Barb_Honchak

Barb Honchak

Barb Honchak

American mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter

Barbara Marie Honchak (born August 30, 1979)[4] is a retired American professional female mixed martial artist.[5] She is the first Invicta FC Flyweight Champion.[6] She has four wins in the Invicta FC promotion and holds notable victories over Vanessa Porto, Roxanne Modafferi, Leslie Smith and Felice Herrig.

Quick Facts Born, Other names ...

Background

Honchak grew up in Edwardsville, Illinois, and has one sister, Tammy.[7] In her youth, Barb loved outdoor activities like horseback riding, scuba diving and camping.[8] She went to Edwardsville High School, where she graduated in 1997.[8] Then she earned an associate degree from Lewis & Clark Community College.[8] She has a bachelor's degree in molecular biology from Western Washington University and her master's in ecological genetics from Northern Arizona University.[9] She is married to her husband, Timm.[2]

After receiving her degrees, she moved back to Midwest because of her fiancée's career, and started training Brazilian jiu-jitsu for self-defense under Steve Berger at the age of 26.[7] From there on, she quickly took an amateur mixed martial arts bout and was hooked to the sport.[7]

Mixed martial arts career

Honchak went 8–1 as an amateur mixed martial artist and made her professional debut on November 28, 2009.[5]

In her fourth professional fight, Honchak defeated Felice Herrig at Hoosier FC 6 on January 14, 2011.[10]

Honchak won three more fights in 2011, defeating Amber McAvoy and Nina Ansaroff by decision[11][12] and Roxanne Modafferi by submission due to a rear-naked choke.[13]

Invicta Fighting Championships

As the first bout of her three-fight contract, Honchak made her Invicta Fighting Championships debut on July 28, 2012, at Invicta FC 2: Baszler vs. McMann.[8][14] She defeated Bethany Marshall by TKO in the second round.[15][16]

On October 28, 2012, Honchak faced Aisling Daly at Invicta FC 3: Penne vs. Sugiyama.[17] She defeated Daly by unanimous decision.[18][19]

The victory over Daly earned Honchak a shot at the inaugural Invicta FC Flyweight title on April 5, 2013, at Invicta FC 5: Penne vs. Waterson.[20] She defeated Vanessa Porto by unanimous decision to become the first Invicta FC Flyweight Champion.[21][22]

Honchak faced Leslie Smith at Invicta FC 7: Honchak vs. Smith on December 7, 2013.[23][24] She successfully defended her Invicta FC title, winning via unanimous decision. The bout earned both fighters the Fight of the Night honors.[25]

Honchak faced Takayo Hashi at Invicta FC 9 on November 1, 2014, and successfully defended her title with another unanimous decision victory. As a result of relocating, she had problems finding a team to train in, which in turn led to the stripping of her title due to inactivity.[26]

The Ultimate Fighter

In August 2017, it was announced that after a few years away from the sport Honchak would be one of the fighters featured on The Ultimate Fighter 26, where the process to crown the UFC's inaugural 125-pound Women's Champion will take place.[27]

In the first round, Honchak defeated Gillian Robertson via TKO in the second round, allowing her to move on to the next stage of the competition.[28] In the quarterfinals, Honchak faced Rachael Ostovich-Berdon and won the fight by unanimous decision after two rounds.[29] In the semifinals, Honchak faced Nicco Montaño. She lost the fight via unanimous decision after three rounds.[30]

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Honchak was scheduled to face Roxanne Modafferi on December 1, 2017, at The Ultimate Fighter 26 Finale.[31] However, on the day of the weigh in, Sijara Eubanks was pulled from the fight for kidney failure while trying to make weight and she was replaced by Modafferi to face Nicco Montaño. Honchak instead faced Lauren Murphy.[32][33] She lost the back-and-forth fight by split decision.[34]

The rematch between Honchak and Roxanne Modafferi was rescheduled to take place July 6, 2018, at UFC TUF 27 Finale.[35] Honchak lost the fight via technical knockout in round two.[36]

Honchak was released by the UFC in August 2018.[37] She has retired since.[26]

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

  • Invicta FC
  • Women's MMA Awards
    • 2013 Fighter of the Year
    • 2013 Flyweight of the Year
  • AwakeningFighters.com WMMA Awards
    • 2013 Flyweight of the Year[38]

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
14 matches 10 wins 4 losses
By knockout 1 1
By submission 2 0
By decision 7 3
More information Res., Record ...

Mixed martial arts exhibition record

More information Res., Record ...

See also

References

  1. [1]
    "Barb Honchak Awakening Profile". Awakeningfighters.com. Retrieved February 25, 2014.
  2. [2]
    "Barb Honchak finds unlikely talent with help of legendary family". SI.com. April 5, 2013. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  3. [3]
    The Ultimate Fighter 26 Finale: Barb Honchak full media day interview. MMAjunkie.com. November 30, 2017 – via YouTube.
  4. [4]
    “TUF FINALE” MIXED MARTIAL ARTS SHOW RESULTS DATE: July 6, 2018
  5. [5]
    "Barb Honchak MMA Stats, Pictures, News, Videos, Biography – Sherdog.com". Sherdog.com. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  6. [6]
    "INVICTA FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIPS 5 RESULTS". InvictaFC.com. April 8, 2013. Archived from the original on August 4, 2013. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  7. [7]
    Marc Ritorto (October 27, 2019). "EP 27 Interview With MMA World Champ Barb Honchak" (Podcast).
  8. [8]
    Steve Horrell (May 16, 2013). ""That's my little girl"". Edwardsville Intelligencer.
  9. [9]
    "Where has Barb Honchak been the last two-plus years? The answer isn't such an easy one". May 24, 2017.
  10. [10]
    "Barb Honchak Defeats Felice Herrig At Hoosier Fight Club 6". MMARising.com. January 15, 2011. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  11. [11]
    "Weekend Recap: Barb Honchak, Maiju Kujala Earn Victories". MMARising.com. March 13, 2011. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  12. [12]
    "Crowbar MMA: Spring Brawl 2 Live Play-By-Play & Results". MMARising.com. April 29, 2011. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  13. [13]
    "BlackEye Promotions 5 Live Play-By-Play & Results". MMARising.com. October 1, 2011. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  14. [14]
    "Tickets for July 28 Invicta FC 2 Mcmann vs Baszler Star Studded Women's MMA Event at Memorial Hall in Kansas City Kan on Sale Friday". InvictaFC.com. May 29, 2012. Archived from the original on July 6, 2012. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  15. [15]
    "Invicta FC 2 Results: McMann, Davis & Carmouche Victorious". MMARising.com. July 29, 2012. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  16. [16]
    "Women's MMA Report: Invicta FC stages successful second show, plans for third". MMAjunkie.com. July 31, 2012. Archived from the original on April 20, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  17. [17]
    "Invicta FC Announces Full 13 Bout Line-up for Third Event on Oct 6". InvictaFC.com. August 15, 2012. Archived from the original on November 1, 2012. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  18. [18]
    "Invicta FC 3 Results: Jessica Penne Captures Atomweight Title". MMARising.com. October 6, 2012. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  19. [19]
    "Invicta FC 3 results: Penne claims promotion's first belt, Baszler cruises past D'Alelio". MMAjunkie.com. October 6, 2012. Archived from the original on April 14, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  20. [20]
    "FIGHTING WORDS: COREY SMITH SPEAKS WITH INVICTA FC 5 FLYWEIGHT TITLE HOPEFUL BARB HONCHAK". InvictaFC.com. March 7, 2013. Archived from the original on April 26, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  21. [21]
    "Invicta FC 5 Results: Michelle Waterson, Barb Honchak Win Titles". MMARising.com. April 6, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  22. [22]
    "Invicta FC 5 results: Waterson upsets Penne to win atomweight title". MMAjunkie.com. April 5, 2013. Archived from the original on May 12, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  23. [23]
    "INVICTA FC 7 COMING TO KANSAS CITY ON DECEMBER 7TH". InvictaFC.com. October 11, 2013. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
  24. [24]
    "Barb Honchak vs Leslie Smith Title Bout Set For Invicta FC 7". MMARising.com. October 11, 2013. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
  25. [25]
    Robert Sargent (December 7, 2013). "Invicta FC 7 Bonuses: Honchak vs Smith Named Fight Of The Night". mmarising.com.
  26. [26]
    Drake Riggs (February 4, 2020). Barb Honchak talks life after MMA, reflects on flyweight legacy – via YouTube.
  27. [27]
    "'The Ultimate Fighter 26' cast revealed: Who's vying to become 1st UFC women's flyweight champ?". MMAjunkie. August 6, 2017. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  28. [28]
    "The Ultimate Fighter 26, Episode 7 results: Melinda Fabian vs. Rachael Ostovich". MMA Fighting. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  29. [29]
    "Episode No. 10 recap: 'The Ultimate Fighter 26: A New World Champion'". MMAjunkie. November 16, 2017. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  30. [30]
    "Episode No. 11 recap: 'The Ultimate Fighter 26: A New World Champion'". MMAjunkie. November 23, 2017. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  31. [31]
    "Tournament final/inaugural title fight set as part of Friday's official TUF 26 Finale lineup". MMAjunkie. November 30, 2017. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  32. [32]
    "Roxanne Modafferi replaces Sijara Eubanks in TUF 26 Finale's inaugural title fight". MMAjunkie. November 30, 2017. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  33. [33]
    "'TUF 26' finalist Sijara Eubanks breaks silence on weight miss that scrapped UFC title shot". MMAjunkie. November 30, 2017. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  34. [34]
    "TUF 26 Finale results: Lauren Murphy edges Barb Honchak in three-round thriller". MMAjunkie. December 2, 2017. Retrieved December 2, 2017.
  35. [35]
    "Roxanne Modafferi vs. Barb Honchak rebooked for TUF 27 Finale". MMA Fighting. Retrieved April 20, 2018.
  36. [36]
    "TUF 27 Finale results: Roxanne Modafferi TKOs Barb Honchak for long-awaited UFC win". MMAjunkie. July 7, 2018. Retrieved July 7, 2018.
  37. [37]
    "Former Invicta flyweight champion Barb Honchak released from the UFC". The Body Lock. February 5, 2019. Retrieved February 5, 2019.
  38. [38]
    "WMMA 2013 Awards". Awakening Fighters.
More information Awards and achievements ...
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