Cris Cyborg is back. The former force of nature in women’s MMA will rise again into the cage at Bellator MMA 271. The Brazilian will defend her featherweight gold when she meets Irish boxer Sinead Kavanagh on November 12th at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida.
Cris “Cyborg” Justino (24-2 (1)) goes into the cage for her third title defense. After the Brazilian was able to secure the Bellator featherweight belt in January 2020 against Julia Budd, she defended the gold just a few months later against the relatively hopeless Arlene Blencowe with a rear-naked choke in round two. In the second defense of the title, in May of this year, it was Leslie Smith who got her rematch against Justino and after a courageous performance only lost to TKo in the fifth round. Both previously met in the UFC, where Cyborg only needed 81 seconds.
It remains to be seen whether it will take longer for the Irish woman, who is fifth in the ranking. Sinead Kavanagh (7-4) was in 26 duels as an amateur boxer, but only won eight of them. In MMA, with seven wins from eleven appearances, she also has a mixed record, but was recently able to achieve two important victories in a row. The last hard-fought success against Katharina Lehner from MMA-Spirit from Frankfurt was apparently decisive for the boxer from Dublin to get the title fight. Now she wants to live up to her nickname “KO” and fight for what only two other women have managed before her, namely to defeat Cris Cyborg.
It is not for nothing that she is considered a pioneer in women’s MMA, has won the title at Strikeforce, Invicta and the UFC and now wants to expand her legacy as “Grand Slam Champion” at Bellator MMA. At 36 you can rightly ask yourself how long you will see the Brazilian in action.
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