UFC defectors Michael McDonald, Valerie Letourneau to debut at Bellator 191

Top-ranked bantamweight Michael McDonald and onetime UFC title challenger Valerie Letourneau are set for their Bellator debuts.

The free agent acquisitions will appear at Bellator 191, which takes place Dec. 15 at Metro Radio Arena in Newcastle, England, the promotion announced today. The event airs via same-day delay on Spike.

McDonald (17-4 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), the No. 15 fighter in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA bantamweight rankings, takes on Peter Ligier (8-1-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) in the event’s headliner. Letourneau (8-6 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), whose debut at Bellator 181 was scratched due to injury, will take on Kate Jackson (9-2-1 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) in the co-headliner.

McDonald signed with Bellator in March after being granted his release from the UFC. A behind-the-scenes fight over the promotion’s business practices led to the souring of the relationship, McDonald said, leading to his decision to look elsewhere.

It’s been 16 months since McDonald has been seen in the cage, with a knockout loss to John Lineker bringing him to 1-1 in the octagon following a long injury layoff.

Ligier, a native of Paris, is a veteran of the European MMA scene and currently is on a three-fight win streak.

Letourneau, meanwhile, looks for better outcomes in the women’s flyweight division. After three straight wins at strawweight, she was unanimously outpointed by now-former UFC champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk and then suffered two additional defeats. At the time, the UFC did not promote a flyweight division, making Bellator a logical choice for a move.

Her opponent, Jackson, recently bested veteran Colleen Schneider via injury TKO at Bellator 182, upping her current win streak to five.

The latest Bellator 191 card includes:

• Peter Ligier vs. Michael McDonald
• Kate Jackson vs. Valerie Letourneau
• Philip De Fries vs. James Thompson
• Lewis Monarch vs. Jeremy Petley
• Ash Griffiths vs. Mohammad Yahya

For more on Bellator 191, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.