Ukrainian prospect Lena “Hunter” Ovchynnikova looks to rebound from her first professional setback when she faces Scotland’s Joanne Calderwood at Super Fight League 3 on May 6th in New Delhi, India. The featured bout was officially announced earlier today and will be contested at 125 pounds.
Ovchynnikova brought an unblemished record into her SFL debut at the promotion’s inaugural event in March, but succumbed to a second-round rear-naked choke from Serbia’s Sanja Sučević. Calderwood earned a quick TKO victory in February in Scotland’s first professional female MMA bout.
Ovchynnikova (8-1-0), a multi-time champion in both kickboxing and MMA, has been very active in both sports since 2006. She began her mixed martial arts career with eight consecutive victories, including six via armbar submission. This past year, she opted to drop down to 115 pounds to broaden the number of potential opponents and the move was initially a successful one. Despite a strong start at SFL 1, however, Ovchynnikova found herself trapped in Sučević’s choke and was forced to submit. The bout was deemed Fight of the Night, but that was little consolation for a dejected Ovchynnikova, who briefly considered taking a break from competition. Now refocused, she will return to 125 pounds in search of beginning a new winning streak at Calderwood’s expense.
Calderwood (1-0-0) gives up a significant amount of MMA experience to Ovchynnikova, but like her opponent, Calderwood is also a talented striker with championship titles to prove it. She is the current holder of the IKF European Flyweight Championship in kickboxing and has developed a solid ground game through extensive training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. In February, Calderwood was one half of the first professional women’s bout in Scottish MMA history at On Top 4 in Glasgow. She stopped Monaco’s Noellie Molina with punches in just over three minutes. Calderwood may be seen as an underdog when she makes her SFL debut, but she will look to continue to lead a charge for female fighters in Scotland by handing Ovchynnikova her second straight defeat.
Super Fight League 3 takes place on May 6th at Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi, Delhi, India. The event will stream live on YouTube.com.