The champion vs. champion superfight between Cris Cyborg and Amanda Nunes at UFC 232 at the end of the year is a high-stakes affair. Cyborg is putting her featherweight title on the line, and according to many, this fight will determine who should carry the honor of Greatest Female Fighter of All Time. But for Cyborg, this fight is more than that, it’s a fight for the honor of her home country.
In the recent past, Nunes’ American Top Team teammate Colby Covington has repeatedly insulted the nation of Brazil, including calling Brazilian fans “filthy animals” last year at UFC Sao Paulo. As a native Brazilian, Cyborg has taken umbrage with Covington’s comments and believes that Nunes, also a native Brazilian, is a traitor for continuing to train alongside Covington.
“‘Creonte’ is a Brazilian word that means traitor,” Cyborg told FanSided recently. “I think it’s embarrassing that the UFC made Amanda the first female Brazilian champion and instead of representing Brazil when she fights, she calls herself American Top Team. She disrespects Brazilian MMA fans every time she walks into the cage as a part of American Top Team.”
“This is the same gym as Colby Covington. He disrespected Brazil so badly that the UFC was worried they didn’t have enough security to keep him safe and had to move his fight against [Rafael dos Anjos] to the USA instead of Brazil. Yet Nunes goes into the gym every day to train alongside Colby Covington and even shares the same coaches. Where I’m from in Brazil this would never happen. Imagine Chael Sonnen walking into Chute Boxe and training with Wanderlei Silva, Anderson Silva, or any of the coaches. Do you think they would have let him train after all the things he said about Brazil? No. They would have defended Brazil’s honor. Amanda doesn’t have that same respect for Brazil.”
Cyborg went on to repeat her stance on Twitter, saying that despite her American citizenship, she will never stop being Brazilian and would not tolerate that level of disrespect from a teammate.
Nunes’ betrayal appears to have struck a chord with Cyborg who went on to explain that the reason she was so reluctant to fight Nunes when Nunes was calling her out last year was that she wanted the Brazilian champions to stick together. But, Cyborg says, now that she realizes that Nunes doesn’t have any loyalty to her country, Cyborg is planning on teaching her a lesson inside the cage.
“When she called me out last year at first I didn’t want to fight her,” Cyborg continued. “I wanted to see all the women divisions run by the Brazilians. Myself, Amanda, [Jessica] Andrade, we could have all been champions and I thought it would bring pride back to all of Brazil. But Nunes is from a Team of ‘creontes.’ At American Top Team it is normal for teammates to fight each other. She called me out last year but then wanted a year before we can fight. When I fight her Dec. 29 it will be for everyone in Brazil, and it will be to teach Nunes a lesson about respect.”
Cyborg has not been defeated in MMA in over 13 years and won the UFC women’s featherweight title at UFC 214 and has defended her belt twice since then. Amanda Nunes won the UFC women’s bantamweight title at UFC 200 and has defended her title three times since then. The two will square off at UFC 232 on Dec. 29th in Las Vegas, Nev. in the first ever UFC women’s champion vs. champion fight.
