Ilima-Lei Macfarlane Biography | Ilima-Lei Macfarlane
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (born April 2, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the flyweight division of Bellator MMA. She is the inaugural and current Bellator Women’s Flyweight World Champion.
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane Age
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the flyweight division of Bellator MMA. She was born on April 2, 1990, in Honolulu, HI
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane Image
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane Background
Macfarlane graduated from Punahou School in 2009 in Honolulu, Hawaii. She then went on to study Anthropology at San Diego State University. After earning her Bachelor Degree in 2013, she continued her education at SDSU to study Master of Arts in Liberal Studies.
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane Mixed martial arts career
Xplode Fight Series
Macfarlane began her amateur MMA career in 2014. She fought five times during that year, mainly with Xplode Fight Series, and went undefeated as an amateur.
Macfarlane’s first professional fight was an unsanctioned match against Katie Castro for Xplode Fight Series in 2015. Macfarlane won via technical knockout ten seconds into the bout.
In the aftermath of the lopsided affair, the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) launched an investigation into the organization’s unsanctioned MMA events. Castro had a 0-2 record before fighting Macfarlane and footage of the match was posted on the internet and labeled “Soccer mom loses to MMA fighter”. The video went viral, garnering over a million views on YouTube and was discussed on a few television news networks.
Bellator MMA
Following the bout with Castro, Macfarlane signed with Bellator MMA. She made her debut in August 2015 at Bellator 141 where she defeated Maria Rios by split decision.
Macfarlane fought Amber Tackett at Bellator 148 where Macfarlane won by armbar submission in the first round.
Macfarlane’s next bout was against Rebecca Ruth at Bellator 157 where she won by standing rear-naked choke in the second round.
Macfarlane would then fight Emily Ducote at Bellator 167 where she was victorious via unanimous decision.
Macfarlane faced Jessica Middleton at Bellator 178 and won by armbar submission in the first round.
Macfarlane and Emily Ducote had a rematch at Bellator 186 for the inaugural Bellator Women’s Flyweight World Championship. Macfarlane won the bout with an armbar variation in the fifth round to win her first MMA championship.
Macfarlane faced Alejandra Lara at Bellator 201 for the first defense of her flyweight title. Macfarlane won the fight in the third round via armbar.
Macfarlane faced Valérie Létourneau at Bellator 213 in Macfarlane’s hometown of Honolulu, Hawaii. Macfarlane successfully defended her title for a second time, defeating Létourneau by third-round submission.
In her third title defense, Macfarlane faced Veta Arteaga at Bellator 220 on April 27, 2019. She won the fight via TKO due to a doctor’s stoppage in the third round.
Ilima-Lei MacFarlane’s Personal Life | Height
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane, 28, is possibly single and unmarried as she has not revealed anything related to her love life, not even her relationship status. Though she actively surfs social sites including Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, Macfarlane has not posted any pictures with a guy who is assumed to be her boyfriend.
Mostly she has shared her MMA related pictures as well as with her buddies.
Apart, she is known to be fierce in activism in her native, Hawaii. Also, she keeps her Hawaiian heritage close to her heart as well as perform Halau Hula Olana.
She weighs 57 kg (125 lbs) and stands at the height of 5 ft. 4 inches (1.63 m).
Ilima-Lei MacFarlane’s Early Life
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane was born on 2nd of April 1990, in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. Her star sign is Aries. By nationality, she is an American and is of white ethnicity.
Macfarlane is a graduate of San Diego States University, earning a bachelor’s degree in Culture Anthropology. Also, she has a Master’s degree in Liberal Arts and Sciences, focusing on indigenous issues.
Championships and accomplishments
Combat jiu-jitsu
- Eddie Bravo Invitational
- EBI Combat Jiu-Jitsu Women’s Flyweight Championship (One time, current)
Mixed martial arts
- Bellator MMA
- Bellator Women’s Flyweight World Championship (One time, inaugural, current)
- Three successful title defenses
- Most submission wins in Bellator history (6) – tied with Michael Chandler, Neiman Gracie, and Goiti Yamauchi
- MMAjunkie.com
- 2018 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane Family
Family ties keep women’s Bellator champion Ilima-Lei Macfarlane motivated for battle
Winning a championship belt is a significant accomplishment in one’s life, and so Ilima-Lei Macfarlane’s family opted to celebrate her achievement in capturing the Bellator women’s flyweight belt by holding what she called a “belt party.”
Little did she know that in addition to being presented with her Bellator championship belt, she’d also gain a few family members.
“It’s an incredible story,” said a beaming Macfarlane, who on Friday at the Pechanga Resort in Temecula, California, will defend her title against Alejandra Lara on the Paramount Network in the main event of Bellator 201.
Macfarlane’s father, Walter, was born in Hawaii during World War II in 1941 and never knew his biological father. One of his best friends in high school, Alan Robinson, was in the same position.
Last year, Macfarlane and her siblings got together and purchased a DNA kit for their father. A few months later, he got a notice that the service believed they had found his half-brother.
“He started getting all these hits, and one day, he got a really high match,” Macfarlane said. “It said, ‘OK, you share half of your DNA with this person. We think this person is your half-brother.’ He looks at the profile and after some investigating, he’s like, ‘Oh my goodness. I think this is Robby!’ ”
Uncle Robby was Alan Robinson, who was one of Walter Macfarlane’s best friends since they were in sixth grade. It turned out, they were 18 months apart and their mother gave them up for adoption during the war.
Macfarlane thought it would be a good idea to make the announcement during her belt party, and it wound up so big, that her father and uncle found themselves being interviewed by CNN and NBC.
“They got more famous than me,” she said.
That isn’t the end of the story, though. Robinson had also done the test and discovered Walter Macfarlane was his brother, but he found his biological father, as well. Walter Macfarlane found his father, as well.
Walter Macfarlane learned he has four more brothers and they’ll all meet and cheer on Ilima-Lei at Pechanga on Friday.
“It’s just an incredible story,” she said.
The events of the eight months since she won her belt have been incredible. In addition to the expanding family, Macfarlane lost her Bellator championship belt in a fire. While traveling for a promo shoot in Hawaii, she went out for a karaoke night and left her belt at the house she was staying in.
“I have a love for karaoke unlike any other,” she said.
When she returned home, the house was on fire and her belt was destroyed. A fireman found it – melted into a ball – and gave it to her.
She didn’t really need a new belt and got a kick out of the notion that she became the first champion to lose her belt without having had the chance to defend it.
“It was a metaphor, almost, and it taught me that even though I don’t have the belt, it doesn’t take away anything and I’m still the champion,” she said. “The belt doesn’t define me.”
But she vows to fight furiously to defend it on Friday against Lara, who is a training partner of the UFC’s Alexa Grasso. If, as she expects, she comes out of the fight successfully, she has some plans for her post-fight interview.
She’s not simply going to ask to fight a specific opponent.
“If I get asked on the mic what’s next, I’m going to say I want Bellator Hawaii,” she said. “We’ve never had a Bellator in Hawaii and I’ve never fought in Hawaii, and I think that would be incredible. So I’m going to try to advocate for Bellator Hawaii.
“And I’m also going to ask for my own bobblehead! I think it’s time they make a female bobblehead!”
If she gets the fight in Hawaii, who knows what she may find? Her ever-increasing family could just keep on growing.
Ilima-Lei MacFarlane’s Net Worth
The current unbeaten MMA queen, Lima-Lei MacFarlane has earned colossal name, fame, and wealth through her professional MMA career. She is currently signed to Bellator MMA which is assumed to be her major source of earning. Thus far, her career disclosed earning is recorded $10,000.
As of 2018, her exact figure of net worth and salary is under review.
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