Invicta Fighting Championships returned to its original home at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas tonight with a card featuring international talent. Invicta FC 55 was headlined by a bantamweight championship bout as defending champion Talita Bernardo faced challenger “Big Bad” Olga Rubin.
In the strawweight co-main event, Kay Hansen returned to Invicta FC for the first time since 2020 when she took on undefeated Sayury Canon. Deep and Deep Jewels Microweight Champion Saori Oshima met Andressa Romero at atomweight. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for Invicta FC 55.
Invicta FC Bantamweight Championship
Talita Bernardo vs “Big Bad” Olga Rubin
Round 1:
Referee for this bout is Marcio Laselva. Both women had early success with combinations of punches and kicks. Rubin closed in with a body kick and Bernardo tagged her with a one-two. Bernardo shot in for a takedown and Rubin countered with an inverted triangle choke. Bernardo freed her neck and the fighters returned to their feet, where they battled for position against the cage until Bernardo used a body-lock takedown to get Rubin down. Bernardo transitioned to Rubin’s back and hunted for a rear-naked choke. Rubin stayed calm and turned over into Bernardo’s guard. She bloodied Bernardo’s face with punches and took her back late in the back-and-forth round. 10-9 Rubin.
Round 2:
Rubin landed a head kick in the opening minute of round two, but Bernardo continued to move forward and she took Rubin down. Rubin landed an upkick and Bernardo took her back as Rubin tried to get to her feet. Rubin defended well and Bernardo adjusted her grip several times. Finally, she locked on a face crank and then slipped her forearm under Rubin’s chin, which forced Rubin to tap out.
Winner: Talita Bernardo by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 2:53 of round two. She improves to 11-4-0 and remains the Invicta FC Bantamweight Champion.
Kay Hansen vs Sayury Canon
Round 1:
Referee for this bout is Nick Berens. Hansen opened the fight with an emphatic takedown and she immediately took Canon’s back. She stayed on her back as Canon stood up, but Canon managed to shake her off. Hansen landed a one-two and Canon responded with an overhand right and a suplex after taking Hansen’s back. On the feet, punches were exchanged and Canon landed two overhand rights. Hansen got her down into back control and ultimately sunk in both hooks. She punched the side of Canon’s head and used heel strikes to target Canon’s liver. 10-9 Hansen.
Round 2:
Canon landed two jabs and a right cross, then took Hansen down, but Hansen swept and moved right to back control. She got too high on Canon’s back and opted to switch to a kimura attempt on Canon’s right arm. Canon escaped and the fighters stood. Both women landed combinations and Hansen took Canon’s back again. She slammed her down, but Canon immediately scrambled up and she used her jab to set up an overhand right. She stuffed a takedown and threw a spinning backfist. Hansen missed with a body kick and Canon landed a lead left hook. Close round. 10-9 Canon by a slim margin.
Round 3:
Hansen briefly took Canon’s back in a standing clinch and she landed two knees before Canon turned into the clinch and broke away. Hansen tied her up again, but Canon escaped once more and Hansen landed an elbow on the break. Punches were exchanged and Hansen shot in for a double-leg takedown. Canon’s defence remained solid and she stayed on her feet against the cage. Canon picked Hansen up and slammed her down, only for Hansen to rise up to her feet and pin her against the cage in another clinch. Hansen landed a body kick and a jab, and Canon stuffed a takedown before the bell. 10-9 Hansen.
Winner: Kay Hansen by Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. She improves to 8-6-0.
Andressa “Gauchinha” Romero vs Saori “Little Giant” Oshima
Round 1:
Referee for this bout is Marcio Laselva. Oshima punched her way into a clinch and ate a right hand from Romero on the way in. Romero held her against the cage and landed short left hands until Oshima held her in a guillotine choke. Oshima switched to a rolling kimura that she used to take Romero down into side control. Romero defended as Oshima continued to crank on her arm. She finally let it go and tok Romero’s back. Oshima then transitioned to an armbar, but Romero managed to free her arm and Oshima threw up her legs in search of another armbar attempt. Romero kneed on the side of Oshima’s neck until the bell sounded. 10-9 Oshima.
Round 2:
Punches were exchanged in the second round as both fighters slowed down and Oshima pulled guard after unsuccessfully trying for a takedown. She was unable to do anything from the bottom and Romero forced her back to her feet. Oshima landed two right hands and continued to press forward. Romero shrugged off a clinch attempt and she landed a hard combination. Oshima dropped levels, but she was forced to pull guard and Romero landed heavy punches from the top. 10-9 Romero.
Round 3:
Romero reversed a takedown and held Oshima in a shoulder choke until Oshima got a butterfly hook in and used it to create space. She briefly hunted for a guillotine choke and then rose to her feet. Romero landed a counter left hook and snapped Oshima’s head back with jabs while preventing her from clinching. Romero cracked Oshima with two hard left hooks and stuffed a takedown. Both women landed left hands and Romero followed with an overhand right. Oshima got her down to a knee against the cage and Romero countered with a guillotine choke. 10-9 Romero.
Winner: Andressa Romero by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. She improves to 7-4-1.
Taylor “No Mercy” Guardado vs Yoko Higashi
Round 1:
Referee for this bout is Nick Berens. Aggressive punches were exchanged right away and Guardado threw Higashi into the cage wall. Higashi reset and Guardado scored with an overhand right. She sprawled out of a Higashi takedown attempt and took her back. Guardado locked on a rear-naked choke and Higashi tapped out.
Winner: Taylor Guardado by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 1:23 of round one. She improves to 5-2-0.
Elisandra “Lili” Ferreira de Oliveira vs Katie “Queen of the North” Saull
Round 1:
Referee for this bout is Marcio Laselva. Ferreira used her jab to set up an early takedown into Saull’s guard. Saull scrambled up and Ferreira took her back. She jumped into a rear-naked choke, but Saull managed to shake her off and took top position in Ferreira’s guard. She landed a few short punches while Ferreira tied her up from the bottom, and this continued until the end of the round. 10-9 Ferreira.
Round 2:
After a rather uneventful first two minutes, Ferreira shot in for a takedown against the cage and Saull stayed on her feet as Ferreira kneed her in the body. Ferreira was not able to take Saull down and the fighters eventually separated. Ferreira grazed with a right hook and ate a left cross to the nose in response. 10-9 Ferreira due to control.
Round 3:
Ferreira kept her distance and circled on the outside as Saull threw a few body kicks and tried to limit her movement. Ferreira’s offensive output slowed to a crawl and she simply continued to move back and forth while throwing nothing. Saull jabbed and partially landed with overhand lefts as she pursued Ferreira. A right cross finally landed for Ferreira and she backed Saull up with an overhand right. Saull responded with a straight left hand and a jab late in the round. 10-9 Saull.
Winner: Elisandra Ferreira de Oliveira by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. She improves to 7-2-0.
Zoe Nowicki vs Josiane Oliveira
Round 1:
Referee for this bout is Nick Berens. Nowicki pressed forward with jabs that she used to set up one-two combos. Oliveira circled to the side as Nowicki continued to chase after her and Nowicki landed a hard left hook. Oliveira recovered and fought off a clinch attempt, but Nowicki landed a strong right hand. She took Oliveira down momentarily and kicked at her lead leg after the fighters returned to their feet. 10-9 Nowicki.
Round 2:
The pace slowed somewhat in the second round as Nowicki struggled to close the distance early on and she missed with a lunging right hook. Nowicki landed a one-two at the midway point in the round and the fighters exchanged punches in close. Oliveira threw a spinning wheel kick and landed an overhand right. Oliveira stuffed a takedown and she partially landed with a spinning wheel kick to the side of Nowicki’s face. Nowicki clinched as Oliveira threw a flying knee and Oliveira pushed her away. Much closer round. 10-9 Oliveira due to damage.
Round 3:
Nowicki stunned Oliveira with an overhand right after a cautious opening minute in the final round. She landed another one and then took Oliveira down. Oliveira scrambled back up and Nowicki cracked her with a quick combination. Oliveira fought off a takedown attempt from Nowicki and landed a right hand on the break. In the final seconds, Oliveira threw a tornado kick that landed on Nowicki’s cheek, but Nowicki was unfazed and responded with another right hand. 10-9 Nowicki.
Winner: Zoe Nowicki by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) after three rounds. She improves to 1-0-0.
Violeta “Violencia” Mendoza vs Fallon “The Ice Queen” Johnson
Round 1:
Referee for this bout is Nick Berens. Time was called early in the fight after Mendoza knocked out Johnson’s mouthpiece with a one-two. Action resumed and Mendoza took Johnson down against the base of the cage. She passed to half-guard and struck briefly before standing over Johnson, who kicked at Mendoza’s legs from the ground. The fighters were stood up and both landed knees to the body. Mendoza caught a kick and dropped Johnson with a counter right cross. Johnson covered up and Mendoza landed punches and hammerfists until the fight was stopped.
Winner: Violeta Mendoza by TKO (Punches) at 4:16 of round one. She improves to 2-0-0.