Invicta Fighting Championships 8 featured a number of excellent fights on Saturday night at the Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. A strawweight title showdown between Katja “Killer Bunny” Kankaanpää and Stephanie “Snowflake” Eggink was named Invicta FC 8 Fight of the Night.
In addition to the Fight of the Night, two fighters also took home bonuses for the best Performances of the Night. Those awards went to bantamweights Irene Aldana “Robles” and Tonya “Triple Threat” Evinger, who both picked up impressive first-round submission victories in featured bouts on the card.
Kankaanpää (10-1-1) did not have an easy road to victory tonight and she got off to a slow start against former XFC champion Eggink (4-2-0), who landed jabs and knees and countered a takedown with a triangle choke attempt. Kankaanpää came back in round two with some solid ground and pound, but the momentum shifted back in Eggink’s favour in round three. The American threatened with another tight triangle choke and she finished the round with some big punches from top position.
Eggink continued to dominate the 115-pound title fight in round four and she mounted Kankaanpää after reversing a takedown. Kankaanpää gave up her back and Eggink spent the remainder of the round landing punches while looking to set up a rear-naked choke. In the fifth and final round, Kankaanpää was aggressive from the outset and she took Eggink down into side control. From there, Kankaanpää worked for a Brabo choke until she was able to get it fully locked in for a come-from-behind tapout victory at the 2:03 mark of round five. The win earned her the Invicta FC Strawweight Championship.
Earlier on the card, Evinger (15-5-0) spoiled the best-laid title plans of Brazilian standout Ediane “India” Gomes (10-3-0) with a first-round armbar. Evinger reversed an early takedown and mounted Gomes, and she scored two takedowns of her own soon after. Gomes tried for an armbar, but it was Evinger who locked on the hold after transitioning from mount. Gomes could not escape from the armbar and she tapped out at the 3:31 mark, giving Evinger a huge victory in her second Invicta FC appearance.
Aldana (4-1-0) earned her fourth first-round finish tonight, and once again showcased her vicious striking power, but it was ultimately a submission that propelled her to victory over TUF 18 veteran Peggy “The Daywalker” Morgan (2-2-0). Aldana dropped Morgan with punches on two separate occasions in round one and she followed with more shots on the ground. Morgan survived the onslaught, but she could not escape from a rear-naked choke and Aldana secured the tapout win at the 2:50 mark of round one.
(Photo Credit: Esther Lin, AllElbows.com / InvictaFC.com)