Bellator flyweight champion Ilima-Lei Macfarlane will be taking on her toughest challenge to date as she looks to defend her title against Juliana Velasquez on December 10.
🚨🚨BREAKING!! 🚨🚨#Bellator254 is on the books and it features a world flyweight title matchup between two undefeated juggernauts in @Ilimanator and @JuVelasquezMMA on Thursday, December 1️⃣0️⃣th. pic.twitter.com/I8krxAEd2b
— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA) October 28, 2020
The most anticipated fight in the short history of Bellator’s flyweight division will finally take place as top contender Juliana Velasquez will take on popular champion Ilima-Lei Macfarlane in the Bellator 254 main event on December 10. The fight is set to take place at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut.
Flyweight champion Ilima “The Ilimanator” Macfarlane has accumulated an 11-0 record largely within the Bellator cage where she has developed into one of the promotion’s biggest homegrown stars. After winning her first six fights, Macfarlane won the inaugural flyweight title against current Invicta fighter Emily Ducote and has since recorded title defenses over Alejandra Lara, Valerie Letourneau, Veta Arteaga, and Kate Jackson. Along the way, she’s become the spearhead for the promotion’s journey into Hawaii where she has headlined events in 2018 and 2019.
Brazil’s Juliana “Juju” Velasquez also sports an undefeated record with ten victories to her name. After starting her career in her native country, she was signed to Bellator in 2017 where she quickly skyrocketed into title contention. The Team Nogueira product has notched victories over Alejandra Lara, Kristina Williams, Bruna Ellen, and others en route to a title shot. Since 2018, Velasquez has appeared to be on a collision course with Macfarlane after having twice won on Macfarlane’s undercard.
With the booking, Bellator has officially rescheduled all of their major champions after having suspended operations for several months due to the coronavirus pandemic. Currently, no bouts have been announced for the undercard.
