LAS VEGAS -- If you're looking for the person least surprised that Jorina Baars defeated Cris Cyborg on Friday night at Lion Fight 14, look no further than Baars herself. <\/p>\n
\"I'm a Muay Thai fighter. She's an MMA fighter,\" Baars told MMAFighting.com following her upset win. \"I will beat her. That's every opponent, I will beat them. It's my sport. It's my style.\" <\/p>\n
Baars, 25, while not as outwardly menacing as the current Invicta FC featherweight champion, is nonetheless undefeated over the course of her professional kickboxing career, which includes several title-winning performances. <\/p>\n
The Netherlands native's reputation is said to have grown so imposing that it forced her into inactivity for three years, as no fighter in Europe was willing to challenge her. <\/p>\n
\"I'm never intimidated of an opponent,\" Baars said. \"The gameplan was to put Cris in my range and stick with the knees, and when she comes in, put a knee up or a kick push attempt in her face. It worked.\" <\/p>\n
Baars knocked Cyborg down early in the opening frame with a front kick, then continued to unload a steady diet of hard knees and kicks to ultimately score a unanimous decision win by scores of 49-45, 48-45 and 49-44, capturing the inaugural Lions Fight women's welterweight title. <\/p>\n
Yet Cyborg, a relative newcomer to the sport of Muay Thai, was anything but dismayed in defeat. <\/p>\n
\"I'm so happy because I gave her five rounds with her, a champion of Muay Thai,\" Cyborg said. \"No girl wants to fight her. She hasn't fought in three years. <\/p>\n
\"She's had eight belts and 38 fights, zero (losses). She's never lost. I have two fights in Muay Thai. <\/p>\n
\"She had a good gameplan against me,\" Cyborg added. \"She's tall. It's hard to punch her in the face. ... The first round I said, okay, I can lose this fight. But I fought hard, I was ready for a war.\" <\/p>\n
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Baars after defeating Cyborg says 'It's my sport'<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" LAS VEGAS -- If you're looking for the person least surprised that Jorina Baars defeated Cris Cyborg on Friday night at Lion Fight 14, look no further than Baars herself. \"I'm a Muay Thai fighter. She's an MMA fighter,\" Baars told MMAFighting.com following her upset win. Continue reading