History almost repeated itself.
Tonya Evinger was in deep trouble against Yana Kunitskaya in the first round Saturday night at Invicta FC 22 in Kansas City. Kunitskaya had a guillotine choke, then a heel hook, then a kneebar. The Russian fighter almost got Evinger to tap for a second straight time.
But Evinger, the Invicta women’s bantamweight champion, persevered.
She began to land big ground and pound late in the first round and controlled the second round on the ground. It all culminated in a rear-naked choke submission victory at 4:32 of the second after a dramatic, thrill-a-minute affair.