Cyborg Justino: Ronda Rousey is afraid to say my name

Marcus Dinitto

Cyborg Justino: Ronda Rousey is afraid to say my name image

While fight fans should not hold their breath as they wait for Ronda Rousey to return to the Octagon, Cristiane "Cyborg" Justino is challenging the former UFC bantamweight champ to a bout on Super Bowl Sunday.

Justino is 17-1 and regarded as the most dominant woman in mixed martial arts.

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She appeared Thursday on FS1's "Speak for Yourself," where host Jason Whitlock did his best to stoke the fire.

"To me, it feels like Ronda is afraid of you. You think that's fair?" Whitlock said.

Justino responded by invoking the movie "Candyman," which is about a monster who is summoned when someone says his name. She also used Instagram to provoke Rousey with the "Candyman" theme.

"Ronda doesn't say anything," Justino told Whitlock (via mmafighting.com). "She doesn't even say my name. She used (UFC president) Dana White and her mother to talk to me, because she knows if she says my name, she'll have to fight me. She knows this."

Should Rousey decide to step into the Octagon with Justino, it won't turn out well for her, Justino promises.

"I watched her shadowbox, and the shadow won," Justino said. "My last fight, I broke the nose of the girl in three places. And if I fight her, she'll have to do surgery on her face after. I'm not kidding."

Besides Rousey's perceived hesitance, the fighters' difference in weight is another potential obstacle to a superbout. Justino's ideal fighting weight is 145 pounds, but she is willing to fight Rousey at a catchweight of 140. Rousey would rather fight at 135.

While White has touted the possibility of Rousey returning at UFC 207 in December to take on current champ Amanda Nunes, plenty of doubts remain about whether that will happen.

Rousey has stayed mum, and the latest from White is that knee surgery could delay her return until 2017.

Again, the fight world should not hold its breath.

Marcus Dinitto