Sumiko Inaba knew this week was going to feel different the moment she arrived at the Royal Hawaiian Center on Tuesday.
A crowd gathered to watch the Bellator MMA open workouts promoting this weekend’s two-night event at the Blaisdell Center.
They were there to see interim bantamweight world champion Raufeon Stots and challenger Patchy Mix, who headline Saturday’s Bellator 295 card. They were there to get a glimpse of the former flyweight world champion, Ilima-Lei Macfarlane, who will make one last run at regaining the 125-pound belt in a title contender fight against Kana Watanabe in the co-main event.
They also gathered around to see Inaba, the 32-year-old undefeated Maui fighter who has fought her way into the Bellator top-10 rankings at 125 pounds. One of only five fighters invited to the open workout, Inaba isn’t flying under the radar anymore, especially now that a path toward competing for a world title has cleared in front of her.
“This is a different kind of excitement. This is a little new for me, but it’s just part of the process for fight week,” Inaba said Tuesday. “I know what I have in front of me. This is just in the right direction for what I want.”
What she wants is a chance to be called champion. With current titleholder Liz Carmouche headlining Friday’s Bellator 294 card against challenger DeAnna Bennett, the women’s 125-pound division will look a lot different come Sunday morning.
Inaba has a chance to put herself into the mix with a convincing win over Veta Arteaga, who has fought for the title before.
“She has that experience. She’s fought for the title before. She has a gas tank,” Inaba said. “But I’m ready. I’ve prepared myself to know that if she comes, we’re ready for the fight and I’ll stand in the middle of that cage with her.”
Although she’s only fought five times, Inaba fought a successful amateur career before turning pro just before she turned 30.
Her first two fights were during the COVID-19 pandemic without any crowds.
Now, for the second time, she will fight in front of a boisterous home crowd cheering her on as she looks for her first victory over a ranked foe. Arteaga (7-4), who lost to Macfarlane by doctor’s stoppage in a title fight in 2019, is ranked No. 7 in the division. Inaba is No. 9 with four of her five wins coming via stoppage.
“This has always been my dream to fight for the belt,” Inaba said Wednesday during media day. “My amateur career I did pretty good. I had the confidence. I know I’m on the right path. It’s a surprise with maybe how fast (my career) is going at this rate, but I can’t complain. I love it. This is what I love to do.”
Inaba’s five wins in Bellator came over a 23-month span with her biggest highlight coming last year in Hawaii when she scored a vicious KO victory in 82 seconds on the undercard of Bellator 279.
It served somewhat as a coming-out party. Now, in her return to the same area, Inaba is suddenly dealing with the expectations of possibly being the next champion-level fighter from the islands.
With Macfarlane possibly competing for the final time, Saturday could be a passing-the-torch moment in Hawaii women’s MMA.
“(Macfarlane has) paved the way for us and especially in Bellator being as good as she is and how well she did, it’s just an honor and I’m grateful for that,” Inaba said. “It’s sad to hear her talking about that it’s coming to an end. It’s amazing to see how well she did and what she did for the sport in Hawaii.”
Macfarlane, who pointed out she’s not planning on retiring, has admitted leading up to the fight a loss might mean the end of her career as she looks ahead to the next chapter of her life.
It’s hard to ignore the comparison between the early part of both fighters’ careers.
Macfarlane burst onto the scene with her first win in Bellator in her second pro fight and had three submission stoppages in her first five wins over a 20-month span that got her a title fight.
Now Inaba is poised to do the same with Macfarlane watching her along the way.
“I love Sumiko. I’ve been giving her unsolicited advice this whole time,” Macfarlane said Wednesday. “I think Sumiko is going to be amazing and she’s definitely on that path now. I feel like when it comes to Hawaii fighters and Bellator Hawaii, I would love to kind of like pass the torch onto her. She would have paved her way regardless if I existed or not, she’s an incredible fighter.”
Friday’s nine-fight card is open to military and first responders. The main card at 4 p.m. will be broadcast on Showtime.
Saturday’s nine preliminary fights, including Yancy Medeiros, Kai Kamaka III, Keoni Diggs and Bobby King among others, will be shown on Showtime’s You Tube channel beginning at 2 p.m. The four-fight main card will be shown on Showtime beginning at 5 p.m. Hawaii time.
Saturday’s event is open to the public.
BELLATOR 293
Friday, Blaisdell Arena
>> 2:30 p.m. prelims, 4 p.m. main card
>> Open to military and first responders
Women’s flyweight world title main event
>> C-Liz Carmouche (18-7) vs. No. 4 DeAnna Bennett (13-7-1)
Heavyweight co-main event
>> No. 7 Tim Johnson (15-9) vs. Said Sowma (8-4)
BELLATOR 294
Saturday, Blaisdell Arena
>> 2 p.m. prelims, 5 p.m. main card
>> Open to the public
Bantamweight World Grand Prix final main event
>> IC-Raufeon Stots (19-2) vs. No. 2 Patchy Mix (17-1)
Women’s flyweight co-main event
>> No. 3 Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (12-2) vs. No. 2 Kana Watanabe (11-1-1)
Plus
>> Yancy Medeiros (16-8, 1 NC) vs. Charlie Leary (17-13-1)
>> Kai Kamaka III (10-5-1) vs. Adli Edwards (9-2)
>> Sumiko Inaba (5-0) vs. Veta Arteaga (7-4)
And more
