If Holly Holm and Cris Cyborg were to fight, it probably won’t be anytime soon.
This past Saturday night (Feb. 11) Holm competed for the inaugural Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) women’s featherweight title. Her opponent was Germaine de Randamie. The two met in the main event of UFC 208 inside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY.
Holm fell short in a controversial unanimous decision loss. Well after the horn sounded to signal the end of the second round, de Randamie rocked Holm with a hard shot. She also landed strikes after the third round, but was only warned for her actions.
Speaking to Flo Combat, Holm’s coach Mike Winkeljohn said “The Preacher’s Daughter” isn’t thrilled with how the night went:
“Holly’s pissed off, but she wants the fight over again. She’s pissed off at herself because she knows she had her hurt. She hit Germaine–boom–dropped Germaine to her knees and pushed her against the cage instead of disengaging and finishing it.”
While not many considered Holm a lock to beat de Randamie, the thought of a title bout between the former UFC women’s bantamweight title holder and Cris Cyborg loomed. Winkeljohn admitted he’d like to see proof that Cyborg has been clean for at least 12 months.
“Holly’s willing to fight anybody. She’s never turned down a fight in her life. Her management and myself think Cyborg needs to be clean for a year. All that stuff affects—just give it a year, then I think Cyborg should come back. But there needs to be some time and penalties for taking stuff, period.”
If Cyborg becomes free of her situation with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), one would think Cyborg’s next bout would be against “The Iron Lady.” With de Randamie possibly on the shelf, her next opponent remains a mystery.