Bellator’s inaugural women’s 145 lbs championship fight is set for May 20th in Boise, Idaho, as Marloes Coenen takes on fellow Strikeforce veteran Julia Budd.
The first ever Bellator women’s featherweight championship fight is on tap for Friday, May 20th in Boise, Idaho. Bleacher Report’s Sydnie Jones confirmed with Bellator officials on Friday that former Strikeforce bantamweight champion Marloes Coenen will take on Canadian contender Julia Budd at Bellator 155. This fight has been placed on the Bellator preliminary card, as the promotion “felt that this amazing title fight was the perfect vehicle to help build awareness for our preliminary stream and boost the viewership for Bellator.com and the Bellator mobile app,” per Bellator’s Danny Brener in a statement released to MMA Fighting.
Coenen (23-6) is one of the pioneers of women’s MMA, having competed professionally in the sport since 2000. The 35-year-old native of Holland is 2-0 in Bellator, with submission wins over Annalisa Bucci and Arlene Blencowe on her record. Coenen’s biggest success came in Strikeforce, where she won the 135 lbs title against Sarah Kaufman, then successfully defended it vs. Liz Carmouche before Miesha Tate submitted her in July 2011. At 145, she’s fought for both the Strikeforce and Invicta titles, but wound up losing to Cris Cyborg in each promotion.
Budd (8-2) started her career with four fights on Strikeforce Challengers shows, most notably losing to Ronda Rousey in 39 seconds and suffering an even quicker KO vs. Amanda Nunes two fights before that. Since then, the 32-year-old has been on a tear, winning her last 6 fights in total under the Invicta and Bellator banners. Like Coenen, she’s also 2-0 in Bellator, with dominant performances put up against Gabrielle Holloway and Roberta Rovel, en route to shutout unanimous decisions.
Atop the Bellator 155 lineup is a middleweight title fight between new champion Rafael Carvalho and Melvin Manhoef. The co-main event sees former featherweight champ Pat Curran face off against Georgi Karakhanyan. Heavyweights Augusto Sakai and Dan Charles, lightweights Marcin Held and Dave Jansen, and heavyweights Chase Gormley and Joey Beltran round out the main card.