Unbeaten Ukrainian prospect Lena “Hunter” Ovchynnikova will face the toughest test of her career when she meets Strikeforce veteran Maiju “Mai” Kujala at Lappeenranta Fight Night 7 on April 14th. The 115-pound matchup, officially announced today, takes place in Kujala’s home country of Finland.
Ovchynnikova and Kujala had originally agreed to face off in late 2011, but a fractured hand forced Ovchynnikova out of the planned bout. The multi-time kickboxing and MMA champion has resumed her training to face Kujala, who will first compete against Juliana “Thai” Carneiro Lima on March 9th.
Ovchynnikova (8-0-0) has spent the majority of her MMA career competing in her native Ukraine, where she has secured six submission victories despite having no formal background in jiu-jitsu. The talented striker has captured numerous titles in both Muay Thai and K-1 rules kickboxing matches in addition to maintaining an unblemished MMA record dating back to her September 2006 pro debut at the age of 19. Now 24, Ovchynnikova has risen to become one of the top female prospects in Europe, but she takes a significant step up in competition to face Kujala, who has won back-to-back fights.
Kujala (6-3-0) rebounded from the first two-fight losing streak of her career with a pair of first-round TKO wins last year. Her 2011 campaign was marred by a number of bout cancellations, however, including the planned fight with Ovchynnikova, but Kujala will now receive her chance to hand the Ukrainian her first defeat. Four of Kujala’s victories have come via a form of knockout and her ground and pound style is among the most formidable in her division. Before Kujala can challenge Ovchynnikova, however, she will first have to get past the 3-0 Carneiro Lima at Revolution Fighting Champion 1 in Beirut.
Lappeenranta Fight Night 7 takes place on April 14th at the Lappeenranta Ice Arena in Lappeenranta, South Karelia, Finland. Should Kujala escape unscathed from the battle with Carneiro Lima, her fight with Ovchynnikova could prove to be one of the biggest women’s bouts in European history.