Jan Finney Cleared To Face Kaitlin Young At Freestyle Cage Fighting 49Former Strikeforce title challenger Jan “Cuddles” Finney has been officially cleared to face Kaitlin Young in the main event of Freestyle Cage Fighting 49 on October 1st in Shawnee, Oklahoma. The veteran suffered a TKO loss on September 9th in New Mexico, but was not placed under suspension.

Finney was stopped by standout striker Holly Holm in the September 9th bout in Albuquerque, but will now be free to face Young in the main event of the all-female FCF card. Young most recently battled another veteran, Julie Kedzie, to a competitive five-round decision defeat in an April title fight.

Following her TKO defeat to Holm, Finney (8-10-0) was not placed under a standard 30-day medical suspension by the New Mexico Athletic Commission. The Oklahoma State Athletic Commission, which will oversee Finney’s bout with Young (4-5-0)* on October 1st, conducted an internal discussion and ultimately decided to allow Finney to compete as planned on the FCF card. OSAC Inspector Leigh Brown confirmed the latest news with MMARising.com today.

Finney has encountered a tough patch in her career and has dropped three straight fights, including a one-sided defeat to current Strikeforce Women’s Featherweight Champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos. Prior to that, however, Finney picked up four victories in a row and totalled wins over Liz Carreiro and Adrienna Jenkins in last year’s FCF Women’s Grand Prix. Finney has finished five opponents to date, but she has been stopped in each of her last three losses and faces a skilled striker in her FCF return.

Young has also endured tough times and fight cancellations in recent years and has fought just four times since her CBS-televised bout with Gina “Conviction” Carano in May 2008. The result of one of those bouts, a September 24th fight on the Ultimate Women Challenge reality show, remains under wraps as the show continues to be shrouded in legal controversy. Young also took part in the FCF women’s tournament last year, but she was defeated by Jennifer Tate in the opening round.

Both fighters have histories with Kedzie, as Finney faced the Jackson’s MMA star on three occasions but suffered setbacks in each bout. Young and Kedzie both took part in the UWC competition and later faced off for the Jackson’s MMA Series Women’s Bantamweight Championship on April 9th of this year. The close and competitive bout ultimately ended in a Unanimous Decision win for Kedzie and Young will look to get back on the winning track against Finney. All of Young’s wins have come by knockout.

Freestyle Cage Fighting 49 takes place on October 1st at the FireLake Grand Casino in Shawnee, Oklahoma. The all-female card will be headlined by the bout between Young and Finney.

 

*Note: Young’s listed record does not include a bout which took place during the filming of the Ultimate Women Challenge reality show on September 24th in St. George, Utah; the result of which remains under wraps due to ongoing litigation.

 

 

(Photo Credit: Sherdog.com)

  1. Cuddles has a glass liver.