Tag: miesha tate

CagePotato Comments of the Week: No, Seriously


(Watch out for that metal thing? / Props: Maury Povich via ScreenJunkies)

God damn you, ReX13. His running gag this week inspired us to revive an old, dead CagePotato feature, in which we take a moment to recognize some of your efforts in the comments section. Will we forget about this by next Friday? Maybe. Maybe not. All we have is this moment. And now, the eight greatest comments of the week…

ReX13 on “Report: Miesha Tate to Defend Strikeforce Title Against Ronda Rousey on March 3rd” [selected highlights]:
– “If you weren’t pretty, it wouldn’t matter what you said or didn’t say. That’s why you’re getting this attention.” – Miesha Tate
– “Man, Stalin was a real asshole, killing his own people like that.” – Pol Pot
– “Wow, that Bachmann chick is stuck on turbo-crazy. The only reason people are giving her the time of day is because she’s a relatively attractive woman in the Republican party. Does she hear the words that are coming out of her mouth?” – Sarah Palin
– “Goddammit, I’ve spent fifteen years in this neighborhood trying to increase property vaules, and a whole fucking passel of kettles just moved in next door. With their hippity hop music and Tyler Perry movies…..we better get a dog, honey.” – Pot
– “Bobby Flay is kinda a douche, you guys.” – Guy Fieri
– “The Duggars should stop having children. Can they even handle the children they already have?” – Nadya “Octomom” Suleman
– “That Octomom is such an attention whore.” – Kate Gosselin
– “Fuck you, bitch.” – Nadya Suleman

ElDandy on “Video of the Day: Fabricio Werdum Is as Inappropriate as We Are and Fedor Isn’t Impressed“
Fedor’s high priest looks like every dude I’ve ever seen at a Widespread concert.

Fried Taco on “Aw Geez, Now BJ Penn is Calling Nick Diaz a Cheater“:
At least BJ is right about one thing. No one will ever accuse him of being the bigger man.


(Watch out for that metal thing? / Props: Maury Povich via ScreenJunkies)

God damn you, ReX13. His running gag this week inspired us to revive an old, dead CagePotato feature, in which we take a moment to recognize some of your efforts in the comments section. Will we forget about this by next Friday? Maybe. Maybe not. All we have is this moment. And now, the eight greatest comments of the week…

ReX13 on “Report: Miesha Tate to Defend Strikeforce Title Against Ronda Rousey on March 3rd” [selected highlights]:
– “If you weren’t pretty, it wouldn’t matter what you said or didn’t say. That’s why you’re getting this attention.” – Miesha Tate
– “Man, Stalin was a real asshole, killing his own people like that.” – Pol Pot
– “Wow, that Bachmann chick is stuck on turbo-crazy. The only reason people are giving her the time of day is because she’s a relatively attractive woman in the Republican party. Does she hear the words that are coming out of her mouth?” – Sarah Palin
– “Goddammit, I’ve spent fifteen years in this neighborhood trying to increase property vaules, and a whole fucking passel of kettles just moved in next door. With their hippity hop music and Tyler Perry movies…..we better get a dog, honey.” – Pot
– “Bobby Flay is kinda a douche, you guys.” – Guy Fieri
– “The Duggars should stop having children. Can they even handle the children they already have?” – Nadya “Octomom” Suleman
– “That Octomom is such an attention whore.” – Kate Gosselin
– “Fuck you, bitch.” – Nadya Suleman

ElDandy on “Video of the Day: Fabricio Werdum Is as Inappropriate as We Are and Fedor Isn’t Impressed“
Fedor’s high priest looks like every dude I’ve ever seen at a Widespread concert.

Fried Taco on “Aw Geez, Now BJ Penn is Calling Nick Diaz a Cheater“:
At least BJ is right about one thing. No one will ever accuse him of being the bigger man.

Omelette Platter on “CagePotato Open Discussion: Five Fights We Need to See in 2012“:
Too late on the whole face-of-women’s-mma thing, Cyborg has that locked up. It’s just a scary, troubling, road-worn man-face.

RwilsonR on “Houston Alexander Catches Son Talking Dirty, Challenges Him to Boxing Match, Gets Arrested“:
You guys think you’re hack journalists, what about these guys who reported on the story?
KMTV News Omaha: “Police ticketed popular MMA fighter Houston Alexander…”
Obviously no fact-checking done there. Popular?

Old_Bald_and_Irish on “Video of the Day: Ronda Rousey Trains Like A Boss“:
Yeah…I’d drop my balls on her too.
[Ed. note: Welcome back, old friend! This site has sucked since you left and XENOPHON took over!]

Harry McEvansoneya on “Gina Carano’s new boyfriend looks like a total nerd…“:
That’s how he blew out his knee — trying to carry her to bed.

Honorable mention:
A Fistful of Doll Hairs on “Tito Ortiz Guests on Friday Night’s Episode of CSI: NY With an Obviously Cracked Skull“:
He would be a fool not to learn the acting trade from his wife. Timing, dialoge, hitting your mark, getting in front of the money shot…etc. She is a filth of knowledge.
[Ed. note: Obviously he means “fountain,” not “filth.” I don’t know know if that was an auto-correct fail, a Freudian slip, or intentional joke-writing, but either way it made me LOL.]

Sarah Kaufman: Reported Miesha Tate-Ronda Rousey Title Fight Is ‘Pretty Ridiculous’

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Sarah KaufmanSarah Kaufman saw the internet reports of a Miesha Tate–Ronda Rousey title at about the same time the rest of the MMA world did. She wasn’t terribly surprised, she told MMA Fighting on Thursday, but neither was she particularly pleased.

“I think it’s terrible news,” the former Strikeforce 135-pound women’s champ said, and you can probably guess why.

“I put in my time and, being the former champ and having had two fights since the only loss of my career, I’ve definitely earned the right to fight Miesha Tate and fight for the 135-pound title with Strikeforce,” Kaufman explained. “Then there’s Ronda, who’s only been fighting for a year. Granted, she has her judo experience, but she hasn’t fought anyone of a high caliber. She’s fought at 145 pounds — hasn’t even competed at 135 pounds at all — and for her to be given the opportunity to fight for the title, it’s pretty ridiculous.”

The good news, if there is any for Kaufman, is that the fight is not yet official. Though first reported by MMA Weekly on Wednesday evening, both Tate — the current 135-pound women’s champ — and the unbeaten Rousey took to their Twitters to explain that the rumored March 3 title fight wasn’t yet signed. Kaufman said she was still holding out hope that her phone might ring with a fight offer before Rousey’s does, but noted that “usually when rumors happen it’s for a reason.”

The way Kaufman sees it, if Rousey has earned herself a title shot in any division it’s the 145-pound class, where most of her professional bouts have taken place. That Rousey is angling for a shot at Tate rather than at Strikeforce 145-pound champ Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos can only mean one thing, Kaufman said.

“She’s scared to fight Cyborg, for sure, and understandably. Cyborg is a formidable fighter. But if you’re saying you want a title, it shouldn’t matter whether it’s at 145 [pounds] or 135 [pounds]. Now she’s backpedaling and saying, ‘Oh, I want Cyborg to come to 135.’ Or maybe she’ll do it as a catchweight. Or maybe in four or five fights. She’s pretty much just pushing the fight off, clearly running from it.”

Kaufman’s not the only one to question whether Rousey deserves a crack at the title. Tate had a memorable confrontation with the Olympic bronze medalist in a recent episode of The MMA Hour, during which Tate accused her of trying to leverage her looks for an opportunity she hadn’t earned in the cage.

“It’s frustrating to see,” Kaufman said. “Gina [Carano] is a prime example, but she didn’t push her own looks. Everyone else pushed her looks, and she fought. She had good fights that she looked impressive in. Miesha’s been a little bit the same. She’s definitely pushed her looks and marketed herself in that manner, but she’s also put her time in and worked her way up in the fighting game. Ronda’s just the opposite. She’s had a couple impressive wins, and really fast, and then just told people, ‘I’m pretty so I deserve it.'”

While there’s no official word on whether Rousey will get the next shot at Tate, all signs seem to be pointing in that direction, and even Kaufman seems resigned to it. She might have nearly four times as many fights as Rousey, and five years more experience in MMA, but with the fickle nature of the women’s division she knows that doesn’t guarantee her a title shot. What she’s left wondering is, what will?

“I’ve been pushing for the Miesha fight since I fought her,” said Kaufman. “That’s all I can do, is get in interviews and say what I think, which is that I deserve the fight. Maybe that’s not what they want to hear. They want to hear, ‘I’m the prettiest and you can market me and sell me to guys.’ That’s not my thing, and I won’t do that. I’ll present myself as an athlete and be feminine in my own way without being over the top.”

 

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Sarah KaufmanSarah Kaufman saw the internet reports of a Miesha Tate–Ronda Rousey title at about the same time the rest of the MMA world did. She wasn’t terribly surprised, she told MMA Fighting on Thursday, but neither was she particularly pleased.

“I think it’s terrible news,” the former Strikeforce 135-pound women’s champ said, and you can probably guess why.

“I put in my time and, being the former champ and having had two fights since the only loss of my career, I’ve definitely earned the right to fight Miesha Tate and fight for the 135-pound title with Strikeforce,” Kaufman explained. “Then there’s Ronda, who’s only been fighting for a year. Granted, she has her judo experience, but she hasn’t fought anyone of a high caliber. She’s fought at 145 pounds — hasn’t even competed at 135 pounds at all — and for her to be given the opportunity to fight for the title, it’s pretty ridiculous.”

The good news, if there is any for Kaufman, is that the fight is not yet official. Though first reported by MMA Weekly on Wednesday evening, both Tate — the current 135-pound women’s champ — and the unbeaten Rousey took to their Twitters to explain that the rumored March 3 title fight wasn’t yet signed. Kaufman said she was still holding out hope that her phone might ring with a fight offer before Rousey’s does, but noted that “usually when rumors happen it’s for a reason.”

The way Kaufman sees it, if Rousey has earned herself a title shot in any division it’s the 145-pound class, where most of her professional bouts have taken place. That Rousey is angling for a shot at Tate rather than at Strikeforce 145-pound champ Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos can only mean one thing, Kaufman said.

“She’s scared to fight Cyborg, for sure, and understandably. Cyborg is a formidable fighter. But if you’re saying you want a title, it shouldn’t matter whether it’s at 145 [pounds] or 135 [pounds]. Now she’s backpedaling and saying, ‘Oh, I want Cyborg to come to 135.’ Or maybe she’ll do it as a catchweight. Or maybe in four or five fights. She’s pretty much just pushing the fight off, clearly running from it.”

Kaufman’s not the only one to question whether Rousey deserves a crack at the title. Tate had a memorable confrontation with the Olympic bronze medalist in a recent episode of The MMA Hour, during which Tate accused her of trying to leverage her looks for an opportunity she hadn’t earned in the cage.


“It’s frustrating to see,” Kaufman said. “Gina [Carano] is a prime example, but she didn’t push her own looks. Everyone else pushed her looks, and she fought. She had good fights that she looked impressive in. Miesha’s been a little bit the same. She’s definitely pushed her looks and marketed herself in that manner, but she’s also put her time in and worked her way up in the fighting game. Ronda’s just the opposite. She’s had a couple impressive wins, and really fast, and then just told people, ‘I’m pretty so I deserve it.'”

While there’s no official word on whether Rousey will get the next shot at Tate, all signs seem to be pointing in that direction, and even Kaufman seems resigned to it. She might have nearly four times as many fights as Rousey, and five years more experience in MMA, but with the fickle nature of the women’s division she knows that doesn’t guarantee her a title shot. What she’s left wondering is, what will?

“I’ve been pushing for the Miesha fight since I fought her,” said Kaufman. “That’s all I can do, is get in interviews and say what I think, which is that I deserve the fight. Maybe that’s not what they want to hear. They want to hear, ‘I’m the prettiest and you can market me and sell me to guys.’ That’s not my thing, and I won’t do that. I’ll present myself as an athlete and be feminine in my own way without being over the top.”

 

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Report: Miesha Tate to Defend Strikeforce Title Against Ronda Rousey on March 3rd


(Can you train yourself to be double-jointed? I’m just wondering, y’know, for Miesha’s sake.)

Though the match has yet to be confirmed by the fighters or the promotion, MMAWeekly and MMAJunkie are both reporting that Miesha Tate will defend her Strikeforce women’s bantamweight title against fast-rising prospect and Olympic judo bronze-medalist Ronda Rousey in Columbus, Ohio, on March 3rd.

Tate is riding a six-fight win streak, but hasn’t competed since July, when she won her belt by submitting Marloes Coenen via fourth-round arm-triangle choke. A relative newcomer to the sport, Rousey had all four of her professional fights last year, winning each one by armbar in under a minute. But all those fights took place at featherweight or above, and this will be the first time she’ll compete at 135.

Because Rousey’s first fight in her new weight class is a title fight (see also: Keith Jardine), Miesha Tate has made it clear that she doesn’t think Ronda deserves the opportunity, telling FightHubTV:


(Can you train yourself to be double-jointed? I’m just wondering, y’know, for Miesha’s sake.)

Though the match has yet to be confirmed by the fighters or the promotion, MMAWeekly and MMAJunkie are both reporting that Miesha Tate will defend her Strikeforce women’s bantamweight title against fast-rising prospect and Olympic judo bronze-medalist Ronda Rousey in Columbus, Ohio, on March 3rd.

Tate is riding a six-fight win streak, but hasn’t competed since July, when she won her belt by submitting Marloes Coenen via fourth-round arm-triangle choke. A relative newcomer to the sport, Rousey had all four of her professional fights last year, winning each one by armbar in under a minute. But all those fights took place at featherweight or above, and this will be the first time she’ll compete at 135.

Because Rousey’s first fight in her new weight class is a title fight (see also: Keith Jardine), Miesha Tate has made it clear that she doesn’t think Ronda deserves the opportunity, telling FightHubTV:

“I would have no problem fighting her. My only qualm with her is she is 4-0, 2-0 for Strikeforce. She’s challenging in a weight division she hasn’t competed in yet, and I just don’t think at 4-0, she has earned her title shot. She hasn’t beaten any top contenders in the weight class.”

Tate previously dumped a barrel of haterade on Rousey during an MMA Hour appearance in November:

“What happens when she gets a failed arm bar and someone ends up on top pounding her face in? Is she going to tap out or quit? We don’t know. We haven’t seen that yet. I think it’s kind of silly to put her in with me because that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to take it to her. A lot of people are underestimating me. That’s fine. That always seems to be the case. Make no mistake; if Ronda is my next fight, I’m going to come in with a vengeance you’ve never seen before, because to be quite honest, it’s probably going to piss me off…If you weren’t pretty, it wouldn’t matter what you said or didn’t say. That’s why you’re getting this attention. I don’t know, I guess I personally like more of a humble approach.”

So yeah, this should be a good one. Though as Ronda tweeted herself last night, “I haven’t signed anything nothing is official everybody calm down.”

Related:
– Hot Potato Gallery: Miesha Tate, Strikeforce Champion
– Hot Potato: 17 Photos of Ronda Rousey, WMMA’s Hottest Prospect

Winners and Losers in the New Strikeforce-Showtime Deal

Filed under: MMA Media Watch, UFC, StrikeforceShowtime and Strikeforce have agreed to a new deal for more fights on the premium cable network, an announcement that comes as something of a surprise following months of speculation that the UFC would comp…

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Showtime and Strikeforce have agreed to a new deal for more fights on the premium cable network, an announcement that comes as something of a surprise following months of speculation that the UFC would completely absorb the promotion it purchased early this year.

That news will have a wide-ranging impact on the mixed martial arts world, including the fighters, the promoters, the networks and the fans. We examine who the winners and losers are in the new Strikeforce-Showtime deal below.

Winner: Strikeforce women’s champions Cris Cyborg and Miesha Tate
 It was a little jarring to hear UFC President Dana White, who’s far from the biggest supporter of women’s MMA, talk on the conference call announcing the new Strikeforce-Showtime deal about how great this will be for female fighters. But he’s right: Showtime made a specific point in this announcement of singling out Cyborg and Tate as champions who would be involved in big events going forward. The UFC isn’t ready to feature women’s MMA, but Strikeforce and Showtime are.

Loser: Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez
White insisted that Melendez is excited about the opportunities he has ahead of him to continue defending his Strikeforce belt, starting on Saturday night against Jorge Masvidal. That may be true, but it’s also true that Melendez is a great competitor who craves top-level competition, and he’s just not going to get that outside the Octagon. If Melendez beats Masvidal, he’d be very worthy of the next UFC lightweight title shot, against the winner of the upcoming Frankie Edgar-Ben Henderson fight. Instead, Melendez will remain in Strikeforce, no doubt putting on solid performances — but not getting the opportunity to do what he really wants to do, which is prove that he’s the best lightweight in the world.

Winner: Showtime
Even though the new Strikeforce won’t be quite as good as the old Strikeforce (the UFC has, after all, already taken away some of the biggest stars, like Alistair Overeem, Dan Henderson, Cung Le, Jake Shields and Nick Diaz), this deal still means that Showtime will be the home of the biggest names in MMA outside the UFC. As a subscriber-based business, Showtime is less interested in attracting broad audiences than in attracting the kinds of loyal viewers who are willing to pay for content. That perfectly describes hard-core MMA fans: The people who love the sport really love the sport and are willing to show that love on their cable bills. Keeping Strikeforce means keeping tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of MMA fans who only subscribe to Showtime to watch Strikeforce.

Loser: MTV2, Spike, HDNet and any other network airing MMA
 It’s already tough to get attention in the MMA media world if you’re not with the UFC, and for MTV2 (current home of Bellator), Spike (future home of Bellator), HDNet (home of several smaller and international promotions) and any other channel that’s thinking about getting into the MMA business, keeping Strikeforce alive on Showtime makes it tougher.

Winner: Strikeforce heavyweights
Strikeforce will conclude its heavyweight tournament with Daniel Cormier vs. Josh Barnett, then give one more fight to the winner of that, and then move all the heavyweights remaining on the roster over to the UFC. That’s big news for the biggest guys getting to fight in the biggest show, and it’s the logical conclusion of a movement that is already underway: Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem is already in the UFC, set to fight Brock Lesnar, and the last man Overeem beat, Fabricio Werdum, is headed for the UFC now. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva is surely set to fight in the Octagon soon, and promising heavyweights like Shane Del Rosario, Chad Griggs, Lavar Johnson and Shawn Jordan will have great opportunities to prove themselves on a big stage.

Loser: Strikeforce light heavyweights
Although Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Dan Henderson has already vacated his belt and returned to the UFC, it appears that the other Strikeforce light heavyweights will stay where they are. That means good Strikeforce 205-pounders like King Mo Lawal, Rafael Cavalcante, Gegard Mousasi, Ovince St Preux and Lorenz Larkin — all of whom could have a place in the UFC light heavyweight division — will be denied that opportunity.

Winner: MMA fans
 With Zuffa planning 40 live events (32 UFC, eight Strikeforce) plus the new live Ultimate Fighter on Friday nights, Bellator looking at a couple dozen events spread over two seasons, HDNet airing a couple shows a month and your random one-off events from other promotions, it’s going to be a rare weekend night when MMA isn’t on TV. If you’re an MMA fan, you’ve already got plans for almost every weekend.

Loser: Spouses/significant others of MMA fans
With Zuffa planning 40 live events (32 UFC, eight Strikeforce) plus the new live Ultimate Fighter on Friday nights, Bellator looking at a couple dozen events spread over two seasons, HDNet airing a couple shows a month and your random one-off events from other promotions, it’s going to be a rare weekend night when MMA isn’t on TV. If you’re married to an MMA fan, you’re not going to be able to make plans for many weekends.

 

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Featherweight Champ Cris ‘Cyborg’ Santos Wants to Rule Bantamweight, Too

Filed under: Strikeforce, NewsAfter a seemingly interminable, 18-month trip to the sidelines during the prime of her career, Strikeforce women’s featherweight champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos is finally heading back where she belongs, in the middle o…

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After a seemingly interminable, 18-month trip to the sidelines during the prime of her career, Strikeforce women’s featherweight champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos is finally heading back where she belongs, in the middle of the cage.

When Santos returns at December 17’s Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Masvidal event, she’ll have the respected Japanese fighter Hiroko Yamanaka standing across from her, hoping to wrest the belt away. But like always, Santos will enter as a huge favorite to retain her championship in dominant fashion, and a win could open the door for her to become a two-division champion.

That’s because Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker told reporters on Tuesday that the promotion plans to continue both Cyborg’s featherweight class, as well as the bantamweight class, currently reigned over by champ Miesha Tate. Recently, it had been rumored that the featherweight class would be dropped. But even though Coker suggests Cyborg’s division will still be in play, the Brazilian phenom said she is interested in fighting in both classes.

“It’s going to be difficult but I’m going to try to make the move if there’s more work for me there,” Santos said on Tuesday.

“I want to try to do both categories if possible, but I know there is more opportunity at 135,” she added.

It’s hard to blame “Cyborg” for looking to fill her plate after her recent stretch of inactivity. She had fought four times in 14 months from April 2009 to June 2010, scoring four KO/TKO finishes in that time, but the last of those wins over Jan Finney was the last fight on her contract.

The two sides engaged in lengthy negotiations, and for a time, Santos announced she would fight in her home country, but every possibility to return to action seemed to fall through for her until she finally re-signed with her current promotion in August 2011.

Still just 26 years old, Santos will attempt to shake off the ring rust while defending her belt. She sees the layoff as no issue, choosing to emphasize the improvements she was able to make while honing her craft in the gym.

“I feel like I’ve gotten better at jiu-jitsu, I’ve been staying competitive in that aspect,” she said. “I’ve been working on boxing, striking. I feel I’m better and more well-rounded as a fighter than I was before.”

If that’s true, now fighters in two weight classes will have to contend with her unique blend of athleticism, power and technique.

 

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Miesha Tate, Ronda Rousey, and the Argument Women’s MMA Can’t Stop Having

Filed under: StrikeforceStrikeforce 135-pound women’s champ Miesha Tate doesn’t think it’s fair for Ronda Rousey to leverage her looks into a title shot, and she’s got a point.

Rousey thinks that, when it comes to selling a fight and getting MMA fans …

Filed under:

Strikeforce 135-pound women’s champ Miesha Tate doesn’t think it’s fair for Ronda Rousey to leverage her looks into a title shot, and she’s got a point.

Rousey thinks that, when it comes to selling a fight and getting MMA fans interested in what’s happening with the women’s division, fair doesn’t enter into it. She’s also got a point.

It’s an argument that — especially among female MMA fighters — isn’t new and isn’t unique. The fact is, when you’re trying to scratch out a living in the women’s division of a sport marketed primarily to young men, it helps to be pretty. It might not be fair, and it might not be right, but we need only look at who’s getting paid and who’s getting ignored to know that, at least for now, it’s the way things are.

But watching Tate and Rousey present their respective sides of the issue while my colleague Ariel Helwani struggled to get a word in, I couldn’t help but wonder if it’s always going to be this way, and whether we’ll ever stop arguing over it. And if we don’t, is that necessarily such a bad thing?

To be fair, this particular iteration of the argument isn’t as simple as beauty versus the beast. You might look at Rousey and see Judo Barbie, but there’s more to her than just eye candy. For starters, she’s an Olympic bronze medalist. If you want to hear about that, just ask her. If you don’t want to hear about it, fine, but she’ll probably tell you anyway, and who can blame her?

Sure, she’s only had four pro fights in MMA, but none of them have been even the least bit competitive. You could call her career one long armbar clinic, except that a) it hasn’t even been that long, and b) any clinic that injures that many people isn’t going to get a whole lot of repeat customers.

Still, Rousey knows what she’s doing. She’s attractive, she’s got an attitude, and she’s using both to get herself noticed. When Tate told her, “If you weren’t pretty, it wouldn’t matter what you said or didn’t say,” she’s probably right. But then, is that so wrong?

If Tate thinks so, she must have come around to that conclusion pretty recently. Seems like she’s had no problem playing up her own good looks when it served her purposes (exhibit A: the background of her Twitter page). Then again, as Tate pointed out, she also won a bunch of fights. Being good-looking is, as she tells it, “just a bonus” for a female fighter, since at the end of the day each woman still has to acquit herself in the cage, where a pretty face won’t help you.

But then, the problem for women’s MMA hasn’t been a lack of skill from the fighters — it’s a lack of interest from the fans. For whatever reason, a lot of the same people who love to see two men beat each other up just aren’t into watching two women do the same thing. I don’t know why that is, honestly, and I’m not sure it matters. You can tell people that they should like and support women’s MMA. You can tell them they’re a bunch of jerks if they only want to see pretty girls fighting. That might make a few people feel bad about themselves, but it won’t create many new fans.

You know what will, though? Stuff like this Tate-Rousey rivalry. Already it’s produced what might be the best segment in MMA Hour history (no offense to “The Mitrione Minute”). For the first time in a long time, the MMA world is buzzing about women’s MMA. And, contrary to how it might seem on the surface, it’s not their looks that’s driving the interest (though, okay, it doesn’t hurt). Really, it’s the argument over their looks and over how much it matters, and it’s the same argument women’s MMA has been having with itself for years.

It shouldn’t be enough to be pretty. I don’t just mean in MMA, either. Whether you’re a man or a woman, good looks might be a minor win in the genetic lottery, but they don’t make you a good or talented or even worthwhile person. We know this, even if we don’t always act like it. To give a good-looking person special considerations just because we like looking at their face is embarrassingly dumb, not to mention unfair. That’s why it makes for such a fascinating internal conflict for a women’s division that’s still struggling with its own identity.

No one wants to see women’s MMA become a sideshow where untalented, untrained pretty girls fight it out in sports bras for the sexual satisfaction of a caveman crowd. At least, I hope no one wants that, and if they do there are websites specifically for them (I’ve heard there are, anyway). At the same time, just as in the men’s division, promote-ability matters. Brock Lesnar got a title shot after three fights — which, in retrospect, still seems insane — because he sold tickets and pay-per-views.

Some fans and fighters might want to see MMA become an egalitarian utopia where none of that matters, but in the meantime promoters still have to market their product to the world that is rather than the world that could or should be.

The good news is, MMA has a built-in lie detector to keep anyone from skating by on looks or attitude or popularity for too long, and that’s the same for the women as it is for the men. If you can’t fight, we’ll find out soon enough. Eventually some ugly, boring person will punch you in the face until you can’t stand up, and that will be that. Facial symmetry might be a useful gift, but it doesn’t hold up too well in a sport that allows elbow strikes on the ground.

By forcing this discussion, both Tate and Rousey have done women’s MMA a favor, whether either of them realize it or not. As much as female fighters love to frame their sport as a battle for attention and respect that they’re all waging together, they don’t always act in their own self-interest. It doesn’t help them at all to be nice or to be friends or even to be fair to one another. What helps them is selling fights. What helps them — just as it helps the men — is getting fans interested in what’s about to happen a few Saturday nights from now.

That’s the business of fighting. As Josh Barnett likes to say, the business of fighting has very little to do with actual fighting, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t important. This conflict — trying to give fans what they want but without losing your identity or self-respect in the process — might turn out to be an ongoing and inescapable struggle for women’s MMA. And maybe that’s okay. In a sport that’s all about conflict in its various forms, you could do a lot worse than have public arguments that lead to publicized fights.

 

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