Yana Kunitskaya vs Tonya Evinger at Invicta FC 20

Tonight at Invicta FC 20 at the Kansas City Scottish Rite Temple, in Kansas City, Missouri, Yana Kunitskaya will be taking on Tonya Evinger.
Yana is 9-2-0 and Tonya is 18-5-0.

Also on the card is....

Angela Hill vs Kaline Medeiros
Herica Tiburcio vs Simona Soukupova
Ashley Yoder vs Amber Brown
Jessy Jess vs Pam Sorenson
Lynn Alvarez vs J.J. Aldrich
Stephanie Egger vs Alexa Conners
Miranda Maverick vs Samantha Diaz

MMA News: Cristiane Santos versus Hitomi Akano

Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos (6-1) of Brazil will be facing “Smack Girl” Champion Hitomi “Girlfight Monster” Akano (14-5) of Japan at the "Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz " event on April 11th at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California.

I think this will be a very interesting match up, because the two women are almost polar opposites.
On the one hand you have Santos' Muay Thai striking and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu skills, and on the other hand you have Akano's submission skills.
Cristiane is of course the co-holder (along with Gina Carano) of the number one ranking in the WAMMA.
So what would a loss to Akano do to that standing?
And what would that do for Akano?

Hitomi was the very first lady I profiled on this blog back in February of 2007.
She has won 11 of her 14 fights with a submission. 10 of them were armbars and 5 were in the first round.
She beat fellow female MMA fighter Hari Hari in 38 seconds in the first round with an armbar.

Cristiane has won 4 of her fights in the first round, and 2 of those were by corner stoppage, her opponents corner men threw in the towel after the first round.
But the only loss she has had was via a leg lock submission, and submissions are Hitomi's bread and butter.
All of Hitomi's losses were by decision.

Cristiane has the height, weight and age advantage, but in MMA, sometimes that doesn't mean a lot.

Rosi Sexton and The WAMMA Top Ten Rankings

Female Mixed Martial Arts fighter Dr Rosi Sexton (9-1-0) has signed a four fight deal with the US based Bellator Fighting Championships.
Rosi will fight in the inaugural Bellator Fighting Championships show at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida on April 3rd.
She will face the American Top Team fighter and fellow BodogFight veteran Jessica Aguilar (5-3-0).
For more info, head over to the Bellator Fighting Championships website here.


I mentioned a couple of entries back, that WAMMA was going to start ranking the top Female Mixed Martial Artists.
Well they released the list this week, and I really wasn't surprised at the rankings.
It didn't kinda surprise me that the number one position was a tie.....

1 (tie) Gina Carano
1 (tie) Christiane Santos
3 Kelly Kobold
4 Megumi Yabushita
5 Marloes Coenen
6 Erin Toughill
7 Karen Williams
8 Emily Thompson
9 Elaina Maxwell
10 Tonya Evinger

If you want to see more about the list and the people that created it, you can go here


I noticed no Rosi Sexton on the list.
At 9-1-0 shouldn't she be?
I mean is Tonya Evinger is 7-3-0......

The Future of Female MMA

Cannon Jacques over at The Bloody Elbow has posted an article about why the ProElite situation has hurt MMA.
And the third reason he listed was the effect on female MMA.

The ProElite Debacle Hurts the Sport of MMA
3) Female MMA is being hindered along with its most recognizable stars. Saying that Gina Carano is important to the future of female MMA is like saying that Michael Jordan was a pretty decent basketball player. For better or worse, she is currently the public face of the female version of the sport.
http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2009/1/10/716540/the-proelite-debacle-hurts

Of course I agree with him and I've pointed this out several times.
The build up for the Gina Carano and Cristiane 'Cris Cyborg' Santos fight has lost most of it's momentum.
And as I have also pointed out before, Carano and Santos are probably the closest figures this part of the sport has to a Tito Ortiz or a Chuck Liddell as far as being recognized.
But without actually getting into the ring and fighting where are they going to wind up?
Doing advertisements for clothing and equipment?
And it's not just Carano and Santos. There are a ton of talented women out there that need the chance to get into the ring.
Why would amateurs compete knowing there's nowhere to go if they turn pro?
The schools, equipment, all cost money.
Okay I know there's the love of the sport, and many will continue because of that.
We have seen several female boxers turn to MMA.
If this continues, we may see female MMA fighters turn to boxing, where the female side is getting more and more press, and more opportunities.

Female MMA Fighters

Looking for some stuff on the web, I ran into two different stories about two different women that I think really shows the drive and determination behind female mixed martial artists.
Female MMA is not easy, nor is it an easy road to take. Don't get me wrong, it's hard on the men as well. But the women have to undergo the same training and punishment and still have to deal with being a female in what is basically a man's sport.
But like I said, these two ladies show what it takes to compete.

First, a story from Portland Oregon about female MMA fighter Jody De Simone.
http://wweek.com/editorial/3509/12054/

Then an in depth story about female MMA fighter Cindy Hales from Seattle.
http://www.seattleweekly.com/2009-01-07/news/spoiling-for-a-fight/1

Female MMA: Kaitlin Young

FightHype has an in depth interview with female mixed martial artist Kaitlin Young.
I think Kaitlin has the potential to be just as big as Gina Carano with the right training and backing.
But now that Elite has folded, it's kinda put female fighters like Kaitlyn up in the air.
She was scheduled to fight Sarah Kaufman on November 8th, but with Elite gone, the fight was canceled.
Anyway, here's the link to the interview:
http://fighthype.com/pages/content3756.html

Jacqueline Andrade - Martial Arts

Jacqueline Andrade is a female mixed martial artist from Rio de Janiero, Brazil.
She trains with Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.
Jacqueline has had two fights and two wins, both by submission.
The first was against Claudia Remero, she got an armbar submission in the first round in an incredible 14 seconds!
The second was against Amanda Buckner, again with an armbar in 4:00.
I don't know why this lady hasn't had a recorded match since 2003, with a record like that, she should be out there winning.
I think she may have possibly gone into grappling as opposed to MMA now as evidenced by the video posted by GrapplersQuest.

Jaqueline Andrade vs Penny Thomas Grapplers Quest World Series of Grappling

Jamie Chung and Stacy Keibler in Samurai Girl

Okay, this isn't really MMA, but it is martial arts related.

ABC Family will be airing Samurai Girl over a three day weekend starting September 5, 2008.
The series stars Jamie Chung as Samurai Girl (Heaven) and Stacy Keibler as her arch rival.
The mini series is based on a series of fictional books written by Carrie Asai.

Jamie was born born April 10, 1983. She has been in several series including The Real World: San Diego and its spinoff show, Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Inferno II, Days of Our Lives, I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, CSI: New York and Veronica Mars. Jamie will also be in the Dragonball movie playing Chi Chi.



Her arch rival is played by Stacy Keibler. Stacy is an American actress and former professional wrestler and valet for WCW and the WWE.

Since sword fights will most likely abound in the mini series, I imagine both women had to undergo some training.

Kickboxer AND Model Sarah Ponce

We haven't had a Sarah Ponce update in awhile, so here's one.

Yes this lovely woman was the 2003 Ujena Swimwear Model of the Year.

And in case you doubt her creds......
Sarah has a record of 12-1, she is the IKF Women’s Amateur IR U.S. Featherweight Champion, the USKBA Amateur Women’s San Da Lightweight International Champion, and WCL veteran with the Houston Enforcers. She is a member of Team USA and competed at the 9th World Wushu Championships in Beijing, China. Sarah was also a U.S. team member at the 2005 World Wushu Championships which took place in Vietnam.
http://gokickbox.com/?cat=87

So there!

Hijab allowed in Asian karate games

tehran times : Hijab allowed in Asian karate games:

"TEHRAN (Press TV) -- Iran has succeeded in gaining the International Karate Federation's approval for women to compete in the Asian games wearing hijab.

The decision to allow women to participate in the Asian championships while adhering to the Islamic dress code follows talks between IKF officials and Iran's Karate Federation Chief Behzad Katiraei in Morocco, Fars news reported."

Between the ropes: Female boxer puts her heart into ring

Between the ropes: Female boxer puts her heart into ring
By Julie Randle
Wednesday, February 27, 2008 7:18 AM CST

Five years ago, Jamie O'Hare decided to fight back and she's been fighting ever since.

O'Hare, a professional boxer, came to the sweet science after she was stalked as a college student by a man who lived in a half-way house near her Springfield, Mo., apartment complex.

The man used to wait outside her apartment, watch her while she sunbathed at the apartment pool and tried to force flowers on her.After he physically harassed her, she decided she had had enough. She enrolled in a self-defense class at a karate studio.

"It opened me up to self-defense that became my life," said O'Hare, a 25-year-old North County resident. "I became confident and stronger and it gave me a new way to define myself. I didn't feel like a victim."

Self-defense led to kickboxing and then amateur boxing. Twenty amateur bouts and one professional bout later, she will take on Carrine Hamlett from Georgia in a match of welterweights March 8 at the Renaissance St. Louis Grand & Suites Hotel, 800 Washington Ave. O'Hare is one of 24 competitors fighting in the Xtreme Fight Party, an event that will feature boxing and mixed martial arts --- a full contact sports that combines various fighting styles including wrestling, kickboxing and boxing.
full story here:
http://suburbanjournals.stltoday.com/articles/2008/02/27/top_story/sj2tn20080226-0227ssj-boxer00.ii1.txt





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Female boxer breaking new ground in MMA

Female boxer breaking new ground in MMA
Reid will be first boxing world champ to participate in MMA bout
By David A. Avila
MSNBC contributor
updated 10:21 a.m. ET, Thurs., Dec. 27, 2007
Elena “Baby Doll” Reid, the current flyweight champion of the world in boxing, makes her debut in the world of mixed martial arts against Tammie Schneider.

“I’m a fighter,” explains Reid. “Whether it’s boxing, or MMA, I like to fight.”

Reid becomes the first boxing world champion to participate in an MMA bout, beating Riddick Bowe and Floyd Mayweather to the punch when she meets Schneider at the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas on Friday.

full story here:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22407562/

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Gina Carano fighting in Thailand

Here's a video of Gina Carano fighting in Thailand.

technorati tags:mixed martial arts ,mixed martial art ,mixed martial arts fights ,mixed martial arts fighting ,mixed martial arts news ,female mixed martial arts ,martial arts karate ,martial arts ,martial art ,japanese martial arts ,filipino martial arts ,shaolin martial arts ,chinese martial arts

Kyra Gracie in action

This is a Highlight reel ( no...not Higlight...LOL) from http://www.graciekyra.com/


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Gina " Crush" Carano

Gina Carano recently fought on the September 15, 2007, Showtime EliteXC card, defeating Tonya Evinger via rear naked choke for her first career win by submission.

Previously she fought on the February 10, 2007, Showtime EliteXC card, defeating Julie Kedzie via unanimous decision in what was called "the fight of the night"

Her scheduled bout against Jan Finney at the EliteXC/K-1 Dynamite!! USA event on June 2, 2007 was cancelled due to illness. While initial internet rumors cited a possible pregnancy as the real cause, The Fight Network and other organizations have now reported that she was rushed to the hospital via ambulance while attending a World Extreme Cagefighting event as a spectator.

Along with Lisa King, Carano serves as a mentor to aspiring female fighters in the Oxygen reality series Fight Girls.

Carano will appear as the Gladiator "Crush" on the 2008 version of American Gladiators in January.



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Nicky Ryann, Rough

What happens when you take a former Argos cheerleader and Hooters girl,
who is currently a kickboxing instructor and ultra-opinionated fight fan, and
toss her head-first into the male-dominated world of Mixed Martial Arts? Meet
Nicky Ryann - host and co-creator of Rough - a fast-paced, entertainment-style
show where Ryann dishes the dirt with the "who's who" of the Mixed Martial
Arts world.

full story here

Rough's MySpace page


technorati tags:mixed martial arts ,mixed martial art ,mixed martial arts fights ,mixed martial arts fighting ,mixed martial arts news ,female mixed martial arts ,martial arts karate ,martial arts ,martial art ,japanese martial arts ,filipino martial arts ,shaolin martial arts ,chinese martial arts

The 61-year-old Gatlinburg resident, Nancy Walker

Nancy Walker is not only winning top awards in the martial arts arena but also winning her battle with cancer.

The 61-year-old Gatlinburg resident was awarded Female Instructor of the Year by the International Isshin-Ryu Association at a banquet in Gatlinburg on Aug. 24. Walker was selected for the honor because of her longtime dedication to the teaching of Isshin-Ryu karate.
The Female Instructor of the Year award was presented to her about a year after Walker was diagnosed with cervical cancer last September.
"I never thought I would have it ever because I was in such good shape," Walker said of her cancer. "But you never know who it's going to choose. That's the scary part of it. My oncologist said, 'How in the world did you ever get cancer?'"
Walker said she endured 25 radiation treatments and four chemotherapy sessions.





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Kyra Gracie Links

Kyra Gracie's homepage:
http://www.graciekyra.com/


Kyra on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jkg9ovWh70

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFgDbur4FF8


Interview with Kyra:
http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/people/columns/intelligencer/11970/



technorati tags:mixed martial arts ,mixed martial art ,mixed martial arts fights ,mixed martial arts fighting ,mixed martial arts news ,female mixed martial arts ,martial arts karate ,martial arts ,martial art ,japanese martial arts ,filipino martial arts ,shaolin martial arts ,chinese martial arts

MMA Clothing Line FightGirl to Release 18 Month Calendar Featuring Ms. Tapout Worldwide

MMA Clothing Line FightGirl to Release 18 Month Calendar Featuring Ms. Tapout Worldwide

Houston, TX, October 03, 2007 --(PR.com)-- Mixed martial arts fans finally have something other than the latest match to get excited about. Official FightGirl, Inc. announces today the release of the super hot 18 month FightGirl calendar.

FightGirl clothing is the premier clothing line for mixed martial arts female fans. The line, developed by Kristie Brown, meets the needs of female MMA fans from around the world. Kristie Brown noticed a lack of comfortable, casual, sexy apparel for women at various MMA events. Soon after the realization, FightGirl was born. The FightGirl brand has been seen at such major MMA events as Cage Rage in the UK, Art of War, and IFC Caged Combat to name a few.

“I noticed that every martial arts event I attended women had nothing distinguishable to wear. These events are a lot of fun, and I wanted my line to offer women something to wear that would add to the excitement of the event and to show our support for this great sport. FightGirl was born.” Explains FightGirl CEO Kristie Brown.

full story here:
http://www.pr.com/press-release/54507



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MMA: Pillow Fighting ?

Okay okay, I know Pillow Fighting is a far cry from " ground and pound" but what caught my attention in reading this article was the following....
" But while the WWE's convention of making crap up was adopted for the characters, PFL fights are a genuine combination of boxing and mixed martial arts. "
And ....
" The difference is in the training. Seasoned PFL fighters employ grapple techniques and hit the mat looking for submission holds. Amateurs, lacking formal instruction and generally too timid to tackle a stranger in front of 200 screaming fans, stay on their feet and exchange thunderous head shots."

Here's the article from ESPN, written I think with tongue firmly planted in cheek.
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=janowitz/070123

Link to their site:
http://www.canadapfl.com/

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