Inspired by Ronda Rousey, judoka Sara Collins loving life in MMA before first Bellator headliner

Sara Collins didn’t have MMA in mind as she watched UFC 193: Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm live from the crowd in Melbourne.

[autotag]Sara Collins[/autotag] sat and watched the fights at Etihad Arena, though she couldn’t really see them directly and had to watch on the large hanging screens instead.

On the night of Nov. 14, 2015 (or the day of Nov. 15 in Australia), Collins watched UFC 193 play out, seated among the 56,213 others in attendance.

Collins was strictly a judoka at the time. She hadn’t trained at all for her MMA career. She was in attendance to support teammate (and future MMA coach) Daniel Kelly, who defeated Steve Montgomery on the event’s undercard in Melbourne.

Kelly wasn’t the only judoka on the card, of course. Ronda Rousey headlined the event and was knocked out by Holly Holm in one of the most legendary moments in UFC history.

“I just remember I was just a really big fan of Ronda,” Collins recently told MMA Junkie Radio. “She used our gym to train at leading up to that fight, so I was just really heartbroken for her when she lost, more so.”

Despite seeing a hero fall, Collins was further inspired to take up MMA. A practitioner since age seven, Collins competed internationally in judo but never quite reached the point of medaling. Injuries made her journey bump and ultimately pushed her down the MMA path in full force.

“I’ve had three surgeries on my knee and a snapped Achilles that I had to have surgically repaired,” Collins said. “All of them come with long rehab times. They probably have slowed down my career, but I’m still walking. So as long as I can walk, I can fight.”

Since her professional debut in 2019, Collins has yet to lose – though only competing five times in those five years. Now 34, her consistent success has landed her a major promotional headliner as Collins (5-0) fights Leah McCourt (8-3) in the Bellator Champions Series main event Saturday at OVO Wembley Arena in London.

“I feel like I am more experienced than my record shows just because I haven’t had the opportunity to fight more than once a year, which is nothing,” Collins said. “I am ready. I’ve done a lot of work, especially in the last two years, to round out my game. I hope that shows in this next fight.”

May 27, 2018; Liverpool, United Kingdom; Daniel Kelly (red gloves) fights Tom Breese (blue gloves) during UFC Fight Night at Echo Arena. Mandatory Credit: Per Haljestam-USA TODAY Sports

Collins is coming off consecutive wins over veterans Sinead Kavanagh and Pam Sorenson. Despite her late entry into MMA, Collins is finding success – much like her coach Kelly did many years ago. Kelly debuted in the UFC at age 37, yet went 6-4 in the promotion with wins over the likes of Rashad Evans and Antonio Carlos Junior, among others.

“He had 10 fights in the UFC,” Collins said. “He started as a judoka and then went into MMA quite late in his career. I feel like because he’s my main coach, he’s trying to get me to do what he did and get the judo working in MMA fights like he did. That’s probably the fighter I try to imitate the most.”

The Bellator brand’s future is uncertain following the PFL’s acquisition of the promotion. McCourt was penciled in to fight women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg prior to the acquisition and subsequent “super fight” booking vs. multitime PFL champion Larissa Pacheco.

One way or another, a win over McCourt will push Collins’ stock up to new levels.

“I haven’t been told anything so far about my next fight, so full concentration is on this fight,” Collins said. “Whatever happens, we’ll deal with the next fight after this one. … I would love to fight again before the year is finished, just so I can get two fights in this year. If this is against the winner of Cris and Larissa, I’m happy to fight one of them. I think it’s awesome. But any fight before the end of the year after this one would be good as well.

Bellator Champions Series: London loses Johnny Eblen vs. Fabian Edwards title-fight headliner

Bellator Championship Series: London event will be without a title fight as Leah McCourt vs. Sara Collins becomes the new headliner.

Bellator Champions Series: London has lost its main event.

The middleweight championship rematch between [autotag]Johnny Eblen[/autotag] and [autotag]Fabian Edwards[/autotag] has been removed from the card, the promotion announced Tuesday. No reason was given for the cancellation. A new date for Eblen (15-0) vs. Edwards (13-3) is expected to be announced in the coming days.

With the removal, the women’s featherweight bout pitting [autotag]Leah McCourt[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Sara Collins[/autotag], which was set as the co-main event, has been elevated to top billing.

BCS: London takes place Sept. 14 at OVO Arena in London, England.

McCourt (8-3) looks to build off her win over former UFC title challenger Sara McMann back in October. Meanwhile, Collins (5-0), who also hasn’t fought since 2023, is in search of her third Bellator win.

With the cancellation, here’s the BCS: London lineup:

MAIN CARD (Max, noon ET)

  • Leah McCourt vs. Sara Collins
  • Simeon Powell vs. Rafael Xavier
  • Luke Trainer vs. Laurynas Urbonavicius
  • Marc Diakiese vs. Tim Wilde
  • Archie Colgan vs. Manoel Sousa
  • Eslam Abdel Baset vs. Mike Shipman
  • Steven Hill vs. Joseph Luciano
  • Ciaran Clarke vs. Zebenzui Ruiz
  • Dmytri Hrytsenko vs. Darragh Kelly
  • Eman Almudhaf vs. Daiane Da Silva

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator Champions Series: London.

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (May 22-28)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by a promotion from May 22-28.

Sara Collins hopes to finally get active after Bellator 293 win

Sara Collins, from Australia, has gotten tired of only having one fight a year. At Bellator 293, her first one of 2023 was a stellar tapout.

TEMECULA, Calif. – [autotag]Sara Collins[/autotag] beat Pam Sorenson with a first-round submission Friday on the preliminary card at Bellator 293 at Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, Calif.

Take a look inside the fight with Collins, an Australian who handed Sorenson her third straight loss.

Bellator 293 post-event facts: Unbeaten fighters fall on upset-heavy card

Check out all the facts and figures from Bellator 293, which featured a number of upsets, including a loss by a 16-1 favorite.

Bellator closed its March schedule Saturday with Bellator 293, which took place at Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, Calif.

The main event saw the late career success of [autotag]Daniel James[/autotag] (15-6-1 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) continue. He added to his case as a potential heavyweight contender to watch when he beat [autotag]Marcelo Golm[/autotag] (10-4 MMA, 2-1 BMMA) by third-round knockout.

For more on the numbers behind the headliner, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from Bellator 293.

Bellator 293 salaries: Cat Zingano, Daniel James lead the pack with six-figure disclosed paydays

Check out the disclosed pay for all 30 fighters on Bellator 293, according to the California State Athletic Commission.

Thirty fighters competed Friday at Bellator 293 with [autotag]Cat Zingano[/autotag] and [autotag]Daniel James[/autotag] leading all disclosed payouts.

California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) executive director Andy Foster released a full list of fighter payouts Friday to MMA Junkie. The amounts reflect the disclosed payouts only and do not include any off-contract bonuses, sponsor payments, or discretionary bonuses.

The main event and co-main event winners were the only two fighters to pocket six-figure disclosed paydays as a result of their performances Friday. Former UFC bantamweight title challenger Zingano (14-4 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) earned $100,000 flat for her unanimous decision win over [autotag]Leah McCourt[/autotag] (7-2 MMA, 6-2 BMMA) in the co-main event. Then, main event winner James (15-6-1 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) earned to $50,000 show and a $50,000 win bonus for his victory over [autotag]Marcelo Golm[/autotag] (10-3 MMA, 1-3 BMMA).

Scroll below to see what the 30 fighters on Bellator 293 were paid – disclosed amounts only.