Top Brazilian prospect Claudia Gadelha kept her unblemished record intact tonight in her first fight outside of her home country. Despite late event and opponent changes, Gadelha earned a Split Decision victory over Valérie “Trouble” Létourneau at Wreck MMA: “Road To Glory” in Gatineau, Québec.

Gadelha controlled the bout with takedowns in all three rounds, but her offence became limited as the fight progressed. She rocked Létourneau on the feet in round one and did enough from top position to take the second round on two judges’ scorecards for a close and competitive decision win.

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Rising star Jessica “Evil” Eye won for the fourth straight time tonight in front of friends and family at Bellator Fighting Championships 66 in Cleveland, Ohio. Eye took a well-earned Unanimous Decision victory over short-notice opponent Anita “El Tigre” Rodriguez in a 131-pound catchweight bout.

In the Bellator 66 televised main event, former lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez avenged one of three career defeats with a first-round destruction of DREAM champ Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki. The big win got Alvarez back on track after his Bellator title loss to Michael Chandler in November.

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Undefeated Toshido Martial Arts fighter Sarah “Cheesecake” Moras scored the biggest victory of her young MMA career on Thursday night at Conquest of the Cage 11 in Airway Heights, Washington. Moras stopped hometown favourite Julianna “The Venezuelan Vixen” Peña after the second round.

Despite close to two years away from competition, Moras showed no ill effects from the lengthy layoff and she was able to control much of the bout on the ground. Peña refused to tap out to a deep armbar, but sustained significant damage from the hold and the cageside doctor stopped the fight.

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Popular prospect Jordan Nicole Gaza will compete for the final time as an amateur on the May 25th Tuff-N-Uff card in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Texas native, better known as “Ninja Princess,” faces Werdum Combat Team’s Kaiyana Rain in a featured 115-pound matchup announced this week.

Also targeted for the May card is a Tuff-N-Uff 115-pound women’s title bout between Stephanie “The Shark” Gonzalez and Jillian “Justice” Lybarger. Gonzalez was awarded the belt earlier this month when then-champion Lybarger was unable to make weight. The score will be settled in May.

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The opening bout on the all-female Invicta Fighting Championships 1 card has undergone a late change. The April 28th event, which takes place at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas, will now begin with a 105-pound matchup between Meghan “The Babe” Wright and Iowa’s Cassie Rodish.

Wright’s original opponent, Jessica Philippus, withdrew from the bout earlier today. Philippus, who gave birth to daughter Kamilla in late January, felt that she would be unable to make the contracted weight limit. Invicta President Shannon Knapp discussed the situation with MMARising.com this evening.

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Less than two weeks until Invicta Fighting Championships 1! I am very excited for my fight and for the entire Invicta card. I feel so blessed to be a part of this historic event! Training has been going great. Every morning, I wake up to the sound of the rooster crowing and start my day of training.

For cardio, I chase chickens and I do not stop until every one is caught. For strength, I lift stacks of hay over my head and do push presses for several sets. For boxing, I punch a large slab of beef hanging from the barn ceiling. I round out my day by greasing up a pig and working takedowns on him.

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This Friday night in Cleveland, Ohio, hometown favourite Jessica “Evil” Eye begins a new journey at Bellator 66. Despite a late change in opponent, Eye remains focused on fighting her way to becoming the first Bellator women’s champion at 125 pounds. That goal is the most important of her career.

Outside of the cage, Eye remains heavily involved in her community through charity work and educating others about the sport of MMA. Once the cage door closes, “Evil Eye” takes over and the talented rising star will take her first step towards becoming a Bellator world champion in three days.

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We are only two weeks out from the Invicta Fighting Championships 1 event. This training camp flew by. In my last blog, I mentioned how much of a challenge finding balance can be. I don’t think I’ve ever been as successful at balancing all of the elements of training and life as in this camp.

With each fight, I learn a little more about what is needed to perform at my best. With training beginning to wind down into a taper, I feel I’ve made more strides in this camp than in any other over the duration of my career. In this blog, I’ll discuss weight cutting and the final preparations for my fight.

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