Invicta 14 will return to Kansas City on September 12 with a Bantamweight Championship bout, as Tonya Evinger looks to defend her title for the first time against undefeated challenger Pannie Kianzad.
The bout, which takes place on UFC Fight Pass, will feature 10 total fights with some of the promotion's best fighters and some of the brightest prospects. All the fights were confirmed by a press release obtained by Bleacher Report from Invicta FC.
The Evinger-Kianzad title bout replaces the previously announced Invicta Strawweight Championship bout that was to be between champ Livia Renata Souza and top-ranked challenger Alexa Grasso. That bout will now be moved to a later date, as Invicta has planned two more shows before 2015 is over.
Since failing to make it out of the elimination round of The Ultimate Fighter 18, Evinger has made huge improvements in her game and has gone undefeated in that time. The wrestler has turned into an all-around terror, though her bread-and-butter ground game has been the center of her success.
She earned wins over Sarah D'Alelio, Ediane Gomes and Cindy Dandois en route to a spot in the vacant title bout in her last outing. There, she dominated Mexican star Irene Aldana, eventually finishing the striker with ground-and-pound to claim the belt.
As for Kianzad, the Swedish fighter looks to be the best challenge for Evinger out there, as she is 8-0 in her career. In that time, she became the Cage Warriors Bantamweight Champion, an honor that is highly reputable in Europe and in women's MMA as a whole.
She made her Invicta debut in her most recent offering, where she was dominant in a one-sided decision over Jessy-Rose Clark. That earned her the right to challenge Evinger here in what should be an exciting, competitive affair.
The co-main event is a high-stakes strawweight bout, as DeAnna Bennett looks to punch a potential ticket to a title shot against former champion Katja Kankaanpaa. Bennett is undefeated in fighting in three different weight classes, while Kankaanpaa looks to recover from losing her title in her last fight.
Also on the card are notables such as UFC vet Roxanne Modafferi, rapidly rising prospect Jamie Moyle and potential atomweight title challenger Jinh Yu Frey. It's proof that the card is loaded with young potential that could be flag-bearers in the future.
Stay tuned with Bleacher Report for any developments or changes in the card.
Full Card
- 135: Tonya Evinger (c) vs. Pannie Kianzad
- 115: DeAnna Bennett vs. Katja Kankaanpaa
- 125: Roxanne Modafferi vs. Mariana Morais
- 125: Andrea Lee vs. Rachael Ostovich
- 145: Cindy Dandois vs. Megan Anderson
- 115: Jamie Moyle vs. Sharon Jacobson
- 105: Jinh Yu Frey vs. Liz McCarthy
- 115: JJ Aldrich vs. Daniela Kortmann
- 125: Aspen Ladd vs. Amanda Bobby Cooper
- 155: Rachel Wray vs. Felicia Spencer
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