According to a source close to FightLine, reigning Bellator champion Cris Cyborg is “scared” of a potential showdown with Kayla HarrisonPFL Champion Kayla Harrison Returns To Action Once More.
At the end of 2020, Harrison stepped into the Invicta FC cage and moved up in weight to find a new challenge. Her readiness at any moment to compete continued before another planned fight was scrapped.
The reigning Professional Fighters League lightweight champion and Olympic gold medalist will return to the PFL cage in early 2021 when the new season begins.
However, she remained interested in a potential mega-bout with Cyborg if things could be worked out.
The source has indicated that Cyborg prefers to remain strictly in Bellator MMA and continue her dominance there instead of testing herself against Harrison.
Harrison has been willing to move from lightweight to featherweight to make things happen for herself in continued the climb to being the top female fighter the sport has to offer.
She is 8-0 including a recent finish of Courtney King. Harrison has won all seven of her fights under the PFL banner including a 2019 decision vs. Larissa Pacheco in the tournament final.
Prior to embarking on her career in MMA, Harrison compiled a record of 45-7 in judo including gold at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games and 2012 Summer Olympic Games.
PFL officials allowed Harrison to step into the Invicta FC cage in November and were willing to do the same for a December match in Titan FC.
Cyborg signed with Bellator and made her promotional debut in 2020 with a finish of Julia Budd to win the featherweight title. She defended it last October over Arlene Blencowe.
Along with winning gold in Bellator, the Brazilian is also a former UFC and Strikeforce champion, sporting a career record of 23-2 overall with 18 wins by knockout.
Any showdown between Harrison and Cyborg now appears off the table as both move forward with their respective careers. We will continue to monitor and follow this situation on TheMix.