Well, it looks like PFL Tampa might not be Cris Cyborg's farewell after all.
The PFL has dubbed Cyborg's (29-2) main event bout against former UFC contender and recent signee Ketlen Vieira (16-5) as her retirement from MMA. Although that might still be the case, Cyborg revealed to MMA Junkie that her MMA retirement is not set in stone. Cyborg's women's featherweight title defense on Saturday will be her last fight on her current PFL deal, and she's undecided on whether she'll compete beyond that.
"This could be my last fight, but this is my last fight in my contract," Cyborg told MMA Junkie Radio. "I'm really focused on Ketlen Vieira, but I'm not sure what's going to happen after. These last two years, I've been saying maybe it can be my last year,
my last year, and I have a lot of projects after I retire, but this is going to be my last fight in my contract. Maybe, maybe (I'll continue fighting). I'm not sure it's going to happen."
Cyborg has been contemplating retirement for quite some time, given her age and her 20 years of fighting professionally in MMA. However, despite the mileage, she still feels elite, and her PFL women's featherweight title proves it.
"These last three years, I've always been saying it could be my last fight," Cyborg said. "Even with my team, I already planned my life: 'OK, this can be my last fight these last three years.' I think it's important you set up like this, because of my age; I'm 41 years old. I know I'm fighting better than (when I was) 21 years. I feel better at 41 than 21. I train smart; I recover. I do everything for me, so I can compete on a higher level, continue to compete at a higher level at 41 years of age. I'm very grateful. I just focus now on this fight. I know anything could happen.
"It was amazing what happened with MVP merging with PFL. I think then, together, we can be strong. It can be amazing for mixed martial arts. Even Jake Paul is saying, 'If you guys are free agents, come to me, I'm going to make you make money,' so let's see what's going to happen. My focus now is to get ready and be ready for this next fight, and after that, you can think about it. I have a lot of plans after I retire. I've already been doing the plans, but I'm going to have to give it 100 percent for this fight first."
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Cris Cyborg walks back retirement talk ahead of PFL Tampa
