TEMECULA, Calif. – Valerie Letourneau had to dig deep, but she ultimately got the job done to defeat Kristina Williams and potentially secure a flyweight title shot at Bellator 201.

Former UFC title challenger Letourneau (10-6 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) got a second straight win to begin her Bellator career when she outworked Williams (2-1 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) for a unanimous decision in a grueling three-round fight.

“She’s a dangerous fighter – I had to respect the skills she had,” Letourneau said post-fight. “She’s a young fighter. She’s going to improve so quick. I’m just happy I got the win tonight.”

Bellator 201 took place at Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, Calif. Letourneau vs. Williams aired on the Paramount-televised main card following prelims on MMAjunkie.

Both women attacked each other with kicks out of the gate. Williams provided more accurate offense, and she stuck Letourneau with a shot that sat her down. Williams didn’t want to follow her opponent to ground, though, and allowed Letourneau to butt scoot until she found an opening to stand up.

Letourneau came back and landed a vicious right hook that dropped Williams hard. She was nearly out, and Letourneau followed her opponent to the ground with more shots. Somehow Williams tied the Canadian up and avoided being finished. The fight went back to the feet briefly before the bell, and Williams somehow survived the opening five minutes.

Williams seemed to recover completely going into the second round and used a low kick attack. Letourneau kept the pressure on, and used her quicker hands to tag her opponent on the counter. Williams’ inexperience started to show and she was repeatedly getting caught with the same shots. “Warhorse” refused to back down, though, and pressured with multi-strike combinations in an attempt to lure Letourneau into a brawl. Letourneau was mostly willing to oblige and found openings to connect with her offense.

With the fight arguably up for grabs in the final frame, the fighters let it all hang out to begin the third. Letourneau and Williams went toe-to-toe in a chaotic slugfest. Sensing danger, Letourneau shot for a takedown, which easily landed. She established top position, where she spent the next several minutes working from inside the guard of her opponent. With less than 90 seconds left, the referee decided to stand the fighters up, and that’s when a desperate Williams let it all hang out. She chased down Letourneau, who simply waited for another opportunity to go for a takedown. Williams went for a last-ditch guillotine choke attempt, but she couldn’t finish it.

Letourneau was awarded the win with 29-28 scores across the board, and called for the next shot at the title at 125 pounds.

“I’ve been waiting seven months for this fight,” Letourneau said. “Please give me that freakin’ shot.

For complete coverage of Bellator 201, check out the MMA Events section of the site.