Cyborg beats Lansberg bloody for 2nd-round TKO
Cris Cyborg beat Lina Lansberg like she was the one responsible for her agonizing weight cut.
Cyborg bludgeoned Lansberg with strikes for a second-round TKO in their 140-pound catchweight main event at UFC Fight Night 95 in Brazil on Saturday.
The Invicta featherweight champ put Lansberg on her back and rained a seemingly endless barrage of hammerfists on her until referee Mario Yamasaki mercifully intervened for the stoppage. Cyborg not only played foil to Lansberg's UFC debut with the finish, she preserved her 11-year unbeaten streak and seven-year knockout run – a 2011 no-contest notwithstanding.
The Brazilian stalked Lansberg against the cage and put in most of her early work from the clinch, throwing a steady slew of knees to the Swede's legs and body. The pair briefly tangled on the ground after a Cyborg takedown, but Lansberg would return to her feet and eat a hefty diet of leather with her back against the cage to close out Round 1.
@criscyborg arrasou a Lansberg #GirlPower #UFCBrasilia #UFCBrasiliaNoCombate pic.twitter.com/e3FplhFROT
— VeraRegina (@veraregina14) September 25, 2016
Lansberg's fortunes wouldn't change in the second and final round, as Cyborg revved her already endless motor to land consecutive body kicks and punches before sending her back to the canvas to secure the TKO.
Dang. #Cyborg #UFC pic.twitter.com/9LtLPEKtiZ
— Jason Elkins (@Jason_Elkins) September 25, 2016
In preparation for another grueling weight cut, Cyborg had resorted to birth control pills to make the 141-pound limit, and while she admitted the unorthodox tactic had her body feeling out of sorts, she looked every bit her deadly self come fight night. The 31-year-old said post-fight she'd only continue competing at the 140-pound catchweight if rewarded with a top-10 opponent.
Despite being handily bloodied, Lansberg impressed, if only with her sheer resolve to make it through the first-round havoc Cyborg unleashed on her. She betrayed a lack of defensive grappling acumen in what little time they spent on the ground, and her positioning in the clinch only made the Brazilian's job that much easier. She'll likely return to her natural bantamweight division in her next Octagon appearance.
Lansberg's professional record falls to 6-2.