By TXMMA Staff | Photos by Esther Lin, Invicta FC
Texas MMA Representative Lauren Murphy wins Invicta FC Bantamweight Belt
HOUSTON, TX, December 9, 2013 – With Invicta 7 coming to a close this past weekend from Kansas City, Texas-based women’s MMA rep Lauren Murphy (formerly Lauren Taylor) now returns to Houston, TX as the Invicta FC bantamweight champion.
It wasn’t the ending she would have preferred with opponent Miriam Nakamoto succumbing to a knee injury as opposed to a more definitive finish for the Gracie Barra Katy fighter but it was an exciting nonetheless up to that point with the two going tooth-and-nail over the first three and a half rounds.
I don’t think anyone wanted to see it that way,” said Lauren to MMA Fighting after the bout. “If she wants a rematch I’ll definitely give it to her. And I’m going to go home the champion and work even harder.”
Best of the Rest – Invicta FC 7 Highlights
As for the rest of the fight card at Invicta FC 7, well let’s just say the women MMA fighters on this one showed why female fighting in MMA is more popular than ever and here to stay.
The main event of the evening featured Invicta flyweight champion Barb Honchak defending her title against a resilient yet overmatched opponent in Leslie “Peacemaker” Smith. With 49-46 scores across the board, Barb definitely dominated in this one to win her eighth straight but her Team Cesar Gracie trained opponent refused to go away.
Perhaps the most exciting fight on the card featured strawweights Tecia torres and Felice Herrig. Despite being the less experienced of the two record-wise, the American Top Team trained “Tiny Tornado” Tecia Torres dominated the bout using everything in her striking toolbox to confound Herrig, herself a striking specialist en route to the unanimous decision.
Check out all the rest of the results from Invicta FC 7 below or better yet, watch the entire event in its entirety courtesy of Shannon Knapp and crew from Invicta FC.
Invicta FC 7 Quick Results – Main Card
- Barb Honchak (c) def. Leslie Smith via Unanimous Decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46) to retain Invicta FC Flyweight Championship
- Lauren Murphy def. Miriam Nakamoto via TKO (injury) at 0:23 of Round 4 to become first ever Invicta FC Bantamweight Championship
- Tecia Torres def. Felice Herrig via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Joanne Calderwood def. Katja Kankaanpaa via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Julia Budd def. Charmain Tweet via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Vanessa Porto def. Zoila Frausto Gurgel via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Invicta FC 7 Quick Results – Prelims
- Tonya Evinger def. Sarah D’Alelio via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Nina Ansaroff def. Munah Holland via TKO (ground an pound) at 3:54 of Round 2
