Why Cyborg turned down inaugural UFC 145 title fight, twice

When then UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey appeared unbeatable, the UFC signed a contract with Cris Cyborg. The Brazilian would fight for Invicta FC, and at points cut to 140, and then prove she could cut to 135, and fight for the title.

Rousey ended up losing her title, and fights of it again at UFC 207 on December 30. Cyborg won the Invicta FC featherweight title, and after cutting twice to 140, indicated he did not think a drop to bantamweight was feasible.

On the latest UFC Unfiltered podcast with Jim Norton and Matt Serra, UFC president Dana White said the UFC decided to start a new UFC division, featherweight, and offered Cyborg the chance to fight for it, twice. White says Cyborg was offered Holly Holm and Germaine de Randamie, and turned both down.

What’s crazy about that is this – I offered Cris Cyborg a title fight at 145 pounds a month ago, said White, as transcribed by Guilherme Cruz for MMA Fighting. She had eight weeks to get ready for it, she said she couldn’t make the weight, said she couldn’t make 145 pounds.

So then I offered her another 145-pound title fight for Brooklyn [UFC 208], she turned it down. She turned down two 145-pound title fights. One because she said she couldn’t make 145 pounds in eight weeks, and Joe Silva’s like, ‘If she can’t make 145 pounds in eight weeks, 145 isn’t the right weight class for her either.’

White said the first fight, vs. Holm, was turned down due to the last weight cut. Then she was offered a second fight, vs. Randamie.

There is no excuse, she just turned the fight down,” said White. First of all, obviously when we did the deal with Cyborg we sat down with her and said, ‘Listen, if you can make it down to 135 pounds, maybe we can hire you a dietitian and help you get there or whatever, and get you in the mix, get you a couple of fights with these girls and then fight Ronda for the title,’ and she was all in. That’s why she signed the deal. Then she was having a hard time doing it, so she cut down to 140, then this whole thing about, ‘I can’t make 140 pounds.’ Finally, we just said, ‘F*** it, alright then, we’ll make a 145-pound title for you,’ and here we go. She said, ‘I can’t make 145 pounds in eight weeks.’

This doesn’t have to do with weight. Obviously, it has nothing to do with weight cutting. I don’t know what it has to do with, so we’re gonna figure it out.

And just for the record, Holly was so excited, Holly was so excited for that fight. Her coach, [Mike] Winkeljohn, said, ‘That’s not the right fight for Holly.’ So Holly had to turn it down, so we went for Germaine, and Germaine wants the fight.

Cruz, who is on excellent terms with every Brazilian fighter, reached out to Justino who responded at length. She says she needs a break until March, and that she is no longer working with nutritionist George Lockhart.

She says she almost died during the last cut, dropping 24 pounds in a week, and was too weak before the fight even to warm up backstage.

After the fight, she says her blood was too thick to be drawn, and that she was under treatment of a doctor for ten days, and did no travel, gave no interviews and felt sick and weak, and was anemic. She determined that going forward she would fight only at 145, and only with 12 weeks notice.

“They invited me to fight again, but this time at my weight and for the belt, but with 10 weeks’ notice,” said Cyborg, of the UFC’s second offer. “Knowing that I was recovering, like I said, I told them I can fight anyone in March, but I need to take care of my body, and no mention of the fact that I’m dealing with severe depression and can’t have another brutal weight cut like before. This decision is more important than the belt or the division, I’m thinking about my health.

“I thank my fans. We did it! I’ll soon be fighting in my division, where I’m the world champion. You and God are loyal. I’ll be ready to fight in March.”

Given the links between head trauma and depression, when a fighter references “severe depression,” concerns like fighting for a title become secondary to a larger, more important struggle.