Kayla Harrison Accused Of Ducking Cyborg And Pacheco
Donn Davis has said Kayla Harrison is ducking Cris Cyborg and Larissa Pacheco.
Harrison left the PFL to sign with the UFC as she made her debut at UFC 300. She defeated Holly Holm in a bantamweight clash to mark a successful start to her UFC career. She is scheduled to face Ketlen Vieira at UFC 307 as she eyes a future title fight against Raquel Pennington. During her time in the PFL, Harrison faced Pacheco.
She had already beaten her twice before Pacheco gave her the first career loss in their last fight. Harrison was also linked with a fight against Cyborg. Davis expected the fight to happen after the PFL bought Bellator. Despite attempts to make the fight, it never happened, as Harrison chose the UFC. That would have been the biggest fight in the PFL, given Cyborg’s record. Cyborg is the only person in the history of MMA to have won titles in Strikeforce, Invicta FC, UFC, and Bellator MMA. She is also recognized as one of the best P4P fighters. And yet, fans did not get the chance to see that mega fight.
Davis Reacts
“We brought Kayla into MMA from the Olympics, developed her into an 18-1 star, two-time champion, and one of the greatest women, top five in the sport today. (I have) nothing but pride for that and nothing but respect for Kayla as a competitor.
To build the company, I want every great fighter here. I’m disappointed that we couldn’t keep Kayla here for, what I think, are the two biggest fights of her legacy and her career: avenging Pacheco and winning the championship, and beating Cyborg, who is the greatest ever.
“I think those are the two toughest fights ahead of Kayla. I don’t like that she ran from those. [And] I don’t like that she ran to a brand to validate herself. I think so highly of Kayla Harrison. She doesn’t need a brand to validate her. She’s that great. .. So that disappointed me,” Davis said
Other Fights
Nevertheless, there are still other big fights on the horizon. The PFL will see Francis Ngannou make his PFL debut on October 19 against Renan Ferreira. This will be Ngannou’s first MMA fight since beating Ciryl Gane at UFC 270. He would then leave the UFC after contract talks broke down. He reportedly turned down an $8 million offer, feeling that his rights as an independent contractor would suffer.
Ngannou signed with the PFL, boxing twice to secure his financial future. Now, fans will see whether Ngannou still has the skill set. Davis has also confirmed that Jake Paul is expected to make his PFL debut next year, with names such as Ben Askren and even Tommy Fury being linked. Davis expected big things for the organization, starting with the Ngannou fight.
“Dana White talks about his $20million Sphere event; this is more. Fighters here make more. The card here that will be announced has more big fights coming. This cost to us is more than his cost at The Sphere,” Davis said
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