Cyborg begins to embrace the first Women's MMA champion in StrikeForce history. (photo by Chris Gerhardt)
Written by Paul Delos Santos
Gina Carano is widely-considered as the face of women’s mixed martial arts.
But on Aug. 15, Cris Cyborg left Carano’s face with a few bruises and left an announced crowd of 13,524 fans in the HP Pavillion — mostly Carano supporters — in a stunned silence.
The win also secured Cyborg the women’s 145-pound championship, but there is one title that Cyborg will let Carano keep the other.
“[Gina] can keep [the face of MMA] title because I have this title,” Cyborg said through a translator, while pointing at her newly awarded Strikeforce 145-pound title belt.
As she walked down to the ring, Cyborg was greeted by boos from the San Jose, Calif. crowd. The negative reaction brought a smile to her face, and it didn’t bother her at all.
She had all the support she needed behind her in her husband, team and coaches. She even gave credit to God himself for being behind her.
Once the bell rang, Cyborg intention was clear: leave no doubts about who is the best women’s fighter in the world. She went right to the center of the cage, and stalked Carano and attacked with the ferocity that was made famous by the Chute Boxe team.
Carano had her moments, but in the end, Cyborg wasn’t afraid of anything. Cyborg was just too aggressive, more powerful and skilled.
“I wouldn’t run from the Muay Thai [striking game],” Cyborg said. “On the ground I was comfortable.”
It was a true showcase of Cyborg’s abilities. She showed her solid striking ability. She proved proficient on the ground going for various submissions including a heel hook within seconds into the fight.
Carano spun out of the hold, but the message was clear — Cyborg was more than a fearless striker with KO power.
And even when Carano got into the full mount, Cyborg remained as calm as she could, despite Carano raining down punches. She may have got a slight reprieve, when Carano elected to get off of Cyborg and fight standing.
“I wasn’t in danger,” Cyborg said of being mounted by Carano. “I took a lot of jiu-jitsu and was comfortable on the ground. I went for a heel hook and leg lock.”
With a minute remaining, Cyborg took Carano’s back when Carano attempted to slow down Cyborg’s attack with a headlock. Carano eventually got Cyborg into her guard, and Cyborg proceeded to do her best Fedor impression with a guard pass capped off with a punch, which landed.
Cyborg sensing the end was near, proceeded to rain down heavy shots, and Carano was left to just defending herself, which prompted referee Josh Rosenthal to step in to save the Las Vegas-native as the buzzer sounded.
Some in crowd thought the round had ended meaning Carano had survived, but Cyborg knew she had won the fight as she immediately did her victory celebration.
The finish capped off four minutes and 59 seconds of non-stop action gave the casual fan a glimpse of what high-quality women’s MMA could be.
Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker pledged a commitment to the women’s divisions. He negotiated a deal with Showtime to run a couple of tournaments, which would build contenders for both the 135-pound weight class, as well as the 145-pound division.
Coker didn’t confirm or deny Carano’s potential participation in the 145-pound competition, and said he would speak to her camp to see if she would like to take part in it.
Cyborg’s next contender may come out of the 145-pound tournament, which would have a similar feel to a tournament held in Japan.
“We’ll start with eight fighters,” Coker said. “The winners would go to a second show, where we’ll have the semifinals and finals. The winner of the tournament would become the top contender for Cyborg.”
It was evident that there is a future for women’s MMA, and fighters like Fabricio Werdum and Gilbert Melendez showed appreciation for being a part of such a high-profile card headlined by two women.
“[Having the card headlined by women] was an awesome idea,” Werdum said.
Paul Delos Santos is an associate editor for MMA Madness. E-mail him at paul@mmamadness.com. Follow him and the rest of the MMA Madness staff on Twitter, as twitter.com/MMA_Madness.
Of course, I love Gina Carano, but Cyborg has clearly shown to be tougher and in better shape as a fighter RIGHT NOW. I still believe Gina can perform better against her but this woman, Cyborg, derserves her just due…I’m giving it to her!!! Outstanding performance ladies, non-stop action, great heart and showing of sportmanship. I’m sure this fight, historic as it is, will be the fight all woman’s MMA fights are 2 be measured against for years to come. Once again, take a bow ladies, take a bow Warriors!!!
I’m with you Cota. Posted elsewhere that Gina can and most likely will learn and grow in the sport, but Santos is there already. I’ve seen a couple other proficient women fighters like Tara LaRosa, and some ladies that fought in Bodog fights whose names I can’t recall, but none of them have the striking power, the ground game, the aggression, and the over all ring savvy that Cristiane Santos showed against Carano.
The fight was definitely exciting, and if women’s MMA can be as good as this fight was, then the potential for more and better women’s matches seems limitless. It just remains to be seen whether there are enough young women interested in competing in such a tough sport, and whether there will be sufficient numbers of talented and proficient fighters to fuel further development of women’s MMA.
theres a few hidden gems in the world of mma,strikeforce is going to bring them to the screens.cyborg has her hands full.carano is too girly,theres a few tom boys out there.
I do love the fact that Strikeforce is able to give more quality MMA shows….we need more than the UFC….they’re the top dog abut we need more and seem to have found it with Strikeforce. Gina did look intimidated but gave it a good effort