November 2, 2024

Julia Budd vs. Talita Nogueira, Eduardo Dantas vs. Michael McDonald announced for Bellator 202

Julia Budd is the Bellator featherweight champion.
 Esther Lin, MMA Fighting

Bellator will put on two events in 48 hours in July, and the first night will be headlined by a title bout.

One night before Bellator 203 in Rome, Italy on July 14, Bellator 202 will take place at the WinStar World Casino and Resort in Thackerville, featuring Julia Budd vs. Talita Nogueira in the main event and Eduardo Dantas vs. Michael McDonald as co-headliner on July 13.

Budd (11-2) captured the Bellator featherweight belt with a fourth-round TKO victory over Marloes Coenen in March 2017, and successfully defended it with a split decision win over Arlene Blencowe in December.

Nogueira (7-0), a multiple-time champion in jiu-jitsu, earned a shot at the gold after submitting Amanda Bell in the opening round of her promotional debut last August. That was “Treta’s” first MMA bout in almost four years.

Dantas (20-5) is looking to bounce back from a decision loss to Darrion Caldwell in October, when he lost the Bellator bantamweight championship and had a four-fight winning streak snapped.

McDonald (18-4) made his Bellator debut in December, defeating Peter Ligier via decision. A former title challenger in the UFC, ”Mayday” went 6-3 with wins over the likes of Miguel TorresBrad Pickett and Chris Cariaso inside the Octagon.

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