Tonya Evinger (born June 4, 1981) is an American

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

. A professional mixed martial artist since 2006, Evinger has previously competed for the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

(UFC), EliteXC, Raging Wolf and

Invicta Fighting Championships Invicta Fighting Championships, also known as Invicta FC, is an American professional mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion dedicated to Women's mixed martial arts that was founded in 2012 by Janet Martin and Shannon Knapp. The promotion is current ...

, and was the Invicta Bantamweight Champion.

Early life

Evinger played football and wrestled while at Odessa High School in Odessa, Missouri. She went on to wrestle and earn her degree at Missouri Valley College in Marshall, Missouri. Evinger's younger twin brothers, Chris and Owen Evinger, are also professional

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on strike (attack), striking, grappling and ground f ...

fighters.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Evinger faced Jennifer Tate at IFC: Warriors Challenge 21 on June 3, 2006 and lost via triangle choke in the second round. The fight was the first women's bout ever sanctioned by the

California State Athletic Commission The California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) regulates amateur and professional boxing, amateur and professional kickboxing and professional mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds ...

. She faced Brittany Pullen at FFF 1: Asian Invasion on February 17, 2007. She won the fight via a 16-second knockout in the first round. Evinger faced Shonie Plagman at X-1: Extreme Fighting 2 on March 17, 2007. She won the fight by knockout 10 seconds into the second round. She faced Ginele Marquez at Tuff-N-Uff 2 on April 14, 2007. She won the fight by rear naked choke submission in the third round. Evinger faced Vanessa Porto at FFF 2: Girls Night Out on July 14, 2007. She lost the fight by armbar submission in the first round.

EliteXC

Evinger debuted for Elite XC against Gina Carano at EliteXC: Uprising on September 15, 2007. She lost the fight by rear-naked choke submission in the first round. She faced Julie Kedzie at ShoXC: Elite Challenger Series on January 25, 2007. She won the fight by rear-naked choke submission in the first round.

Post-EliteXC

Evinger faced Alexis Davis at Raging Wolf 7: Mayhem In The Mist 3 on May 8, 2010 for the Raging Wolf Women's Flyweight Championship. She lost the fight by rear-naked choke submission in the third round. Evinger faced Adrienna Jenkins in a number one contender's bout at Raging Wolf 8: Cage Supremacy on July 17, 2010. She won the fight by TKO in the second round. On November 6, 2010, Evinger rematched Alexis Davis at Raging Wolf 10. She was defeated by submission due to a rear-naked choke in the first round. Evinger faced Sara McMann at Titan Fighting Championships 19 on July 29, 2011 in Kansas City, Kansas. The fight served as the co-main event. Evinger was defeated by unanimous decision. On September 23, 2011, Evinger stepped in on short notice to face Anita Rodriguez at XFL: Rumble on the River 5 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She defeated Rodriguez by submission due to a rear-naked choke in round one. Evinger defeated Lacie Jackson by knockout in the first round at Fight Me MMA on April 13, 2012. On November 10, 2012, Evinger made her flyweight debut against Carina Damm at Fight Hard MMA. She defeated Damm by split decision.

The Ultimate Fighter

In August 2013, it was announced that Evinger was one of the fighters selected to be on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rousey vs. Team Tate. In the elimination fight to get into the TUF house, Evinger faced Raquel Pennington and lost via guillotine choke submission in the second round.

Invicta Fighting Championships

On December 7, 2013, Evinger faced Sarah D'Alelio at Invicta Fighting Championships 7. She won the fight via unanimous decision. After switching camps to Houston, Texas she joined team Gracie Barra Champions and 4 oz Fight Club, training her Boxing and Kickboxing with Aaron Pena (GBC) and MMA with Jeremy Mahon (4 oz). Evinger next fought Ediane Gomes at Invicta Fighting Championships 8 on September 6, 2014. She won the fight via first round submission. Evinger next fought Cindy Dandois at Invicta Fighting Championships 10 on December 5, 2014. She won the fight via second round submission, making her the front runner to fight for the vacant Invicta FC bantamweight title. Evinger next fought Irene Aldana for the vacant Invicta FC bantamweight title at Invicta Fighting Championships 13 on July 9, 2015. She dominated the fight from bell to bell, almost finishing the fight early with an arm bar. Evinger would go on to stop Aldana in the 4th round via TKO (punches), claiming the Invicta FC bantamweight title. Evinger next fought undefeated prospect, Pannie Kianzad. This was originally set as a title defense but both Evinger and Kianzad were unable to make weight, both being fined a percentage of their purse and was changed to a five-round non-title fight. Evinger ended up dispatching Kianzad in the 2nd round by TKO due to punches. Evinger next fought

Colleen Schneider Colleen Schneider (born March 12, 1982 in Syracuse, New York) is a retired American professional mixed martial artist. Colleen was a contestant in season 18 of The Ultimate Fighter reality competition television show. Early life She attended Cic ...

at Invicta Fighting Championships 17 on May 7, 2016. Evinger successfully defended her bantamweight title by unanimous decision. Following the fight, Evinger celebrated her victory by kissing interviewer Laura Sanko on the lips. Evinger would lose her bantamweight championship in an upset defeat to Russian newcomer

Yana Kunitskaya Iana "Yana" Kunitskaya (born November 11, 1989) is a Russian mixed martial artist competing in the bantamweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of September 19, 2022, she is #6 in the UFC women's bantamweight rankings ...

by armbar submission in the first round on November 18, 2016. The loss was controversial because the referee told her to move from a legal position which may have led directly to the submission. Evinger appealed her loss and on December 1, 2016 the loss was changed to a no contest, so Evinger retained her title. Evinger faced Kunitskaya in a rematch in the main event of Invicta FC 22 on March 25, 2017. She won the fight by submission in the second round to retain her title.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

On June 27, 2017, it was announced that Evinger had signed with the UFC and was set to face

Cris Cyborg Cristiane Justino Venâncio (born July 9, 1985), known professionally by her ring name Cris Cyborg (and formerly by her married name Cristiane Santos), is a Brazilian-American mixed martial artist who as of January 2021 competes in Bellator MMA, ...

for the vacant

UFC Women's Featherweight Championship Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...

at UFC 214. She lost the fight by TKO in the third round. Evinger was scheduled to face Marion Reneau at UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs. Medeiros in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

, Texas on February 18, 2018. However, on January 9, 2018, she was forced to pull out fight, citing injury. Evinger was scheduled to face Ketlen Vieira on September 22, 2018 at UFC Fight Night 137. However, on August 7, 2018, Vieira pulled out due to a knee injury. In turn, Evinger was pulled from the card and scheduled to face Aspen Ladd two weeks later at UFC 229. She lost the fight via TKO in the first round. Evinger faced Lina Länsberg on June 1, 2019 at

UFC Fight Night 153 ''UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Smith'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 153'' or ''UFC on ESPN+ 11'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on June 1, 2019 at the Ericsson Globe in Stockhol ...

. She lost the fight by unanimous decision and was subsequently released from the promotion.

Championships and accomplishments

** Invicta FC Bantamweight Champion (One time) *** Two successful title defenses vs.

and

**Performance of the Night (Two times) vs. Ediane Gomes and Pannie Kianzad

Mixed martial arts record

, Loss , align=center, 19–8 (1) , Lina Länsberg , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Smith , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Stockholm, Sweden , , - , Loss , align=center, 19–7 (1) , Aspen Ladd , TKO (punches) , UFC 229 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:26 ,

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, TKO (knees) , UFC 214 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:56 ,

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 19–5 (1) ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , Invicta FC 22: Evinger vs. Kunitskaya II , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 4:32 , Kansas City, Missouri, United States , , - , NC , align=center , 18–5 (1) ,

, NC (overturned) , Invicta FC 20: Evinger vs. Kunitskaya , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 1:59 , Kansas City, Missouri, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 18–5 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Invicta FC 17: Evinger vs. Schneider , , align=center , 5 , align=center , 5:00 , Costa Mesa, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 17–5 , Pannie Kianzad , TKO (punches) , Invicta FC 14: Evinger vs. Kianzad , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 3:34 , Kansas City, Missouri, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 16–5 , Irene Aldana , TKO (punches) , Invicta FC 13: Cyborg vs. Van Duin , , align=center , 4 , align=center , 4:38 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 15–5 , Cindy Dandois , Submission (armbar) , Invicta FC 10: Waterson vs. Tiburcio , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 1:23 , Houston, Texas, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 14–5 , Ediane Gomes , Submission (armbar) , Invicta FC 8: Waterson vs. Tamada , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 3:31 , Kansas City, Missouri, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 13–5 , Sarah D'Alelio , Decision (unanimous) , Invicta FC 7: Honchak vs. Smith , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 , Kansas City, Missouri, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 12–5 , Carina Damm , Decision (split) , Fight Hard MMA , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 , St. Charles, Missouri, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 11–5 , Lacie Jackson , KO (punch) , Fight Me MMA , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 1:47 , St. Charles, Missouri, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 10–5 , Anita Rodriguez , Submission (rear-naked choke) , XFL: Rumble on the River 5 , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 1:57 ,

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma and List of United States cities by population, 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center , 9–5 , Sara McMann , Decision (unanimous) , Titan FC 19 , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 ,

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City, abbreviated as "KCK", is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center , 9–4 , Alexis Davis , Submission (rear-naked choke) , RW 10: Mayhem in the Mist 5 , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 1:25 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 9–3 ,

Adrienna Jenkins Adrienna Jenkins (born July 22, 1984) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Women's Featherweight division of Bellator. She now currently works as a MMA referee/ judge. Mixed martial arts career Jenkins made her MMA debut in 2 ...

, TKO (punches) , RW 8: Cage Supremacy , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 3:16 , Salamanca, New York, United States , , - , Loss , align=center , 8–3 , Alexis Davis , Submission (rear-naked choke) , RW 7: Mayhem in the Mist 3 , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 1:47 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 8–2 ,

Sarah Schneider Sarah Schneider (born September 10, 1983) is an American writer, actress, and comedian. She got her start in entertainment as a writer and actress for the comedy website CollegeHumor before becoming a writer for the television sketch comedy se ...

, Decision (unanimous) , True Fight Fans , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 7–2 , Julie Kedzie , Submission (rear-naked choke) , ShoXC: Elite Challenger Series , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 1:43 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 6–2 , Katrine Alendal , Submission (armbar) , PFP: Ring of Fire , , align=center , 1 , align=center , N/A ,

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, Philippines , , - , Loss , align=center , 5–2 , Gina Carano , Submission (rear-naked choke) , EliteXC: Uprising , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 2:53 ,

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the islan ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center , 5–1 , Vanessa Porto , Submission (armbar) , FFF 2: Girls Night Out , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 2:14 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 5–0 , Ginele Marquez , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Tuff-N-Uff 2 , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 1:58 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 4–0 , Shonie Plagmann , KO (punch) , X-1: Extreme Fighting 2 , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 0:10 ,

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, Hawaii, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 3–0 , Angela Hayes , TKO (punches) , Kick Enterprises , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 1:02 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 2–0 , Brittany Pullen , KO (punch) , FFF 1: Asian Invasion , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 0:16 ,

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wo ...

, United States , , - , win , align=center , 1–0 , Brittany Pullen , KO (punches) , IFC: Warriors Challenge 21 , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 1:56 , Tuolumne, California, United States , , - , Loss , align=center , 0–1 , Raquel Pennington , Submission (guillotine choke) , The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rousey vs. Team Tate , , align=center , 2 , align=center , ,

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

, Preliminary bout.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Evinger, Tonya 1981 births Living people American female mixed martial artists Flyweight mixed martial artists Bantamweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists utilizing wrestling Lesbian sportswomen LGBT people from Missouri American LGBT sportspeople LGBT mixed martial artists Featherweight mixed martial artists People from Odessa, Missouri American people of German descent Ultimate Fighting Championship female fighters 21st-century American women