The Wildcards:
Ginele Marquez (5-7-1): While her record may imply otherwise, Marquez is a very talented – and extremely entertaining – fighter, with very good ground skills. She was defeated in each of her first four fights, but two of those losses came against Tara LaRosa and Amanda Buckner. Marquez has won five of her last eight fights, including wins over Molly Helsel and Megumi Yabushita.
She was defeated in her most recent fight, for the vacant HCF Women’s Bantamweight (135 pounds) Championship, by Sarah Kaufman, but she made certain that no one in the audience would forget her, as she danced her way to the ring (in highly impressive fashion) and put on a great showing in defeat. Marquez is easily one of the most exciting female fighters in the sport today.
Julie Kedzie (8-7-0): Kedzie has had a rollercoaster career, with two wins each over Molly Helsel and Jan Finney and two losses to Jen Case. Her most impressive victory to date was over Kelly Kobald last August. Since the end of 2005, Kedzie has gone 4-5, but all five losses have come against top competition, in Shayna Baszler, Tara LaRosa, Amanda Buckner, Gina Carano and Tonya Evinger.
It is because of her struggles in higher-profile fights that Kedzie’s career spirals. Her spirited battle with Gina Carano made certain that she will not be forgotten anytime soon, though.
Tonya Evinger (6-3-0): After losing her first professional fight, Evinger won four in a row, including a win over Ginele Marquez. However, she lost to Vanessa Porto and Gina Carano, which seemingly ended her fast-track to a title shot in one promotion or another. Evinger rebounded, though, and defeated Julie Kedzie earlier this year at a ShoXC event, which means that she will likely be kept around in EliteXC in the future. While an immediate rematch with Carano is unlikely, it may happen down the road.
Molly Helsel (5-6-1): Helsel has also had ups and downs in her career, having lost her first two professional fights, including one to Ginele Marquez. She entered a one-night tournament in HOOKnSHOOT in November of 2005, winning both of her first two fights before dropping a close decision to Julie Kedzie in the finals. She was defeated again by Kedzie one year later, and has experienced wins and losses since.
However, all of that could change on March 29th, as Helsel will square off against undefeated powerhouse Sarah Kaufman for the Hardcore Championship Fighting Women’s Bantamweight (135 pounds) Championship. A win over Kaufman would do wonders for Helsel’s career.
“The Queen of Spades” Shayna Baszler (8-4-0): Baszler has fought the best of the best in her 12-fight career, with all four of her losses coming against extremely tough competition. She has lost to Kelly Kobald and Tara LaRosa, and lost twice to Amanda Buckner, but Baszler has defeated Julie Kedzie, Roxanne Modafferi and Jan Finney. She is currently on a three-fight winning streak since the loss to LaRosa, and could easily challenge for a title in any promotion willing to give her the chance.
Megumi Yabushita (13-14-0): Yabushita is one of the few true veterans of female mixed martial arts, having competed against nearly all of the best female fighters at 135 pounds. However, though she has scored many significant wins, she has also been defeated by many opponents she should have beaten, and her career defines the word inconsistent.
Her most notable victories came against Erin Toughill (by DQ), Hitomi Akano and Roxanne Modafferi, but she has also been defeated by all three. Further losses to Tara LaRosa, Amanda Buckner, Ginele Marquez, Lisa Ward and twice to Laura D’Auguste have set Yabushita’s career on a downward tilt.
Jennifer Howe (13-2-0): For years, Howe was the most feared female fighter alive, with nearly a dozen fighters officially refusing to fight her at all. She racked up 12 straight wins, including a KO victory over Amanda Buckner. She remains as the only woman to ever defeat Tara LaRosa, which she did by TKO in May of 2003.
However, back-to-back losses to Roxanne Modafferi in 2004 and 2005 signalled the beginning of the end for Howe, who, after one more victory over Jennifer Fields, seemingly gave up mixed martial arts in 2005, in favour of family life with Jeremy Horn. She has not competed since then, but has the ability to defeat any female in the world – perhaps excluding Modafferi – at the 135-pound weight class, should she return.
Females are often passed off as secondary competitors in mixed martial arts events, and some feel that they do not belong in major promotions like EliteXC, fighting alongside the men. However, the undeniable fact is that women’s bouts frequently take Fight of the Night honours, and many of the world’s best female fighters are far superior to their male counterparts.
While they may not be competing in the UFC anytime soon, fans can be thankful that promotions like TKO, HCF and EliteXC are willing to give the women equal time to display their skills.