Cat Zingano will return to Invicta FC after her Strikeforce bout was canceled with the remainder of this Saturday's Strikeforce card.

By FCF Staff

In the wake of her canceled Strikeforce debut, undefeated sensation Cat “Alpha” Zingano (6-0) of Denver, Colo. will rejoin the much-anticipated Invicta Fighting Championships women’s Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight card at Memorial Hall in Kansas City on Saturday, Oct. 6 and battle highly-touted prospect Raquel “Rocky” Pennington (3-1) of Colorado Springs, Colo. in a featured bantamweight (135 pounds) matchup.

Pennington’s original Invicta FC opponent, Kim Connor-Hamby, has withdrawn from the event due to injury.

Following the cancellation of Zingano’s scheduled Sept. 29 Strikeforce matchup with Amanda Nunes, Invicta FC officials offered Zingano and Nunes the opportunity to square off with each other on the upcoming Invicta FC card.  An injury that Nunes had sustained, however, prevented her from accepting the opportunity.

Zingano was originally tabbed for action on the Invicta FC 3 card, but Invicta FC officials sent her to Stikeforce after the opportunity to face Nunes, a top contender, arose.

“We are excited about bringing Cat back into the fold and to be able to give her the opportunity to compete on an Invicta FC card after preparing as much as she did for her scheduled fight with Amanda,” said Invicta FC President Shannon Knapp in an official announcement today.

The 5-foot-6, 30-year-old Zingano tip-toed her way into combat sports after becoming the only girl to join her high school wrestling team and, later, competing in college where she earned All-American honors.

In 2007, she began training Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Professor Mauricio Zingano, whom she later married, and went on to win a number of tournaments, including the 2007 World Jiu Jitsu Championships.  Her success in the grappling art and a third round TKO victory in her only amateur MMA bout were the catalysts behind the launch of her professional fighting career.

To date, Zingano has been unstoppable in the hybrid combat sport, earning four of her six victories by way of either KO or submission.  All three of her last wins came by way of KO or TKO.

Pennington’s start will be her second in the Invicta FC cage.  The 5-foot-7, 24-year-old earned a unanimous decision over Sarah Moras at the last Invicta FC event on July 28 and, less than six weeks after that, returned to action in Honolulu, Hawaii where she submitted Raquel Pa’aluhi with a guillotine choke in the first round (3:52) of their meeting.

Before her professional debut in March when she scored a second round (2:25) TKO on Kim Couture with a series of knee strikes to the body, Pennington enjoyed a healthy amateur career that spanned three years and saw her amass a record of 7-1.

Updated Invicta FC 3: Penne vs. Sugiyama Fight Card:
Main Event: Atomweight (105 pounds) Championship Bout (Vacant Title): Jessica Penne (9-1) vs. Naho Sugiyama (8-0)

Bantamweight: Shayna Baszler (14-7) vs. Sarah “The Monster” D’Alelio (6-2)

Bantamweight: Cat Zingano (6-0) vs. Raquel Pennington (3-1)

Flyweight (125 pounds): Bar Honchak (6-2) vs. Aisling Daly (13-3)

Flyweight: Tara LaRosa (21-2) vs. Vanessa Porto (14-5)

Atomweight: Michelle Waterson (9-3) vs. Lacey Schuckman (7-5)

Featherweight: Julia Budd (3-2) vs. Elaina Maxwell (7-4)
Preliminary Card:

Strawweight (115 pounds): Carla Esparza (7-2) vs. Lynn Alvarez (5-2)

Flyweight: Ashley Cummins (3-0) vs. Joanne Calderwood (3-0)

Atomweight: Stephanie Frausto (3-4) vs. Amy Davis (3-3)

Bantamweight: Marciea Allen (1-0) vs. Jessamyn Duke (1-0)

Strawweight: Tecia Torres (0-0) vs. Kaiyana Rain (0-0)

Featherweight: Katalina Malungahu (2-0) vs. Ediane Gomes (8-2)