Cris Cyborg heads into the final fight of her Professional Fighters League contract on Aug. 22. She takes on Ketlen Vieira at the Benchmark International Arena in Tampa.
It had been billed as a retirement fight. A farewell to a sport she had served since 2005, with championship reigns across five organizations, including iconic scraps against Gina Carano, Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes, and 29 wins against just two losses.
Cyborg has enjoyed many roles in combat sports over the last 21 years. From a trailblazer to a champion and, ultimately, a legend. But all good careers must come to an end eventually, and PFL announced in June that the Vieira match later this month will be “her final MMA fight.”
Things might not be as final as they first seemed, though.
“Maybe, it could be my last,” Cyborg told Uncrowned from her home office, surrounded by belts she won during her stints fighting in Strikeforce, Invicta, the UFC, Bellator MMA and PFL.
“At 41 years old, I always think, ‘This could be my last.’ I’m already prepared [but I could] change this. I feel very good. I’ve never had a bad injury, and I feel better than when I was 21 years old. So it could be my last fight, this next fight against Ketlen Vieira.
“But I don't know.
“I want to do the best I can in this fight. And if it is my last fight in my contract with PFL, I'll get together with my team, my family, and see what the next chapter is. See what I want. And what I feel in my heart.”
Some fighters feel the curtain calling when the early starts at 4 a.m. begin to take their toll. When it’s tougher to get out of bed when it’s raining, while in the warmth under covers, in silk pajamas.
But after fights in jiu jitsu, kickboxing, MMA and boxing, Cyborg still enjoys the thrill and preparing for competition.
“I love what I do,” she said. “I enjoy every single moment. I love the sport. Being in sports. And competing. I'm happy. I am just doing my best.”
Cyborg isn’t the only pioneering MMA fighter still competing, as she was cageside at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles for Ronda Rousey’s return against Carano, who hadn’t fought in 17 years, when Cyborg knocked her out in a Strikeforce main event — the first time two women headlined a major MMA event.
“I think she didn't [feel] happy how her career finished, after she lost and she stopped fighting,” Cyborg said of Rousey. “She returned and got the victory” against Carano.
Since Rousey and Carano headlined the first Most Valuable Promotions event in MMA, the upstart fight firm merged with PFL, creating a business that has a considerable roster, with expansive broadcast connections and social media power.
For Cyborg, it’s “important” industry news for fighters because, if their contract expires at a rival organization, they’re “going to be taken care of” by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian.
“They're doing great for boxing, for women's boxing,” she said. “They really want to make a difference and change the sport. Let's see what's gonna happen.”
So … what could happen? Could Cyborg accept another fight after Vieira?
Cyborg and Rousey, after all, could end up on the same platform — at MVP MMA and on Netflix.
“I’m ready anytime,” Cyborg said about the super-fight that has, thus far, eluded the sport.
“I don’t know if the other side is gonna accept it. She ran from me for so many years, and always had an excuse for it not to happen. I don't think she wants this moment now. I don't think she's ready for that. But — I’m here. Everything can happen.
“If you want to make this fight happen, it's gonna be an exciting one for me.”
Cyborg could also continue to operate in boxing.
Her team even extended a $2 million offer to Claressa Shields for a crossover bout — a deal Shields rejected.
Why?
“She talks a lot,” Cyborg said of Shields. “She’s going to fight at 160 pounds and the girl [opponent Kaye Scott] is older than me, less fights than me, and doesn’t have a knockout. I have eight fights, most by knockouts.
“If she wanted to make this fight, we can do it at the end of the year,” Cyborg said. “We can make it at 154. No excuses. $2 million. Let's do it!”
Whether Vieira turns out to be farewell or just another chapter, Cyborg doesn’t seem ready to hang up the gloves just yet.
“I'm no easy fighter to beat.”