Former judoka Juliana Velasquez Tonasse making fame in MMA

Former judoka Juliana Velasquez Tonasse from Brazil is the new Bellator flyweight champion after a tactical five-round fight against Ilima-Lei Macfarlane in the headliner of Bellator 254.

Velasquez Tonasse earned scores of 48-47 twice and 49-46 for largely shutting down Macfarlane’s takedown game and countering the champ’s charges with heavier, more accurate punches. The 34-year-old Brazilian is the second 125-pound champion in the ViacomCBS-owned promotion’s history.

“This is like a gold medal I didn’t win in judo,” Velasquez said afterward her bout. She came fifth in a World Cup in Isla Margarita in 2010, but her judo career seems ages ago and she is now claiming world fame in her new sport MMA. Velasquez: “I want to thank my team who traveled with me because I know it's not easy. They guided me to the title from the start of weight loss. Thank you to my team, to my friends who have me in a mood and complain about everything! This title belongs to us! I hope to match like a real champion, not just inside but outside the octagon. There are many people I have to thank, but let's take it slow, we have time. Now I want to come back and enjoy my year finals with my family and friends! "

Velasquez size advantage was noticeable from the outset of the action at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. But the majority of damage done to Macfarlane came from a flying knee that connected at the end of the third round, and a clash off a takedown left a razor-thin cut across the camp’s brow. The injuries bled generously, giving Macfarlane another opponent as she struggled to hit and keep down her foe.

Macfarlane’s offense was largely limited to short bursts of striking offense that the southpaw Velasquez picked off with straight lefts, uppercuts and check right hooks. When she was able to get Velasquez on the mat in the fourth, she was unable to do much other than fire short punches. Velasquez was simply too big and too strong to manipulate, and a fifth-round takedown backfired when she wound up on bottom.

“You could say I coulda, woulda, shoulda, but at the end of the day, she outperformed me,” Macfarlane, who suffered the first loss of her professional career, said afterward. “Her gameplan was spot on. She’s the champion. She deserves it.”

Velasquez who fought U70kg in the Brazilian team and for her club Flamengo remains undefeated after 10 fights. With her club Flamengo she was mainly a fixed teammember at team events. She is friends with Rafael Silva, Mayra Aguiar, Victor Penalber and teammate Katherine Campos among others.