Ronda Rousey gets asked about whether she would be willing to fight Cris “Cyborg” Justino a lot, and she usually answers the same way — yes, but it’s up to her.
At a recent press conference, this was a statement she reiterated while quite possibly shutting the question down once and for all.
MMA Junkie reports what most fight fans already know: Rousey needs Justino a lot less than Justino needs Rousey.
“It’s entirely up to her. I’m not going to go chasing her around. She’s not entitled to have me chase her around. She’s the fraud that got defamed. If you can make 145 pumped full of steroids, you can get off it and drop (to 135).”
Furthermore, adds Rousey, fighting Cyborg would be something of a dream match for her.
“I have this idea in my mind that my final fight would be just beating the crap out of Cris ‘Cyborg,’ and then when [UFC President] Dana [White] puts the belt on me the last time, I could take it off and hand it back to him. But if she doesn’t step up, I can move on and do other things with my life. She’s the one who’s going to fall into obscurity without me.”
For MMA fans, it really can’t get more definitive than that. Ronda Rousey has been able to stay clean and exert her dominance on women’s MMA with an 11-0 record (5-0 UFC). While she may have been coronated the inaugural women’s champion, she has fought everyone White has put in front of her, and no one has gone the distance with her.
She has also done so as a true 135-pounder.
Cyborg, on the other hand, was stripped of the Strikeforce featherweight title after a December, 2011, test revealed that she was on steroids [ via Sherdog ].
She also lost credit for one of her knockouts — over Hiroko Yamanaka — as a result of the violation. She now fights at 145 pounds in Invicta, but has been clamoring for a shot at Ronda Rousey since a little after the steroid scandal broke.
Ronda Rousey has placed herself in the position of dictating terms due to the infraction, and until Cyborg cuts weight, the fight will likely never happen.
Ronda’s comments confirm this and put the onus squarely on Justino’s shoulders.
But what do you think, readers? Should the burden be on Cyborg to cut 10 pounds for the fight to happen, or is Ronda Rousey running scared? Sound off in the comments section. And to catch Ronda in action, tune in to UFC 190 as she squares off with Bethe Correia on Aug. 1.
[Image of Ronda Rousey via MMA Junkie , linked above]