Last Friday, February 28th, UFC color commentator Joe Rogan went on the KRQQ Kevin & Bean Show and let it slip that a “huge announcement will come about women’s fighting” within about a week. As it often does, the MMA rumor mill went into overdrive. The most prominent rumor circulating is that the UFC is working on coaxing fighter turned movie star Gina Carano into returning to the cage, for a bout with the current UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey.
While Dana White apparently put the kibosh to the rumor, this would be far from the first time a fight promoter hasn’t been entirely truthful with the media. Though the purported bout has been met with (admittedly fair) criticism, I am actually in favor of the fight for a couple of reasons.
In terms of pure sport, the match spits in the face of fair matchmaking. Were the fight to take place, Carano would have been out of the cage for nearly five years and coming off of a loss to the other potential big-name opponent for Rousey, Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino. However, the UFC is far from a meritocracy. If it were, it’s matchmaking structure would resemble Bellator more than the WWE.
The UFC is, and has always been, about making the fights that will make them the most money. While Randy Couture’s victory over Tim Sylvia at UFC 68 is heralded as a great moment in the history of the sport, they tend to forget the fact that Couture was coming off of a year-long “retirement”, was 1-2 in his last three fights, and hadn’t competed at heavyweight until five years prior to that bout.
There is no doubt that the fight would garner at least as much, and probably a great deal more, main stream press and capture more casual fan attention than any other fight that could be on the docket for Rousey, including a scrap with the aforementioned “Cyborg.” While the hardcore fans of the sport would cry foul, the UFC doesn’t need to worry about them. It already has them in their pocket and doesn’t need to worry about losing them.
The fight sells itself. Gina Carano has created a legitimate career for herself as an action star after leaving her position as the face of women’s MMA. Ronda Rousey appears to be poised to recreate the path Carano did as she garners new roles by the day. The first face of women’s MMA returning from Hollywood to usurp the throne from her successor is as easy a sell as one could ask for. The little details, such as Rousey joining the Fast & Furious immediately after Carano left it, only serve to throw gas on the proverbial fire.
Most importantly, the UFC has a true dearth of credible contenders in the female bantamweight division. Cat Zingano is a deserving number one contender, but what she has gone through since her last fight is a terrible ordeal that I wouldn’t wish on anybody, and it would likely be best if she had another fight before competing for the title. Alexis Davis, currently ranked #2, is riding a five fight win streak, but nobody is taking her seriously as a contender and she’s lost before to competition that Rousey has proven she is superior to. As for the rest of the top 10, Rousey has already defeated the fighters ranked #3, #4, #5, and #7, and #6 Jessica Eye just lost to Davis.
Ultimately, a fight between Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano is likely no more than a pipe dream, but it would be a boon for the UFC, whether we like it or not.
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