Cris Cyborg KO’s Sinead Kavanagh, makes third defense of title at Bellator 271
Ireland has another chance to win gold in the mixed martial arts world tonight at Bellator 271, where one of, if not the greatest female fighter to ever step into the mixed martial arts cage, Cris Cyborg returns in attempt to make another defense of her Bellator featherweight championship.
Cyborg first won gold back in 2009, where she claimed the Strikeforce women’s featherweight championship via knockout. After defending the title twice, she was stripped following her third defense, which was overturned to a no contest due to a failed drug test.
Nonetheless, she rebounded by winning the Invicta featherweight championship, and she added another three title defenses to her resume. Next up was her UFC debut, and then her next bout, which were both contested at 140 lbs.
Cyborg won both fights via knockout, as usual, and she was fighting for another championship, only this time in the worlds leading promotion, and in her natural weight divison.
She won the UFC women’s featherweight championship and defended it twice before losing it to Amanda Nunes, the woman most believe to be the greatest ever.
A rematch didn’t follow however, which was strange. Cyborg had only ever lost once prior, in her first ever fight. She’d only fallen to 20-2 that night, but the UFC ended up giving her Felicia Spencer next, who she beat, before they released her.
That’s where she’s been able to add yet another world championship to her already legendary career.
Cyborg defeated then champion Julia Budd, who’d defended the belt three times herself, hadn’t lost in a decade, and had only ever lost to Amanda Nunes and Ronda Rousey prior, to claim the Bellator women’s featherweight championship. Budd has also gone 3-0 since this defeat.
This was followed up by her first ever submission victory in her first Bellator championship defense, before defeating the woman she beat in her UFC debut, Leslie Smith, to defend her title for a second time.
This brought her professional record to 24-2 (1 NC), and it was her 19th victory via knockout.
Amanda Nunes’ knockout ratio isn’t even that high. That’s 79%, while Nunes, the supposed most violent female fighter, sits at 61%.
Now, at 36 years old, this 13-time world champion knockout artist looks to make the third defense of her title tonight against the likes of Sinead Kavanagh, who’s won the bulk of her victories via knockout as well, and is also a five-time Irish national champion in boxing.
Continue reading to see how this women’s featherweight championship bout went down:
Official Result: Cris Cyborg def. Sinead Kavanagh via KO (punches) at 1:32 of round one
Round 1
Cyborg comes out very aggressive, landing a series of nasty combinations early on, but Kavanagh is fighting back throwing her own bombs. Only, her punches don’t effect the champion, like the champions effect her, and sooner rather than later, it was too much.
Cris Cyborg is now a 14-time world champion, and she stated she’d like to see Cat Zingano next.
When John McCarthy asked her if she’d consider facing new free agent, two-time Olympic gold medalist in Judo, and PFL women’s lightweight champion Kayla Harrison, she also welcomed that possibility.
Harrison has made 145 lbs before, for a Titan FC bout, she could do it again. Just food for thought.
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