blows, and even manages to sneak a knee strike in. McGuiness hits a big elbow to the ribs, Williams definitely felt that. McGuiness drives a knee to the near side, then attempts to float-over into a mount. Williams brought her legs in though, and manages to pull guard. McGuiness will be disappointed with that. She tries to get a big punch in, but Williams defends it well and gets a hold of both arms. The fight grinds to a halt, with McGuiness unable to generate any attacks, and Williams unwilling to give up a good defensive position. The referee stands them up. McGuiness will likely be very angry that she didn't make more of that takedown. They exchange half-hearted jabs as the round draws to an end. The first round is over. Blurcat.com has it down as 10-9 McGuiness.

Round 2
McGuiness starts the round like a house on fire, hitting three quick jabs and a vicious right hook. Williams covered up well, but at least one of the jabs got through and landed above the left eye. Williams backs up to buy some time, but McGuiness keeps coming and lands a right hand to the body. Williams scores with a jab in return, then goes with a kick to the waist. McGuiness catches the leg though and quickly rushes forward with a takedown. Williams pulls guard. McGuiness rains down three big punches, Williams covers up and doesn't take too much damage. McGuiness works one leg free, but Williams has the other tightly wrapped up between her own. McGuiness fires off three rapid-fire elbows to the ribs to try and soften Williams up, but can't get the leg free. This is not a good position for Williams though, and McGuiness is looking dangerous. McGuiness pushes down, then brings her free leg forward to drive a knee into the lower back. Williams can't do a lot to stop that strike. McGuiness hits a further knee, and that is enough to allow her to move into side control. Williams is in huge trouble here. Elbow to the face, only partially blocked. McGuiness briefly gets a forearm across the throat of Williams, but it is knocked away before it can develop into a choke. Williams tries to scramble out of it, and almost manages to pull guard again, but McGuiness maintains side control. Knee to the ribs again. Williams is taking a lot of punishment from those knee strikes. McGuiness switches tactic and tries to grab an arm lock of some kind, Williams almost got caught by surprise but not quite. The round is almost over, and there is no question that this round has gone to McGuiness, it has been utter dominance. Williams tries to get a knee strike of her own in, but it misses and McGuiness responds with a hard elbow to the chest. That'll be the last action of the round. That's the end of the round. Blurcat.com sees it 10-8 to McGuiness.

Round 3
Slow start to the round, they're both circling, looking for an opening. Williams tries a looping punch from way back, but McGuiness side steps with ease. Jab from McGuiness, gets one back in response. Williams comes in, looking for the right hand lead, but McGuiness shoots in and uses a double-leg takedown. She winds up in a closed guard. McGuiness tries to move quickly into side control, but Williams isn't letting that happen. Williams reaches up and tries to grab an arm, but takes a right hand to the cheek in response. McGuiness tries to power her way through, raining down four or five hammer fists, but Williams covered up well. McGuiness pushes a leg down and moves to the side, but Williams spins out. McGuiness moves with her though and gets her back! No, Williams scrambled like crazy and manages to turn right back over and pull guard again. That was an exciting sequence though, and the fans enjoyed it. McGuiness won't be pleased that she had both side control and the back, but didn't hold onto either for more than a few seconds. The fight unfortunately enters a lull, as McGuiness punctuates unsuccessful attempts to pass guard with easily defended jabs. The referee eventually gets them back up to their feet due to inactivity. Not much time left in the round though. Williams will need to do something a bit special to avoid losing the round on points. She tries just that, throwing a big right hand and a high kick, but McGuiness backs off, safe in the knowledge that she has won this round. The time expires. End of round 3. Blurcat.com sees it 10-9 to McGuiness. The three judges all give the match as 30-26 to Rachel McGuiness.

Rachel McGuiness advances to the semi finals.

[Adam Ryland]

Sayoko Ebisawa vs Karen Curtis

Round 1
The two fighters circle. A series of looping punches from Ebisawa forces Curtis back up against the cage, and she has to cover up to withstand the three strikes that follow. No real damage caused, but Ebisawa is aggressively chasing this match. A hook finds the body and Curtis clinches. They almost lose their balance as they jockey for position, Curtis gets in a couple of knees when they regain their footing. Ebisawa seems to be trying to break the clinch, it's Curtis who is holding it tight, perhaps hoping to calm the energetic start that Ebisawa had. The referee finally does break them up, after nearly a full minute of inactivity. Curtis throws out a jab, but it's wide of the mark. Ebisawa uses that as an opportunity to launch an attack, and comes in with three or four slugging blows. One caught Curtis on the ear, but the others were safely deflected away. Curtis tries to clinch to stop any further bombardment, but Ebisawa switches tactic and grabs a muay thai-style clinch around the back of the neck. Curtis tries to quickly duck out and away, but eats a massive knee to the face! The knee hit with sickening force, but Curtis doesn't go down. Ebisawa hits a second knee, but this one is partially blocked as Curtis used her arms to defend it. Curtis desperately tries to get free, but Ebisawa has the clinch applied tightly. A third knee hits, and again it is right to the face. Curtis goes down to one knee. She tries to stand back up, but the referee has already gotten in there and broken it up, he had seen enough. Ebisawa turns and celebrates, Curtis falls back to her knees; her face is a mess, that first knee in particular looks to have caused a broken nose, the referee was right to stop the match. Ebisawa wins via TKO at 3:43 of the first round.

Sayoko Ebisawa advances to the semi finals.

The first semi final will take place on Tuesday.

[Adam Ryland]

Naora Kikuchi vs. Jenny DeNeuve

Round 1
Kikuchi starts fast, coming out almost immediately with a three punch combination. None of them get through, and DeNeuve manages to squeeze a jab of her own through and score just above the left cheek. They exchange a flurry of blows right in the center, it's difficult to see who got the best of it, and both of them retreat a few steps to recover. Good start to the round, early indications are that this is going to be all about the striking, neither fighter has even hinted at going for a takedown. DeNeuve uses a low kick to set up a nice right hand, and Kikuchi is forced back against the cage. DeNeuve picks her shots and gets a big punch to the body in. Kikuchi uses a couple of looping punches to make DeNeuve keep back, but it doesn't last for long, as DeNeuve bursts forward and hits two big right hands, taking a counter punch to the body though, and they wind up in a clinch. They exchange weak-looking blows from that position, before the referee grows tired of the inactivity and breaks them apart. Kikuchi scores with a low kick. They both seem to be looking for an opening, and it's creating a stalemate at the moment. DeNeuve unwinds with a right hook that narrowly misses. That will be the last action of the round though. End of the round. Blurcat.com has it down as 10-9 DeNeuve.

Round 2
DeNeuve circles Kikuchi, looking for a good angle, peppering her with flicked jabs off the right hand. Kikuchi bats them away easily, and seems to be trying to lure the lunge. DeNeuve head fakes, then comes in fast, leading with the right. Kikuchi counters with a left hand that hits the cheek, then a right uppercut that narrowly misses, that would have been a knock out blow. DeNeuve gets in nothing more than a single jab in response, and is forced to retreat. That definitely didn't go to plan, Kikuchi came out on top. DeNeuve looks frustrated. Kikuchi steps in and throws out a looping right, DeNeuve responds by firing off a huge kick to the front leg. Kikuchi goes down! She was badly over-reaching with that punch, and her balance was thrown enough that the kick was able to send her sprawling to the floor. DeNeuve reacts quickly and hits a solid right hand to the mouth before mounting Kikuchi. Right hand! Right Hand! Kikuchi is covering up, but three shots have already connected solidly. Another punch gets through the guard, and this time is right on the chin! The referee looks about ready to jump in. A fourth right hand hits, this time above the eye. Kikuchi is getting massacred. Yes, that's enough, the ref pulls DeNeuve off, it's a TKO victory. Kikuchi looks dazed on the canvas as her corner come in to help her. DeNeuve wins via second round TKO at 46 seconds.

Jenny DeNeuve advances to Friday's final.

[Adam Ryland]

Rachel McGuiness vs. Sayoko Ebisawa

Round 1
McGuiness is forced onto the backfoot almost immediately, having to retreat to avoid a series of sharp jabs. She ends up with her back to the cage, with Ebisawa advancing. A sharp right misses, and McGuiness takes the opportunity to pull Ebisawa in to a tight clinch against the cage. Ebisawa tries to break free, but cannot. It looks like we know the strategies for this round already; Ebisawa wants to stand and bang, McGuiness wants to keep things at close quarters. Ebisawa tries for an elbow, but only succeeds in getting turned around so that she is now the one against the cage. Trip from McGuiness, and we're down to the ground. McGuiness has side control, but Ebisawa has landed with her left hand side against the cage, so that side of the body is basically safe for now. McGuiness will have to try to work the right-hand side, and starts by ramming a knee into the ribs. Ebisawa tries to squirm into a better position, but McGuiness puts a stop to that with a stiff elbow to the stomach. McGuiness tries to work a kimura on the right arm, but Ebisawa defends it. Ebisawa manages to bring a knee up and catch McGuiness in the side, something of a cheeky move given her position. McGuiness responds with five or six rapid-fire right hands to the face, but Ebisawa covers up and doesn't take any serious damage at all. Time is ticking away though, and so far McGuiness may be easily winning the round, but she is not taking full advantage of this great position. McGuiness tries to float over into a mount, but Ebisawa uses the cage to push away and manages to unbalance McGuiness enough to get to a kneeling position, then standing, albeit back into a clinch. A knee from McGuiness is the last action of the round. That's the end of the round. Blurcat.com has it down as 10-9 McGuiness.

Round 2
Touch of gloves starts the round. Ebisawa comes in quickly, and unloads with a beauty of a combination, two jabs, a hook, a body punch and an uppercut. One of the jabs and the body shot definitely got through, the others were blocked. McGuiness backs off, only offering a wayward right hand in response. They circle, then Ebisawa once again comes in with an aggressive rush. They exchange blows in a flurry, with Ebisawa bobbing and weaving excellently while throwing out crisp jabs. McGuiness got a leg kick in, but her jabs didn't find their mark. Ebisawa is relying on her superior striking skills so far, and it is paying dividends, McGuiness is getting picked apart and is looking increasingly unable to to contend with her opponent's better technique. Ebisawa throws a low kick, and that is really the first mistake of the round from her, as it is sloppy and allows McGuiness to move in and grab a clinch. McGuiness forces Ebisawa back against the cage, and is clearly happy to have gained a position where Ebisawa cannot unload with strikes as effectively. McGuiness hits a knee, then gets three or four small punches in to the side of the head. Not much power in them though. Ebisawa sneaks in an elbow, and then attempts to get free, to no avail. McGuiness goes for a trip, but Ebisawa pushes free and quickly gets back to the center. McGuiness keeps her distance for a few moments to recover her composure, then gets ready to fight again. Ebisawa works an angle, throwing quick jabs all the time, then switches stance and hits a long looping punch that finds gloves. A right hand follows up though, and that does find the mark, causing McGuiness to throw a wild haymaker in response. Ebisawa tries to capitalise with a further flurry, and hits a nice left hook, but McGuiness soon has them back in a clinch. That goes on for a while, until the clock runs down. End of the round. Blurcat.com scores it 10-9 for Ebisawa.

Round 3
Slow start to the round, nearly a minute has gone by without anything but a few jabs finding gloves. McGuiness comes in, looking for a grapple it seems, but takes a powerful kick just above the left hip. Ebisawa really put some venom into that strike. McGuiness backs off, clearly stung. Ebisawa is the one advancing now, using a left hand jab to lead. She steps forward and fires off a big kick, aimed at the head. McGuiness ducks and moves out of range, but that was clearly intended to be a match-ender, Ebisawa was going for the knock out. It's pretty clear that she thinks that kicks are going to do the job in this round, and it has to be said that McGuiness is looking to have a hard time countering them. On top of that, the threat of the kicks is keeping McGuiness from getting in too close. Ebisawa stalks McGuiness, throwing the occasional high right hand, perhaps range-finding. McGuiness is circling, seeking an opening of some kind. She moves in from the left and is quick enough to get into the clinch without taking any shots. Ebisawa hits a knee, but takes one right back. The kicks aren't a danger from this position, that's for sure. Ebisawa squirms free, but foolishly lost her concentration for a second and took a hard right hand above the eye in the process. Silly mistake. McGuiness comes in, looking more confident now, and gets in a couple of right hands and a lovely hook to the body. Ebisawa tags her with a jab though, and then hits another fearsome kick to the same spot above the left hip. And another! McGuiness backs off, and a huge red mark has appeared in that spot. Ebisawa advances and throws another head kick, but it is mostly blocked by the hands of McGuiness. The round is drawing to a close, and those kicks have certainly proved massively effective for Ebisawa. The round is over. Blurcat.com has it down as 10-8 Ebisawa. The three judges all give the match as 29-27 to Sayoko Ebisawa.

Sayoko Ebisawa advances to Friday's final.

[Adam Ryland]

Grand Final
Jenny DeNeuve vs. Sayoko Ebisawa

Round 1
The round begins, and it is DeNeuve who starts better, energetically bounding straight into action by throwing a three-punch combination and a scything leg kick. Ebisawa defended all four blows well, but is forced to be on the backfoot right from the word go. DeNeuve works for an angle, coming in from the left hand side with a high right hand. Ebisawa ducks under it and nestles a stiff jab in the solar plexus. It doesn't seem to slow DeNeuve down much though, as she swiftly turns and hits a crisp left to the side of the head, followed almost instantly by a mid-level kick that smacks above the hip of Ebisawa. Interesting first minute of action, DeNeuve is looking particularly sharp. Ebisawa tries to turn the momentum by advancing quickly and driving DeNeuve back against the cage with a series of jabs and hooks, and they end up clinched. Ebisawa tries a knee from that position, but it is blocked. DeNeuve scores with two sharp blows to the ribs, and then they break away from each other. Ebisawa narrowly misses a right cross. They square up to each other in the center. DeNeuve throws a head fake and comes in from low down to hit a rising shot that catches Ebisawa on the side of the head. Ebisawa got a shot in too though, although it hit the shoulder rather than the head. Time is running down; DeNeuve has probably done enough to win the round, but it has turned quite scrappy since the clinch against the cage, both will probably be slightly unhappy with that. Ebisawa tries a late surge, coming in hard and fast with a leading left, but DeNeuve defends it well and scores the only meaningful shot of the exchange with a crisp left hand. That's the end of the round. Blurcat.com sees it 10-9 to DeNeuve.

Round 2
The two competitors start slowly, circling and looking for an opening. DeNeuve fakes shooting in for a takedown, but Ebisawa didn't buy it for a second. In comes DeNeuve from an angle to the right, but Ebisawa had it covered all the way, and not only easily steps out of the way of the attempted right hand, but manages to score with a solid right hand to the side of the head. DeNeuve felt that, and is forced to cover up quickly as Ebisawa steps in quickly and unloads with a flurry of powerful blows, looking to capitalise on the earlier strike. DeNeuve is forced back against the cage, but to her credit, she did a good job defending those strikes and didn't seem to take any significant damage. Ebisawa doesn't get in too close, realising that it would likely mean getting caught in a clinch, so she stands slightly back instead and throws some low kicks and looping punches. DeNeuve responds by throwing out some straight jabs, but neither fighter is really doing any damage to their opponent. Ebisawa clearly grows tired of the wait, and moves in to hit a body blow. It connects, but DeNeuve is quick to tie her up in a clinch. That lasts quite a while, until the referee gets in there and breaks them up, telling them to fight. An exchange of punches goes nowhere, and they fall into a clinch. The referee separates them when nothing happens. Ebisawa scores with a stiff jab, and bobs and weaves to avoid all three of the rapid-fire punches that come back from DeNeuve. Nicely done. DeNeuve, realising that she is losing this round, comes forward with a sense of urgency, throwing right hands to put Ebisawa on the back foot. Ebisawa handles it well though, refusing to let DeNeuve get an angle, and using some nice counter punches to the body to further cement the fact that this round is going to her on points. Time expires with DeNeuve throwing increasingly desparate punches. End of the round. Blurcat.com sees it 10-9 to Ebisawa.

Round 3
They touch gloves to begin. DeNeuve throws out a looping right hand, setting up a mid-level kick. The punch found gloves, the kick found nothing but thin air as Ebisawa had stepped back in time. They meet in the center, exchanging a series of blows, and DeNeuve gets the better of it, scoring with a crisp jab that causes Ebisawa to back up quickly. Sensing a chance, DeNeuve follows and forces her up against the cage with some jabs. Ebisawa covers up, as two hard strikes find the gloves from DeNeuve. A right hand misses, and that is the chance Ebisawa needs to quickly get out of trouble and back to the center. Great start to the round from DeNeuve. About thirty seconds pass without any contact, and the crowd become a little restless. Ebisawa throws a looping punch, DeNeuve is forced to back up for a moment to avoid it. She is backed up against the cage. Ebisawa follows in and they get in close for an exchange of punches. Ebisawa goes down! Ebisawa is down on her back! DeNeuve dives on top with a mount and starts raining down punches, and the referee stops the match after the third, Ebisawa only had one arm free and couldn't do anything in the way of a good defense against those punches. The replays shows that DeNeuve scored with a big right hook to the jaw during that earlier exchange of punches, a lighting-fast 'swing for the fences' type of shot that caught Ebisawa totally by surprise. It didn't knock her out, but it did leave Ebisawa stunned, and when DeNeuve mounted, she manages to use her left leg to trap the right arm of Ebisawa, preventing any effective blocking. It'll go down as a TKO for DeNeuve. DeNeuve wins via TKO at 2:12 of the third round.

Jenny DeNeuve wins the tournament.

The competition winner will be announced within the next 48 hours, once we have gone through all the entries.

[Adam Ryland]

The competition winner has now been announced on the front page of the web site; Ashley Blade.