Former Invicta FC Atomweight Champion Jessica Penne advanced on to the semi-final round with an impressive Unanimous Decision win during tonight’s tenth episode of The Ultimate Fighter 20: “A Champion Will Be Crowned.” Penne defeated fellow Team Pettis member Aisling “Ais The Bash” Daly.

The quarterfinal bout between Penne and Daly was one of this season’s best fights thus far and both fighters put forth excellent performances. Penne was able to take control of the fight on the ground in the third and final round and she walked away with a well-deserved win thanks to the strong finish.

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Talented strawweight prospect “12 Gauge” Paige VanZant put on the best performance of her pro career in her long-awaited Octagon debut tonight at UFC Fight Night 57: “Edgar vs Swanson” in Austin, Texas. VanZant stopped Hawaiian standout Kailin Curran with ground and pound in the third round.

It was Curran who got off to a strong start in the opening four minutes, but VanZant turned things around in a big way with a barrage of punches late in round one. She kept the pressure on as the fight progressed and finished Curran with a series of unanswered left hands midway through round three.

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship came to Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas tonight for UFC Fight Night 57: “Edgar vs Swanson.” The event was headlined by a five-round featherweight matchup between former UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie “The Answer” Edgar and Cub Swanson.

Also on tonight’s card, Bobby “King” Green took on Edson Barboza in the lightweight co-feature. Brad “One Punch” Pickett met Chico “King” Camus at 125. Jared “The Big Show” Rosholt battled Alexey “The Boa Constrictor” Oleinik at heavyweight. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the card.

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South Korean star Ga Yeon “Deadly Beauty” Song is set to compete in her second professional mixed martial arts bout on December 14th at Road Fighting Championship 20 in Seoul. Song faces Japanese prospect Satomi “Sarami” Takano in a featured atomweight matchup on the main card.

Road FC officials confirmed plans for the fight this week following an initial report on the Lady Go! blog. Song won her much-anticipated debut for Road FC in August when she stopped Emi Yamamoto. Takano has struggled in recent months and now looks to rebound from a loss at Deep Jewels 6.

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WPMF Japan Women’s Pinweight Champion Saya Ito steps back into the ring for her next bout at M-Fight: “The Battle of Muay Thai 6” on December 7th in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan. The 15-year-old “Muay Thai Genius” is set to face off against 18-year-old Yuuki Kira in a 100-pound matchup.

M-Fight officials announced the fight this week. Ito most recently avenged a past loss by defeating Haru “Taj Mahal” Tajima in September to capture the WPMF Japan women’s pinweight title. Kira dropped a Majority Decision to Akari “Union” Nakamura in early August at the Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup.

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Four women’s bouts featuring many of Japan’s top female fighters are now set for Deep: Dream Impact 2014, which takes place on December 31st in Saitama. Former Jewels Lightweight Queen Champion Ayaka Hamasaki battles former Valkyrie Featherweight Champion “V.V” Mei Yamaguchi.

Also confirmed for the New Year’s Eve card is a bout between former Deep Jewels Interim Lightweight Champion Emi Tomimatsu and recent WSOF title challenger Emi “Kamikaze Angel” Fujino. Shizuka Sugiyama faces Emiko “Fujin” Raika and “Princess” Satoko Shinashi takes on Rika Hamada.

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Visa issues have forced Brazilian standout Vanessa Porto out of a planned rematch against Roxanne “The Happy Warrior” Modafferi at Invicta Fighting Championships 10 on December 5th in Houston, Texas. In Porto’s place, Andrea “KGB” Lee has stepped in to face Modafferi in the flyweight fight.

Invicta FC officials confirmed the change on Thursday. Lee, a skilled striker who remains unbeaten in her pro MMA career, won her Invicta FC debut earlier this month by defeating Shannon Sinn. She takes a huge step up in competition to face Modafferi, who defeated Tara LaRosa in September.

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With former boxing champ Holly “The Preacher’s Daughter” Holm sidelined due to a neck injury, CFA women’s featherweight tournament winner Ashlee Evans-Smith has stepped in to battle Raquel “Rocky” Pennington at UFC 181: “Hendricks vs Lawler 2” on December 6th in Las Vegas, Nevada.

UFC officials confirmed the change today following an initial announcement from Pennington’s team on Tuesday. Evans-Smith remains unbeaten in her pro career and she most recently earned a TKO victory in June. Pennington looks to rebound from a close loss to Jéssica “Bate Estaca” Andrade.

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