Tonya Evinger wants to be herself. And she’s not sure if she’d be able to do that in the UFC.
The Invicta FC women’s bantamweight champion would not mind the UFC paycheck, but she has doubts about what being in the world’s biggest MMA promotion would entail.
“I feel really good with what I’m doing and what I’ve achieved and where I’m at,” Evinger told MMA Fighting. “That’s the most important. I just don’t want to have any regrets and me holding back and saying ‘Yeah, I love this’ and kissing butt and making the statements that everybody else is making to be on that side of the fence, I’m just not that person and I don’t want to regret it later. And I don’t want to do something that I didn’t feel is right. I just feel where I’m at and what I’m doing is right.”
The UFC would seem to be a logical future step for Evinger. She won the Invicta belt by beating Irene Aldana in July and has won seven straight fights. Evinger (15-6) has been a pro MMA fighter for almost a decade, but has really come into her own as of late. Aldana is a top prospect and someone the UFC has its eyes on. Evinger, 34, dominated her en route to a fourth-round TKO finish.
Before the fight, Evinger said she was looking forward to disappointing the UFC by knocking off a potential future signee. She also said she has been at odds with the promotion ever since she said matchmaker Sean Shelby called her “unimpressive.” Shelby was in attendance at Invicta 13 when Evinger knocked off Aldana. So were UFC president Dana White and CEO Lorenzo Fertitta.
“It was awesome and the fact that they were there watching made it even better,” Evinger said.
Evinger and Shelby shook hands that night, but Evinger said it wasn’t reconciliation.
“It wasn’t no make up, that’s for damn sure,” Evinger said. “I definitely don’t have a different opinion. That changed nothing, as you can see. I’m not really worried about it. Everybody wants to keep talking about this Sean Shelby crap and all this stuff with UFC and I just don’t care about it anymore. It’s not anything that’s on my agenda and I’m not trying to get in there. I don’t care if they sign me or not. I just want to fight.”
Evinger will do that in her first title defense against Pannie Kianzad in the main event of Invicta FC 14 on Saturday night in Kansas City. The fight will air, perhaps ironically, on UFC Fight Pass. Evinger is not sure if the UFC pumps up Invicta events enough even if they are on the UFC’s digital network.
“For them it’s just somebody that’s promoting their Fight Pass,” Evinger said. “They get more out of it than we do. I don’t think they really care if we’re fighting or not. [Invicta president] Shannon [Knapp] is doing them a favor in my eyes, anyway. She’s bringing in this talent and all these girls from across the country and showcasing them. The UFC really doesn’t have to go search anymore. They just watch Invicta and go, ‘OK, we’ll sign that girl and that girl.’ They don’t really have to do any [legwork] anymore.”
Kianzad (8-0) is an undefeated prospect out of Sweden. The 23-year-old won her Invicta debut over Jessica Rose Clark via unanimous decision in July. Evinger is hoping to play spoiler yet again this weekend. That zero on Kianzad’s record has given Evinger motivation.
“For me, it’s just about winning all these fights, winning every fight I can,” Evinger said. “Hopefully I never lose again — and then just going as far as I can.”
That might not necessarily mean the UFC. While she acknowledges the pay is better there, Evinger thinks its Reebok deal “sucks” and she has little interest in toeing the company line in interviews. For now, Invicta gives her a chance to be herself. But Evinger would not completely rule out a run with the UFC at some point.
“It depends on what Shannon has got in store for me and what she thinks and definitely what they offer me,” Evinger said. “I know I ain’t making as much as them girls in the UFC. That’s fine with me. I’m just happy to be fighting and making any kind of money. We all know that back in the day there was no money in this sport and it was a struggle.
“I’ve just gotta continue to win. That’s all that matters to me.”