HYATT TO FACE ESPARZA AT INVICTA FC 4 JANUARY 5TH, 2013

“ROWDY” BEC HYATT TO FACE CARLA ESPARZA

IN MAIN EVENT AND FIRST-EVER

INVICTA FC STRAWWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP

AFTER INJURY KO’S CLAUDIA GADELHA

 

UNDEFEATED JOANNE CALDERWOOD TO BATTLE UNBEATEN MATT LINDLAND-PROTEGE

LIVIA VAN PLETTENBERG

 

SATURDAY, JAN. 5 IN KANSAS CITY

 

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (Dec. 29, 2012) – “Rowdy” Bec Hyatt (4-1) of Brisbane, Australia has eagerly stepped up to face surging star Carla Esparza (8-2) of Redondo Beach, Calif. in the Invicta Fighting Championships main event and first-ever strawweight (115 pounds) championship bout at Memorial Hall in Kansas City on Saturday, Jan. 5, after Esparza’s original opponent, Claudia Gadelha withdrew from the commitment yesterday due to a broken nose she sustained in training.

Unbeaten Matt Lindland-protégé and European Muay Thai Champion Livia van Plettenberg (1-0) of Vienna, Austria has been brought on board to square off with undefeated Joanne Calderwood (4-0) of Glasgow, Scotland at strawweight.  Calderwood was Hyatt’s original Invicta FC 4 opponent.

“Both Bec Hyatt’s and Carla Esparza’s willingness to take on a new opponent in such a high-stakes championship fight is extremely admirable and shows what true warriors are made of – they will fight anyone, anytime anywhere,” said Invicta FC President Shannon Knapp.  “By the same token, Joanne Calderwood and Liva van Plettenberg should be commended for accepting the bout against each other on such short notice.  They have a tremendous warrior’s spirit and it will show on fight night.”

The 23-year-old Hyatt, Invicta FC’s first Australian fighter, has been on fire since Feb. 18 of this year when she submitted Sarah Morrison with an armbar in the second round (1:30) of their matchup.  She has since defeated three additional, consecutive opponents in a seven month span, including her last adversary, Christina Nicole Tatnell, whom Hyatt needed just 37 seconds to dismantle with an onslaught of punches.

Likewise, the 25-year-old Esparza is coming into the fight with significant momentum, after winning her last three fights.  Her last two victories – a second round (4:28) TKO (punches) of Sarah Schneider and a first round (2:53) TKO (punches) of Lynn Alvarez – came inside the Invicta FC cage on July 28 and Oct. 6, respectively.  To date, three of Esparza’s professional wins have come by way of (T)KO and three by way of submission.

Tickets for Invicta FC 4: Esparza vs. Hyatt, priced from $25, are on sale at Memorial Hall box office (913-549-4853), online at Ticketmaster.com and InvictaFC.com and by phone at 800-745-3000.

In the bantamweight co-main event, crowd-pleasing submission ace Shayna “The Queen of Spades” Baszler (15-7) of Sioux Falls, S.D. will battle fellow top-ranked star Alexis Davis (12-5) of Port Colborne, Ontario, Canada.

Power puncher Leslie “The Peacemaker” Smith (4-2-1) of Pleasant Hill, Calif. will square off with submission specialist Raquel “Rocky” Pennington (3-2-1) of Colorado Springs, Colo. at bantamweight.

Hard-hitting KO artist Amanda “Lioness of the Ring” Nunes (7-2) of Salvador Bahia, Brazil will take on submission specialist Sarah “The Monster” D’Alelio (6-3) of San Jose, Calif. at bantamweight.

JEWELS star Hiroko Yamanaka (12-2) of Kisarazu, Japan will battle Invicta FC 3 winner Ediane Gomes (8-2) of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. in a featherweight (145 pounds) contest.

After scoring her second consecutive, five-second KO on July 8, Veronica Rothenhausler (0-0) of Reno, Nev. will make her much-anticipated professional debut on the Invicta FC 4 preliminary card against fellow heavy-handed featherweight competitor Katalina Malungahu (2-1) of Las Vegas, Nev.

The seven-bout preliminary card will be capped off with an atomweight (105 pounds) matchup between Stephanie Frausto (4-4) of Cincinnati, Ohio and Cassie Rodish (3-3) of Des Moines, Iowa.

Unbeaten Tamikka Brents (1-0) of Springfield, Illin. will take on Amanda Bell (0-0) of Medford, Ore. at featherweight.

Jodie Esquibel (2-0) of Albuquerque, N.M. and Liz McCarthy (1-0) of Tigard, Ore. will square off at atomweight.

Emily Kagan (2-0) of Albuquerque, N.M. will put her undefeated record on the line against Rose Namajunas (0-0) of Milwaukee, Wis. In a strawweight matchup.

Paige Van Zant (2-0) of Sparks, Nev. will face off with Tecia Torres (1-0) of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. at strawweight.

Laura Marcusse Sanko (0-0) of Kansas City will make her professional debut in the cage in a strawweight (105 pounds) matchup with Cassie Robb (0-0) Casper, Wyo

About Invicta Fighting Championships:

Invicta Fighting Championships (www.InvictaFC.com) is a world championship Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight series dedicated to providing female athletes with a major platform to hone their skills on a consistent basis.  Founded in 2012 by longtime MMA executive Shannon Knapp and sports aficionado Janet Martin, Invicta is committed to pioneering the future growth of women’s MMA by promoting the best possible matchups between female competitors and identifying and developing future superstars of the sport.

Contact:
Mike Afromowitz (917) 566-8754, mikea@yourwitzend.com