Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Analysis of Invicta FC 14 card

Invicta announced the full card yesterday for Invicta FC 14. So as usual I will analyze the card. The show will be Sept. 12 at the Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City. And that is the biggest problem with this show. Look, I understand that Invicta owner Shannon Knapp lives in Kansas City and she saves money by running shows there. But they don't draw flies and all the empty seats look like crap on TV. This has become a running joke. It needs to stop. The last show in Vegas had a decent crowd because fans were already in town for a UFC show. She needs to coordinate all Invicta shows with UFC shows. The location is irrelevant as the UFC presence assures a good crowd. Kansas City is a buzz kill. At the last show, Invicta announced that Livia Renata Souza would defend her Invicta Strawweight Championship against Alexa Grasso. But Alexa got hurt and they had to find a new main event. This is why I wait until the full show is announced before writing about it. And they've gone to waiting until a month before the show to announce the full card because they are trying to avoid injuries. The main event will have Tonya Evinger defending her Invicta Bantamweight Championship against undefeated Danish fighter Pannie Kianzad. This is a tough fight for Tonya. Pannie is younger, quicker and bigger than Tonya. Pannie fought at 145 in Cage Warriors. And she's fought five rounds before. There have been some whining that Raquel Pa'aluhi didn't get this title shot. And I understand she's a fan favourite. But Pannie is a tougher opponent. Tonya deserves a lot of credit for agreeing to it. Plenty of fighters wouldn't have. The co-main event will have former Invicta Strawweight Champion Katja Kankaanpaa vs DeAnna Bennett. DeAnna is a 125lb fighter trying to drop to 115. But she has trouble making weight. She's 7-0 but she didn't look good in her last two fights. Maybe the weight cut affects her performance. I saw her name and a red flag went up for me. Roxanne Modafferi will face Brazilian Mariana Morais. Mariana probably shouldn't be on the main card in her Invicta debut. She's 20 years old. She's 9-2 but she has faced mostly fighters with poor records in Brazil and Peru. One of her losses was to Jennifer Maia. I would prefer to see Roxanne face a more experienced fighter. At 125lb, Rachael Ostovich will face Andrea Lee. I'm not sure this should be on the main card. In her Invicta debut, Rachael won a split decision over Evva Johnson who isn't in her class. Andrea looked great in her Invicta debut with a win over Shannon Sinn. But then she took a short notice fight against Roxanne Modafferi and she lost by split decision. And she got hurt. Hopefully she's learned her limitations as I think she bit off more than she can chew. Opening the main card will be Cindy Dandois vs Megan Anderson. In her last fight, Cindy looked terrible losing to Tonya Evinger. Megan is a newcomer from Australia. It's another fight that may not belong on the main card. At 115lb, Jamie Moyle will face Sharon Jacobson. Jamie is undefeated and they are probably trying to build her up to the main card. Sharon won her Invicta debut but I don't think she's in Jamie's class. At 105lb, Jinh Yu Frey will face Liz McCarthy. Both have had mixed results in Invicta. I'm not crazy about either of them. At 115lb, JJ Aldrich will face newcomer Daniela Kortmann. Daniela is from Berlin, Germany. At 125lb, Aspen Ladd will face Amanda Bobby Cooper. I know they're very high on Aspen. Both are young fighters with good amateur records. They're looking at potential which is what they should be doing in the prelims. And the opener will have Rachel Wiley vs Felicia Spencer at 155lb. Both are making their pro debuts. I always get asked about heavy weight classes. I have no problem with it if there is a decent talent level. This is Invicta's first ever 155lb fight and they are using two inexperienced fighters meaning there are no top fighters in that weight class. It's not a good sign. Don't forget to watch the show on UFC Fight Pass.

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