Lena Ovchynnikova, Maiju Kujala Earn Weekend VictoriesUkrainian prospect Lena “Hunter” Ovchynnikova moved her mixed martial arts record to a perfect 8-0 on Saturday in Mariupol, Ukraine. The multi-time kickboxing and MMA champion submitted Eugenia Kostina with an armbar at the Professional Association of Martial Arts Ukraine’s “President’s Cup.”

In Imatra, Finland, Strikeforce tournament veteran Maiju “Mai” Kujala earned her second straight win and fourth by TKO with a quick victory at Carelia Fight 7. Competing in front of friends and supporters, the Finnish standout defeated late replacement opponent Ieva Šležaitė by TKO in round one.

 

Ovchynnikova (8-0-0), who recently returned to MMA after a two-year absence and dropped down to 115 pounds, picked up her second victory in two weeks against fellow kickboxing champion Kostina (0-1-0) on Saturday. Taking advantage of her opponent’s limited ground skills, Ovchynnikova secured an armbar that forced Kostina to submit in the opening round. Despite having no formal background in jiu-jitsu, the 24-year-old Ovchynnikova has submitted six of her eight MMA opponents to date – each time via armbar – and is one of the top female prospects in Europe.

Winner: Lena Ovchynnikova by Submission (Armbar) at 3:26 of round one. She improves to 8-0-0.

 

In Finland, Kujala (6-3-0) impressed in her second fight of the year and first since suffering an eye injury in July. Kujala clinched early on and took Šležaitė down to the mat, then methodically worked to mount and unloaded with punches until the referee intervened to rescue Šležaitė from any further punishment. Kujala has now won back-to-back fights since suffering losses to current Strikeforce champion Miesha “Takedown” Tate and Hanna Sillen last year. The 25-year-old has stopped five opponents to date and has never been finished in her career.

Winner: Maiju Kujala by TKO (Punches) at 2:36 of round one. She improves to 6-3-0.