Cris Cyborg has just two fights left on her UFC contract, and the reigning women’s featherweight champion plans to cross over to the boxing ring after she’s taken care of business in the Octagon.
Cyborg, real name Cristiane Justino, was in attendance for Gennady Golovkin’s boxing match with Vanes Martirosyan this past weekend at StubHub Center in Carson, California, where the Kazakhstani knocked out his opponent in the second round to retain the WBA, WBC, IBF, and IBO middleweight world titles.
Cyborg, however, was in attendance to watch Cecilia Brækhus, an undefeated, multi-belt champion who is considered one of the best female boxers of all-time. According to Tristen Critchfield of Sherdog.com, Brækhus is open to a boxing match with the Brazilian in the future.
This is what @criscyborg wore to the GGG fight last night (belt included). Note the shirt. Cecilia Braekhus is arguably the best female boxer in the world. Cyborg has two fights left on her current UFC current. She wants to explore that fight in boxing when she can. pic.twitter.com/EP7CFWMVks
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) May 7, 2018
When speaking to Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports, Cyborg outlined her plans to fight Brækhus in the boxing ring and follow in Conor McGregor’s footsteps.
“Of course, I need time for training. I think I need four, six months training,” Justino said. “Gonna be maybe perfect because I have two fights left MMA and then I can focus on boxing. We can do my first boxing fight with her, but I need a little time to train.”
“I would like to work with them,” Cyborg said of the UFC. “If the UFC work it and I can do the boxing fight and still have the belt and come back like McGregor did.”
McGregor, the former UFC featherweight and lightweight champ, made the transition to the boxing ring last August when he took on Floyd Mayweather Jr. in one of the biggest fights in combat sports history. The Irishman lost via 10th round TKO but cemented himself as one of the biggest stars and attractions in the world of combat sports.
Cyborg, who is on an impressive 10-fight win streak, isn’t sure who she’s going to fight in the UFC next, but expressed an interest in defending her featherweight title against Amanda Nunes or the winner of the Holly Holm-Megan Anderson fight.
“I really don’t know when they’re gonna make my next fight,” Justino said. “Let’s see Holly Holm against Megan Anderson (at UFC 225), and after let’s see too if Amanda is going to accept the fight or not. She just made 135, I don’t know if she’s gonna fight soon.”
Cyborg, 32, recently acquired a boxing license to compete in the state of California and is determined to ‘challenge’ herself in the boxing ring before she hangs up the gloves for good.
“I think it’s a challenge for myself,” she said. “I competed in wrestling, in jiu-jitsu, in muay thai. I never do boxing. I want to do it before I end my career.”
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