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Cris Cyborg She won her first boxing match on Sunday night.
The legendary women’s MMA fighter stepped into the ring and beat fellow boxer Simone Silva by decision at the Fight Music Show in Cyborg’s hometown of Curitiba, Brazil. The fight went all eight rounds.
It is not clear if he is considered a fan or an exhibitor.
Cyborg won every round. Her best sequence occurred in the eighth and final round. She hits Silva with a big left hook, then tries to finish Silva off the ropes. Cyborg landed a lot of hard shots, but Silva, who was durable, didn’t land them and even fired.
“I’m very happy with my first boxing fight,” Cyborg told ESPN. “It was eight rounds. It’s different when someone comes for the first time. But I know I have to prove a lot. And I’m very happy.”
Last week, Cyborg told ESPN that she would be open to boxing again before returning to MMA. Cyborg, one of the female MMA fighters, is currently the Bellator Women’s Featherweight Champion, despite being a free agent. Cyborg has hinted that she might re-sign with Bellator. But she has also been named as a future opponent for undisputed women’s lightweight champion Katie Taylor.
There was some controversy during the week as to whether this was a pro fight or an exhibition. Silva is currently on medical suspension from the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) following a knockout loss in a boxing match last month. Despite the body shots, TDLR told ESPN that he will not waive the mandatory ban.
“[Silva] Due to her loss, it cannot be cleared earlier than that ban because it is by KO,” TDLR Public Information Officer Thela Goodwin Mange said.
“Our biggest concern is the safety of the fighters, and the medical suspension is without reason.”
Due to a medical suspension, Organização Brasileira de Boxe (OBBoxe) has opted not to sanction Sunday’s fight as a pro contest, according to a report by MMAFighting.com. However, Cyborg’s representatives told ESPN that her team was never told it would not be a pro fight, and that it would be overseen by Associacao Paranaense de Lutas, the Brazilian combat sports sanctioning body, as she said earlier on Sunday.
A spokesman for BoxingRick, one of the world’s leading record holders of boxing, said the website had been informed by Brazilian commission officials that the fight between Cyborg and Silva was not sanctioned and “definitely not recognized as professional boxing”.
Cyborg, 37, is the only fighter to hold MMA titles in four different major promotions: UFC, Strikeforce, Bellator and Invicta FC. In MMA, the Brazilian native, who lives and trains in Southern California, has lost to the pound-for-pound queen since making her professional debut in 2005. Amanda Nunes.
Silva, 39, has a 17-22 pro boxing record and was on a nine-fight losing streak entering Sunday’s fight.
