The biggest storyline to emerge from UFC 184 was Ronda Rousey‘s breathtaking, 14-second submission victory over Cat Zingano in the main event.
Rousey once again proved she is the unquestionable, dominant force in women’s MMA, retaining her title as UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion. It isn’t a hot take to have such an opinion, but Rousey‘s triumph at the Staples Center in Los Angeles was nevertheless astounding.
ESPN Stats & Info highlighted the history Rousey made in her swift disposal of Zingano:
Men have bolstered the popularity of the UFC since its rise to prominence in recent years under savvy president Dana White.
It was going to take a true superstar from the women’s side to gain any traction, which is precisely what Rousey has become. Although her fight with Zingano was extremely short-lived, it still saw Rousey take down her best possible competition.
SportsCenter logged a quotable Rousey after the bout, where she exuded the type of mentality all great champion fighters have:
Through 11 professional MMA fights, the 28-year-old Rousey has submitted nine of her adversaries, including Zingano with an armbar. Miesha Tate made it to the third round versus Rousey at UFC 168, but no one else has gotten out of the first round.
Even after her latest romp, Rousey was quite sympathetic and showed exemplary sportsmanship.
“I said ‘I’m happy to do this again anytime,’ you know?” said Rousey, via FoxSports.com’s Andre Vergara. “It’s hard to feel like you tested yourself when something like that happens, so I think if we fought again it would be very, very different, just like when me and Miesha Tate fought again.”
“Rowdy” Rousey has the tenacity in the Octagon to obliterate any opponent who stands in her way, but she also has the dynamic, likable personality to be the face of women’s MMA.
That she still had enough respect for her foe to console Zingano after a heartbreaking defeat shows Rousey has class to go along with her legendary fighting skills. However, if she continues to steamroll everyone in her path, Rousey may lose momentum due to the dearth of competent competition.
Irish MMA coach John Kavanagh took notice of the disparity created by Rousey‘s own greatness after Saturday’s submission:
Bleacher Report combat sports lead writer Jonathan Snowden recommends Rousey to take on Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino in her next bout. Cyborg has lost just once in 15 MMA appearances, but has yet to fight in the UFC.
The excitement of Justino making her UFC debut as the fresh-blood challenger to Rousey would create quite a stir if the two do meet the next time Rousey is in action.
A rematch with Zingano may be on tap instead, but Rousey proved Saturday that she may need to tackle an alternative, superior combatant and one who may put her to an unprecedented test.
Justino presents a potentially unique matchup with her rather dominant track record, imposing frame and 69-inch reach, per ESPN.com, which is greater than Rousey‘s (66″).
On the other hand, all the previous results suggest no one is quite in Rousey‘s class. If the UFC is the best collection of fighters there is, it’s hard to envision Justino bursting onto the scene and upsetting Rousey. Such a development could produce a great rivalry, but it’d also take away from some of the mystique.
There is a lot of uncertainty at the moment with regard to Rousey‘s next opponent, who could possibly beat her and whether the strength of her wins and perfect record will stand the test of time.
For now, it’s Rousey and the rest, which is just what the UFC needs.
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