(Picture courtesy Ether Lin/InvictaFC)
Ten years go by fast.
It was April 28th, 2012 when Cassie Roddish and Meghan Wright stepped into the cage to kick off InvictaFC’s first event. More than 50 events later, the promotion can lay claim to developing the women’s divisions of MMA to the point of being a worldwide phenomena. Many athletes from across the globe have come to InvictaFC to prove their skills.
The promotion has nurtured many stars that went on to be world champions. Many girls have seen competing in InvictaFC as a goal, with several who watched from the beginning making that a reality.
As we head into InvictaFC’s 50th numbered event, let’s look back at the historic milestones the all women’s promotion accomplished.
445 – Number of professional bouts going into InvictaFC 50. Invicta has only had one amateur bout in its history: Chrisoula Kukouvetakis defeating Tracie Morris at InvictaFC 28. There has been two draws and two no contests.
98 – Amount of submissions in InvictaFC history. A rear naked choke is the most popular, with half of the submission wins by this method with 49. Armbar is the second popular submission with 31.
96 – Number of strawweight fights, most by any division. Flyweight is second with 91. This does not include catchweight bouts.
54 – Number of events InvictaFC has held. Besides the numbered events, the promotion has held 4 Phoenix Series Tournaments. The other event not number was the promotion’s debut on AXS TV.
51 – Number of title matches in InvictaFC history. 25 of those ended in finishes. None of the flyweight title bouts has seen a finish; with all eight going the distance.
30 – Number of champions crowned. The winner of the strawweight tournament will be the 31st and will give strawweight division the most champions with 9.
11 – Number of fights Deanna Bennett has fought in InvictaFC. This is the record for the most bouts. Ashley Cummings is second with 9.
8 – Number of countries that have held an InvictaFC title. If Karolina Wójcik wins the upcoming tournament, that number will increase to 9. Over a dozen countries have competed in InvictaFC with more in the future.
8 – Number of states that held InvictaFC events. The promotion is expected to return to Nevada and California in 2023.
4 – Number of pure knockouts in promotional history. There has been 80 TKOs; with 5 head kicks that have finished fights and 11 knees.
4 – Number of times Cyborg Justino and Tonya Evinger main evented an Invicta card – tied for the most. Several have done it three times including Emily Ducote, Deanne Bennett, and Jessica Delboni.
4 – Most bonuses won by an InvictaFC athlete. It’s a three way tie between Alesha Zappitella, Leslie Smith, and Jennifer Maia.
3 – Number of times Cyborg Justino has defended her featherweight title while in the promotion. She holds the record with most defenses by any champion. Barb Honchak, Jennifer Maia, and Ayaka Hamasaki are tied for second with 2.
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