Oh how times have changed …
Cris Cyborg and Ronda Rousey aren’t friends. The two have anchored the landscape of women’s mixed martial arts (MMA) for the last five years and have said some nasty things about each other.
In spite of all that, Cyborg won’t resort to kicking a fellow fighter when she’s down — even though Rousey might — as she’s also experienced the fallout following a dramatic knockout loss, albeit in the world of kickboxing.
Cyborg, whose birth name is Cristiane Justino, gives her thoughts to MMA Fighting on the criticism Rousey faced after her dramatic fall to Holly Holm at the UFC 193 pay-per-view (PPV) back in November.
“It’s terrible. When you’re there, everybody is with you. I feel sorry about this. I know this, because before something happened in my career — the doping — and before everybody is with you [and then they’re not]. But I love my fans. Some fans kept with me and I’m sure she has that, too. It’s sad, but sometimes it’s good so you can see who’s with you. I think she’d like to use this to challenge herself and get better. To come in and change. Something bad in life has to happen before you change and grow. I can’t say anything bad about her.”
Indeed, that night on Nov. 15, 2015 was the first time “Rowdy” faced real adversity inside the Octagon. Even though she came out of the tussle injured and a bit distraught, it renewed the fire inside of her to compete.
It still may be some time before we see the product of Glendale Fighting Club get back on her saddle, but her boss seems to think that nothing has changed regarding her star power.
As it stands, a much-talked about showdown between the two juggernauts of women’s MMA appears to be all but a distant memory. Cyborg, meanwhile, will look to continue her run of dominance in the featherweight ranks of Invicta FC when she defends her 145-pound belt for the third time against Daria Ibragimova tomorrow night (Sat., Jan. 16, 2016) at the Invicta FC 15 event in California.