HONOLULU – Kana Watanabe isn’t afraid to hit the ground with Ilima-Lei Macfarlane.
Watanabe (11-1-1 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) meets former flyweight champion Macfarlane (12-2 MMA, 11-2 BMMA) in Saturday’s Bellator 295 co-main event at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.
Macfarlane ruled the flyweight division for two years with four title defenses. Despite her opponent’s experience, Watanabe says wherever the fight goes, she’ll be ready.
“She’s a really good grappler, but I’m also confident in my grappling,” Watanabe told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. “If the fight turns into striking, that’s not a problem for me. … I’ve watched her past bouts a lot, and I’ve studied a lot her fighting styles and patterns, and I’m ready for it.”
Flyweight champion Liz Carmouche and her Bellator 294 title challenger DeAnna Bennett have expressed interest in fighting Watanabe. Carmouche and Watanabe already fought before. It took Carmouche just 35 seconds to score the TKO win at Bellator 261.
Watanabe is happy to have her name linked to the title fight, and is ready to show her improvements when she faces Macfarlane.
“I’m very happy that Liz, the champion, is wishing for me to fight again with her,” Watanabe said. “I wasn’t able to show my own strength last time, so in the next match against her, I want to show my strength more… I’m planning to win this Saturday’s fight, so I’m very happy to fight whoever wins. It doesn’t matter if it’s Liz or DeAnna. I’m very happy to fight against the champion.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 295.
Kana Watanabe: Ilima-Lei Macfarlane ‘a really good grappler, but I’m also confident in my grappling’
