Cris Cyborg targets boxing world title in stunning retirement plan that could include Holly Holm rematch
Cris Cyborg is a competitor at heart, so it’s easy to believe her ambitious retirement plan.
The 40-year-old returns to MMA on Saturday, as she faces Sara Collins at PFL Lyon for the women’s featherweight title.
The Brazilian hasn’t fought in her beloved sport since she defeated Larissa Pacheco in October 2024 in Saudi Arabia.
She outpointed Pacheco on the same card Francis Ngannou made his PFL debut, earning the praise of UFC great Jon Jones, who said he was ‘incredibly proud’ of Cyborg showing how it’s done.
Cyborg then contested three boxing fights, winning them all while extending her professional record to 5-0.
As she prepares to put back on the lighter gloves in Lyon, ex-UFC champion Cyborg has revealed that she isn’t entirely satisfied with the MMA world titles she has earned across five organisations.
Cyborg told talkSPORT.com that she will have one more MMA fight after fighting Collins before switching back to boxing with a big goal in mind.
Cris Cyborg: I want boxing world title after retiring from MMA
“I have this year, next year, and then I’m gonna retire,” Cyborg, who made her pro MMA debut in 2005, said.
“But I love my job. I love work, so this is motivating me every day and I’m very thankful to the fans who have supported me for 20 years in my career.
“I always like to be training, but [it’s good] when you have a fight to train differently, and I really love boxing.
“I had my first fight in 2022 and now I’ve stopped. Once I’m done in MMA, I will start to put forward training for boxing, learning, and I would like to finish my career trying to fight for a world title in boxing.
“I know it’s a lot of things to think, but it’s one thing to motivate me every morning to train. I’m focused now on Sara Collins, but after that, for sure, I’m gonna go back to boxing.”
Cyborg named Northern Irish star Leah McCourt as a potential opponent for her retirement fight, revealing that there have been discussions to stage it in her native Brazil.
Her intentions to pursue a boxing world title afterwards has opened up the possibility of a potential rematch.
Cyborg vs Holly Holm 2?
Cyborg fought Holly Holm during her reign as UFC champion in 2017, defeating the American at UFC 219 in a Fight of the Night-winning main event bout.
Holm, who boasts an incredible pro boxing record of 34-2-3, is set to face WBA lightweight champion Stephanie Han on January 3.
So that begs the question of whether Cyborg would be interested in running it back with ‘The Preacher’s Daughter’ as she eyes a world title.
“Holly is an amazing fighter, athlete and person,” Cyborg said.
“I have had the opportunity to meet her in person and be with her a couple of days training together.
“I’m really excited for her. She is motivated every day, so she’s motivated me too. I think it’s really nice. It’s a great opportunity for her.
“She came from boxing, challenged herself in MMA, made history, and now she’s back to boxing. It’s an amazing story and I’m really happy support her.”
When pressed on whether she would say yes to a Holm post-fight callout, Cyborg concluded: “I love Holly, she’s my friend.”
“[But] knowing different boxing divisions, I fight 154lbs, you know, we never know if they pay good we are professional.
“But let’s support Holly for her next title.”
Holm vs Han acts as the co-main event to Amanda Serrano vs Erika Cruz under the Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) banner in January.
Cyborg said there have been ‘a little bit’ of conversations with the Jake Paul-owned promotion, but insisted she was focused on her PFL Lyon bout for now.
The full interview with Cris Cyborg is available now on the talkSPORT MMA YouTube channel
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