Cyborg vs. Cat Zingano Reportedly Set For July
Cyborg Justino’s next Octagon appearance is reportedly set.
The Brazilian made her UFC nearly a year ago at UFC 198 from her hometown of Fortaleza, Brazil. She took on Leslie Smith and got the first round TKO victory in just over a minute.
She followed that up with another brilliant performance against UFC newcomer Lina Lansberg four months later and earned yet another TKO victory. The former Invicta FC Champ campaigned hard for the UFC to implement a female 145-pound weight class, and they did – but Cyborg wasn’t a part of it.
After a brief run in with the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), which she was later cleared of, Cyborg is now cleared to get back into the Octagon. According to a report from Combate, Justino will be throwing down with former UFC women’s bantamweight title challenger Cat Zingano.
Zingano has had quite the career, as she has victories over former 135-pound champions Miesha Tate and Amanda Nunes. She then met former division queen Ronda Rousey and was submitted in just 14 seconds of the first round, handing her her first career loss in the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA).
After nearly two years off from competition, Zingano returned last summer against Julianna Pena lost a unanimous decision after 25 minutes of combat. Now it seems she will try her hand against a women who is considered the pound-for-pound best female fighter of all time by some, 10 pounds above her usual weight class.
The pair are reportedly targeted to face-off at UFC 214 from the Honda Center in Anaheim, California on July 29, 2017. The card will be headlined by a light heavyweight title fight between hated rivals Daniel Cormier and Jon Jones. It also features a featherweight clash between rising featherweight star Doo Ho Choi and Andre Fili. Those are the only two fights finalized for the card as of this writing.
We’ll keep you updated as we learn more…..
