Women's MMA Report: Tate gets first UFC win, Invicta signs more strawweights

Former Strikeforce women’s bantamweight champion Miesha Tate picked up her first octagon victory on Saturday night at “UFC on FOX 11: Werdum vs. Browne” in Orlando, Fla. The popular contender narrowly edged out Liz Carmouche in the co-main event.

Tate (14-5 MMA, 1-2 UFC) showcased her improved striking skills by landing quick jabs early in the featured fight, but Carmouche (9-5 MMA, 1-3 UFC) closed the distance and took her down against the cage. Tate countered with elbows from her back and she rose to her feet, but Carmouche held on and landed knees to Tate’s thighs. She took Tate down two more times and Tate worked for a kimura before the end of the close round.

The middle stanza began with Tate landing knees and punches in the clinch. Carmouche took the fight to the mat once again, but she was unable to mount any offense and Tate defended well from her back. She landed more elbows and trapped Carmouche in a guillotine choke. Carmouche eventually escaped and she took Tate’s back shortly before time expired.

Heading into Round 3, the fight was still very much up for grabs. Tate rushed forward and scored with her best combination of the fight. Carmouche retreated and Tate secured a takedown into side control. Carmouche gave up her back and Tate immediately sank in a rear-naked choke. Carmouche escaped once, but Tate locked on another choke and Carmouche was clearly in trouble. However, she refused to submit and the lopsided final round ultimately ended with Tate dropping punches while she stood over Carmouche.

None of the cageside judges scored the final round 10-8 in Tate’s favor, but all three awarded the close fight to the former Strikeforce champion. Scores were 29-28 across the board for Tate, who picked up a much-needed victory and regained UFC contender status. Post-fight, Tate was critical of her performance and admitted that she thought that Carmouche might have done enough to win. Carmouche has now suffered defeats in three of her four UFC fights, but it appears that she may be spared from the cut list for the time being.

Invicta FC bolsters strawweight division, signs Stephanie Eggink and Alexa Grasso
While a date has not yet been officially set for its next event, Invicta Fighting Championships has added two more prospects to its 115-pound division. XFC women’s strawweight champion Stephanie Eggink (4-1) and Xtreme Kombat women’s flyweight champion Alexa Grasso (4-0) are the latest fighters to sign with Invicta FC. Both signings were confirmed this past week.

Eggink won all three of her fights for Xtreme Fighting Championships and she became the promotion’s inaugural 115-pound women’s champion when she submitted veteran contender Angela Magana with a second-round triangle choke at XFC 25 in September. Eggink appeared to be poised to become one of XFC’s top stars, but the promotion recently lost its U.S. TV deal.

With XFC shifting its focus to a new market in Brazil, and with no American event dates on the horizon, Eggink moves on to Invicta FC in hopes of continuing her climb up the strawweight rankings. She is expected to make her Invicta FC debut in the coming months.

Grasso joins her teammate and fellow Xtreme Kombat champion Irene Aldana on the Invicta FC roster. The 20-year-old Mexican standout has thus far competed as a flyweight, but she will drop down to 115 pounds for her U.S. debut. In late August, Grasso became the first Xtreme Kombat women’s flyweight champion when she defeated two opponents in a one-night title tournament at Xtreme Kombat 20. Only one of Grasso’s fights to date has lasted longer than 36 seconds and she has knocked out two opponents inside the first 15 seconds.

Invicta FC 8 currently is targeted for June, but an exact date and location have not yet been announced. The event is expected to feature a featherweight championship bout between Cristiane Justino and Ediane Gomes.

Nine fights set for Deep Jewels 4
Japan’s Deep Jewels promotion stages its fourth all-female event on May 18 in Tokyo and nine fights are now set for the card. Deep Jewels 4 features the inaugural Deep Jewels middleweight (61.2-kilogram/134.6-pound) championship bout between Shizuka Sugiyama and Takayo Hashi.

Sugiyama (11-3-1) will be competing for her first major title next month, but the veteran Hashi (14-4-1) is no stranger to championships. In 2007, she became the final Smackgirl middleweight champion and she later went on to face Sarah Kaufman for the inaugural Strikeforce women’s bantamweight title. Hashi challenged unsuccessfully for two more U.S. championships before returning home to Japan in 2012.

For Sugiyama, who is one of the top stars on the Deep Jewels roster, next month’s title fight with Hashi represents an opportunity to prove that she is truly one of Japan’s premier female fighters. The 27-year-old karateka has not lost since late 2010. In her most recent fight, Sugiyama stopped Mizuho Sato in just 75 seconds. Hashi most recently fought to a unanimous draw with Ji-Yeon Kim, who also took Sugiyama to a draw when they fought in November.

In addition to the Sugiyama-Hashi title tilt, six more MMA fights have been confirmed for Deep Jewels 4. Former Jewels poster girl Saori Ishioka (12-7) returns to the ring to face prospect Satomi Takano (3-3) in a 48-kilogram matchup. Final Valkyrie champion Mei Yamaguchi (11-7-1) looks to rebound from a pair of close defeats when she makes her Deep Jewels debut against Yukiko Seki (12-23), who has won seven of her past 11 fights.

Rounding out the MMA portion of the card thus far, Yuko Kawabata (0-5) faces Naomi Taniyama (0-2), Ayaka Miura (0-0) battles England’s Ella Wu (0-0), Tomo Maesawa (2-3) takes on Brittany Ann Decker (0-0) and Shiori Hori (0-1) meets Maya Dobashi (0-0).

Reigning Deep Jewels featherweight (48-kilogram/105.6-pound) champion Seo Hee Ham will also be in action at Deep Jewels 4. Ham returns to her striking roots and faces Yuuki Kira in a three-round kickboxing match. In grappling action, Miyoko Kusaka meets Sayuri Yamaguchi.

Jessamyn Duke faces Bethe Correia on Saturday’s UFC 172 card
On Saturday night, bantamweight prospect Jessamyn Duke seeks her first post-”TUF” victory inside the world-famous octagon when she faces Brazilian rising star Bethe Correia at “UFC 172: Jones vs. Teixeira” in Baltimore. Duke and Correia are set to square off in a featured fight on the televised portion of the preliminary card.

Duke (3-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) has quickly become one of the most highly-touted fighters in the 135-pound women’s division during her brief pro career, and her recent stint on “The Ultimate Fighter 18” only added to her notoriety. During the quarterfinal round of the competition, Duke dropped a hard-fought decision to Raquel Pennington in one of the best fights in “TUF” history. She earned her first official UFC win by outpointing Peggy Morgan at the TUF 18 Finale.

In recent months, Duke has joined up with UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey, highly-touted judoka Marina Shafir and submission specialist Shayna Baszler to form one of the most talent-rich stables of fighters in MMA. Dubbed “The Four Horsewomen,” the group has its collective sights set on conquering MMA’s 135-pound and 145-pound women’s divisions. Duke’s toughest test to date comes on Saturday night, but a win over Correia would allow her to take a big step up towards the bantamweight top ten.

Correia (7-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) may not have the same level of fanfare as her UFC 172 opponent, but the talented Brazilian brings an undefeated record into the fight and she looks to make it two-for-two inside the Octagon. After winning three straight fights this past year, Correia made her UFC debut in December and earned a razor-thin split decision victory over Julie Kedzie. She returns to the cage tomorrow night and looks to put an end to the hype surrounding Duke by defeating the 5-foot-11 American.

The Duke-Correia bout will be a part of the televised UFC 172 prelims, which air live on Fox Sports 1 in the U.S. and on Sportsnet 360 in Canada.

Quick results
Trisha Clark (3-7) def. Amanda LaVoy (2-6) via submission (armbar) at the 4:44 mark of Round 1 at “Cageside Promotions: Kansas City Fighting Alliance 10” on April 19 in Independence, Mo. Both fighters were making their returns to the cage following lengthy layoffs. Clark rebounded from a March 2013 loss to Nina Ansaroff by handing LaVoy her second straight defeat.

Rebecca “Becky” Gullet (1-0) def. Crystal Stevens (0-1) via TKO (punches) at the 18-second mark of Round 1 at “Shamrock Promotions: Revenge” on April 19 in St. Louis. Gullet made a successful pro debut with the quick stoppage victory.

Kilistina Makihele (1-0) def. Rachel “The Riot” Kemker (1-3) via KO (punch) at the 1:05 mark of Round 1 at “SteelFist Fight Night 24: New Era” on April 19 in Farmington, Utah. Makihele kicked off her pro career with an impressive knockout win in the middleweight bout.

Upcoming fights
Ana “India” Maria (5-5) faces Ilara Joanne (0-2) at Jason Fight Championship 1 tonight in Quixada, Ceara, Brazil. Grappling ace Maria had her three-fight winning streak snapped by Vanessa Porto in the pair’s rematch this past month. She has submitted four opponents to date. Joanne remains in search of her first pro win after suffering two defeats in 2013.

Kalindra Carvalho Faria (14-3-1) faces Sanja Sucevic (4-2) at XFC International 4 on Saturday in Osasco, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Faria is currently riding a 10-fight winning streak and she scored back-to-back victories this past month. She won her XFC debut on March 15 and recently signed a new contract with the promotion. Sucevic returns to action for the first time since suffering her second career defeat against Colleen Schneider in a March 2013 flyweight title fight for Super Fight League. The Serbian prospect drops back down to 115 pounds to face Faria.

Jessica Suelem (1-3) faces Jaqueline Santana (0-0) at Barracao Fight Championship 3 on Saturday in Ponta Grossa, Parana, Brazil. Suelem picked up her first pro win in her most recent fight when she submitted Helaine Ribeiro in November. Santana makes her pro debut following a brief amateur career that included a first-round submission win this past month.

Pamela Boveda Aguirre (2-1) faces Elen Torres (0-0) at Rhino’s Fight Combat on Saturday in Ciudad del Este, Alto Parana, Paraguay. Boveda Aguirre suffered her first career defeat in March when she was stopped by Stephanie Bragayrac in a rematch from 2013. Both of her pro wins have come via first-round submission. Torres makes her pro debut in the fight.

Stephanie Skinner (2-4) faces Angela Hill (0-0) at “US Freedom Fighter Championship 18: Metal and Mayhem” on April 26 in Winston-Salem, N.C. Skinner was thrice scheduled to compete for XFC, including once against Hill, but all three of her bouts for the promotion were scrapped due to illness or injury. She has won two of her past three fights and now welcomes Hill to pro MMA competition in a bout that was first set to take place in December.

Mariah Prussia (2-0) faces Shannon Gunville (2-0) at “Dakota FC 18: Spring Brawl 2014” on Saturday in Fargo, N.D. Prussia has earned impressive stoppage wins in both of her pro bouts to date. She earned a 27-second knockout victory this past month. Gunville also brings an unbeaten record into tomorrow’s fight and she has finished both of her opponents in the first round.

Brittney Elkin (1-0) faces Amanda Bell (0-2) at “Sparta Combat League: Army vs. Marines 5” on Saturday in Loveland, Colo. Elkin made a successful pro debut in January by outpointing Summer Bradshaw. She returns to SCL to face Invicta FC veteran Bell, who remains in search of her first professional victory.

Also on the Sparta Combat League card, Shannon Sinn (0-0) faces Courtney Himes (0-1). Sinn, who captured the SCL amateur women’s flyweight title in 2012, capped off her 5-1 amateur career with a victory in January. She now turns pro and faces Himes, who suffered a first-round submission loss to Paige VanZant one year ago.

Aline Serio (8-5) faces Paula Baack (1-2) at Gringo Super Fight 10 on Sunday in Sao Jose dos Pinhais, Parana, Brazil. Serio has fought three times this year, including twice in March, and she is already booked to face Invicta FC contender Jennifer Maia on May 10. Serio has won four of her past five fights. Baack scored her first pro win earlier this month.

MMAjunkie.com publishes the Women’s MMA Report every few weeks. Its author, Robert Sargent, is a veteran MMA journalist who also runs MMARising.com. Feel free to email us at news [AT] mmajunkie.com with any questions, news tips or suggestions.