 Lena Ovchynnikova signed with Bellator MMA in 2016, going 2-2 in her first four fights in the promotion.Notably, she was the first-ever female flyweight to appear on a main card for the promotion.Ovchynnikova was expected to face Denise Kielholtz in the co-main event of Bellator 196 in Budapest, Hungary on April 6, 2018.