Cris Cyborg is finally going to get her shot at becoming a UFC champion next week (Sat. July 29, 2017) at the UFC's 214 pay-per-view (PPV) from California.

The Brazilian is part of a stacked card that features three title fights. The main event is set to host a light heavyweight championship bout between champion Daniel Cormier and hated rival Jon Jones, while welterweight champion Tyron Woodley defends his throne against jiu-jitsu whiz and UFC veteran Demian Maia. 

In the third title fight of the night, however, longtime Invicta FC featherweight champion Cris "Cyborg" Justino finally gets her shot at becoming a UFC champion, as she takes on former Invicta FC bantamweight champ Tonya Evinger for the vacant female UFC featherweight title.

Cyborg recently had an online chat with Brazilian reporters, and explained why she considers this fight with Evinger her fist title defense of her UFC career (quotes via MMA Junkie):

“Actually, the way I see it, this fight to me is a title defense,” Justino said during an online chat with Brazilian reporters. “I didn’t lose my belt. I left it vacant.

"The way I see it, it will be a title defense. In the eyes of some people, it’s more valuable than the belt I already carried. But, for me, it’s yet another defense.

“I’ve always trained and dedicated myself as if I was the No. 1 contender, even already being the champion.”

“I think that, since the UFC took so long to create the 145-pound division, most athletes signed with Bellator,” Justino said. “And that’s why the girls in my division with a bigger name are in Bellator.

"Some are still at Invicta, too – and I was supposed to fight one of them in Megan Anderson. But, due to lack of documents, she’s not able to fight. And her irresponsibility, too.

“Tonya accepted it a month before the fight, saving the event and my chance to fight. She’s from a lower division, but she’s a top-10 at 135 pounds. She just never had a chance to fight in the UFC.

"And she’s brave. I respect her for accepting the fight on short-notice. Like it or not, it’s a great opportunity for her to showcase her work in the UFC and, who knows, open doors for her to fight at 135.”

“Maybe she wanted to go back to her division, get the 135-pound belt, be the first one to get the two belts,” Justino said. “She acted in bad faith. She knew she’d have to fight me to defend the belt.

“You see it happening a lot in MMA over the past two or three years, a lot of people who are right there to fight for the belt are being held back. I don’t think that’s fair. I think if you’re the champ, you need to face whomever’s prepared to fight for the belt.”

What are your thoughts on Cyborg considering this fight her first UFC featherweight title defense? Let us know in the comments section below!