Invicta FC will give open scoring a trial run at their upcoming Phoenix Series 3 event on March 6th in Kansas City, KS. The promotion announced the experiment via a press release Monday.
Invicta’s announcement comes on the same day that the Kansas Athletic Commission announced that they will offer open scoring as an option to all MMA promotions. In their press release Invicta detailed how open scoring would be implemented at their event.
Under the commission’s direction, all three judges’ scores will be collected at the end of each round. The scores will then be provided to the corners of each fighter, as well as the promotion’s broadcast team, via commission officials. A graphic will be displayed on the broadcast revealing the scores to the viewing audience both in the arena and at home.
Invicta FC President Shannon Knapp said that her organization had been considering open scoring for “some time” and that she welcomes the opportunity to, “use it on a major MMA promotion for the first time.”
“Invicta FC has always been about innovation,” continued Knapp. “There are theoretical arguments for and against open scoring, but we think anything that could potentially improve the sport is worth trying. We are going into this event with an open mind. Afterwards, will regroup with the commission, our athletes and listen to fan feedback in order to make an informed decision about the future.”
News of Invicta’s experimentation comes days after many in the MMA community — including UFC commentator Joe Rogan and UFC President Dana White — bemoaned the current state of MMA judging. Both those figures expressed disgust at the scores that were presented at UFC 247, which took place in Texas this past weekend.
Phoenix Series 3 takes place at the Memorial Hall in Kansas and will be streamed live on UFC Fight Pass. Headlining the event is a five-round contest for the vacant Invicta FC bantamweight title. That fight pits Lisa Verzosa (5-0) vs. Julija Stoliarenko (8-3-1).
The event also includes a one-night bantamweight tournament featuring 8 fighters. In that tournament, both the quarterfinal and semifinal matches will be just one round (due to commission restrictions on how many rounds a fighter can fight in a single night). The tournament final will be contested over three rounds.
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