Former Strikeforce Women’s Bantamweight Champion Marloes Coenen has officially signed a new deal with North Carolina-based BlackEye Promotions. The Dutch submission specialist was abruptly released from her Strikeforce contract earlier this month along with her Golden Glory teammates.

Coenen, who lost her Strikeforce title to Miesha Tate on July 30th, has spent time on vacation in the United States since her release. She recently began training with camps in the Missouri area and will return to the Netherlands soon. Her signing with BlackEye Promotions was officially announced today.

Coenen (19-5-0), widely regarded as one of the top female grapplers in MMA, captured the Strikeforce title by submitting Sarah Kaufman in October. The fight was Coenen’s first bout at 135 pounds after she previously challenged unsuccessfully for the promotion’s 145-pound title, which is currently held by Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos. Coenen rallied back from the brink of defeat to submit late replacement Liz Carmouche in her first title defence in March before falling to Tate last month.

BlackEye Promotions has recently begun a push to bring female fights to the forefront. Its next event, BlackEye 5, takes place on October 1st in Fletcher, North Carolina and the card is expected to feature some of the top names in the sport in at least six professional women’s bouts. Former Strikeforce title challenger Roxanne Modafferi, who has split a pair of bouts with Coenen, will battle rising star Barb Honchak in the night’s main event at 125 pounds. Erin Toughill will also be in action on the card.

Coenen discussed her signing with BlackEye Promotions on HDNet’s Inside MMA program this evening after the promotion announced the news earlier in the day. She will attend their October 1st event and hopes to fight in February. No opponent has been determined, but Coenen confirmed that she is signed to a three-fight deal that is not exclusive.

(Photo Credit: Sherdog.com)