Category: MMA

Ronda Rousey Draws Big Numbers 

 Ronda Rousey’s last title defense against Bethe Corriea in Rio De Jenero at the beginning of this month lasted a grand total of 34secs

The match up was highly anticipated not only because Rousey would be defending the belt for the 6th time but the opponents also shared some bad blood. Corriea had two wins over Rousey’s closest friends Jessamyn Duke and Shayna Baszler. Corriea also did her fair share of hyping the fight with her tasteless trash taking. Fans knew this bout would be interesting but the questioned remained, how would the numbers do???

Current estimates have the show doing a little more than 900,000 buys on pay-per-view, the largest number for a UFC show since UFC 168, on Dec. 28, 2013, the show headlined by the second Chris Weidman vs. Anderson Silva fight and the second Rousey vs. Miesha Tate fight.

It would give the company three shows so far this year that have topped 800,000 buys. The Dec. 12 show, with two title matches, Jose Aldo vs. Conor McGregor for the featherweight title, and Chris Weidman vs. Luke Rockhold for the middleweight title, barring a key injury, would figure to top that number as well

But the Rousey fight’s success at that level was hardly expected. While Correia did her part to hype the fight, and there were a number of storylines in place, UFC 190 had little in the way of what would be considered strong undercard support. The show was also held in Rio de Janeiro, and in the past, shows outside North America have not done big numbers on pay-per-view. When Anderson Silva was considered UFC’s top fighter, he twice headlined shows from Rio de Janeiro, and both did less than 350,000 buys.

Another key to  the company’s biggest modern pay-per-view draws is bringing in a unique fan base. Lesnar brought in the pro wrestling audience. St-Pierre was a mainstream Canadian sports superstar. Liddell was the company’s superstar fighter when it first appeared on national television. With Rousey, she brings in a female fan base as well as a casual fan audience that doesn’t even follow the sport on a regular basis.
There you have it folks not only is Rousey the most dominate female athletes but she puts asses in seats and brings in the money. Are you surprised?

One would have to wonder with Rousey and Holm not having the grudge factor will the UFC 195 card do as good as the UFC190 Card?? Only time will tell.

-Vanessa (@GreatLove91)

source MMA fighting.com

UFC fighter announces pregnancy 

 Number 3 ranked bantamweight fighter and MMA veteran Alexis Ally-Gator Davis has been waiting to get back into the cage but now the wait will have to be a little longer that’s because this morning via instagram the fighter announced she is with child saying: “Big news to announce today a slight delay in my return to the octagon! I planned on spending as much time back home as possible to help with my niece anyways. But we are over joyed by this news and should be expecting our new arrival early 2016!! And planned to back in the Octagon by the end of the year!”

You can read her official post here https://instagram.com/p/6z7HT6Bf2_/

Her husband who also acts as her trainer is Flávio Meier, he’s an accomplished BJJ black belt with multiple world titles. As far as the mother to be (17-6) had her last fight in April where she knocked off another veteran in Sara Kaufman by finishing her in the 2nd round via submission

It looks like fans of Davis will have to wait to see their favorite Canadian smashing faces again but until then a huge congrats is in order for the family.

Here’s to a smooth pregnancy and many blessings.

-Vanessa (@GreatLove91)

Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs Claudia Gadelha targeted for UFC195

  Is it possible that UFC195 could be the first UFC event in history to have 3 women fights on a PPV card? It sure does look that way. Yesterday the huge announcement was made that Ronda Rousey will be defending her title for the 7th time against decelerated Holly Holm.

Dana White had an interview with New York Times and he said that he’s aiming to have Miesha Tate vs Amanda Nunes on that same card. It doesn’t stop there though because White also said he looks to have Joanna Jedrzejczyk defend her straweight title against challenger Claudia Gadelha in the co main event. However this all depends if Gadelha’s injuries are healed by January.

Jedrzejczyk and Gadelha have met once before, during  last December in what many believe was a razor thin split decision victory for Jedrzejczyk. The rematch between the two has been inevitable for quite sometime. 

The champ has a professional MMA record of (10-0) she is coming off a 3rd round TKO victory that she earned in June against top contender Jessica Penne. The challenger has a record of (13-1). She is coming off a UD win against Jessica Aguliar that she earned at UFC190 from this month. The one blemish in Gadelha’s record was of course delivered at the hands of Jedrzejczyk so you can bet she’ll be looking for some redemption.

It seems like we are now living in a day and age where women are dominating in sports, we have serina Williams in tennis, Hope solo in soccer, we have the divas revaluation in the WWE making waves in professional wrestling, and now we have both Ronda Rousey and Joanna Jedrzejczyk representing the UFC/ MMA world in thier respective divisions.

Everything is up in the air as it pertains to Jedrzejczyk vs Gadelha, but if this fight happens along with the possible Tate vs Nunes and the already set Rousey vs Holm UFC195 should be named ladies night.

How do you guys feel about a possible women’s dominated card? I for have faith that these 6 ladies have what it takes to put on a stellar show and bring the house down.

We here at WNB will be sure to keep all of you updated on the happenings of UFC195 as they continue to surface. UFC195 Is set to take place at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas and will be live on PPV on January 2nd 2016

-Vanessa (@GreatLove91)

Dana White explains why he chose Holm over Tate for Rousey’s next opponent 

 Earlier this morning we covered a story that Rousey’s next opponent will be the (9-0) Holy Holm instead of Miesha Tate (17-5). Tate is on a 4 fight winning streak and after her UD win against Jessica Eye last month. It was assumed by Tate and fight fans alike that she would be the next contender for Ronda Rousey. I mean Dana white said it so himself in the UFC190 post fight press conference.

So why the sudden change? Well White sat down with The times and explained his reasoning. He said that they (Feritta, Silva, Shelby and himself) sat down and thought about it and they came to the conclusion that “we’ve all seen Rousey vs Tate already.” He went on to say that “Rousey has defeated Tate twice in the same dominating fashion and he believes more of the same would happen again” He even said that “an eventual lost to Rousey wouldn’t be good for Tate at least not right now.”
You can read whites full statement here http://www.mmafighting.com/2015/8/21/9189029/dana-white-holly-holm-tabbed-because-everyones-already-seen-ronda

Here’s my issue with this bogus reasoning. Yes we’ve seen Rousey vs Tate twice. Once in 2012 in Strikeforce and then again at UFC170 in December of 2013. The problem is though that many casual fans didn’t even see their first encounter. Not to mention their first fight ended in the first round while their second ended in the beginning of the 3rd!
Clearly Tate has evolved in her fight game. The same can be said for the champion. Both Rousey and Tate are COMPLETLY different fighters since their meeting in 2013 so it would’ve been interesting to see what a trilogy fight would’ve brought to the  Table.
Another problem this fight poses in my opinion is the UFC rankings. Tate is #3 as where Holm is #9. What’s the point of rankings if you’re not even going to put the top against the top??? Further more as noted earlier Holm has yet to defeat anyone in the top 10. If white and company didn’t want a Tate vs Rousey 3 they should’ve pinned Rousey up against anyone else in the top 5 (even though most would’ve still be rematches)
Tate was obviously very upset about the situation saying “I’m very disappointed in the events that have unfolded this morning. I was already training for Rousey. Not only am I disappointed for myself but also my fans who thought my next fight would be for the title”


You can read Tate’s official statement here https://Instagram.com/p/6qJG1DCkmA/


So what’s next for Tate? According to Dana he hopes to have her face Amanda Nunes (who is coming off a first round submission victory against veteran Sara McMann) on the same card as Rousey vs Holm at UFC195


Only time will tell. What are your thoughts on all of this? Let us know in the comments
-Vanessa (@GreatLove91)

Rousey vs Holm set for UFC195???? (Vanessa’s thoughts)

This morning UFC Batemweight women’s champion Ronda Rousey made an appearance on Good morning America where she announced the next time she will step into the cage will be for the UFC’s New Years card as she takes on the Undefeated Preachers Daughter Holly Holm.

Living on the west coast and having a bad sleeping schedule I just now learned about the announcement myself thanks to the post fellow contributor John Bass posted this morning along with the official announcement on the UFC’s Facebook post.

This announcement came as a surprise to me and I’m a bit confused and I’m sure so are a lot of other fight fans. Miesha Tate Ronda’s greatest rivalry and in my honest opinion toughest opponent was originally slated to take on the champ for a 3rd time. I mean she’s racked up a winning streak in the UFC let alone Dana White said so himself  during the UFC190 post fight press conference that Tate would be next in line after coming off a victory against Jessica Eye.

The question now is what happened to Miesha. I mean to my knowledge she isn’t inured. (There’s been no announcement) and I have absolutely nothing against Holm but this match up makes absolutely NO SENCE to me. Sure Holm is an accomplished boxing champion and has a 9-0 MMA record but the girl has only fought TWICE in the UFC and none of her opponents have been in the top 10. She won her UFC debut back in February against Raquel Penninton via unanimous decision and her second win was against Marion Reneau also a UD win just last month.

In my opinion Holm is no where near ready to face someone of Rousey’s caliber so I’m scratching my head as to why this match up was made. I mean it’s not like Holm talked her way into a title shot the way Correia recently did.

Don’t get me wrong I love anytime Rousey has a fight. She’s exciting to watch and is one of my all time favorite MMA fighters but I REALLY can’t wrap my head around this fight and it isn’t helping all the naysayers that say “Rousey only fights cans” (I disagree with that statement let’s make that clear) but again why Holm??? I just don’t get it.

Another question that this poses is what’s next for Tate? The only possible reasoning I can come up with as to why she’s not Rousey’s next challenger is that she will be the 1st opponent for a newly 135lb Cris Cyborg (this is pure speculation) but it would make sence. Tate has said she wouldn’t mind fighting Cyborg and Dana has went on record saying Cyborg will fight Rousey if she can make weight and prove she can fight at 135.

So is this random Rousey VS Holm match up a sign that we could possibly be one step closer to seeing the biggest match up in WMMA history???? Is Rousey vs Cyborg on the horizon???

Who knows. The only thing we know is that Rousey will indeed defend her title for the 7th time against Holm at the MGM grand arena in Las Vegas on January 2nd to kick off the new year. I’m sure Rousey won’t disappoint.

-Vanessa (@GreatLove91)

 

Ronda Rousey Announced Her Opponent For UFC 195

UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey appeared on Good Morning America earlier today and announced that her next fight will be against Holly Holm at UFC 195 on January 2, 2016.

“January 2 I’ll be fighting Holly Holm, who’s the most decorated striker we have in all of mixed martial arts. ” Rousey said. “Not the women’s division, not the bantamweight division. (Holm)’s a 19-time boxing champion Holly Holm was The Ring magazine pound-for-pound Fighter of the Year, and definitely my biggest challenge to date.”

A third fight with Miesha Tate and a potential superfight with Cris Cyborg have been discussed, but the UFC ultimately landed on the undefeated Holm.

Ronda Rousey Responds To Question About Returning To WWE

UFC women’s Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey did an “Ask Me Anything” session on Reddit yesterday. She was asked if she would consider entering WWE after retiring from UFC. She responded with the following:

“Definitely,” Rousey replied. “I love being in WrestleMania and will find a way to get back in the squared circle I just have no clue when. And any real wrestling fan would want to be surprised anyway.”

Source: WrestlingINC.com

Ronda Rousey lands major endorsement deal 

Words most dominate athlete, UFC women’s bantamweight champion, 2008 Olympic bronze medalist, New York Times best seller. The list of accomplishments are ever growing for Ronda Rousey, and now you can add Official sponsor of fast food chain Carl’s Jr. to the list.

The chain confirmed to Eater.com that Rousey will be the new face of the company’s commercials with the first spot debuting in a few weeks.

Carl’s Jr. has always been one of my personal favorite fast food joints but I along with many others find previous commercials to be totally pointless and in some ways believe they degrade women. I mean how does a woman in a bikini help sell a burger???

Previous faces in Carl’s Jr. commercials include the likes of Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton. I personally think having someone like Rousey as the new face is a great business move for both Carl’s Jr. and the UFC. I mean who doesn’t love fast food? This can possibly bring a new set of eyes to UFC along with marking Carl’s Jr. more appealing.

Are you excited for this new partnership? The first commercial is said to be debuting by the end of this month so be on the look out.

-Vanessa (@GreatLove91)

Ronda Rousey to star in own Biopic

This past Saturday at UFC190 Ronda Rousey successfully defended her Women’s Bantamweight title by disposing Bethe Correia via KO in a astounding 34 seconds.
The 12-0 athlete shows no signs of slowing down. She aims to defend her title for a 7th time against well known rival Miesha Tate in December and then go off to shoot Mile 22, a film Rousey will star in opposite Mark Walburg 

Now variety has an exclusive that Rousey’s memoir and New York Times best seller My fight your Fight has been picked up by Paramount Pictures to become a major motion picture as Ronda Rousey playing herself. It’s not often someone plays themselves on a film but as we all know by now Rousey loves to break down barriers.

The film has no release date but director Mark Bomback is on board to adapt the book into a movie while Mary Parent will serve as producer.

Parent had this to say about the opportunity of making a best seller into a blockbuster

“It’s a real honor to be a part of bringing Ronda’s incredible story to the big screen,”

You can read the full story on this major announcement here http://variety.com/2015/film/news/ronda-rousey-biopic-autobiography-my-fight-your-fight-1201553460/

Who’s excited for this film!? I know I am.

-Vanessa (@GreatLove91)

UFC 190: Rousey VS Correia – Fight Card – 8/1/15

UFC 190 from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Main Card PPV – 10PM ET

Women’s Bantamweight Title Fight: (C) Ronda Rousey VS Bethe Correia

Light Heavyweight: #8 Mauricio Rua VS #11 Antonio Rogerio Nogueira

Bantamweight: Reginaldo Vieira VS Dileno Lopes

Heavyweight: #15 Stefan Struve VS Minotauro Noguerira

Heavyweight: #12 “Bigfoot” Antonio Silva VS Soa Palelei

Women’s Strawweight: #1 Claudia Gadelha VS #15 Jessica Aguilar

 

FOX Sports 1 Prelims – 8PM ET

Welterweight: #6 Demian Maia VS #13 Neil Magny

Light Heavyweight: #10 Rafael Cavalcante VS #14 Patrick Cummins

Welterweight: Warlley Alves VS Nordine Taleb

Bantamweight: #13 Iuri Alcantara VS Leandro Issa

 

UFC Fight Pass Early Prelims – 7PM ET

Middleweight: Vitor Miranda VS Clint Hester

Bantamweight: Hugo Viana VS Guido Cannetti