Cris Cyborg just continues to find a way.
The legendary Bellator featherweight champion delivered another classic performance as she showcased her entire MMA arsenal to beat Larissa Pacheco in the co-main event at PFL: Battle of the Giants on Saturday from Saudi Arabia.
Even with a pair of gashes over her eyes, Cyborg just kept coming, displaying her signature power and mixing in takedowns that just kept Pacheco guessing from the first round until the last. When it was over, all three judges saw the fight the same with 49-46 scores for Cyborg, who moves to 28-2 with one no contest in her career while notching her eighth consecutive win in a row overall.
“She’s a legend,” Cyborg said about Pacheck following the fight. “She’s a big name in the sport. She punched really hard. It’s a pleasure for me. I’m really thankful to be here. I’m really happy. I feel very blessed, very thankful. I have two more fights, I’m going to defend this title.”
An early takedown from Cyborg brought Pacheco crashing down to the canvas for a dramatic thud to start the fight. For a moment it looked like Cyborg might be setting up a Von Flue choke but Pacheco was able to recognize what was happening before scrambling free to get back to her feet.
Almost immediately after standing back up again, Cyborg unleashed a hellacious head kick that cracked Pacheco, who somehow ate the shot and kept coming forward. Cyborg followed with another big takedown with Pacheco attempting to counter with a guillotine choke but she couldn’t secure the submission.
Cyborg continued to dish out punishment but Pacheco displayed unreal durability to eat every shot and then just come back to ask for more. That led to another huge takedown from Cyborg, who really pressed down with all her weight to keep Pacheco trapped flat on her back.
Likely down two rounds, Pacheco knew she had to get some respect back from Cyborg so she immediately took the center of the cage at the start of the third and challenged the legendary Bellator champion to meet her there. Pacheco eventually pressed forward and actually ended up putting Cyborg on the ground with a well-timed takedown and then measured some nasty elbow strikes from the top.
With a nasty pair of cuts over Cyborg’s eyebrows, Pacheco’s confidence started to surge but for some reason, her activity slowed as the fight moved into the championship rounds. That left an opening for Cyborg to set up some solid combinations including a nasty right hand that blasted Pacheco as she retreated towards the cage.
Many close exchanges forced both fighters to try and do anything to gain an advantage with Cyborg unloading a huge overhand right followed with a nice jab behind it. Pacheco was also trying to react to Cyborg’s movement, which prevented her from just throwing her best strikes.
While she’s known for her highlight reel finishes, Cyborg showed off her maturity by not getting drawn into wild exchanges and instead displayed her full arsenal round after round to get the job done. It’s likely that Cyborg just vanquished the toughest possible challenge awaiting her in the PFL or Bellator but with two fights left in her career, she’ll now wait and see what the promotion can find for her next.
