UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Of all the big names and potential fireworks fights at Bellator 216 on Saturday night’s main card, only one drew a raucous ovation from the assembled at the Mohegan Sun.
That was Bellator’s debutante Valerie Loureda’s TKO victory over Colby Fletcher.
The 20-year-old taekwondo master Loureda tried out an assortment of kicks on Fletcher, and ultimately landed one to the body that spelled the beginning of the end midway through the first round.
The official end came at the 2:55 mark of that opening frame. Afterwards, Loureda stood with her family in the Bellator cage and cried tears of joy as she thanked those that had helped pave the way for her.