World Cup Boxing #4: Belen Rodriguez vs Ivana Knoll

World Cup Boxing on the Beach #4
Belen Rodriguez vs Ivana Knoll
(Argentina vs Croatia)
(6-5, 6 KO vs 3-0, 3 KO)
Results: BBU; Story: Vassago

BEFORE: It's time for one last World Cup beach boxing action here in Dubai where Argentine model & TV showgirl Belen Rodriguez will try to stop Ivana Knoll's winning run. The Croatian glamour model followed on her national team success in nearby Qatar by beating Ann-Kathrin Brommel, Sayuki Matsumoto and Izabel Goulart but it's anyone's guess if she has anything left in the tank for Rodriguez who admittedly has struggled for results lately. The Buenos Aires native won her first six BBU fights before dropping the next five in a row! She has fought a very tough schedule but it's perhaps no surprise she bailed on taking part in the recent Italian beach boxing card and accepted Ivana's challenge instead. Can she spoil the Croatian's party who enjoy the superior crowd support again?

Belen Rodriguez wears a black bikini set & silver gloves. Long dark brown hair in loose waves. Ivana Knoll wears a red & white checkerboard bikini set with blue trim & blue gloves. Long black hair tied in a sleek ponytail. Both women are barefoot. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the lightweight division.

Round 1:
Ivana wants to set the early tone or perhaps she's well aware she can't outlast the Argentine foe after a busy month of action. She goes in hard to the body and works the uppercut route to punish Belen's jugs but fails to shake her off the comfort zone and eats an overhand response with the older brunette stepping into her punches like she never paid attention to Ivana's winning run. Both women settle for the crowd-pleasing slugging display and Knoll really wants to knock Belen's head off but finds the older model moving around well enough to avoid the damage. A couple of misses combos make Ivana verbally upset and she leaps after the Argentine woman only to walk into a booming right hand on the jaw instead. Belen cracks another series to the chest and drops several quick hammers on the exposed ribcage to bundle the Croatian model onto the ropes. Ugh! She adds more quick hits in the hole and has to be pulled away by the referee at the bell.

Round 2:
Ivana seeks immediate redemption and squares up to the older brunette but gets outboxed in straight up jabbing dispute before Belen loops a right hook on the ear to bend the Croatian glamour model sideways. Ivana digs her heels in the sand and tries to fly in a hooking series from the back foot but that's a dubious idea at best as Rodriguez ducks underneath the effort and blasts the fellow brunette on the ribs again. She bumps Knoll off in jug-to-jug contact and sends her tripping back to the ropes where she resumes the body assault pounce to shut the crowd favorite behind a desperate earmuff down the stretch. Ugh! Ivana soaks up more hits downstairs to slump into quiet spasms come the bell and she cuts a visibly upset figure when the ref pulls Belen off her moments later.

Round 3:
Belen cracks a left hook on the jaw to open the floodgates early in the third; Knoll's high-guard collapses underneath a steady slugging barrage that knocks the Croatian's head back & forth until she grinds into a halt in the center of the ring. She shows little mobility and can't escape Belen's furious rush that raises some Argentine support in the crowd. Belen ups the jabbing rate to completely dissect Ivana's guard and she knocks her back to the ropes come the one-minute mark before booming a right hand on the jaw that cripples the Croatian stunner upon impact. Another left hook tags her on the nose and Belen still drops a quick one-two on each temple to DROP KNOLL ONTO HER BACKSIDE!!! Ugh! It appears like Ivana really went one bridge too far here in Dubai but she battles back from the knockdown to rise to her feet at eight. Belen gives her a cheeky smile and resumes the slugging pounce carving a couple of lumps around her lips and shutting her down in the corner during a one-sided period in the closing seconds. Ivana survives the onslaught but shakes her head in frustration at the bell.

Round 4:
Knoll is slow to get up for the fourth and gets busted in the boobs seconds into the action before Belen just drills through the ailing guard to snap her head back again. Ugh! Ivana gets stuck on her heels and simply can't stop the furious Argentine charge that opens a small gash under the left eye. Uh-oh! The buxom Croatian spins one way... then the other to find a brutal right hook crash into her jaw one last time... SHE DROPS FLAT ON HER BACK and doesn't even pretend she can overcome this one anymore. Belen struts back to her corner and waves back to the audience knowing well her job is done. She is not wrong. KO4 Belen Rodriguez!!!

AFTER: It's been a great fortnight for Ivana Knoll on the Middle East beach but she had nothing in the tank tonight. She admits this much during the post-fight interview with Kate Abdo as Belen Rodriguez actually praises the Croatian's resilience during her BBU introduction series. Both women have different plans for the upcoming weeks, Ivana hopes to catch a much-needed break and maybe cash in on her World Cup attention craze while Belen wants to double down on the beach boxing action and challenges Malika Menard into "winner takes all" grudge contest: "My Italian friends just hosted a boxing card the other day so that's off my schedule but I know this French bimbo is always ready to eat sand so I hope she knows where to find me!" (winks).

Official Result: Belen Rodriguez def. Ivana Knoll KO4.