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National | MMA

Bellator’s Harding to face top Russian fighter

New Zealand born MMA female fighter Janay Harding who is based in Sydney will take on the latest addition to the featherweight division, Russian sambo champ Marina Mokhnatkina.

“Once signing with Bellator I knew no fight would be easy and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’m just preparing to stick to my game plan and fight my fight to come away victorious”

“This fight means a lot to me, coming off of a win in October I want to continue to improve and prove that I’m a legitimate force in the Bellator Featherweight division.

The 30-Year old brings a wealth of experience to Bellator. Mokhnatkina is a six-time Russian sambo champion, two-time European champion and for time world champion.

“She [Mokhnatkina] is a very fourth coming fighter who is extremely offensive on the ground. A lot of the time she pushes the take down and is aggressive in seeking out a submission which will make for an extremely exciting fight,” said Harding.

“It’s exciting knowing she has a large following from Russia and is extremely decorated in her field as this brings a lot to the table and of course I’m always up for a challenge”

Harding goes into the fight full of confidence after defeating Sinead Kavanagh by TKO in December 2018.

“It’s the first fight of 2019 as well and I’ve had a lot of time to prepare with a lot of new things being brought on board which I’m looking forward to showcasing”

Bellator 219 takes place on March 29 at Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, Calif.

Read more:

The latest Bellator 219 card now includes:

MAIN CARD

  • Saad Awad vs. Brandon Girtz
  • Shane Kruchten vs. Daniel Straus
  • Mike Jasper vs. Andrey Koreshkov
  • Keith Berry vs. Joe Schilling

PRELIMINARY CARD

  • A.J. Matthews vs. David Rickels
  • Shawn Bunch vs. Dominic Mazzotta
  • Joshua Jones vs. Darren Smith Jr.
  • Janay Harding vs. Marina Mokhnatkina
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