It’s a shame that Ronda Rousey lost her bid for a Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) women’s bantamweight title in her return to the cage last night (Fri., Dec. 30, 2016) at UFC 207 live on pay-per-view (PPV) from inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. She lost in just 48 seconds after champion Amanda Nunes battered her with countless combinations. If she had won, Rousey could have continued to dominate the limelight like no other mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter in the world.
According to a recent Nielsen report by way of Forbes, Rousey remains the most marketability fighter under UFC rule. On a scale determining endorsement potential of celebrities based on awareness, likability and 10 other attributes, Rousey scored a 68 on a 1-100 scale (47 awareness, 62 likability). That’s 16 points higher than the almighty PPV king, UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor. In fact, Rousey ranks in the top eight percent of the Nielsen database for all celebrity athletes.
That staggering number, which most likely plays into Rousey’s control over the female demographic, may end up changing once she is re-tested in 2017 after her loss to Nunes. But if Rousey is really pondering retirement, she may want to rethink it. MMA still holds a lot of money and it’s obvious she retains huge popularity even after crushing defeats.
For complete UFC 207 results and coverage click here.