Cris ‘Cyborg’ Justino Officially Signs With UFC — Is The End Near For Ronda Rousey’s Reign?
Presently in the MMA world, almost all the attention is on Ronda Rousey. Starting out with her aggressive threat towards her UFC 190 opponent, Bethe Correia, Rousey has been busy promoting her upcoming fight. This includes a guest appearance on The View, in which Ronda says she’s “got 99 problems but a Bethe ain’t one,” to the recent publishing of her ESPN interview, the one in which she says she’s an “ovarian goldmine.” On Sunday, her UFC 190 promotion has been shadowed for Furious 7 at WrestleMania 31, when she assisted Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to put The Authority in their place.
Given the fact that Ronda Rousey is the UFC women’s bantamweight champion and undefeated, she is surely sitting on top of the MMA world. However, her world may come crashing down very soon. Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino has officially signed with UFC.
According to Fox Sports, along with numerous MMA-specified sites, news of Cris Cyborg foray into UFC came first as speculation when Cyborg called out her bitter rival, Ronda Rousey. Among other things said, the following statement received the most attention.
“Lorenzo signed me. I’m back and coming for you.”
It was assumed that Cris Cyborg was talking about Lorenzo Fertitta, UFC co-owner and CEO. Eventually, UFC president Dana White would provide confirmation on UFC Tonight that Cyborg had indeed signed a contract prior to her last fight, a 46-second win over Charmaine Tweet at Invicta FC 11, February 28, in Los Angeles.
MMA fans have been looking forward to this dream fight between Ronda Rousey and Cris Cyborg for the longest time. The reason why is that most believe Cyborg is the only true challenge Ronda has at this moment in her career. It should be noted that such a belief is well-earned for Cyborg. For starters, Cyborg is a seasoned professional with a career initiating back in 2006. Her professional record stands at 13-1-1, in which the single “no contest” was only because Cyborg tested positive for steroids after her win. But the most famous accolade Cyborg has in her resume is “retiring” Gina Carano.
Now, before any UFC fans give thanks to the powers at be to set this up, the fight is only possible if Cris Cyborg fulfills her contractual condition in order to fight Ronda Rousey. The Bleacher Report states that Cyborg’s said condition is to get her weight down to the bantamweight division range. Dana White confirmed this with Toronto’s CP24.
“For her next fight, she’s going to try to make 135 pounds.”
Right now, Cris Cyborg is 145 pounds. She has a lot of work to do to lose ten pounds, a task that may be tough given the fact that Cyborg is a lean cut 145 pounds. This means if she wants to lose weight, she’ll either lose muscle mass or her “Brazilian Bootay.”
If successful, Cris Cyborg’s fight against Ronda Rousey will most likely happen after forthcoming career responsibilities. Rousey still needs to take on Bethe Correia at UFC 190, August 1, in Rio de Janeiro. As for Cyborg, she will most likely compete in another fight for Invicta FC, given the fact she is the defending featherweight world champion.
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