Invicta 12 Preview and Predictions

If women's MMA is your type of a good time, then this weekend you are in luck. Invicta returns to UFC Fight Pass with its 12th offering.

Strawweight champion Katja Kankaanpaa headlines the card, defending her title against newcomer Livia Renata Souza. A contender's bout at 125 pounds supports the main event, as Roxanne Modafferi rematches Vanessa Porto.

The card features a lot of prospects and up-and-coming talent who are looking to jockey for position. Who will push their stock up, and who will go back to the drawing board?

With that, let's take a look at the card and make some predictions.

Prelims

Gina Begley vs. Sijara Eubanks

Flyweight prospects collide here, as Sijara Eubanks makes her pro debut against fellow pro debutant Gina Begley. She was a decorated amateur who gets a big opportunity on late notice here in place of Roma Pawelek. She takes on the debuting Eubanks, a 1-0 amateur who is known for her Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under Lloyd Irvin. Eubanks will have to get this fight to the ground, which she's definitely capable of.

Eubanks, Submission, Rd. 2

Maureen Riordan vs. Shannon Sinn

A pair of Colorado natives will square off next in the flyweight division. Shannon Sinn is a tough-as-nails fighter who is looking to erase the memory of a loss in her Invicta debut in one-sided fashion. She gets that chance against Maureen Riordan, a Glory and RFA veteran with good ground skills and solid striking. When it comes to who is more well-rounded, that will be Riordan, who should score her first Invicta victory.

Riordan, Unanimous Decision

Delaney Owen vs. Sharon Jacobson

Sharon Jacobson drops to the strawweight division here to take on regional staple Delaney Owen in what should be a competitive bout. Jacobson has won two straight, though they have been against low-level opponents. Both of those wins were via knockout, but she has a big test in Owen here. She is a grappler with great submission skills and experience against good fighters, which is why she should be victorious here.

Owen, Submission, Rd. 2

Lacey Schuckman vs. Jenny Liou Shriver

Division jumper Lacey Schuckman makes her return to Invicta against talented prospect Jenny Liou Shriver. At 10-8, Schuckman stays busy by taking fights from 105-125 pounds. Her submission skills are solid, and she is scrappy, though she's known to engage in brawls. Liou Shriver is a solid grappler but will be looking for her first win in Invicta. This should be a competitive scrap, but Schuckman will earn the slight edge in a coin toss of a fight. 

Schuckman, Unanimous Decision

Peggy Morgan vs. Latoya Walker

A pair of featherweight contenders meet in the cage next, as The Ultimate Fighter 18 veteran Peggy Morgan looks to keep her record at 145 pounds intact as she takes on undefeated Latoya Walker.

Morgan is more of a striker, as the monstrous 6'1" featherweight uses length and size to gain advantages on opponents. Her foray into the bantamweight division was an unsuccessful one, as she struggled there while being perfect at 145.

On TUF, she earned a spot in the house with a win over Bethany Marshall, but she lost to Sarah Moras in the quarterfinals. Since her appearance on the show, she has gone just 1-2, but she won her most recent outing, her return to 145, against Andria Wawro.

As for Walker, she is a striker who possesses good boxing and power. She's quite short for the weight division at 5'5", so getting inside on Morgan will be a priority.

She is 4-0 as a pro, which includes two knockouts. Her biggest win came over Bellator veteran Gabrielle Holloway, which put Walker on the map and had MMA fans looking closer at this top prospect.

This is a solid matchup of strikers, so it could well be in contention for Fight of the Night. Morgan's size will be too much though, as she keeps Walker on the outside for most of the bout. 

Prediction: Morgan defeats Walker via unanimous decision.

Ediane Gomes vs. Raquel Pa'aluhi

The bantamweights will report to the cage next, as Brazilian terror Ediane Gomes looks to refute the ever-hungry Hawaiian Raquel Pa'aluhi.

Gomes is a rep of American Top Team and has become one of the better 145/135-pound fighters in more recent times. A physical brute and well-rounded fighter, she is a power player with good takedowns, submissions and striking.

In her march down to 135, she suffered a submission loss at the hands of Tonya Evinger, which reversed a four-fight surge at featherweight. She looks to get a win back here, as she has gold in her sights.

As for Pa'aluhi, the tough-as-nails striker has looked improved in recent outings, as she took time off a couple of years ago to tighten up her ground game. She is never out of a fight and is well-conditioned, which can serve her well if this fight heads to the later rounds.

Those improvements have been evident in her current two-fight winning streak, which includes a late-notice decision win over Kaitlin Young. There, she overcame a slow start to come back and dominate the gritty veteran in a unanimous decision.

Pa'aluhi has been working with Robert Drysdale to improve her ground game, so she should look better here. However, Gomes is a savage on the ground and should impose her will.  

Prediction: Gomes defeats Pa'aluhi via submission.

Amanda Bell vs. Faith Van Duin

A pair of featherweights look to jump into title contention in the next bout, as Amanda Bell welcomes New Zealand's Faith van Duin to America.

Bell is a power striker and a ground-and-pound fighter. She moves forward and looks to land bombs, something her opponents do not like to feel on their chin.

After an 0-2 start to her pro career, Bell has improved leaps and bounds to get better. She's on a three-fight surge, which includes a brutal knockout of Marina Shafir and a dominant finish of Maria Hougaard Djursaa in her last outing.

Then there is Van Duin, a grappler with good submission ability and toughness. She came to prominence in the Australian regional scene, notably winning a Storm MMA women's tournament.

Outside of a knockout loss to now-Bellator roster member Arlene Blencowe, Van Duin has choked out jiu-jitsu fighter Kate da Silva and even owns a decision win over the aforementioned Blencowe. She has faced some tough opposition, so Bell should continue to add to her strength of schedule.

Given recent improvements and her killer instinct, Bell should have the tools to take this fight. Van Duin probably can't get her down, and the New Zealand native is a sitting duck if she intends to strike with the American.

Prediction: Bell defeats Van Duin via TKO.

Roxanne Modafferi vs. Vanessa Porto

The co-main event is an important one, as it is a rematch and a potential top contender's bout to Barb Honchak's crown of gold. UFC veteran and MMA pioneer Roxanne Modafferi looks to continue her resurgence against tough Brazilian Vanessa Porto.

These two met before in 2008, where Modafferi was victorious via TKO in a California regional promotion. Since then, both ladies have taken a different path in MMA that have led them back to each other. 

Modafferi, who moved from Japan to Syndicate MMA to much improvement, went through a slump in her career previously but got a chance in the UFC. She is primarily a grappler but has improved her striking significantly.

Then you have Porto, a grappler in her own right with vicious leg kicks and improved all-around stand-up. Since losing for the title against Honchak, she has righted the ship with two straight wins and is hellbent on gaining revenge over The Happy Warrior.

Modafferi's improvements are impressive, given she hit a valley in her career before TUF. However, it seems like Porto is hitting her stride and should be able to leg-kick and outstrike Modafferi in a close, but fun, fight. 

Prediction: Porto defeats Modafferi via decision.

Katja Kankaanpaa vs. Livia Renata Souza

The main event will cap off the card in the strawweight division, as champion Katja Kankaanpaa looks to defend her belt for the first time against undefeated Brazilian prospect Livia Renata Souza.

Kankaanpaa is a grappler from Finland who has great transitions, submissions and technique on the ground. Her striking has a bit to go, but she figures to have that advantage in this fight anyway.

Since her loss to now-UFC fighter Joanne Calderwood at Invicta 7, she has rattled off wins over Alyona Rassohyna via submission and Stephanie Eggink. The victory over Eggink saw Kankaanpaa down in the fifth round, only to pull off an out-of-nowhere D'arce choke to claim the vacant belt.

As for Souza, she is a 7-0 jiu-jitsu expert who has finished all but one of her bouts via tapout. This will be her first fight out of Brazil, as she looks to follow in the footsteps of Herica Tiburcio, who did the same thing to Michelle Waterson at Invicta 10 and won.

Souza has taken on some of the better regional fighters in Brazil. Camila Lima, Andressa Rocha and Aline Sattelmayer have all fallen to Souza, who has proved to be the alpha woman of the Brazilian strawweights.

Souza will need to get Kankaanpaa down, as her striking is not yet proven. While Kankaanpaa is no Laila Ali on the feet, she does hold the advantage and could box her way to a close decision.

Prediction: Kankaanpaa defeats Souza via decision.