Exclusive: MMA great Cris Cyborg responds to calls for return; talks RAF, boxing, Neuro42 and more

Cris Cyborg is regarded by the vast majority of combat sports fans and experts as one of the all-time greats in MMA.

She's competed as a professional mixed martial arts athlete since 2005 and is still a reigning MMA world champion... To deem that kind of rare consistency and longevity as extraordinary would be an understatement. 

I recently had the honor of conversing with the martial arts legend. Among the wide range of topics discussed were her potentially donning the mixed martial arts gloves again, boxing, bare-knuckle fighting, wrestling, and her business ventures, as well as her standing as a role model. 

Listed below are a few questions and the first-ever Grand Slam MMA champion's responses (within double quotation marks). So without further ado, let's get to it. 

Cris Cyborg talks MMA, RAF wrestling, boxing, BKFC, and more

Will we see Cris Cyborg in an MMA fight again? You've already conquered every major MMA organization. Would you like to fight in Ki MMA, MVP MMA, or elsewhere? 

Cyborg responded, "Yes, I will fight MMA again."

She then revisited her most recent MMA fight, a unanimous decision victory against Ketlen Vieira at PFL Tampa in August. The reigning PFL women's featherweight champion secured a unanimous decision victory over Vieira, who missed weight by 7.2 pounds for their fight. Intriguingly, many fans expressed their concerns about Vieira's apparent size advantage and weight miss possibly working against Cyborg, but the latter utilized her striking and overall MMA arsenal to overcome the same. 

Importantly, many viewed it as Cyborg's final MMA fight, as she's already forged a 20-plus-year legacy in the sport. Some even warned that Vieira's youth and aggression could pose problems even to a fighter as skilled as Cyborg.

Another element at play is that it marked the final fight of Cyborg's PFL deal, and speculation has abounded that she could sign with MVP MMA, with the recent PFL-MVP merger. A few others have pondered about whether she could compete in the newly-founded Ki MMA organization helmed by Scott Coker, the erstwhile Strikeforce MMA's head honcho. Cyborg, who competed in the Coker-led Strikeforce many years ago, was in attendance for the Ki MMA launch event in New York last month. 

Many fans have called upon the UFC to re-sign Cyborg, which could open up the possibility of her long-awaited fight against Kayla Harrison.

Others have suggested that Cyborg has already achieved MMA glory and could instead take her talents to the boxing ring -- either continue as a professional boxing champion or perhaps debut in the sport of bare-knuckle boxing. 

Well, Cyborg's latest stance is that she's interested in competing in mixed martial arts again. 

She explained, "I think my performance against Ketlen Vieira proved I am still able to compete against the very best in the sport." Giving props to Vieira, Cyborg added, "Ketlen was tough and certainly felt extremely strong. But even though she missed weight by over seven pounds, I was able to display great footwork and fight IQ to win four out of the five rounds. I landed almost double the strikes she landed over our 25-minute fight." 

You're the first and so far only Grand Slam MMA champion (champion in Strikeforce, Invicta FC, UFC, Bellator MMA, even PFL). What's your message to other fighters who want to achieve this kind of seemingly impossible goal? 

The 41-year-old replied, "I think all goals start with focusing on the first step. I never joined the gym, imagining I was going to go 13 years without a loss and win 20 fights in a row. After my loss to Amanda Nunes, I had no idea I would continue to improve and start another unbeaten streak, where I haven't lost in over seven years and have gone a combined 18-0 in MMA and boxing, capturing two world titles in MMA and my first as a professional boxer along the journey." 

It's noteworthy that Cyborg has gone unbeaten since her loss against fellow Brazilian-American Amanda Nunes back in 2018. Cyborg also scored a TKO win over Cat Zingano in 2023, who happens to hold a knockout win over Nunes. 

Emphasizing the need to be present in the moment and stay consistent, Cyborg said, "I think the focus always needs to be on the next step. One foot in front of another. Consistency is the key to success." 

Many MMA stars have been wrestling in crossover freestyle wrestling matches in Real American Freestyle (RAF) wrestling. Will we see Cris Cyborg in RAF soon?

Well, Cyborg replied by suggesting that she's open to wrestling in the RAF. She asserted, "I would love to compete for RAF. I think there are a few exciting matchups for me." 

She highlighted a point many are seemingly unaware of, saying, "A lot of people don't know that I started competing in wrestling in Brazil and did really well, beating Aline Da Silva Ferreira before focusing on MMA."

Cyborg even appeared to lightheartedly indicate that the long-awaited MMA showdown between her and reigning UFC women's bantamweight champion Kayla Harrison might actually materialize as a wrestling match in the RAF. She noted, "Maybe we will see me vs. Kayla Harrison in RAF one day. Hahaha." 

You became a boxing world champion as well. Is the Cris Cyborg vs. Claressa Shields boxing grudge match possible now that you've taken some time off from MMA? Or would you like to fight her in MMA? Maybe one match each in MMA and boxing?

In addition to Kayla Harrison, another prominent rival of Cris Cyborg happens to be professional boxing champion Claressa Shields. The American has often issued callouts to Cyborg for a boxing match, and Cyborg addressed the same, even drawing attention to their weight differential that many fans have highlighted in the past. 

Cyborg stated, "I am not the reason the fight with Claressa Shields has not happened. She called me out. It was her who called me out to a fight. I fight MMA at 145 pounds, and when I accepted the boxing fight, she then changed the callout and told me that not only would I have to go to her sport, but I would also have to go to her weight class. Well, at the time, I told her, if she wanted me to move up 10 pounds, I needed time to put on the weight and gain experience in boxing." 

Alluding to the fact that she became a professional boxing champion earlier this year, Cyborg explained, "I'm now 8-0 with 6 KOs and WIBA world champion. The WIBA belt has a long legacy in women's boxing, as it is the same belt that legends like Laila Ali, Holly Holm, and Amanda Serrano held to become world champions." 

Moreover, Cyborg affirmed that she offered Shields $2 million and is willing to face her in the boxing realm. She noted, "I have made a $2,000,000 offer to Claressa Shields - more than she has ever paid any opponent, and more than any promoter has ever paid her for any fight. Instead of accepting the fight, she used the offer to insult my boxing skills. This is the same woman who started the boxing nonsense by calling out an MMA fighter who only had two boxing fights when she was world champion." 

She added, "I have the experience. I'm ready to fight her in boxing. I've made the offer. There are 1,000 ways to say no to a fight and only one way to say yes. Claressa just keeps finding more ways to say no. 

Many fans are calling for your bare-knuckle boxing debut in a super-fight against Christine Ferea in the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC). Will we see Cris Cyborg vs. Christine Ferea at BKFC KnuckleMania in 2027?

Christine Ferea, the BKFC bare-knuckle combat sports organization's reigning Queen of Violence champion and BKFC women's flyweight champion, recently called out Cris Cyborg. On her part, the MMA great seems more than ready and confident that she could compete in ungloved combat as well. 

Cyborg said, "I am open to fighting Christine Ferea. BKFC has never made me any type of a serious offer. I think fans would love to see a fight between Ferea and me." 

A longtime representative of Brazil, Cyborg drew parallels between bare-knuckle combat and Brazil's Vale Tudo, with traditional Vale Tudo fights being contested bare-knuckle. The fan-favorite knockout artist said, "Bare knuckle is the essence of Vale Tudo, and Chute Boxe is the best Vale Tudo team of all time. My style would translate very well to bare-knuckle boxing. I am a naturally violent fighter, but they would have to pay me like the prizefighter I am." 

Cris Cyborg Bitcoin Comic Book, Neuro42 partnership, message as a role model to martial artists

Your website lists the Cris Cyborg Bitcoin Comic. Can we expect more comic books from the Cris Cyborg brand?

Addressing her Bitcoin comic book, Cyborg explained, "Bitcoin is a huge passion of mine. I love the Cris Cyborg Bitcoin Comic Book because it's a great tool to introduce young kids to the power of Bitcoin. Teaching them principles about sound money, fixed supply, inflation, and being able to use a fun educational initiative to introduce the concepts that even adults struggle to understand was the goal behind creating the Bitcoin comic book initiative. I think Bitcoin for athletes is an important tool in giving us the ability to save the value earned during our careers. I find the Bitcoin Comic Book has been a great way to increase Bitcoin awareness and promote Bitcoin adoption." 

Hinting at more Cris Cyborg comic books in the future, she said, "For sure, I think we will be putting together more comic book stories for my fans. The first book has been a great success. People who are wanting to learn more about Bitcoin should look at attending the Bitcoin Conference July 15th-17th in Nashville, Tennessee. It's the biggest Bitcoin cultural event in the world, and it's only held once a year." 

The MMA legend, whose comic book is listed on her official website -- CrisCyborg.com -- stated that she's attended the Bitcoin Conference six years consecutively and is looking forward to attending it next year as well. 

You're a successful businesswoman, too. Many fans and experts have praised you for your latest business venture -- your partnership with Neuro42 -- a medical science technology company working on brain health, portable MRI scanning, artificial intelligence, robotics, etc. What makes Neuro42 so special for a combat sports legend like Cris Cyborg to partner with it?

Cris Cyborg has long been one of the most vocal advocates for fighter safety, and she's lately put forth a number of social media posts regarding her partnership with Neuro42. Expounding upon the same, she said, "As a 19-time MMA world champion, my fight has always been about pushing boundaries inside the cage, but my partnership with Neuro42 is about winning the most important fight outside of it: protecting our brain health."

She added, "In combat sports, our brains are our ultimate command centers, yet advanced neurological care has always been miles away from where we actually take damage. Neuro42 completely changes the game with their FDA-cleared portable MRI platforms." 

The longtime martial artist underscored that it'd help provide fighters with swift test results rather than having them wait for days or weeks to know whether and what damage they've sustained. She signaled that its use to determine damage sustained after a fight camp, or in the dressing room immediately after a fight, could serve the noble cause of fighter safety. 

Cyborg noted that it'll help positively change the culture of sports, ushering in "proactive longevity" and setting a new benchmark for the next generation of athletes. She spoke about how its advanced robotics and technological nuances aim to help track athletes' cognitive health in real time instead of waiting until symptoms of damage appear, thereby enabling athletes to take precautionary measures if they're at risk of significant brain damage. 

She noted, "This isn't just about managing a concussion. It's about safeguarding fighters' lives, their legacies, and their well-being after we've hung up our gloves." 

Is Neuro42 mainly focused on athlete diagnosis and cases, or is it also focused on non-athletes who may not be as fit/athletic? Are there other businesses/plans you would like to reveal to the fans?

Cyborg underlined that her collaboration with Neuro42 is rooted in her passion for fighter safety, but also noted that the majority of their groundbreaking work transpires outside the sports world. She indicated that the technology is designed to help not only elite athletes, but also non-athletes, including those who may not be as fit, athletic, or mobile enough for a traditional medical environment. One of the important points, per the MMA icon, is "reimagining neurological care for everyone." 

Cyborg highlighted that the Neuro42 mobile platform was designed in a manner that makes it accessible to patients in local clinics, urgent care centers, and critical care units, who may be too claustrophobic or unstable to be transported to a large conventional MRI suite. 

Cyborg further explained, "The true impact of their work spans across major neurological conditions that affect millions globally, meaning that research and treatment for TBI, CTE, Alzheimer's, and dementia all stand to benefit immensely from this system. By backing their FDA-cleared platform and its 40-plus patents, we are looking at a future where everyday stroke centers and neurosurgeons can utilize real-time imaging to confirm tumor resections or safely guide minimally invasive bedside biopsies and interventions." 

She added, "Whether it is an athlete recovering from a severe concussion or a grandparent battling cognitive decline, Neuro42 provides faster answers and interventional guidance that relieves stress and saves lives when time is most critical." 

You're an inspiration to both new and experienced fighters worldwide. As a women's MMA, combat sports, and sports pioneer, what's your message to young girls and young martial artists in general?

Cris Cyborg has often been cited as a role model for martial artists and combat sports athletes, not only because of her various MMA championships, but also owing to her contributions to the sports and martial arts outside of fighting. 

Speaking about her message to young girls and young martial artists in general, Cyborg stated, "I think it's to enjoy the process. One day, you will look back and see that the 'work to get to where you want to be' really was 'the good old days.' My advice would be to enjoy the process of improving yourself instead of trying to prove things to someone else." 

In a heartwarming message, Cyborg said, "Fall in love with loving yourself."