Before Cristiane Justino defends her Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweight title for the first time against Holly Holm at UFC 219 on Dec. 30, 2017, let’s take a trip down memory lane to see her Octagon debut.
Back in May of 2016, Cyborg made her way into the world-famous Octagon for the very first time against Leslie Smith at UFC 198 in a fight contested at a catch-weight of 140 pounds, long before the promotion had any plans of creating a 145-pound strap.
And as many expected, the fight wasn’t much of a contest, as Cyborg took it to Smith en route to a first-round knockout that took all of 61 seconds. Since then, Cris went on to capture two more wins, including winning the women's 145-pound strap at UFC 214.
Still, credit has to be given to Smith, as not too many people were knocking on Dana White’s door pleading to welcome Cyborg into the eight-sided cage.
Now, Justino will face one of the toughest tests of her career as she will take on former world boxing champ, and ex-UFC women's bantamweight queen, Holly Holm, at UFC's year-end event.
To see who else is fighting at UFC 219: “Cyborg vs Holm” event click here.
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