Author: Richard Langford

Ronda Rousey: Big Sales from Bout Will Lead to Growth of Women’s Fighting

Fight fans, I hope you are enjoying the rise of women’s mixed martial arts, because we are going to see a lot more of it.Ronda Rousey’s rise to superstardom is going to lead to the continued growth of her sport. She is generating way too much money and…

Fight fans, I hope you are enjoying the rise of women’s mixed martial arts, because we are going to see a lot more of it.

Ronda Rousey‘s rise to superstardom is going to lead to the continued growth of her sport. She is generating way too much money and interest for there not to be a continued expansion. 

Rousey (7-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) made a successful UFC debut this past weekend by using her patented armbar to defeat Liz Carmouche in the first round.

But that is only part of what made this a success. Rousey‘s bout was the headliner for that pay-per-view event.

Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times reports that the event brought in a live-gate haul greater than $1.4 million, and that “the pay-per-view figures were assessed as 40% better than the UFC’s Super Bowl weekend card that featured Jose Aldo retaining his featherweight belt against Frankie Edgar.”

While there are people in the industry who may be inclined to dismiss women’s fighting no matter how good the bouts may be, you’ll be hard pressed to find anyone involved in the business of MMA to turn a blind eye to those kinds of numbers.  

This isn’t the only sign of Rousey‘s growing pull. 

Veteran UFC analyst Jeremy Botter covered the event, and in an ensuing article on Chron.com, noted that “Rousey’s debut just felt like a big deal. She attracted far more media attention than any other UFC fighter in the history of the company, and that includes Brock Lesnar.”

Given all of this, it is not surprising that following Rousey‘s win, UFC president Dana White told everyone that Rousey was going to be headlining a major pay-per-view event.

While Rousey‘s star is clearly on the rise, it isn’t just limited to her. 

Now, her success doesn’t mean other female fighters are on the fast track to superstardom. Whether a fighter is male or female, being a true star and driving the box office is about far more than wins and losses: Fighting styles, attitude, looks and a whole multitude of factors go into this. 

However, what it does mean is that the potential is there for a female fighter to create big business. That means Dana White and anyone else trying to make money in MMA will be on the lookout for and trying to promote the next Rousey. 

This is only going to lead to more and more female MMA bouts. 

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Junior Dos Santos vs. Cain Velasquez: Domination Proves New Champ’s Greatness

Every MMA heavyweight on the planet just found another reason to avoid fighting Cain Velasquez at all costs: He’s improved his stand-up game.Velasquez dismantled Junior Dos Santos to reclaim the UFC’s heavyweight crown on Saturday night, doing most of …

Every MMA heavyweight on the planet just found another reason to avoid fighting Cain Velasquez at all costs: He’s improved his stand-up game.

Velasquez dismantled Junior Dos Santos to reclaim the UFC’s heavyweight crown on Saturday night, doing most of his damage while going toe-to-toe. 

The fight had a high level of intensity right out of the gate as the two began trading punches. This should have played right into Dos Santos hands, but it didn’t. 

Velasquez dropped Dos Santos with a huge overhand right, and the tone was set before the first round ended. In fact, it is a testament to Dos Santos’ determination that he made it out of the first round as Cain went for a vicious ground-and-pound following the knockdown. 

The second round began with more boxing, and Cain proved to be the better boxer. His defense was solid and he was landing his punches. He soon turned that into multiple takedowns, and at that point, the fight was all but over. 

Dos Santos battled and he would not give up, but he also was never a serious threat to win this fight as Cain went on to win in a unanimous decision. 

Yahoo! Sports’ Kevin Iole tweeted out the lopsided results. 

The win improves Velasquez’s record to 11-1, and it avenges his only professional loss which came at the hands of Dos Santos. Cain was fighting injured in that one, but it was still his deficient boxing skills that led to his defeat in the first round. 

Dos Santos had to be hoping and planning for a similar fate the second time around. He was content to stay on his feet and let this fight play out that way in the early going. He just couldn’t find any spots to land his punishing blows. 

With this performance, every fighter is going to have to reevaluate their game plan for attacking Velasquez. Prior to this, the school of thought was that damage would have to be done while he was on his feet. His takedowns and ground-and-pound are too overwhelming. 

However, Cain showed off his quickness and defense, as well as crisper, more accurate punches. 

The 30-year-old has never looked like a more complete fighter in the octagon than he did on Saturday night. He has no weaknesses, and there is now very little that opponents can look to try and exploit. 

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St Pierre vs Condit Results: What Victory Means for Georges St-Pierre

This could not have worked out better for the UFC.Welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre returned from an 18-month layoff to land a huge victory over Carlos Condit. In a fight that went all five rounds, the defending champion scored a victory via unanimo…

This could not have worked out better for the UFC.

Welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre returned from an 18-month layoff to land a huge victory over Carlos Condit. In a fight that went all five rounds, the defending champion scored a victory via unanimous decision.

This was no soft landing for GSP. Condit is an elite fighter and this win proves to the MMA world that GSP‘s career is far from over. 

The buzz around this fight was high, and the speculation and hype for GSP‘s next fight is already getting fired up. The 31-year-old champ has been one of the sport’s biggest stars, and he picked up right where he left off.

His win over Condit, in his first fight back after a long layoff, is going to lead to some nice paydays for St-Pierre and the UFC.

GSP has been the biggest draw the UFC has known. As Yahoo’s Kevin Iole reports, GSP‘s last fight, on April 30, 2011 “…drew a North American record crowd of 55,724 that paid a UFC record gate of $12.1 million to UFC 129 in Toronto.”

His ability to bring in the audience certainly is not lost on UFC president Dana White. Iole also passed along this quote from White:

For him to be gone, I mean it sucks. The guy fights three times a year and he’s the biggest pay-per-view draw in the company. Yes, when he’s gone for over a year, it’s definitely not a good thing.

Well, good times are here again. GSP is now set for a huge year. There is a good chance he will be taking on middleweight champion Anderson Silva next, and that fight would almost be guaranteed to set sales records.

There is also the potential that he will butt heads with Nick Diaz. This will be another crowd-pleaser.

GSP already has a wonderful legacy waiting for him, but he is sitting on the verge of becoming a timeless legend, and the UFC will profit along the way.

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Stephan Bonnar Reportedly Suspended 1 Year over Failed Drug Test

After a second positive test for steroids, Stephan Bonnar has been suspended for one year by the UFC. The news comes to us via MMA Fightings’ Ariel Helwani:According to Marc Ratner, the UFC’s VP of regulatory affairs, Bonnar will be suspended unti…

After a second positive test for steroids, Stephan Bonnar has been suspended for one year by the UFC. 

The news comes to us via MMA Fightings’ Ariel Helwani:

According to Marc Ratner, the UFC’s VP of regulatory affairs, Bonnar will be suspended until Oct. 13, 2013, after he tested positive for the anabolic steroid Drostanolone following his UFC 153 loss to Anderson Silva last month.

In the report, Helwani also states the the looming suspension of Dave Herman is still up in the air. Herman is also coming off a second positive drug test, but his is for marijuana, and as Helwani notes, Ratner was careful to point out that the UFC was going to treat the use of PEDs and recreational drugs differently. 

Although, it was also mentioned that Ratner “expects Herman to be suspended for ‘months,’ while also having to go through some kind of rehab program.” 

As for Bonnar, 35, his first suspension for PEDs came in 2006. In that instance, Bonnar was coming off a loss to Forrest Griffin when “metabolites of the anabolic steroid Boldenone were found in his system,” per Helwani’s report. He served a nine-month suspension. 

He then won his next two bouts coming off the suspension. 

So, Bonnar has shown he can bounce back after a long layoff, but one still has to wonder if this is the end of the line for him. The loss to Silva was just his second fight since December 4th of 2010, and he did not look particularly fierce while suffering a first-round TKO. 

I can’t imagine he is anxious to have a suspension dictate the end of his career, but he might not have a choice as his tank appears to be hitting empty. 

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UFC President Dana White ‘Committed’ to Creating Female Division

Ronda Rousey is the Babe Ruth of women’s mixed martial arts. Not only is she head and shoulders above all her competition, but she is pushing women’s mixed martial arts into new heights of popularity. This fact has become increasingly apparent, as…

Ronda Rousey is the Babe Ruth of women’s mixed martial arts. Not only is she head and shoulders above all her competition, but she is pushing women’s mixed martial arts into new heights of popularity. 

This fact has become increasingly apparent, as Rousey has dominated the Strikeforce ranks.

 Now, Melissa Segura and Sports Illustrated break the news that the UFC, the top MMA organization in the world, is putting in the works to expand to a female division.

UFC president Dana White tells SI.com he’s working on a female division of the UFC, largely because of Rousey’s influence.

“It’s absolutely going to happen,” White said Tuesday of the women’s division.

There is no timetable set for the debut of the female division, but White made no bones about the fact that this is going to happen. This is in stark contrast to his previous stance on the subject. As Segura points out, “[White] had long rejected the idea of a women’s division, deriding the quality of fighting and the depth of competition in the female ranks.”

The reason for the switch is clear. Rousey, a judo bronze medalist in the 2008 Olympics, is a transcendent talent who has brought new interest to the sport, which has made it as a viable business option for White.

Rousey, 25, has generated interest by her shear dominance. She has nine MMA bouts under her belt—three amateur and six professional—and she has won all in the first round with a viscous arm bar.

Only Miesha Tate has ever made it past a minute in the cage with Rousey, and she nearly had her arm ripped off in the process, ceding the Strikeforce title to Rousey in March.

This isn’t all about Rousey‘s ability in the cage either. She is a photogenic person, who is not afraid of the spotlight or providing sound bites. 

She is exactly what female MMA has needed to gain a foothold in the sports landscape. This is, potentially, a historic moment for the UFC and MMA, and will only lead to the continued growth of the depth and quality of the sport. 

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Anderson Silva vs. Stephan Bonnar Will Reportedly Headline UFC 153

Anderson Silva and Stephan Bonnar appear set to headline UFC 153, which is scheduled for October 13 at Rio de Janeiro’s HSBC Arena. From John Morgan and USA Today, via MMA Junkie:USA TODAY Sports has confirmed with company officials that UFC …

Anderson Silva and Stephan Bonnar appear set to headline UFC 153, which is scheduled for October 13 at Rio de Janeiro’s HSBC Arena. 

From John Morgan and USA Today, via MMA Junkie:

USA TODAY Sports has confirmed with company officials that UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva (32-4, 15-0) is moving up to 205 pounds to meet Bonnar in the main event of UFC 153.

This was not the original plan for UFC 153, but injuries necessitated the changes for this seemingly cursed event. 

Featherweight champ Jose Aldo was set to defend his title against Frankie Edgar, and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson was going to face Glover Teixeira. However, both Aldo and Jackson suffered injuries forcing them to pull out of the event.

Morgan reports that Edgar will have to wait for a later date to fight, while Tiexeira will face fellow Brazilian Fabio Maldonado at UFC 153. 

This was a lot of rescheduling to handle in short notice, and it took a lot of flexibility from those involved to pull it off. 

For Bonnar, it is not at all surprising he stepped up to the table. He has a three-fight win streak going, and as Morgan asserts, he “has openly lobbied for fights with some of the sport’s biggest names.”

However, Bonnar may soon learn to be careful what you wish for, as it is hard to envision him giving the dominant Anderson Silva a real challenge. 

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