Tag Archives: Cris Justino

Amanda Nunes Reportedly Agrees to Defend Her UFC Bantamweight Title Against Germaine de Randamie

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Amanda Nunes is going on the defense…

The 31-year-old Brazilian mixed martial artistand two-weight UFC champion will defend her 135-pound title against Germaine de Randamie at UFC 245 on December 14, according to ESPN.

Amanda Nunes

Both sides have verbally agreed to the bantamweight championship, and the pay-per-view event will take place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, sources told ESPN.

UFC officials have not confirmed the bout’s official placement on the card.

Nunes (18-4) is the current champion of the 135- and 145-pound weight classes. She’s coming off the fourth defense of her bantamweight title in July, a head kick knockout of Holly Holm at UFC 239.

Originally from Brazil, now fighting out of American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida, Nunes is ranked as the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world by ESPN.

De Randamie (9-3), of the Netherlands, is a former featherweight champion. She won the 145-pound belt in February 2017 by defeating Holm. However, she was stripped of the belt later that year when she refused to face No. 1 contender Cris “Cyborg” Justino over concerns of prior use of performance-enhancing drugs.

De Randamie has since elevated herself to the status of No. 1 contender at 135 pounds with wins over Raquel Pennington and Aspen Ladd.

Justino to Make UFC Debut Against Leslie Smith at UFC 198

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Cris “Cyborg” Justino is finally hitting the UFC stage…

The 30-year-old Brazilian mixed martial artist and the former Strikeforce Women‘s Featherweight Champion will make her long-awaited UFC debut on May 14 in her hometown of Curitiba, Brazil.

Cris "Cyborg" Justino

Long considered one of the top female fighters in the world, Justino will fight Leslie Smith at UFC 198 at Arena da Baixada, according to UFC officials. The bout will take place at 140 pounds.

“It’s a dream come true for Cris, not only to fight in front of her home crowd but to step into the Octagon. We’re just happy the UFC is giving her this opportunity,” Justino’s manager, George Prajin, said. “We’re not looking past this fight. One month ago, we thought it would be a Hail Mary to get into the UFC. Now we have this opportunity. They’re the boss. Whatever they want moving forward is what’s next for her.”

Justino (15-1) is the 145-pound champion in all-female promotion Invicta FC. In early 2015, Justino signed a contract extension with Invicta that allowed her to appear in UFC. Invicta events air on UFC Fight Pass, UFC’s digital subscription service.

Fighting out of southern California, Justino has not suffered a loss since her professional debut in May 2005. She has recorded knockouts in 13 of her professional victories, including three consecutive first-round finishes.

A former Strikeforce featherweight champion, Justino had danced around a potential megafight against former UFC bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey for years. UFC publicly stated numerous times that that fight would have to take place at 135 pounds, UFC’s largest weight class for female fighters.

Circumstances changed in November, when Rousey suffered a second-round knockout loss to Holly Holm. Shortly after that result, Justino said she was done trying to cut to 135 pounds and would accept a UFC bout only at a 140-pound catchweight. Several notable UFC bantamweights have said they would meet Justino at a catchweight, including Holm and current champion Miesha Tate.

Smith (8-6-1) is 2-2 in UFC. The seven-year veteran is coming off a decision win against Rin Nakai earlier this month in Brisbane, Australia.