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00:00I have around the world on UFC Fight Pass from the Scottish Rite Temple here in Kansas City, Missouri.
00:06This is the main event of the evening.
00:10Three rounds of action this scheduled in the Strawweight Division.
00:15St. Shabai, the Missouri Office of Athletics Director in attendance, Cageside Tim Lukenhall.
00:20Here are three judges scoring this bout at Cageside on the 10-point must system.
00:24Henry Gehrig, Brett Miller, and Ross Swanberg.
00:27And when the action begins inside the cage, referee in charge, Mike England.
00:33And now, ladies and gentlemen, the judges are ready, and the fighters are ready.
00:38Kansas City, make some noise if you are ready!
00:47Introducing to you first, fighting out of the blue corner.
00:50Standing 5 feet, 1 inch tall, she weighed an officially 15 and 3 quarter pounds.
00:55In six professional bouts, her record stands at five victories and one defeat.
01:00Fighting out of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
01:03Here is Jody Esquiva!
01:14And her opponent, across the cage, fighting out of the red corner.
01:17Stands 5 feet, 5 inches tall.
01:19She weighed an officially 115 and 1 half pounds.
01:22And in seven professional bouts, stands perfect.
01:25Seven victories and no defeats.
01:29Presentando la invicta niña de Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico.
01:34Alexa Grazo!
01:38Once again, referee Mike England with the final instruction.
01:44Right here, ladies, right here.
01:46Okay, ladies, I gave you instruction in the dressing room.
01:48I expect a tough, clean fight.
01:49Bay my commands at a time.
01:50You have any questions?
01:51Any questions?
01:52Touch them up right here.
01:53God bless you.
01:58Alexa Grazo, back after a 17-month layoff.
02:01The battle with injury is over.
02:04The war with Jody Esquivel takes place right now.
02:09Touch of gloves.
02:10We are underway.
02:13Esquivel coming forward hard.
02:21Roscoe with a combination.
02:24Esquivel very aggressive here.
02:25You've got to expect that from Jody.
02:27She is.
02:27You know, when she made the jump to strawweight,
02:30I was worried because she's quite short for this division.
02:33But, man, she has not lost any of her muscularity.
02:38Tomorrow night, it's UFC 201 from Phillips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia,
02:41as current UFC welterweight champion Robbie Lawler
02:44defends his title against Tyron Woodley.
02:46Don't miss UFC 201, only on pay-per-view.
02:50Invicta vets Rose Namajunas, Karolina Kovolkiewicz in action tomorrow night as well.
02:54Talking to Grasso leading up to this fight,
03:00she said that she was actually a little concerned about ring rush.
03:02She thought that it might take her a little bit to get going.
03:05I don't see any.
03:07Her strikes are so sharp and so precise.
03:09Appreciate everyone joining us on Twitter tonight.
03:15Hashtag Invicta FC, at TJ DeSantis, at Jules K underscore fighter,
03:19and, of course, at Invicta Fights.
03:21You can see Jody attempting to take her to the ground,
03:24grabbing her leg, and then using that to pull and push into the clenching position.
03:28Now it's going to be a fight for who has dominance on the cage,
03:31who has better position on the cage.
03:33Alexa's done some beautiful knees from the clench there.
03:37Escobel now trying to get a takedown.
03:40Grasso stuffs it.
03:41Nicely done by the former strawweight number one contender.
03:44Beautiful elbow there by Grasso.
03:46Escobel staying tough here, trying to keep the pressure on.
03:52Sorry.
03:53There was a lady behind us coaching from the crowd.
03:56Yeah, no, Alexa Grasso can generate so much power from such a little frame,
04:00and against the cage, which is really hard to do.
04:03She's very crisp, very on point tonight.
04:06Escobel looping left hand comes in, answered by a left hand of Grasso's.
04:10Now Escobel shooting in far from the outside.
04:13Yeah, you can see, you know, she definitely wants that takedown.
04:16That was...
04:17Nicely done by Grasso.
04:19Nice turnover from Grasso, and strikes on the way up.
04:23Oh, beautifully done there by Alexa Grasso.
04:27A couple punches off the break.
04:28Straight off the forehead to give her range.
04:32Yeah, Alexa Grasso looks like she hasn't missed a minute of action here early in this fight.
04:37Two and a half remaining round number one.
04:39Escobel still firing combinations.
04:47And you can hear Jody's corner, Keith Jardine, calling for her to make Alexa Grasso throw.
04:53Oh, wow.
04:54Oh, beautiful kick to the body there.
04:55Escobel might be hurt.
04:56She's trying to get a takedown again.
04:57Yeah, that was...
04:58Oh, nicely done again by Grasso.
05:00Sorry, Julie.
05:00No, no, no.
05:01That was a beautiful shot.
05:02Like, that was right on the liver.
05:04Oh, elbows to the head right there.
05:07Escobel is so vicious.
05:09Escobel working hard on this takedown now.
05:11Grasso flirting with controlling the head of Escobel.
05:14Now Jody eating a lot of hard elbows here.
05:16Alexa Grasso.
05:17Yeah.
05:18Jody needs to give up that double leg attempt to go straight to a single leg on Grasso's left leg,
05:22or she's in some serious trouble here.
05:26Sternly example here early of why Alexa Grasso has everyone excited at 115 pounds.
05:34Touch over 90 seconds here in our opening round.
05:37Jody's still in the fight, still game, trying to find her position.
05:40But she's...
05:41Oh, nice knee from Escobel.
05:42Oh, hard right hand on the break.
05:43Escobel on the right.
05:44It's another right hand.
05:47She's centered back up.
05:49But it's almost like Escobel is...
05:51She's pushing her to the cage, and that's where Alexa seems to fight best,
05:55is with her back to the cage this fight.
05:57Alexa Grasso has been peppering the body of Escobel with knees,
06:02and Jody hasn't broken posture yet, but those can add up.
06:05Yeah.
06:05Now Grasso inside the clinch.
06:08You know, I actually thought that Escobel would be the stronger fighter
06:11in these grappling exchanges up against the fence,
06:13but it's Grasso that is the one that is shining.
06:15Yeah, I did as well.
06:16Grasso is clearly aiming for liver shots on those kicks, too.
06:19She's trying to slow down Escobel.
06:21She's trying to slow down that movement, and she's done it quite a bit.
06:24You know, Escobel's still moving,
06:25but her strikes and her takedowns aren't as sharp coming in.
06:30Oh, nice kick to the head of Escobel by Grasso.
06:33Now Escobel trying to get a takedown.
06:35Big knee upcoming there by Escobel, landed, but Grasso still game.
06:40Nice elbow standing.
06:42Hard to keep up with the strawweight action.
06:44I know.
06:44You caught one side and the other one does something nice.
06:47Knee from Escobel.
06:48Grasso, again, she can just generate so much power from her back to the cage.
06:52I wish I had learned how to do that.
06:55Nice elbow, and Escobel continues to push forward.
06:59Another kick there.
07:00That one caught, though, by Escobel.
07:01Now back inside the clinch.
07:03Final ten seconds here this round.
07:05And I think it's very smart of Escobel when she grabs a kick to just try and kick the other leg out or trip the other leg out.
07:10She's not getting the shot.
07:11Grasso knocked the mouthpiece of Escobel out there in the final moments of the first round,
07:16but nicely done there by Alexa Grasso.
07:20I mean, this isn't hyperbole.
07:22It looks like she hasn't missed a minute since her last fight with Mizuki.
07:25It doesn't look like she's breaking sweat.
07:27There's a woman behind us who is shadowboxing TJ and trying to show her what to do.
07:32I love Kansas City.
07:33I love watching Alexa Grasso fight.
07:36There she is.
07:37This lady is just throwing down against opponents in the air.
07:44Jodi Escobel needs to make some adjustments because we'll take a look at the action here.
07:48Alexa Grasso was on point throughout the first five minutes.
07:50And you can see when she generates this knee, she pushes and shucks on the head.
07:55Escobel pulls her head out, and immediately she's hit with that knee.
07:59It's a wonderful push-pull action to be able to deliver that hard shot and generate just the right amount of power.
08:04And then this shot to the liver, oh, my goodness, I felt that one.
08:08And you can see Escobel is game, but she doesn't quite have the pop on that takedown that she did before.
08:14Oh, there's that nice teep to the face.
08:16It's the takedown that happened, but didn't stay down for long.
08:23Solid first five minutes for Alexa Grasso.
08:25Jodi Escobel looks to Mike England.
08:31I don't know what happened.
08:33Oh, water.
08:34Looks like she needed some water there on the mat.
08:35Mike England, aware of it, wants to take care of it.
08:39Jodi Escobel is going to try to make the proper adjustments to take this round.
08:43We'll see what her approach is here.
08:46Jodi style, Jodi style.
08:48There we go.
08:50The corner of Escobel saying Jodi style.
08:54Yeah, you know, she has a very quick fake style into a technique, you know, into a punch.
09:01She fakes big, she moves to the side, she fakes again, and then she hits.
09:04It's really nice.
09:06When the shots land, though, you know, if she's going to play on the outside like this,
09:09she is kind of at risk because I believe Grasso has a longer reach.
09:13Grasso is so confident.
09:16Just nice left hand there by Grasso.
09:18She really doesn't react the way Escobel wants her to.
09:23Kick by Grasso.
09:25Another jab and a right cross lands.
09:27Grasso tries to come high with the kick.
09:28Yeah, nice circling out.
09:30Nice cage awareness there from Escobel.
09:32She wants to be in the center here.
09:33Alexa Grasso has been vocal about her goal.
09:38That is an Invicta FC belt.
09:40And they've been tabled for 17 months.
09:42She's back in action tonight.
09:44And if you watch the feet of these two fighters, watch the little mini adjustments they make to each other.
09:49It's quite fascinating, you know, to watch one leg move one way so that they can deliver a shot from another angle.
09:55I know that sounds simplistic, but honestly, the level is high.
10:00Nicely done.
10:01Jody takes her down off of a kick, but then allows her to get back up.
10:05A right hand landed on the way down by Escobel.
10:08But again, Grasso back to her feet.
10:10Now we're again at space.
10:13Two punch combination there by Escobel.
10:21And it's kind of what she needs to do.
10:23She needs to commit to the combination.
10:25Her corner said, you can't punch going backwards.
10:28They're telling her, move forward, move forward, push the action.
10:31Jab gets through by Grasso.
10:35I like the movement here by Alexa.
10:37I mean, it's almost a pure boxing sort of approach.
10:40You don't see that often in MMA.
10:41Yeah, no, she's holding like almost a peek-a-boo stance there.
10:44Moving side to side on that angle.
10:47Getting her head out of the way of a lot of the shots.
10:51And Grasso is far from only a boxer.
10:53We've seen spinning back kicks in the past.
10:55We've seen a variety of strikes.
10:58Grasso will always keep you on your toes.
11:00Escobel back.
11:02Nice kick there by Jody.
11:06I think Jody's gotten her confidence back in this round.
11:10You know, she's really getting more aggressive here,
11:11but she's still eating quite a few shots.
11:13Yeah, well, Escobel has gotten her confidence back.
11:16It hasn't broken the confidence of Grasso at all.
11:18No, Grasso kind of reminds me of Agnieszka in a way
11:21in that she doesn't show any emotion when she gets hit.
11:26Over the halfway point of this bout,
11:28again, our main event,
11:29three five-minute rounds tonight in the strawweight division.
11:31TJ DeSantis, Julie Kedzie, Scottish Rite,
11:33Kansas City, Missouri, and Victor FC 18.
11:36The shots are so fast.
11:38They're just kind of like half an inch away
11:39of where they need to be.
11:40When Escobel comes forward, Grasso isn't backing straight up,
11:48always moving, circling.
11:50Generally to her right,
11:52because that's where she can generate more power.
11:54She'll step her left leg a little bit on the outside
11:56and then shift over to hit that right hand.
12:03As you mentioned, Julie,
12:04Escobel is a little bit out of range.
12:05Can't seem to figure the range out.
12:07Grasso, nice movement, nice range of awareness as well.
12:11Yeah, you know, and that was a nice shot.
12:13When Escobel, honestly, when she commits,
12:16she does allow the fight to come her way.
12:19She will be doing a good job.
12:21If she could add maybe a third punch
12:22at the end of that combination.
12:24But, you know, so far,
12:25Grasso is just pretty much controlling,
12:27you know, what shot gets through.
12:34Nice combination by Escobel.
12:35Escobel didn't land flush, but it got Grasso to move.
12:39Grasso, pause, a jab.
12:40Nice left hand by Escobel, gets through.
12:44Minute left in round number two.
12:50Inside the clinch there for a brief moment.
12:52Grasso tried to fire off a knee, fires off a jab now.
12:55She's doing an excellent job of keeping, you know,
12:57keeping that jab, using it to keep Escobel at range.
12:59It's what you need to do with a shorter fighter.
13:02You just need to keep punching them.
13:05Not that simplistic, guys, but, I mean, with that jab,
13:08you just need to keep it in their face,
13:09make it seem like they can't get in.
13:11Now, Jodi is, that's the, like, third time
13:13she's grabbed the kick to get an attack.
13:15It's a good strategy.
13:16Oh, Escobel, rocked by a nice left and right.
13:22And she's got a hold of that leg,
13:23but unless she gets it to the ground,
13:25she's going to continue to be hit.
13:29Blood flowing out of the nose of Jodi Escobel.
13:32Final ten seconds here of round number two.
13:38Nice right hand on the break by Escobel.
13:40Escobel, ten minutes in the books of our main events.
13:45Really technical.
13:47Solid stuff, and I would expect nothing less
13:49from Alexa Grosso.
13:50She is a fantastic strawweight,
13:52and, you know, she's been forced to the sidelines
13:55due to a variety of injuries,
13:57but, you know, she's been training.
13:59She hasn't been away from active competition.
14:01She trains with her father at the Team Lobo gym,
14:04and, you know, she's going to continue to get better,
14:06and I think we've seen that evolution of progress
14:08tonight by Grosso.
14:10Yeah, we haven't seen really any jiu-jitsu yet,
14:13which is what she was going to display for us tonight,
14:14but I am not unhappy with what I'm seeing here
14:18from her technique.
14:19Absolutely.
14:19Let's take a look at some of the action
14:20from round number two.
14:23Julie, walk us through.
14:23You can see Jodi's lunging with some of those shots,
14:26but she's eating shots on the inside.
14:28It's amazing how Alexa, again,
14:31how she can generate that power off the cage,
14:32even in a square stance like that,
14:34with both her feet on one line.
14:36She's utilizing her jab very well.
14:40Jodi is able to get into her when she does combinations,
14:43but even when she grabs a leg like that,
14:44Alexa seems content to use the cage as a tool
14:47to keep herself from getting punished.
14:49Final five minutes here remain.
14:51Alexa Grosso, Jodi Escobel,
14:54our main event of Invicta FC-18.
15:02Don't sit there and move, Jodi, move.
15:06Make it pro, make it pro.
15:07She can't touch it.
15:09She can't touch it.
15:10Yeah, she can keep it, Jodi.
15:11She can keep it, Jodi.
15:12Hands out.
15:13She's breaking over again.
15:16There we go.
15:19Enjoy live and exclusive events,
15:20original programming in the largest MMA library on UFC Fight Pass.
15:24Download the UFC.tv app today, anytime, anywhere.
15:27It is your pass to the ultimate fighting championship.
15:30Grosso fires off a left hand, or Escobel, rather.
15:35And I just think at this level,
15:36you can't throw a one punch and stop
15:38unless it's a jab interrupting somebody's motion.
15:40You have to string your combinations together
15:43to get in at somebody with such a good jabbing.
15:45Hard right hand got through by Grosso.
15:47Jodi has yet to ever stop coming forward
15:52and for her troubles, she's got to bust it up nose.
15:58But I like that.
15:58If Jodi Escobel is going to win,
16:00she can't afford to take a step back.
16:02No, not at all.
16:03She's got to pull a Simona here, like we saw earlier.
16:06She's got to just keep going and going.
16:08Go for that finish.
16:09Keep putting those combinations together,
16:11never slowing down.
16:14Fans loving this one on Twitter.
16:16Please use that hashtag, InvictaFC18,
16:19at TJ DeSantis, at JulesK underscore fighter,
16:21at Invicta Fights.
16:23Shake, shake, shake, shake.
16:27Touch under three and a half remains in this fight.
16:33And it's really interesting to see how tall Alexa Grosso stands.
16:43Be quite interesting to see her faced against a wrestler,
16:46somebody who does relentless shots.
16:50We saw her fight Mizuki.
16:51Mizuki tried to implement her ground game.
16:54She did it later in the fight, though,
16:55and had success there.
16:56What do you think about a fight with maybe Ashley Cummins down the road?
17:04Oh, they fought.
17:04Oh, yeah, that's right.
17:05Yeah, you know, you're right.
17:06Yeah, she got her.
17:07Yeah, no, that was Alexa Grosso's.
17:09Oh, hard right hand by Grosso.
17:11Esquivel backpedaling for the first time.
17:13Grosso punching up some punches.
17:14Now, Jody's job here is to not let there be any space
17:25because the space is where Grosso is going to keep attacking.
17:28She smells blood.
17:29She's like a shark.
17:30It's all over her left hand.
17:32Grosso moving forward.
17:33Esquivel not getting away.
17:35Sheep kick tries to make space for Alexa,
17:38or for Esquivel, rather.
17:41Mike Englund calls a halt to this for a brief moment.
17:44We're going to check the nose of Jody Esquivel.
17:47It is flowing pretty bad, Julie.
17:49That's going to be definitely interrupting her breathing here.
17:51We'll see what the doctor can do.
17:52It is, but, you know, I wouldn't have stopped.
17:55I mean, I guess I would stop maybe the round to check it,
17:57but I wouldn't stop this fight.
17:58She's a professional.
17:59This is a number one contender fight.
18:01Jody Esquivel wants to continue to fight.
18:05It's not getting in her eyes.
18:06It's not blocking her vision.
18:08I say let it keep going.
18:12Jody Esquivel still game.
18:14Two-punch combination for Esquivel hard to the body
18:18with a right hand and a kick for good measure.
18:21Esquivel getting aggressive.
18:22Yeah.
18:23He has a nice right hand.
18:24That's kind of amazing after almost having the fight stop
18:27that Esquivel is still going to keep coming forward.
18:29And again.
18:30Oh, beautiful elbow there by Grosso.
18:31Oh, Grosso is relentless.
18:33She's working that nose, and now she's getting her shots in.
18:37She wants this fight to end.
18:38She does not want to go to a decision.
18:39She wants to be definitive in her quest for a title shot.
18:42Touch over 90 seconds remain here in the third and final round.
18:53Jody Esquivel has found herself in a fight.
18:55Alexa Grosso showcasing her skills.
18:57Looked like she might have been setting up a spin kick here.
18:59Yeah, it looked like it, or a side kick.
19:02She's definitely more relaxed now.
19:03I think she wants to, now that she knows that she has Esquivel injured,
19:07she wants to put on a display here.
19:13Bailed on a jump.
19:14Knee did Grosso.
19:15Decided to throw some punches.
19:17They didn't land.
19:17Esquivel fires forward.
19:21A minute left in our main events.
19:23Uppercut misses by Grosso.
19:25The heart of Jody Esquivel on display here.
19:30Yeah, just phenomenal.
19:31You know, you can't teach that kind of heart.
19:34Just like, I don't think, you know, some of the stuff coming from Alexa is just so sharp.
19:39That kind of timing.
19:40You can teach timing, but oh, my goodness.
19:42Esquivel shot deep on that single leg, but look at Alexa Grosso.
19:46Her wrestling has been really good.
19:48Oh, it's been great.
19:49She's been defensively beautiful.
19:51Still attacking while she's defending takedowns.
19:54Alexa Grosso is firmly in control of this fight,
19:56and she's really making a statement tonight.
19:59Now Grosso going for a takedown.
20:02Jody trying to reverse.
20:04Grosso relentless on that, staying on her.
20:06Driving her head into Esquivel's chin.
20:10Final 20 seconds here.
20:12Grosso moves back to space.
20:14Invites Esquivel back to the center.
20:16Jody still game, but battered and bloodied.
20:21And I think we're going to find out ultimately beaten here in Kansas City.
20:25Alexa Grosso doesn't miss a beat.
20:28What a fantastic fight.
20:30What beautiful warriors they are.
20:33That was amazing.
20:34Nice sportsmanship on display here.
20:37You know, while Jody Esquivel is going to come up short tonight,
20:40she's still a very talented strawweight,
20:42and that speaks to the level of skill that Alexa Grosso has.
20:45It does.
20:46Alexa Grosso is, she's fighting for the title next, if I have my say.
20:50I can't see a more perfect performance coming from somebody so tough
20:54after having such a long layoff.
20:56This division has changed so much since Grosso has been on the shelf.
20:59Her last fight, Katia Konkampa, was the champion.
21:03Konkampa dropped it to Lydia Sosa.
21:05Sosa dropped it to Angela Hill.
21:07This is all why Alexa Grosso is sitting back and watching her peers move up.
21:11Now it's her turn, and she took one big, giant step here tonight.
21:14Exactly.
21:15Watching a wrestler who is her competition to jiu-jitsu as her competition,
21:19now to kickboxing as her competition, she has to put it all together.
21:22And honestly, I think a fight with Angela Hill will be phenomenal.
21:27The striking battle alone would be fantastic.
21:30Hill's jiu-jitsu has been improving.
21:33Alexa Grosso obviously has her wrestling game on point as well as her hands.
21:37I mean, she's just, you know, the decision is a formality at this point,
21:41and I believe when the decision is read,
21:43you're going to see Alexa Grosso pour out with emotion
21:46because this was a battle, a long time coming for her,
21:50and that battle was with the injury bug.
21:52She had to pull out of two fights leading up to tonight.
21:56One of them was a title fight.
21:58She got here.
21:59She looked to be 100%, and Alexa Grosso is a very, very dangerous woman at 115 pounds.
22:07All right, let's make it official.
22:10Let's throw it up to Joe Martinez with our official decision.
22:14And now, ladies and gentlemen, after three rounds,
22:16we go to the judges' scorecards.
22:18Here are the totals.
22:19Both Henry Geary and Ross Swanberg have it 30-27.
22:23Brett Miller scores it 30-26.
22:26All three for your winner by unanimous decision,
22:29and still undefeated, Alexa Grosso.
22:36Alexa Grosso, sterling in victory tonight.
22:39She will speak with Laura Sanka.
22:44All right, I'm here with our winner, Alexa Grosso.
22:47Alexa, it's been 17 long months since you've been in this cage,
22:51fighting injuries, fighting to get back in here.
22:54How proud are you of that incredible performance?
22:58Well, I'm very happy.
23:00You know, it's been a long time since the last time I fought.
23:03I feel I was nervous, honestly.
23:05I was really nervous to come back after so long,
23:08but I've been training really hard, you know,
23:11about everything, you know, about my hand and my shoulder.
23:14I've been doing all of my body parts, and I'm very happy to be back.
23:18You've engaged in some of the most epic battles,
23:21I think, that the Invicta cage has ever seen.
23:24In your fight with Mizuki, you know,
23:26you really showcase your skills at mid-range and in the pocket,
23:29but in this fight, you forced Jodi to stay on the outside
23:33and have to come in at you.
23:36Talk about how that game plan played out in this fight.
23:40Well, I knew she was going with all her energy against me
23:44because she's very strong, and she's just kind of quickly,
23:48and, well, I just follow my game plan.
23:52She's a very explosive fighter,
23:53able to cover a lot of distance with each of her punches,
23:56and you did a fantastic job of frustrating that.
24:00I think clearly this win sets you up.
24:02I'm not the matchmaker,
24:03but I think this win clearly sets you up
24:04for a title shot with Angela Hill.
24:08Talk to us about that matchup.
24:10Yes, well, if Shannon and only Victor's staff
24:14say I can fight again for a title shot, I'll do it.
24:17I know I lose my place,
24:19but I'm here again to show the world
24:22how I'm training and how do I love the sport,
24:26and I hope everybody enjoyed the MMA fight.
24:28You know, in Big Ties, it's a really amazing league.
24:30I hope you like it.
24:32You're such a special fighter.
24:33We cannot wait to see you again.
24:35Alexa Grasto, ladies and gentlemen!
24:37Alexa Grasto, ladies and gentlemen!
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