That's what I had to do with Alyona vs Galya,...two of my atg babies, lol,...but I had to give it to Alyona.

All things considered, I've been lucky so far. I know you and Duffman have had some tough breaks.

It has been tough....real tough...but if I can say this without jinxing her, Alyona seems to be coming back...and there's good stuff up ahead as well.

Hmm, yes, Alyona has surged back, but now my girl Lena has fallen behind. Fortunately, Anna seems to be in a good position, otherwise I don't think I could take all this pressure! ;-)

Of the 32, only half now remain after some tough battles and jaw-dropping eliminations!

Here is the bracket for the 2nd playoff round:



Again, the section colours are just a visual aid and the sections run as follows:

Red: November 1 @ 00:00 UTC - November 7 @ 23:59 UTC
Gold: November 8 @ 00:00 - November 14 @ 23.59
Green: November 15 @ 00:00 - November 21 @ 23.59
Blue: November 22 @ 00:00 - November 28 @ 23.59

It's two battles per week now, as the remaining girls steal the spotlight. Any battles catch your eye?

Also, what would you say was the biggest shock of the 1st round playoffs?

By my count, I voted for 10 of the 16 winners, so that's not a bad percentage.

Personally, the biggest shock last round was Lena losing to Alenka, and by several votes. I considered Lean to be in my top three all-time, and she didn't even make the top 16. Ah well, it was bound to happen that some of my favorites would go down.

I was also surprised by the total beatdown of Dina by Julia. I mean, I get why Julia is popular, but I just thought it would be closer.

Looking ahead, I'm worried that my girl Daria has to face Julia now. Will Julia crush another of my favorites? I hope not, but if Julia does win, is she headed for an epic showdown with Alexandra in the next round? If it happens, would Alexandra vs. Julia be the biggest matchup so far?

Certainly the "box office smash" of the tournament!

Well, for me, the most profound shock was, of course, my Masha losing...something I just can't wrap my brain around.........but if any model can be declared the "uncrowned champion",...it would be her. Maybe there should be a special "uncrowned champion" thread for those whose favorite got eliminated.

I'm also shocked that Lena got the short end of the stick.

As for an intriguing match up, I'm in agreement with Southerncrossfire44 that if Julia and Alexandra get matched, it'll be the biggest draw in the Tournament...it should attract more votes than any contest we've seen yet.

Can't believe Lena and Masha went.... nobody is safe!

Voting has now closed for the red section. The results are:

ALEXANDRA [52.94%]
NATASHA [47.06%]

JULIA [68.75%]
DARIA [31.25%]

Voting now open for the gold section.

So, I shed a few tears for my girl Daria, but breathed a sigh of relief for my girl Alexandra. It looks like we will get that matchup between Alexandra and Julia in a few weeks.

I'm intrigued with Julia vs Alexandra too...seems to me, IMO, that it'll be the first one on one contest between two "elites"...at least, my elites. What's your call on this match up Southerncrossfire44?

I'll be voting for Alexandra, of course, but given the way Julia has crushed her competition the last two rounds, and Alexandra's extremely close race last week, I think Julia might win that matchup. If Julia does beat Alexandra, she will have knocked out three of my top favorites in a row, which is just brutal for me, but shows how strong a competitor Julia is.

She's awesome...that yellow top/black mini skirt image is hard to beat....I'll be in a real quandry when any of my girls face her.
I'm just hoping that with the success of this tournament and the eventual champion being crowned that we can prevail upon Paul to bring some of the big names back for an encore. According to Paul, Alyona may be more inclined to come back, but I don't know about The Alexandra. I'd love to see any of my elite come back one more time.

Voting has now closed for the gold section. The results are:

ALEXANDRA [25.00%]
SVETA [75.00%]

MARGARITA [52.94%]
OLGA [47.06%]

Voting now open for the green section.