Invicta FC 51 How to watch, Date, Time, Preview and Everything you need to know

by Kent Green
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Invicta FC, an all-female MMA promotion, will kick off its 2023 season on January 18 with Invicta FC 51, and the event’s entire roster of fighters has already been announced.

Invicta FC 51 takes place on January 18 at Reelworks Denver in Denver, Colorado, marking the third time in four events that the promotion has returned to the venue, which will host two championship bouts. In the main event, bantamweight champion Taneisha Tennant will make her second title defence. After a decision victory over Lisa Verzosa in August 2021, Tennant became the new champion. It was nearly a year later, at Invicta FC 48, the first time she defended her title against Olga Rubin. This time she faces up against the experienced fighter Talita Bernardo of the UFC and Invicta.

When is Invicta FC 51?

  • Date: 18th Jan 2023
  • Time: 8:30 PM (ET)

Where is the Invicta FC 51 held?

Invicta FC 51 is held at Reelworks Denver in Denver, Colorado.

How to watch Invicta FC 51 Live

Invicta FC 51 Preview

Main eventer Taneisha Tennant will defend her bantamweight belt against UFC veteran Talita Bernardo in 2023’s first show. Kristina Williams (6-3), a veteran of Bellator MMA who has been fighting professionally for the past two years but is searching for her fourth consecutive win, will also be competing in the main event against Bernardo. At flyweight, she’ll be facing Ketlen Souza (12-3), also from Brazil, in the co-main event at Invicta FC 51.

Williams vs Souza is for the undisputed flyweight championship. In a news statement issued on Tuesday, promotion authorities announced the whole roster of participants for the evening.

On the same card, Invicta Phoenix Series veteran and organization mainstay Serena DeJesus takes on Olga Rubin, a former Bellator championship contender. DeJesus is 5-2 as a pro, having fought five times for the promotion (the quarterfinal and semifinal matches in the Phoenix series qualify as exhibition matches). He also has victories in Valor FC and the Fusion Fight League.

Since being dismissed from the UFC, Bernardo has won three consecutive fights under the Invicta banner, with the past two ending in second-round submissions. Both women are trying to earn a contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship so that this matchup could be intense.

In the main event, Kristina Williams and Ketlen Souza will fight for the flyweight championship. Both women are now riding three-fight winning streaks, so they’ll be bursting at the seams confidently when they enter the cage on Wednesday.

After claiming and successfully defending the bantamweight championship through a unanimous decision, Taneisha Tennant faces Talita Bernardo, who has won by submission in her past two bouts.

This bantamweight title fight is a fantastic matchup put together by Invicta. Despite having only a 5-1 record as a professional, Taneisha Tennant rose to prominence through Invicta’s Phoenix Series before the COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020 and has since successfully defended her title against all challengers except a 2020 decision loss at Dana White’s Contender Series. Although she has only finished one bout in her pro debut, she is a tough out for anyone because of her powerful striking and outstanding grappling.

It’s impossible to see beyond the fact that Talita Bernardo, the challenger, has UFC experience. Before her release in March 2021, she fought four times in the Octagon and went 1-3 during her stint there. Since then, she has gone 7-1, with her lone loss coming in her UFC comeback in August last year. At Oktagon 26, in July of 2021, she defeated fellow UFC veteran Lucie Pudilová via unanimous decision.

Bernardo has won his previous two fights via submission in Invicta, although his opponents were not very noteworthy. The 7-4 Yana Gadelha had never defeated an opponent with a winning record, while the 0-4 Katharina Lehrner had not won an MMA bout in over five years. When she competes against Tennant, she’ll be up against much tougher opposition.

This isn’t easy to foretell. Tennant is taller and has a longer reach than Bernardo by three and two inches, respectively. Still, the Brazilian possesses a black belt in jiu-jitsu and a record of several finishes. While Bernardo has more life experience, Tennant can perform a good physical fight. But Tennant has yet to meet someone with the same grappling ability as Bernardo, which may be the biggest problem.

It’s expected that Tennant will come out aggressively on the feet, using her better striking to push the tempo and consistently stifle Bernardo’s takedown attempts. However, the champion’s cardio may suffer due to all the attempts to take her down. If Bernardo can keep Tennant grounded without sustaining too much damage on her feet, she can win a third consecutive submission and take home the championship.

Invicta FC 51 Fight Cards

  • Taneisha Tennant vs Talita Bernardo, Bantamweight Title
  • In the Flyweight Division, Kristina Williams takes against Ketlen Souza.
  • At the bantamweight division, Serena DeJesus takes on Olga Rubin.
  • Claire Guthrie and Autumn Norton will battle it out at bantamweight.
  • Marisa Messer-Belenchia takes on Elisa Ferreira in the atomweight.
  • Katie Saull faces Rayanne Amanda in the atomweight division.
  • Strawweights Fatima Kline and Laura Gallardo

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