Cat Zingano thinks long-discussed shot at Bellator champ Cris Cyborg should be next

UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Cat Zingano moved to 3-0 under the Bellator banner Friday, but it didn’t come without some discomfort.

Zingano (13-4 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) dominated Pam Sorenson (9-5 MMA, 1-2 BMMA) in their women’s featherweight bout at the Bellator 282 preliminary card at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. She lost a point for an illegal knee, and when she threw another knee later, she wound up tweaking it – and said that led to a change in game plan the rest of the way.

“I’m happy with the performance,” Zingano told MMA Junkie after the fight. “I feel like I was very dominant. I get (to top position on the canvas) a lot and I stay there a lot, and I feel like I cause a lot of damage. It’s a very comfortable, happy place for me. I feel like I want to be doing more.

“I feel like I got some really good head kicks off on her and at one point, I watched one land and as I turned away, I just watched her head start dripping. I’m like, ‘Damn, she’s got a chin. That didn’t do anything but cut her.’ I cut her again and I cut her again, and it still wasn’t fazing her. … Once I hurt my knee, it was just top game and try to cut her up and see if I can get a finish from there.”

Zingano, who fought Ronda Rousey for the UFC women’s bantamweight title in 2015, has wins over Gabrielle Holloway, Olivia Parker and now Sorenson since she came to Bellator with one win each in 2020, 2021 and 2022.

She’s in the unique position of having a stoppage win over former UFC dual champ Amanda Nunes on her resume, as well as former UFC champ Miesha Tate. Nunes is the one who dethroned Cyborg for the UFC women’s featherweight title and took the crown as who many consider the best women’s fighter of all time.

Cyborg (26-2 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) is coming off a decision win over Arlene Blencowe in April to defend the 145-pound title. Bellator’s women’s featherweight division isn’t so deep that there are many options beyond Zingano, and she thinks she should be next in line.

“I do (think I should get a title shot),” Zingano said. “I feel like I’ve done a good job moving up the ranks in Bellator and getting the experience. The environment is here. Me and Cyborg are here. We’ve both been talking about each other for quite a while. Putting it together obviously makes a lot of sense.

“I think we have very different styles, and different styles make awesome matchups. I think that’s cool and I think it’ll be interesting. We’re both OGs and we both came from training in the same kind of hard-knocks environments to come up and still figuring it out and making it happen.”

Check out Zingano’s full post-fight interview in the video above.