Cheers.
Looks like Emil's good and angry.
Yeah, so far, so good.
Oh!
What?
- So just say it already. - What?
It's written all over your face.
All right, genius, since you know me so well...
what am I thinking right now?
Well, you're worried because we're going to see somebody...
who's not exactly my biggest fan. You're second-guessing.
Not exactly your biggest fan. The man told you if he saw you again...
he'd shoot you in the kneecaps, stuff you in a steamer trunk...
and sink it to the bottom of the bay.
That's what I'm talking about. You're nervous.
I'm not nervous. I'm simply stating a fact. The man's a psychopath.
He wants to kill you, and you just wanna waltz right into his living room.
I've been around long enough to know that for you, that's par for the course.
Still, you come along.
You're like a mystery wrapped in a riddle wrapped in cashmere.
Christopher Chance to see Mr. Belvilacqua.
Are you some kind of moron, son?
I believe I made myself clear when last we spoke.
I know you've got ears.
Best I can tell, the X-factor here is that you two idiots just don't listen.
And on that note...
take it away.
I need $1 .8 million in the next week, in cash.
Get the steamer trunk and my .45 and bring them up here.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, just a loan. You'll get every cent back, and in the process...
you'll get to stick it to the one guy in the world you hate worse than me.
- Hugh Prentiss. - Hugh Prentiss?
- Which one? - Hang on a second. Keep talking.
I got a client, a prizefighter. His name is Eddie Dunn.
Prentiss told him to take a dive, Eddie wouldn't do it. Prentiss lost a fortune...
- 1.8 million to be exact. - Your client doesn't sound too smart.
I'll be honest with you, he's not the brightest bulb in the box.
- Is he saying I'm dumb? - Of course not.
I'm not dumb.
Your headphones are on backwards.
Eddie's a good kid. Prentiss wouldn't even give him a chance to make it square.
Just sent guys with guns to his house.
Eddie fought his way out, but he's been on the run ever since.
What exactly do you think you're gonna do about that?
Prentiss has deep pockets.
Eventually he's gonna find a way to get to my client.
I got a plan to make sure Prentiss never threatens Eddie or anyone else again.
- It's all in place. I just need the money. - I'm still listening.
The Christof Fight Tournament in Brussels.
Eight fighters, best in the world.
Betting room famous for the sums of money wagered.
Fortunes won and lost in a night.
I'm gonna get Prentiss to make the wrong bet on the wrong fighter...
and he's gonna get wiped out.
You're gonna get Hugh Prentiss, the shrewdest gambler alive...
to bet everything he's got and lose?
Everything he owns. Every last dime.
And may I ask who this fighter is?
Me.
All right. All right, let's say... Let's say you can win this tournament.
And that somehow, someway, you can actually convince Prentiss...
to bet every dime he owns against you.
You seem to be forgetting one small detail.
What's that?
Heh, the Christof is invitation only, dummy. Why would they invite you?
Step one of four: concoct a hell of a story.
See, the organizers of this tournament, they kind of have a soft spot for guys...
who come out of nowhere. You know, unknowns.
So we're going to spread the word about an unknown named Grant Johnson...
who has run together a string of victories.
And then we're gonna plug Chance in and make the story real.
Tonight? Here in McGinty's Irish Pub?
- Heh, yeah, something like that. - Yeah.
See, I know you guys are new at this...
but to make a name for yourself, you gotta beat someone big.
To make a splash like you're talking...
I can't imagine who you'd have to take down to do that.
- Holy... That's Kendrick Taylor. - Hmm.
Guy's got like three MMA titles. Gold Medal in Athens.
- Oh, I wish I had my camera. - Hmm.
Anyway, what were we talking about?
Oh, right. Uh, beating someone with a big enough name to make an impression.
Wait. No.
You spilled your drink.
- You did it again. - What's he doing? Oh, my God.
Okay, man. Show him.
Let's do this, huh? Come on, right now. Yeah.
This ain't gonna take long.
Kendrick Taylor's a wrecking machine.
You guys are picking a fight with him and I'm an idiot?
Watch this.
- Come on, now. - Come on, man.
Yeah. Way to go, man.
Oh!
Hey, who is this guy?
Oh, it looks like, uh, Grant Johnson.
What, you never heard of him?
Hey. It's Kelso. You'll never believe what I just saw.
How the hell did he just do that?
Not yet.
Let me get this straight. You know Kendrick Taylor...
and you convinced him to let you kick his ass in public?
Heh, he's an old friend. He's getting out of the fight business...
and he needed some help getting a liquor license to open his wine bar.
It seemed like a fair trade. You'll read about it in a month.
- What's all this? - This is step two of four.
Counterintelligence.
Yeah.
- I don't know what that means. - Heh, spying, genius.
For this thing to come off we gotta get Chance to the finals.
There's no limit on wagers then.
It's the only time Prentiss can bet everything.
Getting Chance there means we need to learn everything about his opponents.
Things they don't want us to know. Weaknesses.
Chinks in their armor, that sort of thing.
Now, you're gonna have to help us out with that, Eddie. You up for it?
You really think Chance can win this thing?
There's nobody in the world I'd rather have in my corner.
I just got a call.
Pack a bag, we're going to Brussels.
Good evening, gentlemen. May I help you?
Yes, we're with the Benedict party.
- Planning or implementation? - Implementation.
Please, follow me.
Fight check-in is at 7 p.m.
All right, tell me the truth. Are you as excited as I am?
You know, I haven't wanted to ask you this, but, um...
back there in the alley with Kendrick, that shot you took to the chin...
that wasn't supposed to happen, was it?
- You caught that, huh? - Yeah.
You know, with all the jujitsu crap you do...
how the hell did you get hit by accident in a staged fight?
I don't know. I zigged when I should have zagged. It happens.
You're about to step into this ring with heavy hitters...
and it's Eddie's life that's riding on it.
So listen, if you're not feeling up to it...
I'm good. Really good.
Damn it.
It looks like our first opponent's gonna be a fighter named Emil Lodan.
We're on it.
Everybody's got a weakness, we'll find Emil's.
Yeah, listen, just as a reminder...
I don't need a reminder.
Yeah. Just as a reminder, make sure you talk to Frank.
- I called Frank. - Did you talk to him?
- I left word. - Left word ain't gonna cut it.
Hell, I can leave word. You know the guy.
Listen, you gotta make sure that Frank's on board, otherwise... Uh, hello? H...?
- Who's Frank? - Frank is step three.
Fight starts at 8:00. That should give you time to rest up before then.
That'll give us time to go over our cover story one more time.
I was only half-listening on the plane.
What? It's better than not listening at all.
Welcome, Mr. Johnson. Do you know who I am?
Hugh Prentiss.
We let ourselves in. Hope you don't mind.
This is my physician, Dr. Weisz.
This is my security chief, Mr. Sams. And that's Eva.
- So, what can we do for you? - I like to meet the participants.
You know, it helps give me a sense of the event.
- In your case, it seemed worth the trip. - In my case?
There's nothing more exciting than an unknown who makes a splash.
That's me. All about the splashing.
- Your shirt. - All participants submit themselves...
to a routine medical, because of your late entry there wasn't time.
But if you don't mind...
Now, I may be overly skeptical, but, uh, I have to know.
How does a fighter with your skill just appear out of thin air?
Prison. Pelican Bay. He did nine years for aggravated assault.
So you fought in the penal system.
That's a wonderful recruiting ground. Tell me, how's Warden Torres?
She's fine, as far as I know.
- And you're his corner man, are you? - Life coach, I think is what they call it.
I've got a gym in the Tenderloin. He came walking in my door one day...
saying he wanted to put his past behind him.
You can put your shirt back on.
Well, it was very nice to meet you gents.
- Good luck tonight. - Thanks.
Nice meeting you.
All right, I gotta get Guerrero hacked into the closed-circuit camera network here.
Life coach?
- Fan of the fights? - Just here for the party.
Eva Khan.
Your dad's Vincent Khan.
Won this tournament back in the '80s, what, four times?
Greatest heavyweight fighter nobody's ever heard of.
- Not bad. - Hmm, I do my homework.
That's why I also know you're not Prentiss' arm candy.
You're the reason he's good at picking winners.
- You're his fight handicapper, aren't you? - Again, not bad.
But I do my homework too.
Wanna tell me why you've been running around with Eddie Dunn?
I haven't said anything to Hugh, which you ought to be thanking me for...
because if he even thought you knew where Eddie was, he'd be upset.
Well, maybe upsetting Hugh is exactly what I wanna do.
Eddie's made his bed. If I were you, I'd stay out of it.
Eddie's bed?
So Prentiss thinks you're good at picking winners.
What do you think my chances are out there?
- Honestly? - Yeah.
I think you're gonna lose.
All right, here's what we got on Emil Lodan.
Managed to dig up his Army psychiatric records.
The guy's got serious anger-management issues.
Provoke him, he'll make mistakes.
Fight.
Try leading with your off-hand. That usually pisses him off.
Just slap him.
- Slap him? What do you mean, slap him? Open-handed, in the face.
What are you talking about? Why would you wanna sla...?
- What's the matter with you? - Why? You angry?
Yeah, I'm angry, you just... Oh! Oh.
Looks like Emil's good and angry.
Yeah, so far, so good.
Once he's flustered, go for his weak spot.
He's got a pin in his wrist from a shattered ulna a year ago.
And, uh, last May, he broke his 3rd and 4th ribs, so...
One clean shot to those ribs...
knock the wind right out of him. Then just finish him off.
- Uh-oh. - What is "uh-oh"?
There's something not right.
I saw the same thing in the alley. It's not like him.
He's looking slow. He's not attacking.
- Break. - Damn it.
I'm calling this fight. We're gonna need the ring doctor.
- Hang on. - There's no hanging on.
I'm looking right at him, I just heard something pop. I hope it's not his spine.
It wasn't. I think we just won the fight.
The pop you heard was Emil's wrist.
How do you know what a broken wrist sounds like?
Practice. Look, dude, the top of the skull is the hardest part on the body.
Chance leaned into that punch on purpose. I bet it, uh, broke Emil's bad hand.
I don't know what you're talking about. He looks fine to me.
He's in pain. He's just not gonna show it. If I'm right, Emil's done.
- He can't defend himself at all. - And if you're wrong?
Eight, nine...
Fight.
What happened to you out there?
A couple more minutes of that stuff and you'd be a human doorstop.
I know. It's like I forgot how to fight.
- Well, that doesn't make any sense. - Sure it does. He's got the yips.
If he goes back in that ring...
he's gonna get killed.
Wait, wait, wait a minute. The yips? What do you mean he's got the yips?
You know, like when a ball player hits a slump. He's in his head.
All the parts that need to work aren't working.
Double vision, reaction time gone to pot...
weird ringing noise like, uh, nails on a chalkboard, but in your head.
What'd you do about it?
I tried a bunch of things. Tried cutting out dairy.
My buddy told me to wear two right shoes.
I slept with my gloves on for a while. Like a year.
All right. You're an idiot.
I don't like it. You've got two more fights to win and I don't think...
the next guy's gonna fall for the break-my-hand-over-your-skull routine.
He's right. You go back in that ring, you're gonna get killed.
- Not sure where that leaves me, but... - Just relax, Eddie.
Nothing's gonna happen to you. We got a good plan, we're gonna stick to it.
I'm gonna go see Eva, you guys work out a strategy for my next fight.
- Did you talk to Frank yet? - Still waiting on a call back.
Guerrero's gonna talk to Frank soon, and everything's gonna work out fine.
This yips thing, it's probably just nerves.
Nerves. You ever known him to be nervous about anything?
Final Jeopardy questions, volcanoes.
Yeah, well, I don't care what he says.
Till this yips gets figured out, I'm not taking chances.
We're gonna fix his next fight.
- What? - And you call yourself a role model?
Towel?
You shouldn't be here.
Why, because of your boss? What's the story with you two, anyway?
Hugh was a close friend of my father's. I was 9 when he died.
He took me in and raised me as his own.
- What happened to your father? - He was sick.
Doctors told him to stay out of the ring. So did I.
But you know fighters. The point is, I would do anything for Hugh...
and I think you know that. Which is why you're here.
So cut the crap and ask me what you wanna ask me.
Eddie doesn't deserve to die because your boss doesn't play fair.
Prentiss listens to you. Help me convince him to cut Eddie loose.
What makes you think I would help you or Eddie?
I don't know. Just a hunch, maybe. Am I wrong?
Prentiss listens to me about fighters, not about forgiving million-dollar debts.
So make a bet.
I win this tournament, Prentiss lets Eddie go.
I lose, he gets all his money back, tonight.
You're not serious.
One-point-eight million dollars in cash. I got it upstairs if you wanna see it.
I can't help Eddie Dunn, and neither can you.
Wait.
Uhn! Oh.
I told you earlier you would lose. Do you know how I knew that?
I could see it in your eyes. You have that look like there's nobody at the wheel.
- The yips. - Call it what you want, but they're real.
Some guys never fight again because of it.
How do they happen?
In my experience, it's fear.
- I'm not afraid. - You are.
And until you find out of what, or who, your problem's not going away.
I heard that fighter came to see you. Johnson.
- Yes. - What'd he have to say for himself?
Nothing. Talking about the field. I think he was trying to hit on me.
And what did he say that you don't want to tell me?
He's working with Eddie Dunn.
- Is that a fact? - He wants to strike a deal.
To get Eddie off the hook.
He says he has the money to cover your loss.
I think you should take it.
I'm just saying, you get the 1.8 back. Everyone gets to move on.
Isn't that a good thing?
When someone makes a fool of you, you have to make an example of them.
Otherwise, you just encourage that kind of behavior. I know what I'm doing.
This is my business.
Congratulations, Mr. Prentiss.
- Have that sent to my room, would you? - Of course, sir.
Only a handful of people would lend someone like Eddie that money.
Let's find out which one it is, shall we?
Yeah, hold on, damn it.
- Foster LaRouche? - Yeah.
I'd like to speak with you about your fight today with Grant Johnson.
Foster, my man, you've had a good run.
Four championship boxing titles.
Including the one they stripped from you on those trumped-up gambling charges.
But, you know, I think it's time that you asked yourself...
how many more fights you got in you. Maybe it's time to explore some...
- Twenty-five million. - Excuse me?
Well, you're buying me off, yeah? Trying to get me to throw the fight?
- Well, yeah, but... - Twenty-five million.
I'm perfectly happy to take a fall, but I'm not just gonna give it away.
- Twenty-five million? - Tch. Yay.
Before the bell rings, in cash, in my hands.
Tell you what I'm gonna do, Foster. I'm gonna write down a number.
- That way, you and me can negotiate... - No, no. Twenty-five.
- Eh? Am I not speaking clearly? - How in the...?
Man, if I had $25 million, what would we be doing here in the first place?
Well, that's your problem then. Eh? Not mine. Can you get it or can't you?
All right, come on, now. Wait a minute, now.
You mean to tell me there's nothing else you want?
World peace.
Time machine.
And to go down in history as the greatest boxer that ever lived.
- Tell him okay. - Okay?
All right.
- All right. - Okay.
This guy leaves the sport disgraced, the commissioner says...
if LaRouche sets foot in the ring again it'd be over his dead body...
and you got him into the Boxing Hall of Fame?
The commissioner and I have a relationship.
- What kind of a relationship? - The kind where I get a monthly stipend.
Certain photos stay stashed away in a drawer and he stays happily married.
It's my understanding you lent a significant amount of money...
to a fighter representing Eddie Dunn.
One-point-eight million dollars, to be exact.
Let's say I did. What of it?
Well, I have a few problems with Mr. Dunn.
I assume, were I to interfere in his current plan...
it might be difficult for the 1.8 million to be paid back to you.
- Then you and I would have a problem. - You would be correct.
So I'd like to buy the debt off, 150 percent of whatever you're owed.
That way you get compensated...
and I'm free to deal with these gentlemen as I see fit.
One seventy-five.
And I assume that this check will be cleared by tomorrow morning.
Thanks, doll.
The fighter's real name is Christopher Chance.
He's all yours.
Hollis Ray vs. Diego Cruz.
Winner takes on you in the final match.
Oh, by the way, I overheard your conversation with Eva on the comm link.
You know, before she whupped your ass.
You give any thought to what she said? About what might be causing the yips?
That I'm afraid of something? Did you have something specific in mind?
Well, that didn't take long.
I'm not gonna lie. This is the last guy you wanna fight in this tournament.
- What I dug up is not encouraging. - That's it?
Born in Brazil, served in the army.
The guy's got no attachments.
- No weaknesses. - There's nothing to exploit.
I checked all over. From what I can tell, all this guy does is eat, sleep and fight.
And he knocked out Hollis Ray in 10 seconds.
Give us a minute, will you, fellas?
We need to start thinking seriously about backing out of this.
- No. - We'll find some place to stash Eddie.
Work out another way to neutralize the threat.
I promised Belvilacqua a result. We can't walk away from this.
- The only way out is through it. - They just took Ray out on a stretcher.
Want that to happen to you? You're no good to Eddie.
- This isn't about Eddie. - Who's it about?
- Eva. - Eva?
- The handicapper? - She's trapped.
Prentiss has pushed her around, taken advantage of her loyalty, he's used her.
- It's wrong. I'm not gonna stand for it. - Not gonna stand for it?
What are you talking about? She's not in any danger.
Someday she's gonna wanna leave. You think he's gonna let that happen?
- He's always gonna be a problem for me. - For you?
For her. You know what I mean.
Hello?
Okay.
Eva's coming around. She wants to see me.
If you wanna jump ship, you can be my guest, but I'm sticking this out.
- Thank you for coming. - You said it was urgent.
Prentiss is wrong about Eddie, but I can't change his mind.
I'm not strong enough.
So if you can't change his mind, why am I here?
No, no. What he said was:
"Prentiss is always gonna be a problem for me."
Not for Eva, for "me." So here's what I'm thinking.
Now, it's gonna sound a little out there, so just hang with me.
You're saying it's a Freudian slip.
Chance sees himself in Eva.
Prentiss uses her the same way his old boss used him.
What you actually think he's afraid of is a showdown with the Old Man.
- And that's what causing the yips, right? - Yeah.
Yeah, exactly.
- Hey, how did you know what I was...? - It's not brain surgery, dude.
- What are we talking about? - We?
- We're gonna have to shake him loose. - That's great, Winston.
Unfortunately, there's not a hell of a lot we can do about that now.
I'll call you back.
Excuse me. I need you to make a delivery for me, please.
Thank you.
Look, I get it. I know what you're going through right now.
He found you, you were lost, he dusted you off...
got you back on your feet. It meant something.
It meant everything. He saved my life.
Maybe, but things are different now. You didn't sign up to hurt people.
- Did you? - You should go.
- Eva. - Get out of here, now.
Thank you.
Christopher Chance.
I had a very informative conversation with Tony Belvilacqua.
Great, I'm glad you guys are working on your issues.
The good news is you're no longer in debt to Mr. Belvilacqua.
The bad news is, you're in debt to me.
So given this change in circumstances...
I was wondering if you might answer a question for me.
Where's Eddie Dunn?
Well, that depends. If you ask Descartes...
he'd say his mind and his body can exist in two places at the same time.
If you ask Jung, he'd say that he's in our unconscious realm.
Keep asking whoppers like that, we're gonna be here for a while.
How long do you think you can keep that up?
I don't know.
I guess we'll find out, won't we?
You tell me where Eddie is, it could all be done.
Okay, pull him up.
Uh-uh.
You know, you might get out of this room.
You might even get out of this hotel, but sooner or later, I will find you.
And Eddie Dunn.
Let's agree we can both do each other a lot of damage.
Take Eva, for instance.
What about Eva?
How do you think she'd feel if she knew you had her father killed?
- I don't know what you're talking about. - The doctor said it was heart failure...
but you and I know there are plenty of poisons that can mimic that.
Especially in a fighter with a weakened system.
So, what happened? Did he say no to you just like Eddie did?
There are consequences to one's actions.
Some people learn the hard way.
Somehow I just don't think Eva's gonna see it that way.
Well, I don't think Eva would believe you at all.
What if there were a way to resolve this and save us all this mess?
- Such as? - I fight Diego Cruz.
I win, Eddie doesn't see or hear from you ever again.
I lose, you get 1.8 million, and Eddie.
And if I say no?
Like I said, mess.
You got yourself a deal.
Well, gentlemen, if you'll excuse me...
I have a fight to get ready for.
So I'm confident in Mr. Cruz's chances...
but still, we don't want any surprises. Do you understand?
I understand.
- You're fixing the fight. - Hardly. Cruz is gonna win.
Just guarding against the unforeseen.
Then I suppose we ought to make some money on it. Place a bet.
Whatever you think is appropriate.
Did you hear about Ray? They say he hasn't woke up yet.
They're saying Diego put him in a coma.
Yeah, I heard.
Look, I'm just saying, if when you're out there...
you feel like you need to bail at some point...
you give me the signal, I'll pull the plug.
Gentlemen, let's have a clean fight out there.
Touch gloves.
This is a fight to the finish, gentlemen. Back to your corners.
No running out of the ring, no headbutts, eye-gouging, biting...
I guess this is it, huh?
It's gonna be fine, right?
Now, stay in your corners until my signal.
Fight.
I think I got an idea what's causing your yips.
Something I heard Eddie say.
I know you're thinking about the Old Man...
that he's out there.
You think I'm afraid of him?
I don't think you're afraid of him at all.
Matter of fact, I think that's a fight you've been looking for, for a long time.
But like any good fighter, you're thinking about where you're vulnerable.
Where you can be hurt. I know you're not scared of the Old Man. I know that.
But you're thinking about what he might do to somebody close to you.
You're thinking about what he might do to me.
Well, I got news for you.
I don't go down easy.
Anybody wants to get at you, they're gonna have to go through me first.
Come on.
Get up.
Come on.
Let's fight.
Break.
I believe I'm supposed to be poisoning you now.
I'd rather you didn't.
- Say hi to Guerrero for me. - I will, Frank.
And fight.
What the hell's going on?
When you try to fix a fight by bribing the referee...
make sure the ref isn't friends with the fighter you're trying to screw.
This is my business, and I sure as hell know what I'm talking about.
You knew about this?
I know about a lot of things that I shouldn't.
Delivery for you, ma'am.
What about Eva?
How do you think she'd feel...
if she knew you had her father killed?
There are consequences to one's actions.
Some people learn the hard way.
I know what you did to my father.
What's that?
It's the receipt from the bet that I placed on the fight.
You said that I should put down whatever I thought was appropriate.
- How much did you...? - All of it.
Everything you own. Every last dime.
You better hope Diego wins.
Yes.
One, two, three, four, five...
six, seven, eight...
There are consequences to one's actions.
Some people have to learn the hard way.
Where do you think you're going?
Don't worry about me.
Worry about him.
Well, that was unexpected.
You assured me this check would clear.
Something tells me that may not be the case.
We have a new champion.
Ladies and gentlemen, the new champion.
You told Belvilacqua you'd get Prentiss to bet everything he owns.
But really, your plan was to get Eva to make the bet.
- Step four. - Step four.
Which means you knew all along that Prentiss killed her father.
- Yep. - Which means I can go home?
Hug me, dude, and you're a dead man.
Listen, what you said back there, thanks.
Hey.
Wanna know why I come with you on these things?
It's not because I'm nervous.
It's not because I wanna second-guess you.
And it's definitely not because I'm some sort of closet thrill-junkie.
I come with you on these things because...
- You know. - For God's sakes, get a room already.
Oh, shut up.
- Hey. - I figured you're heading to the airport.
Mind if I hitch a ride?
Where you headed?
I'm open to suggestions.
Yeah, I'll just ride up in the... Taxi.