Emily
Ducote once again weaponized her resolve.
The Bellator
MMA veteran won for the third time in four appearances and made
her case for a rematch with reigning
Invicta Fighting Championships strawweight titleholder Kanako
Murata, as she laid claim to a unanimous decision over Juliana
Lima in the
Invicta 40 headliner on Thursday at the Police Athletic League
Gym in Kansas City, Kansas. All three judges scored it 29-28 for
Ducote (9-6, 2-1 Invicta).
Lima (10-7, 1-3 Invicta) started strong but faded down the stretch.
She utilized an effective jab, occasional uppercuts and
close-quarters knees throughout much of the first round, exploiting
her advantages in the clinch. However, Ducote turned the tide in
Round 2, where she struck for a takedown, achieved full mount and
opened a cut under the Brazilian’s right eye with a well-placed
elbow strike. She moved forward behind chopping right hands across
the final five minutes, refused to give ground and delivered
another takedown with less than a minute to go on the clock,
denying Lima any chance of a late comeback.
The 38-year-old Lima has lost four of her last five bouts.
In the atomweight co-main event, Scorpion Fighting System export
Alesha
Zappitella moved one step closer to a title shot with a split
decision over
Rizin Fighting Federation alum Lindsey
VanZandt at 105 pounds. Scores were 29-27 and 30-27 for
Zappitella (7-2, 4-1 Invicta), 29-28 for VanZandt.
Takedowns, top control and effective ground-and-pound carried the
4-foot-11 Zappitella to the winner’s circle. She did her best work
inside the first round, where she countered an attempted trip from
VanZandt (7-4, 1-3 Invicta), settled in side control and grinded
away with elbows and short punches. Fatigue became an ally for
VanZandt in the latter half of the fight, as her opponent’s
movements became labored and exposed her to knee strikes, head
kicks and sharp right hands. Zappitella maintained her composure,
continued to threaten with takedowns and exited the stage with her
hand raised.
Meanwhile, Chelsea
Chandler submitted Knoxville Martial Arts export Olivia
Parker with a rear-naked choke in the first round of their
featherweight showcase. Parker (4-1, 0-1 Invicta) conceded defeat
1:05 into Round 1, as she fell from the ranks of the unbeaten.
Chandler (3-1, 3-1 Invicta) cut loose with powerful body-head
combinations, tore into the Tennessean with a left hook to the
liver and floored her with a straight left to the head. She then
trailed her counterpart to the canvas, advanced to the back and
secured her position with hooks before cinching the choke for the
tapout.
The 29-year-old Chandler has rattled off three consecutive
victories.
In other action, Trisha
Cicero (4-3, 1-0 Invicta) eked out a split decision—29-28,
28-29, 29-28—over Laura
Gallardo (2-1, 0-1 Invicta) in a three-round flyweight pairing;
and Genia
Goodin (2-0, 2-0 Invicta) took a unanimous decision from
Shelby
Koren (0-1, 0-1 Invicta) in a three-round strawweight clash,
drawing 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 marks from the judges.