Cris Cyborg Can ‘Absolutely’ Make Bantamweight – But There’s a Price
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?
