MMA Mania’s Alex Schlinsky asked the question about whether UFC 184 can be a pay-per-view success with the women’s bantamweight division as the marquee. Schlinsky made the points that Ronda Rousey garnered 450,000 buys in her UFC headlining bout against Liz Carmouche. The next time Rousey headlined a card was against Sara McMann at UFC 170, and that brought in 350,000 buys.
There are still those who believe that a women’s headlined card will hurt women’s MMA, per MMA Weekly.
However, UFC 184 will snap the sliding numbers of Rousey-headlined events and show that women’s MMA is here to stay.
Ronda Rousey‘s star power has exponentially increased within the past year. She has starred in The Expendables 3 and will have roles in the upcoming Furious 7 and Entourage movies. She posed for the latest Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and is seen in various Metro PCS commercials.
Out of all of the current fighters on the UFC roster, Rousey has made the deepest impression in mainstream culture. Her marketing power alone will draw both the casual and hardcore MMA fans.
Across from her in the Octagon Saturday is not a fighter who is going to be overmatched.
Cat Zingano poses the toughest test Rousey is going to face in her UFC career. Zingano is one of the strongest fighters in the UFC with her heavy hands, and she is very formidable in the muay thai clinch.
Zingano also has to be one of the mentally toughest fighters that Rousey will face. Cat has bounced back from an ACL tear and the death of her husband, yet she still gives it her all in the Octagon.
Rousey acknowledges this, per Elias Cepeda of Fox Sports:
She’s been down in fights before and every single time, she’s come back and finished the other person. And, given everything she’s been through lately, in her life outside of fighting, I really feel like she’s one of those people that’s impossible to intimidate, so I don’t even try.
The co-main event will feature the UFC debut of Holly Holm against Raquel Pennington. Holm one of the most decorated figures in women’s boxing. A dominant win for her will show the increase in the depth of the women’s bantamweight talent pool.
An all-female UFC headlined card was eventually going to happen. In a male-dominated sport, the women have proven they can bring just as well as the boys. UFC 184 will be historic in women’s sports and will prove that women’s MMA is here for the long haul.
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