Cris Cyborg is very close to signing with a new promotion just weeks after being released from the UFC. Although things ended poorly for her, she says she has no regrets about her time in the UFC and how things were handled. “Everything I did, I was always feeling in my heart. I don’t regret […]
Cris Cyborg is very close to signing with a new promotion just weeks after being released from the UFC.
Although things ended poorly for her, she says she has no regrets about her time in the UFC and how things were handled.
“Everything I did, I was always feeling in my heart. I don’t regret anything. ” Cyborg said on her YouTube channel (h/t MMA Fighting). “[The UFC] is in the past. It’s in the past since my last fight. I put it in the past in my heart, I believe I made a lot in the UFC, II believe I’m one of the girls who fought in the UFC who has more wins than losses.
“I believe all places I’ve been had something special in it. With the UFC, I wanted to be fighting in the UFC. I went through all the hard time cutting weight to make my division and they made it. Amanda is the champion, there is a division. Every moment of my life I start a project and the UFC project was to have my division. I put an effort to get down to the division, I made it, and there is a division now.”
“I believe I’ll sign my new contract in less than 30 days,” Cyborg said. “I’ll be online to tell everybody about my new place where Cyborg will be welcome. I have to thank Dana for sending me a letter two days after my win. It really helped me to negotiate.
“I’ll be back to Brazil soon, for sure. It’s part of my plan for the new contract I sign and I am very happy.”
“When I ended my cycle with the UFC, I had two choices,” Cyborg said. “The option I chose, where I am now is the option where I see my future grow. I’ll be fighting more times a year, I won’t have any trouble, I’ll be happy. That’s what I see.”
What promotion do you think Cris Cyborg will sign with?
The heavily reported fight between women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes and former queen Ronda Rousey at UFC 207 is expected to be finalized this week. After nearly a year on the sidelines, ‘Rowdy’ appears to be getting the fast track to a title fight, but not to everyone’s pleasure. In particular, long time rival Cris
The heavily reported fight between women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes and former queen Ronda Rousey at UFC 207 is expected to be finalized this week. After nearly a year on the sidelines, ‘Rowdy’ appears to be getting the fast track to a title fight, but not to everyone’s pleasure. In particular, long time rival Cris Cyborg is very unhappy with this report. Following years of intense trash talk between the Brazilian Cyborg and Rousey, many expected a fight to finally come to fruition by 2017.
Ironically, Rousey losing the belt somewhat freed her to potentially move up in weight and face Cyborg. Even without a title, the fight with Justino would likely shatter all pay-per-view records. Cyborg vs. Rousey is becoming more and more like Mayweather vs. Pacquiao as the days go by. Sadly, much like the boxing equivalent, this mega rivalry may never lead to a fight while both are in their prime. Reactions to Amanda Nunes vs. Ronda Rousey have varied, but Cyborg’s furious response stands out above all the rest. As per her official Facebook page:
Why my fight with Ronda Rousey might never happen.
I just arrived to Thailand for my first International Pink Belt Fitness By Cris Cyborg being held Phuket Top Team MMA Training Camp and it appears the internet is announcing Ronda Rousey Vs. Amanda Nunes for the UFC belt Dec. 30th.
The ridiculousness of Ronda getting a Title Shot after a loss and a year layoff just goes to support the story that she was created by the Media. More than any fighter who has ever existed, Ronda has benefited by company branding. She has benefited from the best interviews, the best sponsors, and the best fight promos and spotlights, but even with all of that marketing budget behind her, everyone has seen that she is not the best.
The best don’t lose like she did in Australia, and they certainly don’t take a year off after such a performance.
There is a reason Ronda isn’t facing Holly Holm. That reason isn’t the fact that Holly has gone 0-2 since their fight. The reason is that even Ronda, knows Holly is the better fighter. Styles make fights, and that is the same reason Ronda is never going to accept a fight against me. She knows my punches, size, and aggression are too much. That’s why she will demand I try to kill myself to make 135. She doesn’t want Cyborg to be Cyborg.
Continue below…
I only went to 140lbs in an attempt to make the fight against Ronda Rousey.
For the past year I have put the entire 145lbs division of WMMA on Hold competing in Superfights. Unlike Conor Mcgregor my “superfights” have not been against big name opponents, and similar to Jose Aldo there are girls in my division like Megan Anderson, Cindy Dandois, Julia Budd, and Alexis Dufresene who are next in line for World Title shots.
I can not force someone to accept a fight against me. Ronda use to say it was about steroids, but I’ve proven myself a clean athletes and was the FIRST FIGHTER to test with USADA for MORE THAN 1 YEAR BEFORE fighting in the octagon.
Ronda never fought to win her UFC belt, she received it at a press conference and when she defended it she didn’t even face the number 1 contender. While she is the most popular fighter in the UFC according to some, numbers don’t lie, and her highest PPV was her loss against Holly Holm, and that isn’t even top 5 with the company.
I don’t need a fight with Ronda Rousey to make a million dollars. I don’t even need to make a million dollars to fight. Fans are going to watch me fight because they like my fighting style. Fans are going to watch me fight because what I bring to the cage is something they have never seen before. Over 1.3 million fans watched my last fight against an opponent making her debut. I can be as big of a star as any female fighter in this sport with the right marketing and promotional team behind me.
Not Surprised
I’m disappointed Ronda didn’t accept my offer to fight superbowl weekend, but I am not surprised. She already turned down the opportunity to fight me at UFC 205 which has continued to open the door for Conor Mcgregor to continue growing into the biggest star the UFC has ever promoted, because he is willing to walk the walk, and she is afraid to back up the years of media bullying she’s done towards me.
Ronda has a very tough fight against Amanda Nunes. She will be facing a big brazilian girl who knows how to defend an Armbar, and is training at a facility with many World Champions who will have her ready for a 5 round fight. Amanda punches hard and has trained her entire career with the idea of beating Ronda. Unlike Holly Holm, if Ronda Rousey goes 0-2 I am not sure she will continue to fight. She is fighting to win a popularity contest and win back an image, not to prove anything to herself. She never wanted to give the fans this fight against me.
I am going to enjoy my holiday, and stop thinking about a fight against Ronda Rousey for awhile.
The #UFC knows I want to fight Ronda, Ronda knows I want to fight her, and the UFC knows the fans want to see this fight. It would break every UFC PPV record and as a promoter they want to put on the biggest fights for the fans.
Not Even Going To Watch
If the fight against #RondaRousey never happens, the fans will know it is because the promotion was unable to make the fight, not because I was unwilling to lose the weight or because of some failed PED test half a decade ago. Ronda has chose the easy path her entire career, and that is not going to change.
People have shown Ronda is willing to fight others at 140 and has fought higher than 145. The weight is an excuse. I am from a team where legends like Wanderlia Silva, and Pele didn’t think twice about giving up weight to fight guys like Mark Hunt and Chuck Liddell.
Dec. 31st while everyone is watching Ronda fight for ‘Her belt’, despite not facing the girl who took it away, I am not even going to watch. I have plans to corner Gabi Garcia in the first ever OPEN WEIGHT RIZIN FF female challenge in Japan.
Ronda, if you really want to make the fight between us it is very simple, after the fight inside the cage all you have to do is say my name. Everyone knows that you are not going to do that because then I am going to be real. #Candyman
If you don’t want to make the fight, just keep doing what you are doing now, keep my name out your mouth and avoid the press. My next fight is not going to be decided on what ‘Ronda might’ want to do next.
It’s the fight we’ve all been waiting a long time for. Cris Cyborg vs. Ronda Rousey is one of those matches that’s been talked about for years, but has never quite reached an agreement. During Rousey’s reign as UFC women’s bantamweight champion, the subject of fighting Cyborg was hotly debated. Going much deeper than just
It’s the fight we’ve all been waiting a long time for. Cris Cyborg vs. Ronda Rousey is one of those matches that’s been talked about for years, but has never quite reached an agreement. During Rousey’s reign as UFC women’s bantamweight champion, the subject of fighting Cyborg was hotly debated. Going much deeper than just two elite WWMA stars colliding, the Rousey-Cyborg saga has seen many twists and turns. Before Rousey had even stepped foot in the Strikeforce cage, any cage for that matter, Cristiane Justino had won the promotion’s inaugural featherweight championship. Defeating one of the pioneers of women’s MMA, Gina Carano, Cyborg was crowned queen in 2009.
Finding her own stride in 2011, a fresh-faced former Olympic Judoka named Ronda Rousey progressed to 4-0 as a professional. Facing Miesha Tate in 2012, ‘Rowdy’ decided to drop from featherweight to bantamweight, winning the Strikeforce 135-pound title. Two months prior to Rousey’s first title win it was announced that Cyborg had tested positive for Stanozolol. This would prove to be one of many future barriers to the fight we were all dying to see.
The Rivalry
Following one title defense against Julia Budd, Ronda Rousey crossed over to the UFC with a submission win over Liz Carmouche. In April 2013 Cristiane Justino had completed her one-year suspension, and returned to defeat Fiona Muxlow under the Invicta FC banner. Fighting once more in 2013, both Cyborg and ‘Rowdy’ scored pivotal career win. After a stint as coaches on The Ultimate Fighter, Rousey and her old rival Miesha Tate collided in a rematch at UFC 168. With the spotlight firmly fixed on her, ‘Rowdy’ scored her eighth straight armbar victory.
‘Rousey’s’ Brazilian counterpart would claim the Invicta featherweight strap after punishing Marloes Coenen, also a rematch of their 2010 encounter. It was at this point that the Rousey vs. Cyborg train began gaining steam, and their rivalry became big news. Taking aim at Cyborg in a number of controversial rants, Rousey mocked the Brazilian over her failed drug test. Even UFC president Dana White joined in, as Justino’s character was well and truly put on blast.
Continuation
Taking a break from MMA after her 2013 title win for Invicta FC, Cyborg returned to Muay Thai. Defeating Jennifer Colomb by TKO at Lion Fight 11, the Brazilian knockout artist fought for the welterweight title against seasoned Thai boxing veteran Jorina Baars. Justino lost by unanimous decision, but it was a very respectable performance against such a high level pure striker. Rousey had competed once during this period, a TKO victory over Sara McMann.
The rivalry continued between the two titans of WMMA, as weight now seemed to be the major issue. Appearing to lay down some ground rules, Dana White and Ronda Rousey demanded a clean drug test from Cris Cyborg, and the bantamweight champion refused to move out of her own weight class for the bout. Cyborg’s manager of the time, Tito Ortiz, believed his client could indeed make 135 pounds, and so the fight edged closer to reality. As we now know, there’s no way the Brazilian would ever make close to the bantamweight limit.
Different Directions?
Although their careers had run strangely parallel, a shift in direction was coming. As anticipation for their long-awaited clash reached fever pitch, negotiations began falling apart. Ronda Rousey would close out 2014 with a KO win over Alexis Davis at UFC 175. ‘Rowdy’ was now the biggest draw in the UFC, and she used her time in the limelight to further slander Cyborg’s name. Fighting within 24 hours of each other, in the same city, Rousey and Justino each scored sub-minute wins in Los Angeles, California in February 2015.
Invicta FC had struck a deal with UFC Fight Pass, the promotion’s growing digital network. Cyborg would go on to wow the crowds with a crushing TKO against Faith Van Duin in 45 seconds. Just three weeks after, Rousey smashed Bethe Correia with a clean 34-second KO at UFC 190. The accolades came pouring in for the ever-popular Rousey, and rumours of a December clash with Cyborg spread like wildfire. There was certainly a monster fight set for that winter, but it would not involve Cyborg.
The Holm Coming
Holly Holm smashed through the indestructible aura of Ronda Rousey at UFC 193. In front of millions of viewers, ‘The Preacher’s Daughter’ toppled the bantamweight queen and ended her reign with a brutal KO. Oddly enough, this crazy moment could prove to be the catalyst of Cyborg vs. Rousey finally happening. The fallen champ has not fought again since that December night. Justino, however, crossed over to the UFC after one more Invicta title defense, and has squashed Leslie Smith and Lina Lansberg so far in 2016.
Again, there’s the issue of weight, as the promotion is clearly not motivated to make a women’s featherweight division. Cyborg is forced to cut brutal amounts just to make the catchweight of 140 pounds, but herein lies a beautiful possibility. With no belt to cling to, Ronda Rousey would be free to jump up to 140 pounds in an attempt to settle the feud with Cris Cyborg.
Weighting Game
With UFC 206 looking filled, there’s one big pay-per-view card left on the 2016 horizon. UFC 207 on December 30, and guess who’s rumoured to be returning by year’s end? Yep, former women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey. Anyone else got a better idea for ‘Rowdy’s’ comeback fight than a clash with Cris Cyborg?
Two careers that have been following the same linear sequence for so long, have inspired so many debates over the years, should meet. Its meant to be.
Invicta FC featherweight champion Cris “Cyborg” Justino has long been considered to be one of the best pound-for-pound female fighters in the world, although the UFC, the world’s largest mixed martial arts promotion, doesn’t currently own a women’s 145-pound division. The Brazilian slugger has attempted to make the drop down to bantamweight in the past,
Invicta FC featherweight champion Cris “Cyborg” Justino has long been considered to be one of the best pound-for-pound female fighters in the world, although the UFC, the world’s largest mixed martial arts promotion, doesn’t currently own a women’s 145-pound division. The Brazilian slugger has attempted to make the drop down to bantamweight in the past, although she is a massive 145 pounder.
Despite the circumstances, however, “Cyborg” recently made her UFC debut in her home of Brazil at last May’s UFC 198, taking on Leslie Smith in a 140-pound catch weight bout, but even making 140-pounds was a difficult task for Justino. In fact, a documentary following her road to UFC 198 will be debuting in August, and a clip from it was released earlier today (August 10, 2016) – and it’s safe to say that her weight cut is truly alarming.
Check out the footage below courtesy of Time Services that essentially shows “Cyborg” in tears during her brutal cut down to 140-pounds:
Justino ended up demolishing Smith in mere minutes, and she will return to the UFC Octagon, once again at 140-pounds, in the main event of UFC Fight Night 95 on September 24, 2016 against Lina Lansberg. Despite her success inside of the cage, is cutting down passed 145-pounds too much of a risk for the Invicta FC champion?
Invicta FC featherweight champion Cris “Cyborg” Justino is a massive 145-pounder, and her weight has kept her out of the UFC for years given the fact that the promotion currently doesn’t have a featherweight division. She has attempted to cut down to 135-pounds before, but has yet to compete at that weight. With her UFC
Invicta FC featherweight champion Cris “Cyborg” Justino is a massive 145-pounder, and her weight has kept her out of the UFC for years given the fact that the promotion currently doesn’t have a featherweight division.
She has attempted to cut down to 135-pounds before, but has yet to compete at that weight.
With her UFC debut, which was an 81-second destruction of Leslie Smith in a 140-pound catch weight bout at UFC 198 (May 14, 2016), now in the rearview mirror, talks have unsurprisingly turned to whether or not the Brazilian slugger would ever really be able to make the bantamweight limit safely.
A plethora of fights would await her at 135-pounds including the long rumored super fight with ex-champion Ronda Rousey as well as a possible clash with current divisional title holder Miesha Tate.
Speaking on the topic, “Cyborg’s” nutritionist, George Lockhart, said that she could ‘absolutely’ make the cut down to bantamweight, although it would likely come at a price:
“Could she make the cut? Absolutely,” Lockhart explained on The Luke Thomas Show (Transcription via MMA Fighting). “She can make 135. She can make 130, but performing? That’s another question. That right there comes down to time. She put in a lot of time for this.”
“People don’t realize how hard it was just to get down to 139. She had to do three-a-days every single day of the week. Sundays she had a day off, but still. Three-a-days, it’s a lot. She’s running, doing a lot of road work.”
Lockhart may have a point here, as a draining weight cut could take away some of Justino’s advantages, specifically her brutal knockout power.
At the end of the day, however, the coach feels as if making bantamweight is possible, although he doesn’t know how realistic the move would be:
“If she ever said, ‘You know what? I want to come down to the 135.’ I think it’d be possible,” Lockhart said. “But is it definite? Honestly, I don’t know.”
What do you expect of “Cyborg’s” future in the UFC?
It was announced earlier this week that Invicta FC featherweight champion Cris “Cyborg” Justino will finally make her UFC debut at May 14’s UFC 198 from Brazil where she’ll face off with Leslie Smith. While Smith may appear as a rather confusing choice of opponents for the massively hyped Justino’s debut, it turns out that
It was announced earlier this week that Invicta FC featherweight champion Cris “Cyborg” Justino will finally make her UFC debut at May 14’s UFC 198 from Brazil where she’ll face off with Leslie Smith.
While Smith may appear as a rather confusing choice of opponents for the massively hyped Justino’s debut, it turns out that multiple fighters, including former 135-pound champion Holly Holm, turned the fight down.
Smith, however, was relentless in campaigning for the chance:
“You’re damn right I begged,” she recently told MMA Junkie.
“This is the whole reason someone gets into martial arts, so they can find someone who’s the best in the world, challenge them and then come out on top. That’s the reason I’m doing this.”
Now that she has indeed been given the opportunity, “The Peacemaker” plans on making this bout a treat for the fans:
“I’m over here busting my ass to make this the most impressive fight,” she said. “Shoot, this is going to be ‘Fight of the Night.’ This is going to be the most exciting women’s fight of the decade.”
While “Cyborg” will likely emerge as quite a heavy favorite leading up to the fight, Smith assured us that the Brazilian slugger is ‘beatable’:
“‘Cyborg’ is beatable,” she reasoned. “She’s super beatable. She’s not a machine.”
“Any person that walks into a cage, there’s a way to beat them, Smith said. “That’s going to be my job for the next six weeks, to figure out the gameplan to beat her. These aren’t digs at all. It’s just saying there are openings for everybody. I’m going to find the openings.”
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