Cris Cyborg: While Rousey talks I train, I’ll be in the UFC some day
Strikeforce featherweight champion Cris Cyborg defended her belt for the third time Saturday night, nyquilling Hiroko Yamanaka in 16 seconds….
Strikeforce featherweight champion Cris Cyborg defended her belt for the third time Saturday night, nyquilling Hiroko Yamanaka in 16 seconds. Now Cyborg has a four fight contract she intends to use it to win over UFC President Dana White, and save women’s MMA.
In an exclusive interview with Tatame, Cyborg elaborates.
Erik Engelhart: Since you’re so dominant on your weight division, do you consider fighting in other weight classes?
Cris Cyborg: Due to my contract, I had to stay a long time off the circuit, and with no opponents. But now I’ve signed a new contract, with four more fights on it, and I believe they’ll find someone for me to fight. Of course I can drop to the division below where there’re more girls fighting, but it’s actually already hard for me to cut weight to fight in the featherweight division.
EE: Do you intend to keep training Jiu-Jitsu with Andre Galvao?
CC: Well, I wanna dedicated myself a lot to Jiu-Jitsu now. I want to take this opportunity I’m having of training with Andre Galvao to learn the most I can. While I don’t have a MMA fight, you can be sure I’ll be fighting Jiu-Jitsu. When I’m not fighting MMA, I gotta train Jiu-Jitsu, sharpen my Boxing skills, because I’m a fighter after all. I’m a purple belt for a long time and I want to become an evolved purple belt and keep evolving, don’t stop improving just because I’m the belt holder.
EE: Where did this passion and will to improve your Jiu-Jitsu come from?
CC: I guess my true passion is towards my teacher (laughs), because Andre is a hell of a teacher and I’m learning more and more from him. After I fought at Mundial I decided I wanted to learn more and more. I know more no gi Jiu-Jitsu than with the gi on and as you start to learn how the gi works, it gets interesting. I had the opportunity to submit when I knocked her down, but I felt like finishing it with punches and so I did.
EE: You sent a message to Ronda Rousey, who was at the event and might be your next opponent.
CC: I said that because she just fought four times and keeps asking to fight me. I have nothing against her, but the truth is that I don’t really care because I don’t worry about who’s fighting who. When I sign the fight contract I start studying my opponent. I don’t even like to talk much because people want answers about why I said this about her and because she talks too much and while she’s talking I’m training. So, if Strikeforce wants to put us to fight, I’m ready, but I don’t know how it’ll be like.
EE: What message would you sent Dana White, who doesn’t seem much excited about keeping the female divisions in the UFC, when Strikeforce is extinct?
CC: I’ll take these four fights I have left in Strikeforce to win Dana White. It doesn’t matter if I do so by using one of my students, but I’ll be in the UFC someday. I know he has his reasons, and there’re really few women on the circuit, but I’ll keep on going, training, putting on good fights to cheer women up.