Invicta FC partners with UFC Fight Pass for future broadcasts, library content

Invicta Fighting Championships and the UFC already had a close relationship, but that now has been bolstered.

The two promotions have announced that UFC Fight Pass, the UFC’s recently launched digital network, will be the exclusive broadcast home for Invicta FC events. Invicta launched in 2012 and has put on seven events as the leading all-women’s MMA promotion in the world.

As part of the deal, terms of which were not disclosed, all of Invicta’s events will be streamed live on UFC Fight Pass, and the promotion’s library will be available in the service’s archives. Prior to this, Invicta events have been done as online pay-per-views, though Invicta FC 6 and Invicta FC 7 had availability via regular pay-per-view, as well.

The UFC’s Fight Pass service costs subscribers $9.99 per month and until now has included live UFC events, including preliminary-card bouts that previously streamed on Facebook, as well as the extensive Zuffa library of fights and shoulder programming, including the UFC, Strikeforce, WEC, PRIDE, EliteXC and Affliction. Now Invicta will be added to the mix.

“This is an historic multi-year, multi-event deal,” stated Marshall Zelaznik, the UFC’s chief content officer for Fight Pass. “When we launched UFC Fight Pass last Christmas, we said that we would never rest in bringing the best value to our subscribers. The addition of live and archived Invicta programming is going to be of enormous interest to our existing subscribers and bring in new subscribers, too.”

Invicta most recently put on Invicta FC 7 this past December in Kansas City, Mo., where its past three events have been held. It held three events in 2012, its first year, and four in 2013. Promotion president and co-founder Shannon Knapp said Invicta should be returning soon.

“We are targeting a late-summer event, headlined by a world title fight,” Knapp stated. “This is an historic event for myself, the company and my athletes, and every one of them is going to want to be on this first card.”

Invicta currently puts on fights in five women’s divisions. The UFC right now offers just bantamweight and strawweight, with the latter set to be featured on Season 20 of “The Ultimate Fighter” with a champion being crowned late this year. Invicta has an atomweight champion in Michelle Waterson, a flyweight champ in Barb Honchak, its own bantamweight champ in Lauren Murphy and, perhaps most interestingly for the new deal, a featherweight titleholder: Cristiane Justino.

The relationship of “Cyborg” Justino with the UFC has been in the spotlight for some time thanks to her desire, and fans’ desire, to see her fight UFC bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey. The two are considered by many to be the top two womens fighters in the world.

And while the new deal doesn’t necessarily mean there suddenly will be crossovers happening, the possibility may be closer than it was before. The UFC already worked with Invicta late last year when many of the promotion’s strawweight fighters moved over to be part of “TUF 20.”

For now, though, Knapp is just prepared to say its another big step forward for Invicta in its evolution.

“This is a great day for my company,” she stated. “Since the start of Invicta, I’ve been committed to providing the biggest and best possible platform for women athletes, and with this distribution deal with UFC Fight Pass, Invicta will reach the most passionate MMA fans, wherever they are in the world.”

For more on Invicta’s upcoming schedule, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.

(Pictured: Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino at Invicta FC 6)