From inside CrossFit CRS Athletics in Huntington Beach, Cris Cyborg isn’t just working out on a rowing machine.
As AC/DC’s power anthem “Thunderstruck” blares inside the facility, the MMA legend is working the apparatus.
Gym owner and director of training Rosario Rios Aguilar, having already put Cyborg through some agility drills, can’t help but smile at the 41-year-old phenom.
“I have people in their 20s, people in their 30s in here, but not like her,” Rios Aguilar said, shaking her head. “She’s a different breed.”
That elite athlete, who holds some of the top records in the sport, looks to be entering the cage for the final time on Saturday when Cyborg defends her PFL featherweight championship against former UFC veteran Ketlen Vieira in the PFL Tampa main event.
No fighter, man or woman, can claim more world championships. The sole quintuple MMA champion boasts belts from PFL, UFC, Bellator, Strikeforce and Invicta. The 18-time world champ has done what no female fighter has ever dreamed, with 29 career victories and 22 by knockout or TKO. She has rattled off nine consecutive victories, six by finishes, since being knocked out by Amanda Nunes in their UFC 232 featherweight title fight nearly eight years ago at the Kia Forum in Inglewood.
“She’s a beast, man. She’s a sweetheart, too. Amazing. God-fearing woman,” said PFL featherweight title contender A.J. McKee, who has trained with Cyborg under the tutelage of his father, Antontio McKee.
“Hard to paint. Nicest person off the mat. When you stand in front of her, she’s trying to (mess) you up, and she’s not going to stop. Heart of a warrior.”
After Saturday, against a tough fellow Brazilian who went 10-5 in the UFC, the book could close on one of the most illustrious careers in the sport as Cyborg has indicated this could be her curtain call.
“It is my last fight on the PFL contract. I want to focus on Ketlen Vieira. I think it’s not an easy fight for me. I believe it’s gonna be a tough fight and I train hard to be ready for this fight,” the Huntington Beach resident said. “I want to fight with her 100 percent and see what’s gonna happen next. But I want to sit down and enjoy. I want to see my family, I want to pray, because I have different plans.”
The door, however, does not sound bolted shut. Should an opportunity arise – say, against Ronda Rousey in Most Valuable Promotion’s new MMA organization or a return to the UFC against Amanda Nunes or Kayla Harrison – Cyborg and her team might listen.
And then there’s boxing, in which Cyborg has compiled an 7-0 record and claimed the WIBA super welterweight title via TKO March 28 when Paulina Cardona didn’t come out for the third round.
Should the great Claressa Shields answer Cyborg’s call, or Mikaela Meyer or Chantelle Cameron want a challenge after they’re done tussling in MVP’s boxing division, Cyborg could be waiting.
“If it was up to her, I swear she will fight until her last day. She just loves it,” said Rios Aguilar, who has trained Cyborg since 2021. “She comes in, and sometimes she’s a little tired. And by the time we’re done, she’s smiling. She’s like, ‘OK, I’m ready to go.’ You know, she’s like ready to go again.”
Rios Aguilar points to Cyborg’s experience in becoming a smarter and wiser fighter. Mix in an indefatigable work ethic and she has seen Cyborg get better with age.
“When we are in here, you saw it today, she just taps in, gets in the zone and she just goes,” she said. “She has a whole different mentality switch, and that’s what allows her to keep going. But also her recovery. She’s so dialed in. Her nutrition, discipline in her recovery, and that’s what gives her the longevity.”
Vieira (16-5), who turns 35 on Wednesday and has fought all but once at 135 pounds, has alternated wins and losses in her past seven fights – though some believe she should be on a three-fight winning streak after losing a hotly debated split decision to Norma Dumont in November. But after Vieira rebounded with a unanimous-decision victory over Jacqueline Cavalcanti in May, her contract with the UFC was up and she became a free agent.
PFL, which recently merged with MVP, signed Vieira a month later and promptly matched her up against its dominant 145-pound champion.
“I feel like she’s fought a lot of legends in the sport. She’s tough,” Cyborg said of Vieira, who has defeated former UFC champions Miesha Tate and Holly Holm and former UFC title challengers Sara McMann and Cat Zingano.
“She’s from Brazil, tough girl, tough team. I believe she’s gonna be ready. She’s gonna do everything to win this fight. It’s the opportunity of her life too.”
If this is it, what might be next for Cyborg? Even she’s not sure. She’s always wanted to be a mom, especially after raising her niece Gaby as her daughter when she brought her from Brazil as a 13-year-old to live with her in Huntington Beach in 2018.
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“I would like to be pregnant. I know it’s in God’s hands,” Cyborg said. “I don’t know if I’d be able to do it. I don’t know.”
With her love of animals, she’s even considered entering the veterinary field. “It’d be hard, but it’s not gonna be a sacrifice. It’s something I’d love to do.”
The one certainty after Saturday is that Cyborg is looking forward to time with Gaby and her husband and their first child. The boy, who will be named Samuel, is scheduled to arrive days after the fight.
“I’m very excited to be a grandma. I say, ‘Man, I wish I can fight a little bit more. Maybe he can see my fights live. You know, screaming at the TV,’” Cyborg said.
Imagine that scenario. Many moms have stepped into the cage and thrown down. But a grandmother?
“Crazy!” Cyborg said with a laugh. “It’s crazy. It’s crazy. It’s crazy.”
It would be yet another first in a long line of them in Cris Cyborg’s legacy.
PFL Tampa: Cyborg vs. Vieira
When: Saturday
Where: Benchmark International Arena, Tampa
How to watch: Prelims (2:30 p.m., ESPN+); main card (6 p.m., ESPN)