Kayla Harrison hints at Bellator move to face rival Cris Cyborg: “My contract is up in December”

By Josh Evanoff - May 11, 2023

PFL women’s lightweight star Kayla Harrison is still eyeing a fight against Cris Cyborg.

The Judoka has been out of the cage since her trilogy bout against Larissa Pacheco last November. In their first two outings, Harrison dominated the Brazilian, not even losing a round. However, in a massive upset last year, Pacheco scored a unanimous decision victory. In the process, she handed Harrison the first defeat of her MMA career.

Six months on from that defeat, the former tournament winner isn’t any closer to returning to the cage. Harrison announced her plans pre-fight to forgo the standard tournament format in favor of competing in their PFL Superfight division. Jake Paul is also a part of the special class of fighters, that is expected to compete on pay-per-view.

However, it seems that Kayla Harrison might not be around in PFL for the long haul. In a recent interview with MMA Junkie, the women’s lightweight contender teased a potential clash against Cris Cyborg. Harrison and the Brazilian have been going back and forth for the better part of a year. Earlier this month, Cyborg ended her free agency to re-sign with Bellator.

With a fight with the Brazilian seemingly off the table in the PFL, Harrison is willing to leave the promotion. In the interview, she stated that her contract ends in December, and Bellator knows where she is.

Ali Abdelaziz, Kayla Harrison

Kayla Harrison discusses possible move to Bellator to fight Cris Cyborg

“The goal was for me to fight Cyborg,” Kayla Harrison stated in the interview. “I know the PFL pushed hard for that, and it was my goal as well. That’s why I’ve been quiet, haven’t made a lot of noise. I wanted to be in the season, but I understood their reservations on that. They really felt that my best use would be in a big-name pay-per-view fight and that looks like that’s not going to happen.”

She continued, “…I thought it was going to happen. This is the second time in my life where I was like ‘Okay, this is happening, get ready’ and it didn’t happen. But I never say never, my contract is up in December. Bellator knows where I am at, and I would love to make that fight happen.”

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Cris 'Cyborg' Justino Kayla Harrison