With the removal of the women’s featherweight division from the official rankings, Cris Cyborg is also in limbo in terms of her UFC career.
The February 11th update of the UFC’s official rankings featured major changes. Apart from Israel Adesanya and Montana De La Rosa moving up the ladder after their respective UFC 234 wins over the weekend, the women’s featherweight division is no longer part of the list.
For former champion Cris Cyborg, this is not a good sign of things to come, in terms of her UFC stint.
”I saw that they took my category off the site. I do not know how much that will change anything. If you do not [have] my category, you are indirectly cutting me,” Cyborg told ESPN Brazil in a phone interview. “So I think a lot of things are going to happen.
”Those who follow my career know about the struggle to get my UFC weight category,” she added.
Cyborg has one fight left in her UFC contract, and her coach Jason Parillo had already declared that she will be staying put to try and reclaim her title. But whatever she ends up deciding upon, the 33-year-old Brazilian fighter plans to stay on for a little longer.
”I want to fight for five more years. I like to fight, it’s my job, I do not have any injuries or anything that is preventing me from fighting,” Cyborg said.
”This [elimination of the UFC’s female featherweight rankings] may try to erase my category, but it does not erase who I am. People are with me wherever I go. Wherever I’m fighting, my star will shine like it has throughout my career.”
After a 13-year win streak, Cyborg got her first taste of defeat at UFC 232 in December, when she was knocked out by Amanda Nunes in less than a minute.