1/1
Swipe or click to see more
CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / 2018
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane posed with her flyweight belt last year.
Select an option below to continue reading this premium story.
Already a Honolulu Star-Advertiser subscriber? Log in now to continue reading.
The first events went so well, Bellator MMA is going to do it again.
The mixed martial arts organization will return to Hawaii for the second time in as many years, with flyweight world champion Ilima-Lei Macfarlane defending her title against Kate Jackson in the main event, the organization made official Friday.
Bellator: Hawaii will take place Dec. 21 at Blaisdell Arena, with Macfarlane making the fourth defense of her 125-pound championship.
After submitting Valerie Letourneau in the third round in front of a standing-room-only crowd at Blaisdell last December, Macfarlane defended her title in April with a TKO of Veta Arteaga due to a doctor’s stoppage.
One of the three judges had Arteaga ahead 20-18 after two rounds when Macfarlane split her opponent’s forehead open with a nasty elbow. The cut happened due to a legal blow, giving Macfarlane the win by TKO.
Macfarlane said after the fight she would grant Arteaga a rematch but will instead face Jackson, who is 3-1 in Bellator with a decision loss to Letourneau.
Macfarlane, who is 10-0 overall, is 9-0 in Bellator. The victory over Arteaga was her first by TKO.
The co-headliner will feature undefeated A.J. McKee against Derek Campos in a quarterfinal fight of the Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix.
The entire event will be available on the streaming service DAZN, with the main card beginning at 5 p.m.
