It wasn’t the result the travelling fans would have hoped for but there’s no doubting the toughness of Catherine Costigan.
The Alpha Female fell to a first round rear naked choke in her Invicta debut and is in unfamiliar territory having suffered her first ever career defeat.
Opponent Amber Brown got her game going early after establishing a takedown on the Limerick atomweight and, unfortunately for Costigan, New Mexico’s Brown landed straight in mount.
Costigan was tough enough to take Brown’s best from that position, gritting through a tide of body shots and slicing elbows but was forced to allow her opponent take her back.
It didn’t take long for Brown to sink in a deep rear naked choke and Costigan had no option but to tap out.
Being touted as the female answer to Conor McGregor, expect a lot more from Costigan in the Invicta cage in the coming months.