On Saturday, Nov. 1, Invicta Fighting Championships hosted Invicta FC 9: Honchak vs. Hashi from the RiverCenter in Davenport, Iowa. The nine-fight event streamed live and exclusively on UFC Fight Pass.
In the night’s main event, Invicta flyweight champion Barb Honchak successfully defended her 125-pound title with a hard-fought decision win over Japan’s Takayo Hashi. Honchak’s strategy from the very beginning was to force Hashi against the fence and grind her out. Honchak was able to impose her will on the challenger and score with short punches and knees from the clinch. Hashi earned takedowns late in the third and fourth rounds, but she was unable to hold the champion on the ground. Honchak let her hands go late in the fifth frame, leaving no doubt who had won the contest.
The night’s co-main event featured the Invicta return of Japanese strawweight Mizuki Inoue, who welcomed unbeaten Polish fighter Karolina Kowalkiewicz to the Invicta cage. Kowalkiewicz used her length to keep Inoue at range during the first round, scoring with combinations and leg kicks. In the middle stanza, Inoue was able to score with a hip toss and put Kowalkiewicz on her back. Kowalkiewicz was able to survive the tough position and the round. The final frame saw Kowalkiewicz return to landing on the feet, but Inoue fired back. When it was all said and done, Kowalkiewicz claimed the narrow split decision win.
Stepping into the cage on just a week’s notice, Hawaii’s Raquel Pa’aluhi survived a tough first round and earned the nod over Kaitlin Young on the scorecards. Young battered Pa’aluhi in the opening frame, opening up multiple cuts on the Hawaiian’s face. Pa’aluhi bounced back in rounds two and three with takedowns. Pa’aluhi threatened to finish the fight with a rear-naked choke and strikes, but Young was able to survive to the final bell.
Jodie Esquibel put together one of the best performances of her career, outstriking Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc and earning a lopsided, unanimous decision win. Esquibel used her speed and footwork to land combination after combination and frustrate Rivera-Calanoc. The Jackson’s MMA fighter mixed in takedowns and survived a late guillotine attempt from Rivera-Calanoc to claim the victory.
Atomweights Amber Brown and Liz McCarthy engaged in a back-and-forth war that saw Brown eke out the win via split decision. McCarthy repeatedly took the fight to the ground with her wrestling, but Brown landed the more effective strikes. A knee from Brown opened a large cut over McCarthy’s right eye in round two, leading to a bloody affair.
Amanda Bell returned to the Invicta cage and scored a first-round TKO over promotional newcomer Maria Hougaard-Djursaa. Bell came out firing and overwhelmed the Danish fighter. Once on the mat, Bell rained punches and forced the referee to halt the bout late in the opening stanza.
Veteran striker Andrea K. Lee used her stand-up game to get the better of fellow flyweight Shannon Sinn. Lee dropped Sinn early and battered her throughout the remainder of the contest to take home the win on the scorecards.
Strawweight Jamie Moyle scored an impressive decision win in her pro debut, battering Jenny Liou Shriver for three rounds. Shriver had no answer for Moyle’s striking and suffered her first career loss.
Kelly McGill spoiled the pro debut of Maegan Goodwin in the first fight of the evening. The bloody affair saw McGill open up Goodwin with an elbow, helping her seal the decision win and move to 2-0.
OFFICIAL RESULTS
Barb Honchak def. Takayo Hashi by unanimous decision (49-46, 50-45, 50-45) – for flyweight title
Karolina Kowalkiewicz def. Mizuki Inoue by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Raquel Pa’aluhi def. Kaitlin Young by unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Jodie Esquibel def. Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc by unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Amber Brown def. Liz McCarthy by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)
Amanda Bell def. Maria Hougaard-Djursaa by TKO (strikes). Round 1, 4:56
Andrea K. Lee def. Shannon Sinn by unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Jamie Moyle def. Jenny Liou Shriver by unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Kelly McGill def. Maegan Goodwin by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)