TORONTO — Canadian Julia (The Jewel) Budd will meet Dutch veteran Marloes (Rumina) Coenen on March 3 to decide Bellator’s first women’s featherweight champion.
The two will face off for the 145-pound title in “Bellator 174: Coenen vs. Budd” at the WinStar World Casino & Resort in Thackerville, Okla.
Budd (9-2-0) has won seven straight since losing by submission to (Rowdy) Ronda Rousey in Strikeforce in November 2011. The 33-year-old from Port Moody, B.C., has won three in a row in Bellator, earning a majority decision over Arlene Blencowe most recently.
Her only other loss was to Amanda Nunes, the current UFC bantamweight title-holder, in Strikeforce in January 2011.
Coenen (23-7-0) is a former Strikeforce bantamweight champion. The 35-year-old is 2-1-0 in Bellator, losing her last outing via submission to Alexis Dufresne in May 2016.
The Canadian Press
