Valerie Letourneau has no issue fighting Ilima-Lei Macfarlane in enemy territory.
Last night (June 29) both Letourneau and Macfarlane competed on the Bellator 201 card. Letourneau took on Williams in a title eliminator, while Macfarlane defended her flyweight championship against Alejandra Lara. Letourneau defeated Williams via unanimous decision, while Macfarlane successfully retained her flyweight gold against Lara via second-round armbar.
The stage is now set for Macfarlane vs. Letourneau. The champion made it clear that she wants to do battle with Letourneau, saying the Canadian bruiser is deserving of a shot. Macfarlane also hopes the bout can take place in her home state of Hawaii.
Speaking to the media following Bellator 201, Letourneau said a title shot in Hawaii wouldn’t bother her (via MMAJunkie.com):
“I would fight her wherever I have to. But my goal is to grab this belt and fight in Canada. One thing at a time. When I hold this belt, I should be fighting in my own country. This is the plan. But I’m happy I’m getting this shot. I’ll respect. I’m going to go fight her in her (home state). I have no problems with this.”
Letourneau is 2-0 since making her Bellator debut. It’s a nice turnaround for “Trouble,” who was released by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) after dropping three straight bouts. One of those losses was in a title bout against Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Victories over Kate Jackson and Williams have now put her in title contention.
As for Macfarlane, she is the inaugural Bellator women’s flyweight champion. She has a perfect professional mixed martial arts record of 8-0. In those eight victories she has five submissions and one TKO finish. “The Ilimanator” captured gold back in Nov. 2017. She submitted Emily Ducote in the fifth round of their title bout at Bellator 186.
Do you think Valerie Letourneau can dethrone Ilima-Lei Macfarlane?
