Felice Herrig had her winning streak stopped on Friday night in Florida, losing via unanimous decision to Carla Esparza.

In the first round, Herrig was repeatedly taken down by the powerful wrestler. Esparza had little trouble getting Herrig to the mat, scoring four takedowns and doing some damage on the ground.

Between rounds 1 and 2, the crowd groaned at the sight of the massive hematoma on Herrig’s forehead as she was tended to by trainer Jeff Curran.

Round 2 was much of the same for Herrig, as Esparza’s well-timed shots were once again able to get Herrig to ground, where she spent much of the round. Herrig’s guard was active, and she did not incur much damage at all in the round, but it was clear that Esparza had won the round.

Round 3 started with Herrig looking for a double-leg on Esparza, which was surprising. She did ultimately secure the takedown after a short battle against the cage, but Esparza reversed position and ended up on top.

Herrig was able to get some sub attempts in the round, at one point having Esparza in trouble with a triangle and reverse-side armbar. But Esparza was able to escape and re-establish top position. The fight was stood up by the referee with :30 seconds to go. Herrig landed a flurry of shots, including a hard kick to Esparza’s face, but time was short, and the bell sounded.

Esparza took the decision on all of the judges cards. She told Frank Trigg in a post-fight interview how she was able to dominate with her wrestling. “I’ve been on the mat for years,” Esparza said. “I put the work in, I put the time in, and it shows.”

Fight Tour will take place August 20th at the Metro Centre in Rockford. The card and date has changed a few times, but it’s going down next Saturday. Here’s a rundown of the pro card.

- Former UFC heavyweight champ Tim Sylvia will take on Patrick Barrentine in the main event. Barrentine hasn’t fought in almost two years, but he is a submission specialist that could potentially give Sylvia problems if the fight hits the ground.

Sylvia needs a win after losing to former TUF contestant Abe Wagner at Titan 16. He’s been lobbying to get back into the UFC and a loss to Barrentine would derail those plans indefinitely.

- Felice Herrig will fight Kelly Warren. The “L’il Bulldog” has settled into a nice groove since moving to Team Curran. She’s won 5 of her last 6 fights and two straight. She’ll face the undefeated Warren (3-0) who fights out of Jackson MMA. They have a common opponent in Amanda LaVoy, with both Herrig and Warren getting wins against her.

- UFC and King of the Cage vet LaVerne Clark will take on former UFC fighter Sean Salmon.

The event will also have live music. Rockford’s ‘The Pimps’ are scheduled to perform at the show, and Drowning Pool will also perform.

Tickets can be purchased at www.metrocentre.com or at the Metro Centre Box office located at 300 Elm Street in Rockford, Illinois.

Pro Card:
Tim Sylvia vs Patrick Barrentine
Shayne Adams vs William Penn
Felice Herrig vs Kelly Warren
Laverne Clark vs Sean Salmon
Nate McCoy vs Ruddy Gray

Amateur Card:
Jose Leiva vs Jason Powell
Chad Aldrich vs Dilon Berg
Kevin Burke vs Dustin Howell
Josue Lugo vs Herculanno Decosta
Allen Zuelke vs Travonta Collins
Robert Covey vs Douglas Deback
Derrick Williams vs Kurstan Davenport
Emma O’Connor vs TBD
Demond Wade vs TBD

Local fighters Michele Gutierrez and Felice Herrig are in the new “Supremacy MMA” video game for XBox 360. Here’s Felice’s take on the game, intimidated men and breaking noses.

Felice Herrig makes her return to the cage tomorrow night in Indiana at the Porter County Expo Center in Valparaiso. While she’s shooting for her 4th straight win, she’ll also be making a bit of history in the process.

Herrig will be taking part in the first-ever female fight in HFC history. But that fight will not be against scheduled opponent Leah Melnychuk. Melnychuk pulled out of the bout, so Herrig will be battling Barb Honchak (left) in the co-main event of the evening. Honchak fights out of High Ridge, MO and holds a professional record of 1-1. She has not fought since January 30th of 2010, when she dropped a unanimous decision to Cathilee Zingano.

“I love the fact that I will be the first female to fight (for) HFC,” Herrig told NWI.com’s Matt Erickson. “The sport is still growing for women, and I feel like I’m a pioneer and helping pave the way for the future of women’s MMA.”

Click the link to read the rest of Matt Erickson’s article about Felice Herrig.

Video of the Felice Herrig vs. Amanda LaVoy fight at XFO 37.

And here’s a higher quality version from Alienware and Felice’s blog:

Felice “L’il Bulldog” Herrig has an opponent for her December 4th XFO fight. She’ll be taking on Amanda LaVoy, who fights out of Michigan and is trained by Gary Gearinger at the Cheetah Cage Combat Center. LaVoy went 2-0 as an amateur, but has dropped her first 2 pro fights, both in 2010.

One advantage LaVoy will have over Herrig is her height and reach, as LaVoy stands 5’9″. We’ll have an interview with Felice soon and ask about how she plans to attack LaVoy.

Herrig seems to have found a home at Team Curran, and now also has steady, experienced management in Suckerpunch Entertainment. Those 2 things take a lot off a fighter’s mind.

She recently took home 4 medals at the U.S. Grappling Chicago tourney, and announced a fight against Leah Melnychuk at HFC 6 in January.

LaVoy is not only a mixed martial artist, but she’s a sculptor and artist. You can view some of her art at KnockoutBeauty1984. She also has another website under her own name: AmandaLaVoy.com.

Herrig was supposed to fight on the recent “Ruckus Invades Navy Pier” card, but the bout fell through. She has a two-fight win streak going after beating Jessica Rakoczy at Bellator 14 here in Chicago.

New promo for the “Ruckus Invades Navy Pier” event on September 11th.

We’ll have an interview with Felice “L’il Bulldog” Herrig about her training camp and more coverage of the event as we get closer to the date. For tickets and more information visit the Ruckus website.

Felice Herrig is giving a Muay Thai clinic in August at MBD Martial Arts in Des Plaines.  The Lil’ Bulldog is most known for starring in the reality show “Fight Girls” and training under renowned trainer Master Toddy.  In the show’s finale she fought in Thailand and defeated her opponent.