Cris Cyborg Says Her Next Fight Won’t Be In The UFC

Interesting…

Fiery Invicta FC featherweight champion, former Strikeforce queen and current UFC catchweight wrecking machine Cristiane Justino made a big splash in Brazil this past Saturday (May 14, 2016). Facing Leslie Smith in a 140-pond bout at UFC 198, Cyborg terminated Smith in a fantastic first round display of brutal striking prowess. The future for Cyborg in the UFC is bright, but as is always the case with the Brazilian brawler there’s a catch (weight).

Without a featherweight division for Cyborg to compete at in the UFC, available fights are limited to say the least. Much the same as when she was feuding with former bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey, Cyborg’s weight seems to be a very difficult hurdle to overcome. Perhaps she could safely make the cut to 135 pounds, but she’d likely lose a lot of her power and strength in doing so.

Then we got reports of her next fight being targeted for UFC 201, as the promotion appeared to be wasting no time in keeping Cyborg on the move. Undefeated Dutch kickboxer and 6-3 MMA prospect Germaine de Randamie was allegedly on the schedule for a UFC 201 fight with Justino, but Cyborg herself has shot down those reports, and revealed her plans for the immediate future.

Responding to widespread reports started by Megan Olivi, Cyborg says her health is more important to her than another catchweight fight in the UFC, and states she’ll be defending her Invicta FC belt next:

@KarynBryant @IronLadyMMA @MeganOlivi
It's not true I will defend my world title 145lbs next @InvictaFights

— Cris Cyborg (@criscyborg) 19 May 2016

.@AlbertMax19 @KarynBryant @IronLadyMMA @MeganOlivi @InvictaFights my health is more important I am only 30 and can fight 10 more years.

— Cris Cyborg (@criscyborg) 19 May 2016

Looks like now she has shown her chops in the UFC, Cris Cyborg is willing to wait for the 145-pound division to become a reality in the UFC.