On Saturday, Sept. 6, Invicta Fighting Championships made its long-awaited return as it hosted its eighth event from theĀ Municipal Auditorium inĀ Kansas City, Mo.
In the night’s main event, atomweight champion Michelle Waterson made the first defense of her belt as she took on Japan’sĀ Yasuko Tamada. Waterson, or “The Karate Hottie,” rode a five-fight winning streak that dated back to 2010. The 28-year-old captured Invicta gold last April with a fourth-round armbar of Jessica Penne at Invicta FC 5. Tamada, meanwhile, made her promotional debut. The Megumi Fujii-trained fighter had picked up three straight wins under the Deep/Jewels banner heading into the title affair, which marked her first bout outside of her native Japan.
The co-main event also featured Invicta gold on the line. The promotion’s vacant strawweight title was up for grabs when Invicta vetĀ Katja Kankaanpaa squared off with newcomer Stephanie Eggink. Finland’sĀ Kankaanpaa was one of the few 115-pound fighters on the Invicta roster that wasn’t brought over to the UFC. “The Killer Bunny” suffered the first and only loss of her career to Joanne Calderwood at Invicta FC 7, but rebounded with a second-round armbar finish ofĀ Alyona Rassohyna in May. Eggink stepped into the Invicta cage riding a three-fight winning streak. The 26-year-old captured XFC gold in her last fight by submitting veteran Angela Magana with a triangle choke.
The entire fight card streamed live on UFC Fight Pass.
For the full results and recap of the event, click here.
Above are video highlights of the event’s “Performance of the Night” bouts from Irene Aldana, Tonya Evinger, Katja Kankaanpaa and Stephanie Eggink (courtesy of Invicta FC).