Posts in category: News

Original article can be found here, courtesy of LowkickMMA.

Article by Jack Wannan

For months, there was fair reason to be concerned about Invicta FC’s future. The women’s MMA promotion, which had long been known for giving major stars in the sport a platform on their way up to the UFC, went more than half a year without announcing an event.

Many started to worry if the decade-long fixture on the U.S. regional scene had met its demise. However, the public recently learned that the idea of the promotion folding was far from the truth. The months of radio silence wasn’t Invicta FC slowly fading away, but instead their quiet behind-the-scenes pursuit of making a strong return. Work from recent weeks by the promotion will all come to a culmination very soon when they host an event in Kansas City.

“It’s always hard when you know you’re working on something but you can’t say anything,” said Shannon Knapp, the President of Invicta FC. “You see the speculation, you know. Everybody wants to know what’s going on. So when you can make that announcement and let the world know what you’ve been working on, it’s a very exciting moment.”

Invicta FC Returning Amid A Women’s Sports ‘Evolution’

The deal is Invicta FC’s first major partnership since being acquired by Anthem Sports & Entertainment in 2021. It guarantees five events this year, with Knapp mentioning the possibility of further shows on the channel in 2025. After years on UFC’s online subscription service Fight Pass, the promotion briefly was hosted on Anthem-owned channel AXS TV. Knapp said that they were always in pursuit of a new media deal and that they are satisfied with the one which kicks off this week.

“I think it’s great for CBS Sports,” Knapp said. “They embrace more women’s sports, and I think it’s great for Invicta. We have the opportunity to possibly connect with maybe a potential fan base that didn’t have that opportunity before.”

Invicta FC’s return comes amid a big moment for women’s sports. The rise of popularity for college and pro-level women’s basketball—coined by some as “The Caitlin Clark Effect” due to a highly successful popular Iowa-born player leading the charge—has put women’s athletics under a big spotlight. Other rising leagues, like the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) and the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL), have also received a rise in popularity as of late. Knapp sees the importance of making sure every sport is involved in the current rise of women’s sports, including MMA.

“I think it’s very exciting to see the evolution that’s happening right now for women’s sports,” she said. “But I think that everybody’s part of that movement. If you’re an all-female [league] you’re part of that movement. I think it’s really important that we embrace that, and we help lift it up, not only for Invicta or for combat sports, but for all sports.”

Original article can be found here courtesy of Cageside Press.

Article by Gabriel Gonzalez and Jay Anderson

Kay Hansen finally makes her comeback at Invicta FC 55 on Friday, June 28, and it’s been a long road to get back to the cage for the now-24 year-old UFC alum.

Finally making her return after just over two years in a fight with Sayury Canon, strawweight Hansen feels she’s developed significantly as a person since she was last seen in the cage. Not to mention as a fighter.

“It’s been awesome. I’ve had some time off, but I’m also really young and I feel like that was critical for some self-development,” Hansen (7-6) told Cageside Press in a recent exclusive interview. “And I think that’s definitely going to translate to my performance in the cage.”

A clearly upbeat Hansen noted that she’s been asked about her time off for a while, and admitted that she’s experiencing the emotions of Fight Week again- but is happy to be doing so.

In her time since exiting the UFC, where she last competed in 2022, Hansen dealt with a hand injury, a shattered knuckle that she initially didn’t seek treatment for, thinking she had sprained her hand.

“I definitely probably prolonged it by not getting it checked out right away,” said Hansen. Then, the injury didn’t heal correctly. “It took time to kind of work around that, because it was either re-break it, or let it to its thing. So I just let it do its thing, had to work through some uncomfortable feelings when I punch.”

“I for sure was training one handed for a few months. That was rough, next time I’m definitely going straight to the ER and figure that out.”

“Either way, taking that time off really did help me develop as a person,” Hansen added. And, she noted, she’s remained active in training. “Don’t get me wrong, I was still training. In these two years, I have still been training. It’s not like I took two years off and just jumped back into a camp, and wasn’t active in the gym and wasn’t progressing in the gym. I was still making strides in the gym, I was still showing up to practice. It’s not like I’ve had two years of no training, and then I’m jumping back into a fight.”

To be fair to Hansen, with Invicta FC on hiatus, she looked elsewhere to find fights, only for a handful to fall through. “I had a agreed to three fights this year, and this is the first one that actually came to fruition,” she revealed.

Hansen opened up during her time away about a traumatic upbringing, including allegations of sexual abuse at the hands of her father, which she called a “very weird and taboo topic” that people should feel comfortable speaking up about. Coming forward “was definitely a very intense feeling,” admitted Hansen, especially when a documentary about her experience went live.

“I remember refreshing comments, and being nervous. But I’m very happy I did it, and I’m definitely going to speak about it more in the future,” said Hansen, adding how important it would have been to herself as a young woman to have that sort of voice available to her.

Original article can be found here courtesy of mmafighting.com

Article by Damon Martin | @DamonMartin

Invicta FC founder Shannon Knapp admits it was tough to bite her tongue and not fire back at rumors that the all-women’s promotion was going out of business.

Just weeks before announcing a broadcast rights deal teaming up Invicta FC with CBS Sports Network, a report surfaced on Twitter that the organization was allegedly done, with no events since October 2023. In truth, Knapp says the extended break was intentional as the promotion made some necessary changes internally while working tirelessly on getting a new TV deal done.

Once she was finally able to announce the partnership with CBS Sports Network, Knapp was more than happy to take a victory lap.

“Let me tell you how hard it was to read that stuff,” Knapp told MMA Fighting. “To read it and just know that I knew something different. Sometimes you just have to stay quiet and let people put their own foot in their mouth, so to speak.

“No, do you think I’m going down without a fight? True to the phoenix, we always rise and find a way. It certainly was not the case nor would I sit back and let that be the case. If Invicta doesn’t exist, it creates a huge hole in the industry. Invicta is super important to this sport, not just because of the women’s side of it but just we keep people honest. I love that’s what Invicta means to the combat space. Yeah, no, not going down that easily.”

As a well-respected industry veteran who’s been around combat sports longer than many organizations have even existed, Knapp didn’t really feel the need to get into a mud slinging contest publicly.

Instead, she just sat back and waited for the chance to announce the deal with CBS Sports Network along with a busy schedule filled with events for the rest of 2024 to cement her win.

“The thing is I’m so approachable, if you have doubts, call me up,” Knapp said. “I’m not going to lie. I’m not known to be untruthful in the industry or a liar. So it’s certainly easy enough to pick up the phone and ask me instead of assuming.

“But sensationalism and spreading non-truths, that happens a lot on this side of the sport.”

As far as the CBS Sports deal, Knapp revealed that talks with the Paramount owned network started several months ago but broadcast rights deals don’t happen overnight. There was a lot of ground to cover before contracts could be inked along with a plan to launch the next Invicta FC card, which goes down Friday in Kansas City.

“It’s been a really exciting time and hard to keep it quiet,” Knapp said. “You sit back and you know what’s coming and you’ve been working on it but you have to announce when it’s time to announce. It’s been a whirlwind since we announced [the deal].

“I think back just before the last event, we started doing the courting process as we’ll call it. A good six or seven months now, something in that vicinity. For me, you can’t share that information. I have a lot of athletes that have questions and stuff. I’m really blessed that they trust me when I tell them I’m working on something that will be a game changer for us and will be great for you, that they trust in that. It’s tough to keep that quiet.”

Knapp says ultimately going with CBS Sports Network was a no brainer when she contemplated the future for Invicta FC, which has sent dozens of athletes off to promotions like the UFC ever since first launching back in 2012.

“They’re a very respected sports network, which I love,” Knapp said. “Just being on a sports network was very important. I think outside of the deal points and things like that, that always make a difference, it just feels like a good fit. They’re good people. I’ve had a really good experience dealing with them and the representatives I’ve dealt with so far. It just felt right at this moment in time.

“Who knows what the future brings but certainly very invested in this and they’re invested in it and want to be part of this family, the CBS Sports Network family.”

With the first event under the CBS Sports banner on Friday, Invicta FC already has future cards set for August, September, November and December.

After working on the broadcast rights deal and a nine month layoff between events, Knapp can’t wait to hit the ground running with a very busy 2024 ahead of her.

“I love it,” Knapp said. “That’s the thing that’s so important is consistency. If you don’t have consistency, then how do you build a brand? I just think it’s hugely important. To have a partnership that provides that consistency is great. We’re excited.

“An opportunity for Invicta to shine and to connect with a potential fanbase that wasn’t available to us and reach new fans. We’re excited about it.”