I don’t know how you have a staredown with a French accent, but I’m pretty sure Romy Ruyssen (right) is doing it.

So let’s get this out of the way:  I live in Kansas.

No, I don’t know what the hell a jayhawk is.  I’m not actually from here.

Anyways, Invicta Fighting Championships is going down just a short drive away in Kansas City, so I was quick to accept when I was offered a chance to be a member of the fight media for the inaugural Invicta FC card.

There were a few hiccups at the weigh-ins:  for some reason, they did not set up a raised platform for me to set up upon. As a result my pictures and video were of decidedly low quality. (As a recompense, please enjoy a few pictures courtesy of Invicta’s own photographer, Esther Lin.)

(Props: YouTube.com/allelbows)

Invicta Fighting Championships‘ all-female debut event is going down Saturday night in Kansas City, KS, and our own Doug “Rex13″ Richardson will be in attendance, trying his hardest to get kneed in the balls. Check out this video package from Esther Lin/allelbows and get to know the talent that will be competing. It’s awesome to see Kaitlin Young back in action, and every Marloes Coenen fight is required viewing for fans of women’s MMA. The show will also feature Jessica Pene, Liz Carmouche, Lisa Ellis-Ward, and Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc, best known as one-half of the greatest MMA face-off of all time. A live stream of the event will be aired on InvictaFC.com starting tomorrow evening at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. Be there.

(Like we needed a reason to run this photo again. Props: MMARecap via MiddleEasy)

There were a lot of questions coming into last night’s XFO 39. Would this mark the last appearance of Jeff “Big Frog” Curran? How would Jamie Varner fair in what is not only his first fight since being released by the UFC, but a welterweight bout nonetheless? Can Felice Herrig vs. Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc possibly live up to the pre-fight staredown? The short answers are maybe, pretty well and of course not. Tune in after the jump for more details.

(Props: MMARecap via MiddleEasy)

XFO 39 goes down tonight at the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, featuring Jeff Curran’s “win or retire” match against Billy Vaughn, Jamie Varner‘s first post-WEC match against Tyler Combs, and a women’s bout between the lovely Felice Herrig and 7-4 Tulsa-based scrapper Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc. At yesterday’s weigh-ins, Felice and Nicdali produced one of the greatest staredown photos in recent memory. (Whether you prefer this one or Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort pretty much depends on if you prefer chicks or dudes. Sorry. That’s the deal.) XFO 39 will be streamed live on alienwarearena.com/mma; the card kicks off at 7 p.m.