Invicta FC announced that it had signed 15 new fighters to its roster Friday, spanning five different weight classes. Among the more notable signees were veterans Roxanne Modafferi and Peggy Morgan, both of whom appeared on The Ultimate Fighter 18.
The Kansas City-based promotion, which in two years has become the flagship of women’s MMA, also focused heavily on replenishing its strawweight class, after losing 11 fighters to the UFC in December. Among the strawweights signed were Brazilian Livia Renata Souza (5-0), Poland’s Karolina Kowalkiewicz (4-0), kickboxer Mellony Geugjes from the Netherlands, Herica Tiburcio (7-2) and Ashley Greenway.
In combing for talent all over the globe, the promotion also brought aboard Amber Brown (atomweight), Faith Van Duin (featherweight), and flyweights Rachel Ostovich (0-1), Polish fighter Joanna Jedrejczyk (4-0), Canadian Valerie Letoumeau (4-3) and Delaney Owen, who will be making her pro debut. Joining Modafferi and Morgan in the bantamweight division are Belgium fighter Cindy Dandois (5-1) and Irene Aldana (3-1).
“Women’s MMA is truly a global sport, and at Invicta we have scoured the globe in order to bring the best talent to our fans,” Invicta president Shannon Knapp in the press release. “There is talent all around the globe, and our goal at Invicta has been to provide athletes with a worldwide platform to display their talent.”
Modafferi is one of the more popular women fighters going, having fought in both Strikeforce and the UFC. Though she’s riding a five-fight losing streak, many in women’s MMA consider her one of the pioneers. She debuted all the way back in 2003 against Hikaru Shinohara in Japan, where she also lived for a number of years.
Morgan, a relative newcomer to MMA, lost to Jessamyn Duke at the TUF 18 Finale in November via unanimous decision.
“This new class provides me with added depth to put together match ups that we believe the fans want to see,” said newly christened matchmaker, Julie Kedzie.