Ronda Rousey is one of the top draws of the UFC and the undisputed champion of the UFC Women's Bantamweight division. She recently won the Sports Illustrated's award for the world's most dominant athlete. Are there enough challenges for her in the UFC or is her ultimate challenge outside of her weight class?
Zuffa brass insist that Critsiane Justino has to make 135 pounds to fight Rousey but there is currently no indication that a catch-weight bout is impossible. In 2006 Matt Hughes fought the legendary Royce Gracie at 175 pounds while he was a champion. James Tony made his MMA debut at UFC 118 against Randy Couture. Billed as a heavyweight bout they weighed in at 237 for Toney and 220 for Randy Couture. There is no reason to expect that the bout was anything but exhibition as Randy Couture was known as a Light Heavyweight for the majority of his career and Toney hasn't competed in MMA since. Exhibition matches are not unheard of to the UFC but in this case they are not making any concessions. Brock Lesnar was a 1-0 mixed martal artist when he was offered a UFC contract. CM Punk is 0-0 with a UFC contract and yet there are no concessions being offered a superfight between Rousey and ‘Cyborg’.
"I fight in the UFC 135-pound division. She can fight 145 pumped full of steroids, and she can make weight just like everybody else without ‘em." - Rousey on a superfight with Cristiane Justino.
It could be due to the liabilities Justino presents. She’s been caught before for failing a test in 2011. Her brand has been haunted prior to and especially since by steroid accusations. If she won the belt what does that say about the current champ? What if she won the bout and failed a test?
After the starching of Bethe Corriera I wouldn’t be so comfortable to put money down on Cyborg at all. No one on the hardcore-fan side was expecting Corriera to mount any kind of momentum in her title bid at UFC 190, but to see her lose in her most favoured environment (brawling on the feet) puts a giant shadow on Cyborg having an advantage in any playing field.
For my money that is the fight to make and it should be at a catch-weight to get the best performance from both competitors. Even the UFC Bantamweight champ, Demetrious Johnson, would prefer to see it contested at a catchweight rather than a bantamweight fight in an interview from MMAFighting.com. When asked if she’d fight Justino at 140lbs, Ronda’s longtime rival Miesha Tate stated, “I have to fight anyone they put in front of me and obviously I'm not scared of anyone. So yes, I would (fight her at catchweight).”
Oh, and speaking of Miesha 'Cupcake' Tate...
Cupcake is just as much of an ironic name as it is a reflection of her enjoyment of cupcakes. As with the McMann fight she kept her forward movement and aggression to make the fight dirty even when she was tagged with some solid shots. She dropped Eye in rounds 1 and 2 and was able to get the fight to the ground repeatedly after the first drop.
Will she get a shot at the title after this or will she need another fight?
Well it turns out Holly Holm’s victories over Raquel Pennington and Marion Reneau were sufficient to get her the shot. Against both competitors Holm was in control and was never put in danger but at the same time she didn’t exactly set the roof on fire. Her win over Reneau was dominant but her win over “Rocky” was a split decision. It might be that Holm, akin to Demetrious Johnson, is just really good at making her opponents look average, or mediocre. If that’s the case the futures of Pennington and Reneau will be reevaluated down the road if she puts on a strong performance against Rousey. Prior to joining the UFC machine Holly Holm was considered to be a prospect that could hold the key.
Love her or hate her, Miesha Tate is a fighter and has now beat the number 4, 5, and 10 ranked fighters in the division and is currently targetting a return in December against number 4-ranked Amanda Nunes. Tate’s showing herself to be the clear #2 fighter in this division and if she keeps up her winning ways eventually the matchmakers won’t be able to deny her another shot at gold. If Tate loses then who’s next?
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