Cyborg: I Don’t Hate Ronda Rousey

In the aftermath of their two destructive victories that lasted a grand total of one minute combined last weekend, there’s been a ton of discussion about the long-rumored ‘super fight’ between UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey and Invicta FC featherweight champ Cris ‘Cyborg’ Justino.

Rousey is sticking to her stance that Cyborg must make 135 pounds in order to face her for the belt, and UFC President Dana White has stood by his new face of the company. ‘Rowdy’ has also fueled the fire by calling for Justino to ‘stop using f—ing steroids’ in order to fight at bantamweight.

Even Rousey’s mom got into the fold this week, and Cyborg playfully replied that she understood she was only protecting her ‘cub.’ Cyborg wants to make the only weight that Rousey will agree to fight her at, but she told Inside MMA’s Bas Rutten couldn’t commit to it for sure right now:

“I cannot say yes but I think it’s impossible if I try. I try 100 hundred percent, because I want to make this fight happen. But to be perfect, 140 because I did one in 2009 I make 140. I think I can lose more five pounds, but it’s hard for me.”

Rousey and her camp have made it abundantly clear that they aren’t willing to meet Cyborg at a catchweight. Yet despite all of the long-standing back-and-forth trash talk dating back to their days in Strikeforce, Cyborg said she doesn’t truly hate the ‘Rowdy’ one:

“I don’t hate Ronda; I think she’s a good fighter, good judo and good athlete. Sometimes she speaks bad about me, but I think she’s used this to grow her name in beginning when I was Strikeforce champ and she’s fighting in my weight class before.”

Cyborg also has a plan for Rousey should they ever meet in the UFC, noting that she has never been hit with the power and force that she will bring to the Octagon:

“You know, you study Ronda; everybody knows she have good judo and good grappling. And I think Ronda never have punch in her face, never have somebody punch her hard, never have tried to broke her nose, and I think this would surprise her.”

She may be correct in that statement, and there’s not much doubt that Cyborg has the punching power to end any female fighter’s night. But will she be able to stay upright long enough to hit the elusive Rousey with a massive punch?