The Ultimate Fighting Championship travelled to the Acer Arena in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia tonight for UFC 127: “Penn vs Fitch.” The card was headlined by a welterweight contender’s bout between former two-time champion “The Prodigy” B.J. Penn and tough challenger Jon Fitch.

In the night’s co-main event, British standout Michael “The Count” Bisping faced Jorge “El Conquistador” Rivera in a middleweight grudge match, while George Sotiropoulos took on Dennis Siver in a battle of rising lightweight contenders. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the Australian card.

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A highly competitive women’s bout between 125-pound British standout Rosi “The Surgeon” Sexton and former Strikeforce title challenger Roxanne “The Happy Warrior” Modafferi capped off a stellar night of fights this evening at Cage Warriors Fighting Championship 40 in North London, England.

The back-and-forth main event saw both fighters have their moments. Sexton scored numerous takedowns, but had to defend against an impressive array of submissions from Modafferi, who was making her debut in the 125-pound division. After three close rounds, Sexton earned a razor-thin decision.

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In a rematch three years in the making, South Korean kickboxing standout Seo Hee Ham once again defeated Jewels mainstay Saori “Shooting Star” Ishioka tonight at DEEP: “52 Impact” in Tokyo, Japan. Ham battered Ishioka en route to a commanding Unanimous Decision after two dominant rounds.

Ham and Ishioka first met in the opening round of the 2008 Smackgirl World ReMix Grand Prix, with Ham taking a convincing decision win in that bout as well. Her crisp striking was again too much for Ishioka, a karate practitioner with a solid ground game, as Ham cruised to victory in tonight’s rematch.

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An untimely knee injury in training has forced Miesha “Takedown” Tate out of her Strikeforce Women’s Welterweight Championship bout against Marloes “Rumina” Coenen on March 5th in Columbus, Ohio. Tate has been replaced by top contender Liz “Girl-Rilla” Carmouche in the 135-pound title fight.

Strikeforce officials announced the change earlier today, though Tate gave no indication of injury in a series of comments about the fight this week. Nevertheless, Carmouche will now put her unblemished record on the line when she steps in to challenge Coenen on less than two weeks’ notice.

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Former Sengoku Raiden Championship Featherweight Champion Marlon Sandro is the latest fighter to leave the embattled promotion. The reigning Featherweight King of Pancrase has signed a deal with Bellator Fighting Championships to compete in the promotion’s upcoming fourth season.

Bellator officials announced the acquisition earlier today. Sandro will join the developing featherweight division, though he will not be part of the upcoming 145-pound tournament. SRC Middleweight Champion Jorge Santiago also recently left Sengoku, and signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

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Two of MMA’s top 135-pound female fighters will collide in a five-round title fight at Jackson’s MMA Series 4 on April 9th in Albuquerque, New Mexico. 2007 HOOKnSHOOT Women’s Grand Prix Champion Kaitlin Young will face well-rounded veteran Julie “Fireball” Kedzie in a featured bout on the card.

Both fighters recently took part in the ill-fated Ultimate Women Challenge reality show competition last year, though results from the fights that took place during filming have yet to be released. The bout between Young and Kedzie will determine the first Jackson’s MMA Series Women’s Champion.

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In five days, Cage Warriors champion and top UK talent Rosi “The Surgeon” Sexton will compete in her home country of England for the first time in over five years when she headlines Cage Warriors Fighting Championship 40 in North London. Sexton will face Roxanne “The Happy Warrior” Modafferi.

The 125-pound matchup will mark Modafferi’s debut in the weight class, and it is arguably the biggest women’s bout in the promotion’s history; if not the biggest to take place in European MMA to date. Sexton is eager to compete in front of friends and family, but knows that she will face a tough opponent.

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A second women’s bout is in the works for Crowbar MMA: “Spring Brawl 2” on April 29th in Fargo, North Dakota. Shana “Rock Solid” Olsen and fellow Strikeforce veteran Elaina “Beef” Maxwell have verbally agreed to square off in a 145-pound matchup on the card. Bout agreements are not yet signed.

Both fighters will look to rebound from recent setbacks, as Olsen suffered the first defeat of her career last October while Maxwell was submitted by Shayna Baszler in November. The bout joins a planned matchup between Barb “Little Warrior” Honchak and Nina Ansaroff on the April card.

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