Joanne “JoJo” Calderwood has once again received a new opponent for her strawweight bout at Invicta Fighting Championships 6 on July 13th in Kansas City, Missouri. Calderwood faces Jackson’s MMA prospect Norma Rueda Center, who has replaced an injured Sarah “White Tiger” Schneider.
MMARising.com confirmed the change with a source close to the promotion today. Calderwood was first set to face Claudia “Claudinha” Gadelha, but an injury resulted in a shakeup to the card. With Schneider injured and unable to face Calderwood, Center steps in to challenge the highly-touted striker.
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Japanese legend Megumi “Mega Megu” Fujii is set to retire from active competition following an illustrious MMA career spanning nine years. Fujii announced plans for her retirement during tonight’s Vale Tudo Japan 2nd event in Tokyo. She will compete one final time at VTJ 3rd in October.
In addition to her success inside the ring, Fujii has trained some of MMA’s top female fighters in Japan including past and present champions Hitomi “Girlfight Monster” Akano, Yasuko “Ikuko” Tamada and Ayaka Hamasaki. She inspired countless others to begin training and competing in MMA.
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Carina “Barbie” Damm has been fined and suspended for six months by the Ohio Athletic Commission for submitting an invalid urine sample prior to her recent fight in the state. Damm dropped a Unanimous Decision to Jessica “Evil” Eye at NAAFS: “Fight Night In The Flats 9” on June 1st in Cleveland.
OAC Executive Director Bernie Profato discussed the suspension with MMARising.com today. During pre-fight testing, Damm submitted a sample that was determined to be a substance other than urine. She has incurred a $550 fine in addition to the suspension, but is able to appeal the ruling.
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Unbeaten Polish prospect Joanna Jędrzejczyk scored the biggest win of her MMA career tonight at “Fight Nights: Battle of Moscow 12” in Moscow, Russia. The multi-time Muay Thai champ outstruck Russian standout Julia Berezikova en route to an impressive Unanimous Decision victory.
Jędrzejczyk displayed excellent takedown and submission defence during the fight and she thwarted most of Berezikova’s attempts to take the fight to the ground. Jędrzejczyk mixed up her strikes well in both rounds and put together crisp combinations that kept her ahead on the judges’ scorecards.
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It did not come easily, but BJJ black belt Alexis “Ally-Gator” Davis earned her first UFC win tonight at UFC 161: “Evans vs Henderson” in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Davis narrowly outpointed veteran contender Rosi “The Surgeon” Sexton in a featured bantamweight bout on the main card.
Davis, who began her MMA career in Winnipeg in 2007, got off to a strong start tonight. She threatened with submissions on the ground, but Sexton refused to give up and she rallied with hard ground and pound. Davis came on strong as the fight progressed and took home a close decision victory.
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The Ultimate Fighting Championship came to the MTS Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada tonight for UFC 161: “Evans vs Henderson.” The injury-plagued card was headlined by a light heavyweight bout between former UFC champion “Suga” Rashad Evans and Dan “Hendo” Henderson.
In the heavyweight co-feature, Roy “Big Country” Nelson faced Stipe Miocic. Ryan “The Big Deal” Jimmo took on Igor “The Duke” Pokrajac at 205 and Alexis “Ally-Gator” Davis battled Rosi “The Surgeon” Sexton in a women’s bantamweight bout. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the card.
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Multi-time boxing world champion Holly “The Preacher’s Daughter” Holm will look to keep her perfect professional MMA record intact when she faces Allanna “Hands of Stone” Jones at Legacy Fighting Championship 21. The event takes place on July 19th at Arena Theater in Houston, Texas.
MMAjunkie.com first reported on the bantamweight matchup today. Holm is coming off of a second-round TKO victory over Katie Merrill at Bellator 91 and she announced her retirement from boxing earlier this year in order to compete in MMA full-time. Jones looks to rebound from a loss at CFA 11.
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An atomweight bout between former Jewels title contender Kikuyo Ishikawa and Amber “The Bully” Brown has been added to Pancrase 250, which is scheduled to take place on July 28th in Tokyo, Japan. Pancrase officials announced plans for the featured 105-pound matchup earlier today.
Ishikawa is unbeaten inside the Pancrase ring. She most recently stopped Miyoko Kusaka in a rematch on April 21st. Her lone loss in her past eight fights came via Split Decision against ex-Jewels champ Naho “Sugi Rock” Sugiyama. Brown debuted for Pancrase in May and now drops to 105.
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