Four years after forfeiting a major fight, former UFC fighter Jackie “Pretty Bull” Justice lives with her boyfriend and manager, Desi, in inner-city Newark. She supports herself by working as a housecleaner, relying on alcohol to cope with the tedium of her daily life. Desi insists that she start fighting again, but Jackie refuses and angrily blames him for mismanaging her career.
Desi, tired and fed up with Jackie’s stubbornness, takes her to an illegal underground match where he hopes to sign a new fighter. The attendees recognize her, and a fighter calling herself the “Werewolf” tries to provoke Jackie into fighting her. Jackie finally loses her temper and pins the Werewolf down before head butting her into unconsciousness. This catches the eye of Immaculate, a local promoter who runs Invicta Fighting Championships, an all-female MMA league.
Seeing the wasted potential in Jackie, he recruits her into Invicta FC and sets her up with Buddhaken and Pops, his best trainers, so she can get back into fighting shape. While heading home, Jackie and Desi are pulled over by Angel, Jackie’s estranged mother. She informs Jackie that her son Manny, who she hasn’t seen since he was an infant, has been placed in her custody after his father, Jackie’s old boyfriend, was killed in a shooting. The resulting trauma caused Manny to stop speaking entirely.