Top-ranked strawweight Jessica “Jag” Aguilar at last has an opponent for her return to action at Bellator 94 on March 28th in Tampa, Florida. Aguilar will face off against veteran contender “Little” Patricia Vidonic in a rematch from one year ago. The featured bout will be contested at 115 pounds.

MMARising.com confirmed plans for the fight with a source close to the negotiations today following an announcement from Vidonic. Aguilar has not fought since May when she defeated Megumi “Mega Megu” Fujii at Bellator 69. Vidonic looks for her first Bellator victory in her return to the promotion.

Aguilar (14-4-0) has posted wins in nine of her past ten fights, and her lone defeat during that time came via a contentious Split Decision in the semi-finals of the 2010 Bellator 115-pound women’s tournament. This past year, Aguilar took a clear-cut Unanimous Decision victory over Vidonic in the pair’s first fight and she ascended to the top spot in the female strawweight rankings by edging out Fujii in a razor-thin battle at Bellator 69. Aguilar was originally scheduled to compete at Bellator 80 in November, but the promotion was unable to secure an opponent for the American Top Team standout and she was later removed from the card. She now steps back into the cage to defend her number one ranking.

Vidonic (7-4-0) rebounded from a decision loss in her pro debut by winning six straight fights. Along the way, she totalled notable wins over Lacey “The Ladie” Schuckman and Chelsea “The Italian Princess” Colarelli. Vidonic’s winning streak came to an end when she was defeated by Aguilar in February 2012. Since then, she has gone 1-2 against quality opposition, with a victory over “Slick” Sally Krumdiack sandwiched between a pair of losses to fast-rising star Felice “Lil’ Bulldog” Herrig. Vidonic now looks for her biggest victory to date and a measure of revenge in the rematch with Aguilar. A win would elevate Vidonic back into the top ten at 115 pounds.

For Aguilar, the March 28th fight has been a long time coming, and she discussed her lengthy layoff with MMARising.com today. Fighting four or five times per year would be ideal, Aguilar says, and it has been frustrating to have to wait so long to return to action, but she is happy to have an opponent at last.

“I train to fight every day, my weight is always perfect, cardio is great, and both my stand up and ground games have improved over the past year,” Aguilar told MMARising.com. “I have used this time to do all I can to take my game up to a higher level. My real challenge is that Bellator has made fight offers for me to many of the top-10 ranked fighters over the past year, and they keep hearing from the fighters’ managers that they are not ready to challenge me and pass on these fight offers. It just amazes me that with such an open invitation that Bellator has put out there, and with the audience size and probable TV coverage, why so many other fighters would pass up such a great opportunity?

“My only goal is to maintain my #1 world ranking and to take on the best fighters in the world that want to challenge me for my top ranking,” Aguilar adds. “I have to believe that 2013 will be the year that many of the top-10 ranked fighters will ask for the opportunity to fight me, and my response will be a resounding ‘yes’ to any fighter who wants that opportunity. I am feeling great, love that I am in such a key position to help women’s MMA gain traction and momentum, and hope that all of the other female fighters out there jump on this special opportunity to help grow fan support and make our sport as popular as it can be.”

Bellator 94 takes place on March 28th at the USF Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida. The event also features a second women’s bout between the aforementioned Felice Herrig and “Hurricane” Heather Clark.

(Photo Credit: Bellator)