MMA

Battle of the Giants: Cris Cyborg vs. Larissa Pacheco keys to victory

Amy Kaplan

PFL

Watch Cyborg vs. Pacheco on Saturday on DAZN PPV

The women's featherweight division's biggest fight is the co-main event.

The co-main event for the epic Battle of the Giants card is a women's featherweight match between former UFC champion and current Bellator champion Cris "Cyborg" Justino and PFL double champion Larissa Pacheco.

Cyborg will be making her debut under the PFL banner in a big way when she looks to dethrone PFL's queen, Pacheco. The two Brazilian stand-outs have been going back and forth on social media since PFL bought Bellator and the fight has finally been made.

Pacheco is best known for being the first and only woman to hand Kayla Harrison a loss in MMA when she captured the featherweight title in 2022. Pacheco returned to PFL in 2023 and captured the bantamweight title as well. She is, to date, the only PFL fighter to hold titles in two different divisions.

Here's what they'll need to do if they want to see their hands raised on Saturday night.

Cris Cyborg's keys to victory

Striking

Cyborg hasn't fought in the MMA cage since October 2023 but that isn't because of inactivity. She was busy boxing (much like Francis Ngannou was). She'll want to use the boxing skills she picked up in her two recent boxing wins to edge out Pacheco.

Experience

Cyborg must lean on her experience, which translates into fight IQ when fighting Pacheco. Cyborg's fought the best of the best and Pacheco hasn't fought the same level of competition. Cyborg must trust herself and her experience and intuition to get this win.

Don't be afraid of the ground

Both women are known for their striking but Cyborg is an excellent grappler and even defeated Arelene Blencowe via a rear-naked choke. If things get dicey in there, Cyborg should not be afraid to take Pacheco to the ground and finish the fight there.

Larissa Pacheco's keys to victory

Be first

This is a fairly evenly matched fight so the key to winning might be as simple as being the first. Pacheco needs to get Cyborg on the defensive as quickly as possible so she can control the fight.

Confidence

The mind is a powerful tool and Pacheco needs to believe in herself. She'll be standing across the cage from one of the biggest names in WMMA and an icon, but she can't let that faze her.

Let her hands go

Pacheco needs to let her hands go and trust her strength to overpower Cyborg. She has youth on her side and if she can do what Amanda Nunes did to Cyborg, she could win this one in the first or second round.

Watch Cyborg vs. Pacheco & Ngannou vs. Ferreira on DAZN

Watch Cris "Cyborg" Justino vs. Larissa Pacheco, and Francis Ngannou's return to the cage against Renan Ferreira in the PFL Super Fights: Battle of the Giants this Saturday on DAZN Pay-Per-View.

The PPV is priced at £19.99 for UK viewers to watch all 10 fights on the card on any device, including Smart TV's, game consoles, phones, tablets and PC's.

To purchase and find the prices in your region click here.

Purchasing the PPV includes a seven-day free trial of all of DAZN's programming across a range of sports.

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