Cris Cyborg wins CBS Sports Award for Fighter of The Year

Cris Cyborg was one of only a few fighters to get the opportunity to compete more than once in 2020, and she made the most of both of her efforts.  In January at Bellator 238 Cris Cyborg became the only professional fighter in the history of Mixed Martial Arts to win every significant world Championship in the sport.

Having already captured the UFC, Invicta, and StrikeForce Championships Cris Cyborg handed Julia Budd her first defeat in nearly 8 years of Mixed Martial Arts competition to become MMA’s only Grand Slam Championship after adding every 145lbs Championship in the sport to her resume.

Returning in Oct, Cris Cyborg would compete without a live crowd in attendance for the first time when she faced 2x World Boxing Champion Arlene Blencowe at Bellator 249 picking up her first career submission in the 2nd round by RNC.  With the victory Cyborg became the only fighter in the history of MMA to win both the UFC and Bellator MMA Championships and successfully defend both titles.

Honorable mentions: Patricio Pitbull, Vadim Nemkov, Juan Archuleta, Tim Johnson, Juliana Velasquez

To see the full results of the CBS Sports Awards Click Here.