Transgender fighter Fallon “The Queen of Swords” Fox earned her spot in the finals of the inaugural CFA women’s featherweight tournament tonight at Championship Fighting Alliance 11 in Coral Gables, Florida. Fox used a unique shin choke to submit Allanna “Hands of Stone” Jones in round three.
On the other side of the bracket, Ashlee Evans-Smith advanced on to the finals by default when late-replacement opponent Anna “Smiles” Barone came in 11 pounds over the featherweight limit. Fox and Evans-Smith will meet for the newly-created CFA women’s featherweight title later this year.
Bantamweight Queen of Pancrase Rin Nakai earned one of her biggest wins to date tonight in the co-main event of Pancrase 247 in Tokyo, Japan. Nakai overcame a slow start and submitted previously unbeaten King of the Cage champion Brenda “Boom Boom” Gonzales late in the opening round.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship came to Arena Jaraguá in Jaraguá do Sul, Santa Catarina, Brazil tonight for UFC on FX 8: “Belfort vs Rockhold.” The event was headlined by a five-round middleweight battle between Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort and former Strikeforce champion Luke Rockhold.
Eight more fights have been added to next Saturday’s Jewels: “24th Ring” event in Tokyo, Japan. Top Jewels star Mika “Future Princess” Nagano will aim for her third straight victory when she takes on Takumi Umehara, while former Valkyrie champion “V.V” Mei Yamaguchi faces Seo Ye Jung.
Jéssica “Bate Estaca” Andrade will make her return to the flyweight division for a pair of high-profile matchups later this year. On June 15th, the talented 21-year-old faces off against fellow rising star Kalindra Faria at Real Fight 9, which is set to take place in São José dos Campos, São Paulo, Brazil.
Decorated BJJ black belt Claudia “Claudinha” Gadelha kept her undefeated MMA record intact with a well-deserved Unanimous Decision victory tonight at Max Sport 13.2 in São Paulo, Brazil. Gadelha outpointed Hérica Tibúrcio in the lone female bout on the card and will next compete at Invicta FC 6.
Invicta FC atomweight “Fancy” Laura Sanko is pregnant with her first child and has withdrawn from her planned fight at Invicta Fighting Championships 6 on July 13th in Kansas City, Missouri. In Sanko’s place, Cassie “The Hulk” Robb now faces Livia “T-Rex” von Plettenberg on the preliminary card.
Former Tuff-N-Uff champion Ashlee Evans-Smith is back in the inaugural CFA women’s featherweight tournament. The talented wrestler is now set to face Anna “Smiles” Barone in a semi-final bout at Championship Fighting Alliance 11, which takes place on May 24th in Coral Gables, Florida.