The six-fight card saw four bouts end inside the distance, with a three-pack of rear-naked chokes stealing the show. The card was opened up by Auttumn Norton, who battered Canadian newcomer Maria Djukic en route to a second-round TKO finish.

Following that violent finish, Amber Leibrock, a Bellator MMA alum, sunk in a rear-naked choke on Morgan Frier. A short time later, another Bellator vet, Kristina Williams, did the same to Liana Pirosin. In the co-main event, UFC alum Talita Bernardo would then take out fellow Brazilian Yana Gadelha, once again with a rear-naked choke.

The main event at Invicta FC 48 saw bantamweight champ Taneisha Tennant defend her title against Olga Rubin, a former Bellator MMA title challenger, in a close split decision. But perhaps the most explosive moment came not in the fights, but in Isis Verbeek’s post-fight interview. After defeating boxer Melissa Oddessa in a three-round unanimous decision, Verbeeek blasted her opponent for being disrespectful ahead of the fight. Addressing Oddessa’s trash talk, she exclaimed “You’re 35 years old, you’re not a kid anymore!”

Full results and a gallery of highlights from Invicta FC 48 can be found below.

Invicta FC 38: Tennant vs. Rubin Results

Taneisha Tennant (c) def. Olga Rubin by split decision (47-48, 48-47, 50-45) — for the Invicta FC bantamweight championship
Talita Bernardo def. Yana Gadelha by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 2, 1:39
Kristina Williams def. Liana Pirosin by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 1, 3:16
Isis Verbeek def. Melissa Oddessa by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Amber Leibrock def. Morgan Frier by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 1, 3:09
Auttumn Norton def. Maria Djukic by TKO, Round 2, 1:02

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For critics who claim that the ladies all too often go to decision, Invicta FC 48 was the perfect evidence to the contrary. Four of the first five fights on the Denver, CO-based card finished inside the distance, including three by rear-naked choke.

The evening was kicked off by Auttumn Norton and Maria Djukic at bantamweight, with Norton welcoming Canada’s Djukic to the promotion. It was a rude welcome in the end; Norton finished off the Canadian early in the second, rocking her opponent, practically throwing her to the canvas, and piling on with strikes.

From there, it was all submissions. First Amber Leibrock, then Bellator veteran Kristina “Warhorse” Williams, and finally UFC alum Talita Bernardo all locked in rear-naked chokes.

In the case of Bernardo, the win came against fellow Brazilian Yana Gadelha, who stepped into the fight on short notice to replace Katharina Lehner.

Invicta FC bantamweight champion Taneisha Tennant anchored the main event against former Bellator title challenger Olga Rubin. Both ladies opened the action firing head kicks; Rubin would then give Tennant a different look, taking the back along the fence and working to drag the champ down — though Tennant demonstrated some solid takedown defense.

Tennant’s takedown defense would be tested throughout the opening five minutes, leading to Rubin having the edge on the scorecards with two judges (Colorado had open scoring in effect for the event). The subsequent round saw a lot of feeling out, with Tennant having the answer to Rubin’s takedown attempts — but seemingly stymied when it came time to get her hands going.

That continued into the third, but by the end of 15 minutes, Tennant was up on the scorecards, 29-28. In the fourth, the pair went to the ground near the midway mark, with Rubin working on a buggy choke off her back. Rubin put on the squeeze, but Tennant gutted it out until the end of the frame.

The title fight would go the distance, with Tennant turning things up at the end of the round. That may have been key, as the end result was a split decision: one judge awarded Tennant all five rounds, while the other two each scored the fight 48-47— only to be split on the winner.

A win is a win, and Tennant retains her bantamweight title, defending it for the first time.

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In the main event, a bantamweight title fight saw Taneisha Tennant attempt to make the first defense of her 135lb title, against former Bellator MMA title challenger Olga Rubin. “Triple Threat” had won the title last August against Lisa Verzosa, after coming up short against boxer Danyelle Wolf on Dana White’s Contender Series.

The Invicta FC 48 co-feature, meanwhile, saw UFC vet Talita Bernardo paired up with another Brazilian fighter with strong jiu-jitsu credentials in Yana Gadelha.

Also in action on Wednesday night, Bellator MMA veteran Kristina “Warhorse” Williams, who went 3-3 in Bellator from 2017 to 2020. Williams was in search of her third consecutive win, and second inside the Invicta cage, when she took on Liana Pirosin of Brazil.

Invicta FC 48 goes down live on Wednesday, July 20, 2022 at ReelWorks Denver in Denver, Colorado. Open scoring will be in effect. The event will be broadcast on AXS TV in the U.S., Fight Network in Canada, and on Invicta’s Youtube channel and Facebook page.

A live stream of the action can be found below, along with full results.

Invicta FC 38: Tennant vs. Rubin Results

Taneisha Tennant (c) def. Olga Rubin by split decision (47-48, 48-47, 50-45) — for the Invicta FC bantamweight championship
Talita Bernardo def. Yana Gadelha by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 2, 1:39
Kristina Williams def. Liana Pirosin by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 1, 3:16
Isis Verbeek def. Melissa Oddessa by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Amber Leibrock def. Morgan Frier by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 1, 3:09
Auttumn Norton def. Maria Djukic by TKO, Round 2, 1:02

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A rare roadshow for the all-female fighting promotion, the Denver date had originally featured German Invicta and Bellator MMA vet Katharina Lehner taking on UFC alum Talita Bernardo in its co-main event. However, with Lehner forced to withdraw, newcomer Yana “Naná” Gadelha (7-4) will take on fellow Brazilian Bernardo (7-4).

Bernardo went 1-3 with the UFC from 2017 to 2019; her lone win in that stretch came against Sarah Moras at UFC Moncton. After two years on the sidelines, Bernardo returned to action last July, picking up a win over fellow UFC vet Lucie Padilova under the Oktagon MMA banner.

Gadelha enters the fight off a loss in her last outing, but had put together a three-fight win streak prior to that.

Also falling off the Invicta FC 48 card is UFC veteran Mallory Martin. Martin, who had been paired up with Combate alum Kyra Batara (8-5), will be replaced by Dana White’s Contender Series alum Valesca “Tina Black” Machado (9-3, 1NC). Machado dropped a decision to Piera Rodriguez on the Contender Series last October, but bounced back with a win on the regional circuit this past February.

Promotion officials recently announced the new match-ups via press release.

Invicta FC 48 goes down at ReelWorks Denver on July 20, 2022 airing on AXS TV in the U.S. and on Fight Network in Canada, as well as on the promotion’s official Youtube channel and Facebook Page. The following fights have been announced for the card:

• Taneisha Tennant (c) vs. Olga Rubin – for the Invicta FC bantamweight championship
• Talita Bernardo vs. Yana Gadelha
• Kyra Batara vs. Valesca Machado
• Liana Pirosin vs. Kristina Williams
• Melissa Oddessa Parker vs. Isis Verbeek
• Amber Leibrock vs. Morgan Frier
• Auttumn Norton vs. Maria Djukic

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A strawweight match-up between IBO bantamweight boxing champion Melissa “Bella Bestia” Oddessa Parker (3-1) and Dutch kickboxer Isis “Fight Queen” Verbeek (3-1) is the final addition to the Denver, Colorado based card, which takes place at ReelWorks Denver on July 20. Promotion officials announced the news in a press release on Friday.

Parker has gone 6-0 as a professional boxer, starting her career in 2020 and winning the IBO women’s bantamweight title the following year. She defended that title earlier this month.

Alongside her boxing pursuits, Parker has also competed in mixed martial arts, and will be making her promotional debut at Invicta FC 48. Her lone loss came to Sidney Trillo under the LFA banner, in what was Parker’s pro MMA debut.

Since then, she has won three straight fights, with a pair of rear-naked chokes under the Fury FC banner in her last two outings.

Verbeek previously competed for Invicta in 2018, losing her own mixed martial arts debut against Kathryn Paprocki, who is currently part of The Ultimate Fighter 30. After the Paprocki loss, Verbeek collected three straight wins, split between iKon Fighting Federation and Combate Global.

Invicta FC 48’s full line-up now breaks down as follows:

• Taneisha Tennant vs. Olga Rubin – for the Invicta FC bantamweight championship
• Katharina Lehner vs. Talita Bernardo
• Mallory Martin vs. Kyra Batara
• Liana Pirosin vs. Kristina Williams
• Melissa Oddessa Parker vs. Isis Verbeek
• Amber Leibrock vs. Morgan Frier
• Auttumn Norton vs. Maria Djukic

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The event will be headlined by a bantamweight title fight, as Taniesha Tennant (4-1) makes the first defense of her title when she faces ex-Bellator MMA athlete Olga Rubin (7-2). Promotion officials announced the news in a press release on Thursday. Invicta FC 48 takes place at ReelWorks Denver on Wednesday, July 20, 2022.

Tennant first hit the radar when she won the Invicta Phoenix Series 3 tournament, picking up three wins in a single night. From there, the fighter known as “Triple Threat” jumped to Dana White’s Contender Series, fighting up a weight class at featherweight against amateur boxing champ Danyelle Wolf.

The fight did not go her way; Wolf won a unanimous decision and a UFC contract, while Tennant went back to the drawing board. She re-emerged last August, going the distance with Lisa Verzosa and claiming Invicta’s then-vacant bantamweight crown in the process.

Olga Rubin was once a highly ranked contender in Bellator, who fought Julia Budd for that promotion’s featherweight crown in 2019. She’ll enter Invicta FC 48 off a win at Oktagon Prime last November, a victory which snapped a two-fight skid.

In addition to the main event, two more bantamweight fights adorn the July 20 card. The 135 pound co-main event in particular stands out, as former UFC talent Talita Bernardo faces Ultimate Fighter veteran and ex-Bellator fighter Katharina Lehner. At strawweight, another ex-UFC athlete, Mallory Martin, goes up against Combate Americas alum Kyra Batara.

The full Invicta FC 48 fight card as announced on Thursday breaks down as follows:

Bantamweight Championship Fight: Taneisha Tennant vs. Olga Rubin
Bantamweight: Katharina Lehner vs. Talita Bernardo
Strawweight: Mallory Martin vs. Kyra Batara
Flyweight: Liana Pirosin vs. Kristina Williams
Featherweight: Amber Leibrock vs. Morgan Frier
Bantamweight: Auttumn Norton vs. Maria Djukic

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