Carlos Barreto: PFL Should Make Cris ‘Cyborg’ vs. Kayla Harrison Next

Professional Fighters League founder Donn Davis recently said that Bellator featherweight champion Cristiane Justino will face 2023 PFL 145-pound champ Larissa Pacheco in her next bout.

Carlos Barreto has other ideas. The UFC Fight Pass Brazil commentator declared on his "Papo de Luta" podcast that he believes Kayla Harrison should be the next opponent for “Cyborg.”

"We know that the idea is to pit champion versus champion, but just like [Francis] Ngannou vs. [Bellator heavyweight champ] Ryan Bader should take place instead of Bader vs. Renan Ferreira, because that would be a more entertaining fight for the audience, I believe Mr. Davis should use the same thought process to put Kayla and Cyborg first,” he said.

According to Barreto, the reason is not just fan interest but the possibility of “Cyborg” losing to Pacheco.

"Brazilian fans would probably rather see Cris vs Larissa, but we are talking about world marketing,” he said. “Kayla and Cyborg have been attacking each other on their social media for a long time. That would sell a lot in the U.S. and also in the rest of the world. One of the best knockout artists in female MMA history against the grappling ace and two-time Olympic judo champion.

“If they make Larissa vs. ‘Cyborg’ first, I see real chances for Cris to lose. If we take into account the low level of the opponents she is facing lately and the technical growth of Larissa in the past year, that can be a bad matchup for ‘Cyborg’ now. And if Larissa wins, it wouldn't make any sense to make Cyborg and Kayla after, since Kayla would say, ‘I already beat Larissa twice. She beat me once in a close decision.’ So that will be a really hard mission for PFL matchmakers deal with. If I were them I would ask the champion, Larissa, to wait and face the winner in the sequence. And that´s not a bad request from a boss who paid 2 million dollars to his employee in the last 12 months.”