UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey’s next title defence will come a bit later than originally planned. The UFC’s top star will now face off against undefeated contender “Alpha” Cat Zingano at UFC 184: “Weidman vs Belfort” on February 28, 2015 in Los Angeles, California.

Rousey and Zingano were initially set to meet at UFC 182 in early January, but UFC officials announced this week that the bout has been pushed back close to two months. Zingano re-earned her top contender status this past month when she stopped Amanda “The Lioness” Nunes at UFC 178.

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Visa issues have resulted in a pair of late changes to Saturday’s Invicta Fighting Championships 9 card in Davenport, Iowa. Kaitlin Young is now set to battle Raquel “Rocky” Pa’aluhi in a featherweight matchup after Young’s original opponent, Cindy “Battlecat” Dandois, was forced to withdraw.

Young and Dandois were set to meet in a bantamweight bout, but Dandois, who has recently spent months training and living in the U.S., was unable to secure a visa to compete. As well, an atomweight contender’s bout between Ayaka Hamasaki and Hérica Tibúrcio has been scrapped from the card.

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Deep Women’s Flyweight Champion “Princess” Satoko Shinashi made a successful return to action tonight at Deep: “69th Impact” in Tokyo, Japan. Competing for the first time in more than six years, Shinashi stopped 15-year-old striker Ye Jin Jung with ground and pound in just 75 seconds.

Shinashi last fought inside a Deep ring in October 2008 and she wasted no time in securing a win during her long-awaited return. The talented judoka took Jung down right away and overwhelmed her with strikes on the mat, then called out Road FC star Ga Yeon Song for a New Year’s Eve battle.

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The Ultimate Fighting Championship came to Maracanãzinho Gymnasium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil tonight for UFC 179: “Aldo vs Mendes 2.” The event was headlined by a UFC Featherweight Championship rematch between champion José “Scarface” Aldo and top contender Chad “Money” Mendes.

Also on the card tonight, Glover Teixeira took on Phil “Mr. Wonderful” Davis in the light heavyweight co-feature. Fabio Maldonado battled Hans Stringer in another 205-pound bout and Darren “The Damage” Elkins met Lucas “Mineiro” Martins at 145. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the card.

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Marloes “Rumina” Coenen picked up a dominant third-round submission win in her Bellator debut tonight at Bellator 130 in Mulvane, Kansas. The former Strikeforce champ and long-time contender finished Italian striker Annalisa “No Fear” Bucci with a modified rear-naked choke in a featherweight bout.

Coenen controlled the action on the ground throughout tonight’s fight and she prevented Bucci from mounting any offence at all. Bucci managed to take top position on the mat in rounds two and three, but Coenen remained active from the bottom and she eventually secured the fight-ending choke.

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Felice “Lil’ Bulldog” Herrig kept Team Pettis’s perfect record intact with a clear-cut Unanimous Decision victory during tonight’s fifth episode of The Ultimate Fighter 20: “A Champion Will Be Crowned.” Herrig defeated rival “Hurricane” Heather Clark for a second time in a rematch from March 2013.

In addition to Clark’s defeat, the still-winless Team Melendez suffered an additional loss tonight. After a knee injury forced Justine Kish out of the competition, Tecia “The Tiny Tornado” Torres was brought back into the elimination round and moved from Team Melendez over to Team Pettis.

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After more than six years away from the sport, Deep Women’s Flyweight Champion “Princess” Satoko Shinashi makes her long-awaited return to MMA on October 26th at Deep: “69th Impact” in Tokyo, Japan. Shinashi battles South Korean teen Ye Jin Jung in a 45kg bout on the card.

Deep officials announced the fight on Monday. Shinashi was one of MMA’s top pound-for-pound female fighters prior to leaving the sport in late 2008 in order to focus on family life. The diminutive grappler seeks her 30th career victory when she takes on 15-year-old kickboxer Jung this Sunday night.

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Undefeated strawweight stars Claudia “Claudinha” Gadelha and Joanna Jędrzejczyk are set to collide in a top contender’s bout on December 13th at UFC on FOX 13: “Dos Santos vs Miocic.” The FOX-televised fight card is scheduled to take place at the US Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona.

UFC officials confirmed plans for the matchup on Friday following an initial report from MMANews.pl. BJJ black belt Gadelha kicked off her UFC career with a Unanimous Decision victory over Tina “Jelly Bean” Lähdemäki in July. Jędrzejczyk defeated Juliana “Ju Thai” de Lima Carneiro at UFC on FOX 12.

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