Following the bout with Halmich, Reid fought four more times; winning three and losing once on a cut stoppage. She faced Halmich for a second time on December 3, 2005. The rematch, once again contested in Germany, was much closer than the controversial first fight. While some observers scored the second matchup for Reid, all three ringside judges awarded the bout to Halmich. Again, Reid was denied the WIBF title.

Once more, Reid picked herself up and carried on. Her resolve was rewarded not once but twice, as she captured world titles in each of her next two fights. An October 2006 win over Mary Ortega (28-2-1 at the time) earned Reid the Women’s International Boxing Association Flyweight Championship. Eight months later, Reid handily dispatched of Shin-Hee Choi for the International Female Boxers Association Flyweight Championship.

Elena Reid with boxing title belts. [Photo Credit: IFBA.com]

Now a two-time champion, Reid found herself with a target on her back. She also craved a new challenge and began training for a mixed martial arts debut. On December 28, 2007, Reid competed as a professional MMA fighter for the first time. She stopped Tammie Schneider with punches in the second round.

Just two months later, Reid was back in the boxing ring to defend her IFBA title. Facing Hawaii’s Eileen Olszewski, Reid was defeated by majority decision. She would box once more in 2008, battling prospect Ava Knight to a six-round draw.

Opting to continue on in both boxing and MMA, Reid split her training between Arizona Combat Sports and the Xtreme Couture camp in Las Vegas. She received a big opportunity for her second mixed martial arts bout; a televised fight on HDNet in October 2008. Competing alongside well-known UFC veterans and other Xtreme Couture standouts, Reid knocked out an overmatched Stephanie Palmer with a punch to the body just 53 seconds into their fight.

The quick win showed that Reid was ready for a step up in competition in her MMA career. She had finished two opponents with comparable experience in mixed martial arts, but was clearly on another level as long as she could keep the fight standing.

As MMA fans began to take notice of Reid’s talents, some speculated that she would soon transition to a full-time mixed martial arts career. However, Reid still held her WIBA boxing title and signed on for a March title defence against 23-0 German star, WBA Female Flyweight Champion Susi “Killer Queen” Kentikian. Reid described her training camp as “terrible,” and confirmed that her then-trainer abandoned her shortly before she travelled to Germany for the fight.

Whether due to the training issues or simply because she was up against a superior opponent, Reid was never able to get anything going against Kentikian and suffered her most lopsided loss to date. Scores were 100-91 and 100-90 twice for Kentikian, who captured Reid’s title and remained undefeated. Reid would not return to boxing for 15 months.

Elena Reid (left) vs Susi Kentikian (right), March 20, 2009. [Photo Credit: Life.com]

With her boxing career hitting a roadblock, Reid stepped back into the mixed martial arts cage just three weeks after facing Kentikian. She was set to take on karate and jiu-jitsu practitioner Michelle Waterson in Phoenix, Arizona. The night before the fight, Reid fell ill and was placed on an IV to treat dehydration. Thanks to assistance from her mother, Reid decided to move ahead with the bout. On fight day, she woke up feeling like a new person.

In an exciting and action-packed bout, Reid battered and repeatedly dropped Waterson for a round and a half before Waterson was finally put down for good. The impressive victory moved Reid’s record to a perfect 3-0 and led to her first MMA title bout.

On October 24, 2009, Reid faced veteran Japanese opponent Masako Yoshida, 16-14-5 at the time, for the Sovereign Nations Women’s Flyweight Championship. The bout faced controversy after Reid was unable to make the contracted weight limit for the first time in her career. Nevertheless, the fight went on as planned and the SNMMA title remained up for grabs. Reid would stop Yoshida in the third round. It was Yoshida’s first TKO loss in 36 fights.

Reid’s title victory caught the attention of Bellator Fighting Championships, who signed the talented striker to be part of their inaugural 115-pound women’s tournament in 2010. “We actually signed a contract [with Bellator] and were ready to go for August,” Reid recalls. “We were going to do the Bellator tournament.”

The opportunity was huge for Reid, who would now be able to face many of the top female mixed martial artists at 115 pounds in televised bouts. She would have to win three times in order to become the tournament champion, but doing so would result in a significant payday.

Unfortunately for Reid, she would never have the chance to compete in the tournament. As she trained for a tune-up fight in April, Reid suffered a torn medial collateral ligament (MCL) and ruptured anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her left knee. The debilitating injuries made training difficult, but Reid opted to push on with two planned fights – one MMA and one boxing – because there was no other option.

Financially, she had no choice.