UFC announced the first-ever women’s 145-pound title fight which features Holly Holm vs. Germaine de Randamie at UFC 208. The event is in Brooklyn, NY on Feb. 11, 2017. Absent from the title bout? Cris Cyborg. Here’s what Dana said in an interview with ESPN.com about claims he is disrespectful.
We’re out to disrespect Cyborg? She said she couldn’t make 145 pounds in eight weeks. We offered her a second and a third fight. She turned them down. With everything I’ve got going on in my life, the last thing I’m thinking is, ‘Hey, let’s get together and disrespect Cyborg.’
We offered three fights, and she turned them all down. This is a business. I had two girls who wanted to fight for the 145-pound title. This is the pros. If you play for the Patriots, you don’t sit around and say, ‘I don’t feel like playing this weekend.’ We brought her in because she said she could make 135 pounds. When she couldn’t, the weight cut was too hard, we created the 145-pound division — and she still doesn’t want to fight.
What do you think? Is the UFC right in not including her?