Cris "Cyborg" Justino will finally make her Ultimate Fighting Champions debut in May but it will not be against former UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey.
Justino, who is the reigning Invicta FC featherweight champion, will face Leslie Smith at UFC 198 on May 14 in her hometown of Curitiba in Brazil.
Justino was long linked to a possible showdown with Rousey until the UFC bantamweight superstar suffered the first defeat of her career to Holly Holm in November. While her UFC debut will not be against Rousey, Justino said that she is very excited to show skills inside the Octagon.
"I'm super excited about finally fighting in the UFC and making my debut in front of my hometown," Justino told Yahoo Sports. "I am very thankful to the UFC for finally giving me the chance to show the world why I am the baddest woman on the planet"
Justino's manager George Prajin echoed Cyborg's statement, saying that the 30-year-old Brazilian is grateful to UFC for giving her the chance to fight in front of her hometown fans. As for Justino's future in UFC, Prajin said that they will take it one step at a time and will focus on Cyborg's UFC debut against Smith.
"We're not looking past this fight," Prajin said via ESPN. "One month ago, we thought it would be a Hail Mary to get into the UFC. Now we have this opportunity. They're the boss. Whatever they want moving forward is what's next for her."
If she wins against Smith, she will likely be linked to a possible fight with reigning UFC women's bantamweight champion Miesha Tate, who won the title via submission against Holly Holm at UFC 196 earlier this month.
Holm has already expressed interest in facing Justino even at a catchweight of 140 pounds.
"I've been hearing rumors or something that supposedly she's coming to the UFC. But I've been hearing it for such a long time, I just don't really know and I haven't had that confirmed. But I am open to that fight, maybe doing a catchweight at 140," Holm said last week via MMA Junkie.
And as for the long proposed showdown with Rousey, Justino said that she is open to facing the former champion, but she is unsure if the 29-year-old is also willing to face her.
"I would love to fight Ronda. [But the] question is: does Ronda want to fight me?" Justino said.
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