Invicta FC featherweight champion Cris ‘Cyborg’ Justino is one of the most feared women in all mixed martial arts. Her ferocious striking and indomitable will to win have seen Justino win belts for Invicta and the now defunct Strikeforce, as well as a number of grappling accolades and also crossover victories in Muay Thai. For a long time Cyborg stood on the fringe of the UFC women’s scene, looking in as Ronda Rousey dominated both the competition inside the octagon, and the headlines outside of the arena of combat.
What a difference a few months makes. Following Rousey’s shocking loss to Holly Holm at UFC 193, the WMMA scene in the UFC was turned on it’s head, and before ink had hit paper for Justino’s first UFC fight, the bantamweight title would change hands again. This time it was Miesha Tate who would shock the world, choking ‘The Preacher’s Daughter’ out cold at UFC 195, ousting Holm as champion in her first attempted defense of the strap.
Finally it was announced that Cris Cyborg would be joining the UFC, her Invicta 145-pound belt still intact as she plans to defend it still, and she’ll be facing Leslie Smith at this weekend’s stacked UFC 198 event. It’s perhaps not the blockbuster fight we were all wishing for in Cyborg’s debut, but according to Justino herself, that’s a case of old habits dying hard.
Speaking with FOX Sports recently, Cris Cyborg lays out he plans for a future featherweight division in the UFC, and also says there are still a number of fighters running from a fight with her.
“This always happens in my career,” Justino told FOX Sports about the fighters who refuse to face her. “I know Leslie is a real fighter and she accepted this fight. I think you have a lot of fighters now who are fighters, but they don’t like to challenge themselves. Leslie wants to challenge herself and she’s willing to go up to fight me.
“I appreciate her and it’s a great fight. You cannot choose who you fight. You just have to be ready to fight anyone….
We’ve got more on page 2, including Cyborg’s sparring session with a young fan at the UFC 198 open workouts yesterday…
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