It’s not often that epic title fights such as Cris Cyborg versus Tonya Evinger go under the radar, but then again, it is not often that fight cards are as stacked as UFC 214 is. These two warriors will go to war for the vacant UFC female featherweight title on August 26th and it’s sure to be an interesting battle. Cyborg has been in the news lately for a violent incident outside of the Octagon with Angela Magana, so she will be keen to create new headlines by becoming a UFC champion as soon as she possibly can.
As a fighter, she has been touted as a potential title-holder ever since the women’s divisions were made in the UFC and this is her big chance.
Cris Cyborg’s form
Cyborg’s form in the UFC is clear for everyone to see; two fights and two clear wins. In truth, she looked a class above both ladies she has taken on – Lina Lansberg and Leslie Smith. Prior to that, her form is just as impressive.
Her record is an amazing 17 wins and just one loss.
That loss can be considered ancient history too; it happened all the way back in 2005 in her opening MMA bout. In the fight game, that is a lifetime ago.
In truth, there is almost nobody tougher in women’s MMA today and Cyborg deserves this chance to prove that.
Tonya Evinger’s form
Evinger is no pushover though. Her record of 19 wins and five losses demonstrates a fighter that is tougher than most and one that also has extensive experience. That experience will be vital if she wants to survive in the octagon against a competitor as vicious as Cyborg.
Her last loss came all the way back in 2011, so she is also a fighter who has been growing experience and form. Her last fight against Yana Kunitskaya saw an impressive Evinger win by a second round submission.
To be able to defeat such a tough fighter with such ease indicates that Evinger is also one of the toughest women in MMA today.
News
The big news story regarding this fight was Cyborg’s interaction with Angela Magana at the UFC retreat. It is alleged that a fight broke out between the two women and Cyborg physically attacked her.
It is also reported that Magala is taking legal action regarding that. One would wonder what sort of affect this will have on Cyborg in the lead-up to the biggest fight of her career. Of course, she is a tough competitor; nonetheless it is difficult to envisage a scenario where this didn’t affect her preparation.
The 32-year-old fighter will have to everything within her power to block it all out on August 26th.
Betting tips
Cris Cyborg is one of the toughest people on the planet and there aren’t many competitors at her level. That is reflected in her odds for this fight too, being 1/12 with Ladbrokes. However, every one has an off day and we just can’t ignore the 15/2 odds on offer with Coral for a Evinger win.
Of course, everything will have to go right for her for that to come to fruitition, but she is an excellent fighter who has plenty of experience and the octagon has seen such upsets before; for instance, Holly Holm’s win against Ronda Rousey and Nate Diaz’ submission victory over Conor McGregor.
We are going to go for the underdog with this one as the odds are too generous to ignore.