Sean Sheehan 
In a big week for Irish MMA, Thursday night kicked it all off inside the cage as Limerick striker Catherine Costigan made her US debut against Amber Brown at Invicta FC 13 in Las Vegas.
Costigan looked confident walking to the cage but was caught with a couple of hard shots early. A quick clinch from Brown was established directly after that but Costigan reversed before Brown managed to get a body lock and throw her to the floor.
On the ground Brown landed in mount and secured her position as Costigan looked in deep trouble. An unusual front choke from Brown was then unsuccessful but she kept position on top and scored with a number of shots to the body. An arm-triangle attempt was then missed by Brown before she landed a series of elbows which had the fight close to an end.
Costigan wasn’t giving up for a second, though, and survived through the strikes but when she tried to escape ended up giving up her back. From there it was only a matter of time as Brown landed a number of strikes to the head before sinking in the rear naked choke which forced the referee to step in and stop the contest.
For Costigan it was a tough way to kick off her Invicta FC career but it was a learning experience nonetheless and she should be back stronger than ever next time out.
