Good Brazilian blended martial artist Cris Cyborg proved as soon as extra why she is a one-off, wrecking-ball fighter as she tore by way of the problem of opponent Arlene Blencowe to retain her Bellator ladies’s featherweight title inside two rounds at Mohegan Solar in Connecticut.

With one other dominant show, the champion in each main organisation continues the legacy created during the last fifteen years with this victory. Cyborg’s most famed moments towards now WWE star Shayna Baszler on CBS and her battle 14 years in the past towards now Hollywood motion star Gina Carano on Showtime – present Bellator president Scott Coker made that struggle – are there in wonderful technicolour in a profession of pioneering the ladies’s aspect of this sport.

Cyborg’s solely excessive profile defeat was a stand-and-bang brawl with present UFC champion Amanda Nunes – a struggle which might have gone both means as they let their fingers go, and there’ll seemingly be an enormous rematch of the 2 hardest hitters ever in ladies’s MMA down the road.

However for now, Cyborg merely appears to be getting higher and at 35, she is displaying no indicators of slowing. Right here, towards Blencowe, a former boxing world champion, the opposition was blown away, dominated and submitted by the champion. It’s arduous to see who will probably be a real pretender to the throne that the Brazilian inhabits.

Cyborg registered the primary submission of her profession – 21 victories and two defeats in a sport the place unblemished information on the elite finish are nearly unattainable – after dominating the exchanges within the stand-up. She first attacked her challenger with leg kicks. Then, with educated counter-striking, Cyborg pushed Blencowe again in direction of the cage wall, marshalling her foe away from the centre circle, earlier than overpowering her and bludgeoning her on the bottom. Blencowe barely survived the primary spherical, the struggle statistics displaying the utter dominance of the champion.

The second stanza was merely extra of the identical. Despite Blencowe making an attempt as she may to get into the struggle to achieve a foothold, the sample was set and Cyborg took management once more, earlier than taking the struggle to the canvas like an enormous anaconda, urgent her Australian rival flat, bloodying her and submitting her foe.

After her newest demolition – Cyborg did a lot of the identical to Canadian Julia Budd over 4 rounds to say the crown again in a distinct world then in Los Angeles in January – it’s tough to see how the very best of challengers will overcome her.

I watched Cyborg defeat Budd reside at The Discussion board in January and he or she is a daunting prospect reside given the depth with which the Brazilian fights. “I need to thank Scott Coker and Bellator for this chance at this level in my profession,” stated Cyborg. “The roster at 145 kilos is rising and is the very best on this planet with so many signings, and I’ll struggle anybody who Bellator places in entrance of me.”

This softly spoken, sort lady exterior the cage who does charity work for impoverished African kids and who lives the life within the health club, actually is a one-off, a pioneer of the game and of girls’s sport. We must always treasure her skills whereas she remains to be with us, combating and delighting.

Bellator 249: Cyborg vs. Blencowe

Important Card outcomes from Mohegan Solar Resort, Conn.

Cris “Cyborg” (23-2) defeated Arlene Blencowe (13-8) through submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:46 of spherical two

Leandro Higo (20-5) defeated Ricky Bandejas (13-5) through submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:32 of spherical two

Steve Mowry (8-0) defeated Shawn Teed (6-3-1) through TKO at 4:22 of spherical one

Saad Awad (23-13, 1 NC) and Mandel Nallo (7-1, 1 NC) led to a no contest (unintentional low blow)

Preliminary Card:

Andrew Kapel (16-7) defeated Joseph Creer (7-2-1) through TKO (physician’s stoppage – minimize) at 5:00 of spherical two

Kemran Lachinov (10-2) defeated Kyle Crutchmer (6-1) through unanimous resolution (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Christian Edwards (4-0) defeated Hamza Salim (5-4) through submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:38 of spherical two

Da’mon Blackshear (8-3) defeated Mike Kimbel (3-3) through submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:14 of spherical two

Aviv Gozali (5-0) defeated Logan Neal (1-1) through submission (kimura) at 3:22 of spherical one

Albert Gonzales (2-2) defeated Kastriot Xhema (3-5, 1 NC) through TKO (fighter retirement) at 5:00 of spherical two.