Tag: Recap

Sylvia vs. Arlovski 4, Baroni vs. Ribeiro Marred by Confusing and Dangerous Rules at ‘One FC: Pride of a Nation’


(Hey, this just means One FC will rake in big bucks for “Sylvia vs. Arlovski 5: Please, God, Make It Stop”)

By Elias Cepeda

It’s a good thing the MMA world was so excited to see the fourth meeting of Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski at One FC 5: Pride of a Nation today in the Philippines, because now it might just get a fifth. The two former UFC champions were set to clash Friday near the top of the Singapore-based organization’s card, and they did, but with an unsatisfying result for fighters and fans alike, thanks to One FC’s convoluted and dangerous rules regarding kicks to the head of downed opponents.

They are legal. Sort of.

Phil Baroni won his bout earlier in the evening after effectively using kicks to the head of his opponent Rodrigo Ribeiro. However, when Arlovski landed glancing kicks to the head of Sylvia after dropping him to the mat on all fours with a punch combination, the referee called the blows illegal and gave Sylvia time to recover. When Sylvia could not, the fight was ruled a no contest. You see, One FC allows kicks to the head of a downed opponent only after a fighter is given express, in-the-moment permission by the referee. What could possibly go wrong?

(Check out GIFs of the Baroni and Arlovski finishes — as well as full results from One FC 5 — at the bottom of this post.)

Besides giving referees a strange discretion that would seem to do nothing but open up new and exciting opportunities for oversight, slip ups, and corruption, such a rule necessarily stops the action in fights and gives fighters something else to think about other than the only two things they should be — attacking their opponent and defending themselves.


(Hey, this just means One FC will rake in big bucks for “Sylvia vs. Arlovski 5: Please, God, Make It Stop”)

By Elias Cepeda

It’s a good thing the MMA world was so excited to see the fourth meeting of Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski at One FC 5: Pride of a Nation today in the Philippines, because now it might just get a fifth. The two former UFC champions were set to clash Friday near the top of the Singapore-based organization’s card, and they did, but with an unsatisfying result for fighters and fans alike, thanks to One FC’s convoluted and dangerous rules regarding kicks to the head of downed opponents.

They are legal. Sort of.

Phil Baroni won his bout earlier in the evening after effectively using kicks to the head of his opponent Rodrigo Ribeiro. However, when Arlovski landed glancing kicks to the head of Sylvia after dropping him to the mat on all fours with a punch combination, the referee called the blows illegal and gave Sylvia time to recover. When Sylvia could not, the fight was ruled a no contest. You see, One FC allows kicks to the head of a downed opponent only after a fighter is given express, in-the-moment permission by the referee. What could possibly go wrong?

(Check out GIFs of the Baroni and Arlovski finishes — as well as full results from One FC 5 — at the bottom of this post.)

Besides giving referees a strange discretion that would seem to do nothing but open up new and exciting opportunities for oversight, slip ups, and corruption, such a rule necessarily stops the action in fights and gives fighters something else to think about other than the only two things they should be — attacking their opponent and defending themselves.

Rules like this are also going to be needlessly open to uneven application and enforcement. For example, Baroni won his fight and didn’t appear to look for nor receive permission to kick the head of the dropped Ribeiro, prior to striking. Neither did Arlovski. But Baroni won, Ribeiro lost, and Arlovski walked away with a no-contest despite convincingly beating his rival.

One FC put together a solid card with some great mixed martial arts competitors for their fifth event. Unfortunately, what will be most remembered is how the organization’s confused and unorganized rules left their referees, athletes, and spectators confused as well.

We don’t need an accounting from the organization as to what rationale led to their strange rule-set. They simply need to recognize the damage that they have done and abandon them.

Allow kicks and knees to the head of downed opponents, or don’t. One FC has to choose.

GIF of Baroni’s win:

GIF of Arlovski and Sylvia’s no contest:

GIFs courtesy of BloodyElbow

“One FC 5: Pride of a Nation” results
– Bibiano Fernandes def. Gustavo Falciroli via unanimous decision
– Eduard Folayang def. Felipe Enomoto via unanimous decision
– Andrei Arlovski vs. Tim Sylvia ended in a no contest (illegal kicks)
– Eric Kelly def. Jens Pulver via TKO, 1:46 of round 2
– Rolles Gracie def. Tony Bonello via submission (rear-naked choke), 1:33 of round 3
– Jung Hwan Cha def. Igor Gracie via TKO, 1:03 of round 3
– Soo Chul Kim def. Kevin Belingon via unanimous decision
– Gregor Gracie def. Nicholas Mann via submission (armbar), 3:38 of round 1
– Phil Baroni def. Rodrigo Ribeiro via TKO, 1:00 of round 1
– Shannon Wiratchai def. Mitch Chilson via KO, 3:02 of round 2
– Honorio Banario def. Andrew Benibe via KO, 3:47 of round 3

[VIDEO] Attila Vegh Wrecks Travis Wiuff in Just 25 Seconds at Bellator 73

The UFC may be a bit of a mess right now, but last night’s Bellator 73 wrapped up the promotion’s Summer Series with a bang. Despite an injury to Pat Curran scrapping the initial main event of Curran vs. Patricio Freire, the event soldiered on with Attila Vegh vs. Travis Wiuff for the light-heavyweight tournament championship as the new main event.

If you asked us for a prediction beforehand, we probably would have told you that Vegh is too small and one-dimensional to stop Travis Wiuff from laying on top of him for most of the fight. It wouldn’t be pretty, but it’d earn Wiuff a well-deserved rematch against Bellator light-heavyweight champion Christian M’Pumbu. Well, good thing you never asked us, because we’d feel pretty stupid right about now.

Wiuff can’t implement his trademark pit-and-quit offense before Vegh finds his head with a huge right hand. A few more follow-up punches for good measure, and Attila Vegh is now the Summer Series Light-Heavyweight Tournament Champion. Something tells me that the eventual clash between Vegh and M’Pumbu won’t last too long.

Video available after the jump.

The UFC may be a bit of a mess right now, but last night’s Bellator 73 wrapped up the promotion’s Summer Series with a bang. Despite an injury to Pat Curran scrapping the initial main event of Curran vs. Patricio Freire, the event soldiered on with Attila Vegh vs. Travis Wiuff for the light-heavyweight tournament championship as the new main event.

If you asked us for a prediction beforehand, we probably would have told you that Vegh is too small and one-dimensional to stop Travis Wiuff from laying on top of him for most of the fight. It wouldn’t be pretty, but it’d earn Wiuff a well-deserved rematch against Bellator light-heavyweight champion Christian M’Pumbu. Well, good thing you never asked us, because we’d feel pretty stupid right about now.

Wiuff can’t implement his trademark pit-and-quit offense before Vegh finds his head with a huge right hand. A few more follow-up punches for good measure, and Attila Vegh is now the Summer Series Light-Heavyweight Tournament Champion. Something tells me that the eventual clash between Vegh and M’Pumbu won’t last too long.

Also of note, Marcos Galvao took home the bantamweight tournament championship with a convincing second round TKO over former training partner Luis Nogueira. After a close first round that saw Galvao use some vicious knees from the clinch against Nogueira to possibly steal the round, Galvao began to pull away with the fight throughout the second using his superior reach. Once Galvao was able to get Nogueira to the ground, the fight ended as Galvao took Nogueira’s back and unloaded some heavy elbows. Eduardo Dantas will be fighting Marcos Galvao in the near future for the Bellator Bantamweight Championship.

UFC 151 Aftermath (?): Jones Opens As -475 Favorite Over Machida While His Peers Tear Him a New One


(Suddenly, the decision to sponsor this guy seems like not so great of an idea.) 

Boy oh boy, have the events of this afternoon trapped everyone in a glass case of emotion or what? We’re going to forgo the typical “aftermath” aspect of this…aftermath, because suffice it to say, you are already aware of what has gone down. Looking ahead, it appears Jon Jones will be facing Lyoto Machida (again) at UFC 152 in Toronto (again). It also appears that all of the claims that “Lyoto TOTALLY won a round against Bones, you guys” — as if he, you know, didn’t get sliced open and choked unconscious shortly thereafter — have had some effect on the bookies. At least for now.

BestFightOdds currently has Jones listed between -475 and -485 for his rematch with “The Dragon,” which is actually not as bad (for Machida, at least) as the -600 Jones was listed at when these two first squared off. Who knows how far that number will sway in the next few weeks, but we’re guessing it will only increase in Jones’ favor as time passes.

But that’s not the story here. The real story is that, due to the cancellation of UFC 151, a lot of fighters are getting royally screwed. Sure, the UFC could reimburse them with their show money (as if they’re not losing a shitload of it already), but these fighters rely on sponsorship money to truly put them in the green. That money has seemingly dissapeared, and man are they pissed about it. After all, when you only fight a few times a year (at best) for next-to-nothing, missing a fight can have serious financial consequences. And the poor saps who will now be missing another paycheck are letting Jones have it on Twitter.

The best responses are after the jump. 


(Suddenly, the decision to sponsor this guy seems like not so great of an idea.) 

Boy oh boy, have the events of this afternoon trapped everyone in a glass case of emotion or what? We’re going to forgo the typical “aftermath” aspect of this…aftermath, because suffice it to say, you are already aware of what has gone down. Looking ahead, it appears Jon Jones will be facing Lyoto Machida (again) at UFC 152 in Toronto (again). It also appears that all of the claims that “Lyoto TOTALLY won a round against Bones, you guys” — as if he, you know, didn’t get sliced open and choked unconscious shortly thereafter — have had some effect on the bookies. At least for now.

BestFightOdds currently has Jones listed between -475 and -485 for his rematch with “The Dragon,” which is actually not as bad (for Machida, at least) as the -600 Jones was listed at when these two first squared off. Who knows how far that number will sway in the next few weeks, but we’re guessing it will only increase in Jones’ favor as time passes.

But that’s not the story here. The real story is that, due to the cancellation of UFC 151, a lot of fighters are getting royally screwed. Sure, the UFC could reimburse them with their show money (as if they’re not losing a shitload of it already), but these fighters rely on sponsorship money to truly put them in the green. That money has seemingly dissapeared, and man are they pissed about it. After all, when you only fight a few times a year (at best) for next-to-nothing, missing a fight can have serious financial consequences. And the poor saps who will now be missing another paycheck are letting Jones have it on Twitter.

Here are just a few reactions.

Michael Bisping: “Jones said he’s not fighting chael on 8 days notice. I did. …. Just sayin”

Did I just become a Bisping fan?! Jesus, I don’t even know what is real anymore.

Jeff Houghland: @JonnyBones Can I at least get one of your new Nike T-shirts? I’ll give it to my kid since I won’t have any money for her school clothes.

Kyle Noke: Im no longer fighting. the whole @ufc 151 card is cancelled. Sorry to all fans who bought flight, hotel, and fight tickets.#heartbroken

Charlie Brenneman: Me n @Rick_Story took a fight on 24 hrs norice!! Champ what?!?!@ufc

@JonnyBones u can send my check to PO box 198. EH NJ. Rent is due the first, so preferably by then. Thanks. @ufc

Joe Rogan: I am completely bewildered that Jon Jones didn’t accept the fight with Chael Sonnen. Never saw that coming in a million years. Now the entire UFC card is scrapped because Jones didn’t accept a fight with a 185lb’er who is completely out of shape. WOW. Just wow.

It should be known that due to UFC 151′s cancellation, Rogan’s show at the Mandalay Bay events center planned for that weekend was also cancelled.

Josh Barnett: If I was in Jones’ shoes I’d have said “Bring me the contract and I’ll bring you his head.”. To me, the scenario was far in Jones’ favor

Perhaps the most scathing tweets sent were those of TUF Live winner Michael Chiesa. You remember him, right?

@JonnyBones is a fraud. He’s all about his $$ but he won’t take a fight with @sonnench who would bring in WAY more $$? He’s scared, period.

99.999% of @ufc fighters will be “company men” and help our organization if needed. @sonnench is a company man,@JonnyBones is selfish.

Max Holloway: Something doesnt make sense Jones said he doesnt wanna fight machida cause he dont wanna be a broke fighter. Now hes not getting paid at all.

Vinny Magalhaes: How to piss Dana White off #BonesKnows

Wait a minute, as I’m writing this, Luke Thomas just tweeted the following:

Under NAC 467.259, the UFC seems to be obligated to reimburse all of those fighters under their bout agreements…

Well, that’s good to know. I’m going to let this stew over a bevy of beverages. Until tomorrow, Potato Nation…

–J. Jones

Turns Out, Cris Cyborg Was Figuratively Dicknailed by CSAC Prior to the Rousey/Kaufman Fight


(WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE’S NO FOAMING OF THE MOUTH ALLOWED IN THIS ARENA?!)

You might recall that in the immediate aftermath of Ronda Rousey’s win over Sarah Kaufman last weekend, “Rowdy” called out former women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg. Unlike past Strikeforce events, Cyborg was not allowed to enter the ring and cause a full-fledged riot for our entertainment, and in fact was actually removed from her seat in the audience before the fight even started.

Why, you ask? Well, it turns out that the California State Athletic Commission has a rule declaring that any fighter under a current suspension is not allowed inside to be at a professional mixed martial arts event. Cyborg shared your current confusion while she was being removed form the audience, telling Tatame in a recent interview:

I watched all fights but on the last one, Ronda’s, a woman working on the event came to tell me I had to leave because the commission doesn’t accept suspended athletes on the shows. My manager talked to the guys at the commission and there’s really a law that says that.

I was upset for the way they treated me. They could’ve pulled me on a corner and told me, not in front of the fans. I was taking pictures and they interrupted me, saying I had to go. It was very disrespectful. I believe a champion deserves to be treated with respect. Everyone knows an athlete’s life isn’t easy, so all fighters deserve respect. When I was in Brazil I watched UFC and there was no problem.

An odd rule indeed, made all the more unusual by the fact that the commission decided to wait until the main event to inform Cyborg that she wasn’t supposed to be there in the first place, which is the equivalent of letting a homeless man wander into your dinner party uninvited and waiting until the nightcap to kick him out.

More news on the Cyborg/Rousey match is after the jump.


(WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE’S NO FOAMING OF THE MOUTH ALLOWED IN THIS ARENA?!)

You might recall that in the immediate aftermath of Ronda Rousey’s win over Sarah Kaufman last weekend, “Rowdy” called out former women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg. Unlike past Strikeforce events, Cyborg was not allowed to enter the ring and cause a full-fledged riot for our entertainment, and in fact was actually removed from her seat in the audience before the fight even started.

Why, you ask? Well, it turns out that the California State Athletic Commission has a rule declaring that any fighter under a current suspension is not allowed inside to be at a professional mixed martial arts event. Cyborg shared your current confusion while she was being removed form the audience, telling Tatame in a recent interview:

I watched all fights but on the last one, Ronda’s, a woman working on the event came to tell me I had to leave because the commission doesn’t accept suspended athletes on the shows. My manager talked to the guys at the commission and there’s really a law that says that.

I was upset for the way they treated me. They could’ve pulled me on a corner and told me, not in front of the fans. I was taking pictures and they interrupted me, saying I had to go. It was very disrespectful. I believe a champion deserves to be treated with respect. Everyone knows an athlete’s life isn’t easy, so all fighters deserve respect. When I was in Brazil I watched UFC and there was no problem.

An odd rule indeed, made all the more unusual by the fact that the commission decided to wait until the main event to inform Cyborg that she wasn’t supposed to be there in the first place, which is the equivalent of letting a homeless man wander into your dinner party uninvited and waiting until the nightcap to kick him out.

And even if she was able to make it to the hexagon, it wouldn’t really have mattered, because the chances of Rousey/Cyborg happening at 135 are about as good as Mayweather/Pacquiao:

I watched it from upstairs, standing up. I thought he (sic?) did a great job fighting, had a good performance. She’s a great athlete on her division. This is my last interview on which I’m talking about her. I’m making clear to the fans who want to see this fight that if it’s up to me and her it will never happen because I’m not dropping to her weight class and she can’t gain few pounds to fight me.

So I’m only talking about her again if I sign a contract because then it will be a fight that will actually happen. It doesn’t depend on me, it’s up to Strikeforce to decide. If they want this fight they will have to come to an agreement so that both of us are happy. 

Well, Ms. Borg, it’s not that Ronda couldn’t gain the necessary weight — she fought two fights at 145 under the Strikeforce banner — it’s that she shouldn’t have to. And before some of you more jilted readers jump on me for hugging Rousey’s ovaries (although I would give my right arm to do so. ZING!), please first consider that Ronda is the champ in this scenario. Cyborg was the champ, but managed to fuck that up on her own. And as far as the weight cut is concerned, I recently listened to a pretty great discussion on the matter during a recent episode of The Co-Main Event Podcast, which I would highly recommend you all check out. And I’m not just saying that because Old Dad and Chad Dundas are running it; it is truly as entertaining as it is informative, and the listeners control a lot of the content they discuss. Plus, they have a recurring segment called “Are You Fucking Kidding Me?!”, which is always a good idea.

But anyway, when they came upon the topic of Cyborg’s weight, Dundas brought to light the fact that she had enough trouble enough making 145 in the past, to which Fowlkes responded that it might even make her look worse if she was suddenly able to make 135 on the tail end of a steroid suspension. And while there is no doubting the incredibly muscular physique that Cyborg possesses, I would have to agree with Fowlkes. Guys like Dominick Cruz, Francisco Rivera, and Roland Delorme to name a few stand at roughly the same height as Cyborg, if not taller, and are able to make the cut to 135 with ease. Does Cyborg really have that much more muscle mass than either of those gentlemen? Perhaps in the past, but that is more than likely not the case nowadays.

In either case, we need this fight to happen. The Rousey haters need to see if she can truly be defeated, and the Rousey lovers need her prove that she is truly the best fighter in WMMA history. Let’s face it, Cyborg is the last legitimate threat to Rousey in the foreseeable future, and even Dana White tweeted that the fight would be good enough for a UFC pay-per-view:

Dave Farra@DaveFarra

Dana White: Yes, I could see @RondaRousey vs. Cyborg as a co-main or main event for a @ufc pay per view. Rousey is incredible.

Considering White’s complete reluctance to even accept the idea of WMMA in the UFC in the past, that’s quite a statement.

–J. Jones

Strikeforce: Kaufman vs. Rousey GIF Party — Referee Mike Beltran’s Epistache, Knockouts Aplenty + More


(Beltran, as re-imagined by Sega.)

Last weekend’s Strikeforce: Rousey vs. Kaufman card was easily one of the most entertaining top-to-bottom cards in recent memory, providing us with a lightning quick (also, completely predictable) finish in the main event and an even quicker knockout in the co-main. But as is typical for a Strikeforce event, the night was not without controversy and a few judgmental errors. Herb Dean went completely against character when he botched the call in the Adlan Amagov/Keith Barry fight, and the decision to place former title challenger Meisha Tate’s comeback bout against Julie Kedzie on the prelims was nothing short of baffling.

But greater than witnessing Ronda Rousey‘s sixth straight first round armbar, greater even than OSP’s one-punch knockout of T.J. Cook, was that of referee Mike Beltran’s epic mustache. An “epistache” if you will. Why Beltran decided to become a referee instead of claiming his place atop the Whisker Wars podium is beyond us, but his hard work and dedication can not and will not be overlooked by us here at CagePotato. So join us after the jump for a brief GIF tribute to Beltran’s glorious stache, along with several gifs from the night’s fights, courtesy of the UG.


(Beltran, as re-imagined by Sega.)

Last weekend’s Strikeforce: Rousey vs. Kaufman card was easily one of the most entertaining top-to-bottom cards in recent memory, providing us with a lightning quick (also, completely predictable) finish in the main event and an even quicker knockout in the co-main. But as is typical for a Strikeforce event, the night was not without controversy and a few judgmental errors. Herb Dean went completely against character when he botched the call in the Adlan Amagov/Keith Barry fight, and the decision to place former title challenger Meisha Tate’s comeback bout against Julie Kedzie on the prelims was nothing short of baffling.

But greater than witnessing Ronda Rousey‘s sixth straight first round armbar, greater even than OSP’s one-punch knockout of T.J. Cook, was that of referee Mike Beltran’s epic mustache. An “epistache” if you will. Why Beltran decided to become a referee instead of claiming his place atop the Whisker Wars podium is beyond us, but his hard work and dedication can not and will not be overlooked by us here at CagePotato. So join us after the jump for a brief GIF tribute to Beltran’s glorious stache, along with several gifs from the night’s fights, courtesy of the UG.


(Oddly enough, Beltran gave Germaine de Randamie more time to recover from a groin shot than he did T.J. Cook. DO NOT QUESTION THE STACHE!) 

StrikeForce Rousey vs. Kaufman Aftermath: The MMA Super Athlete Has Arrived

By Elias Cepeda

MMA fans have always wondered what would happen if the sport grew to the point where it could attract the types of elite athletes that have historically gone to, say, the NFL or the Olympics. Surely once that happened, we’d see a marked rise in athleticism and potential in the sport we all love.

Well, that new breed of elite MMA athlete has arrived. He isn’t the dominant and other worldly athletic Jon Jones. He isn’t the pound for pound great and all-around lethal weapon Georges St. Pierre. She’s Ronda Rousey.

The Strikeforce women’s bantamweight champion successfully defended her title again Saturday night against Sarah Kaufman. In about the last year and half the Olympic Judo bronze medalist Rousey has had her first six professional fights, winning all six by arm bar in the first round.

Kaufman couldn’t last a minute in the cage with Rousey before being forced to tap out. The thing is, Kaufman is a damn good fighter. So is Miesha Tate, Rousey’s prior victim.

Kaufman is a former champion and has only lost twice in her career. Tate has only lost three times. Both women have almost three times the professional MMA experience as Rousey.

“Rowdy” Ronda isn’t perfectly well-rounded yet. She hasn’t been tested in a fight yet and she simply hasn’t fought nearly as much as the women she faces. But she’s been able to dominate them all because she brings a lifetime of doing a couple things at a higher level than even most MMA champions have ever done anything.

By Elias Cepeda

MMA fans have always wondered what would happen if the sport grew to the point where it could attract the types of elite athletes that have historically gone to, say, the NFL or the Olympics. Surely once that happened, we’d see a marked rise in athleticism and potential in the sport we all love.

Well, that new breed of elite MMA athlete has arrived. He isn’t the dominant and other worldly athletic Jon Jones. He isn’t the pound for pound great and all-around lethal weapon Georges St. Pierre. She’s Ronda Rousey.

The Strikeforce women’s bantamweight champion successfully defended her title Saturday night against Sarah Kaufman. In about the last year and half the Olympic Judo bronze medalist Rousey has had her first six professional fights, winning all six by arm bar in the first round.

Kaufman couldn’t last a minute in the cage with Rousey before being forced to tap out. The thing is, Kaufman is a damn good fighter. So is Miesha Tate, Rousey’s prior victim.

Kaufman is a former champion and has only lost twice in her career. Tate has only lost three times. Both women have almost three times the professional MMA experience as Rousey.

“Rowdy” Ronda isn’t perfectly well-rounded yet. She hasn’t been tested in a fight yet and she simply hasn’t fought nearly as much as the women she faces. But she’s been able to dominate them all because she brings a lifetime of doing a couple things at a higher level than even most MMA champions have ever done anything.

As a world-class Judo player Ronda is great at taking people down and submitting them with arm bars, just like her mother was during her hey day as an international Judo competitor.

There are no real barriers to enter MMA – it is an accessible and democratic sport in many ways. If someone wants to fight MMA, they will be able to find a promoter willing to give them a fight. Whether or not they become good depends on their talent, their work and lots of luck, like anything else. But we’ve seen many non blue-chip fighters become champions in MMA based almost entirely on yeoman-like hard work.

That’s a beautiful thing. It is also a thing of beauty to see a similarly hard-working individual who just happens to be a world-class athlete and raised in a competitive shark-tank and has emerged an efficient killing machine.

That’s Ronda Rousey. Our friend Mike Chiappetta wrote this weekend that she has the best killer instinct in all of MMA. It’s hard to argue with him.

Her finishing with arm bars is just one way that all of her fights have looked the same. The other is how she starts all her fights by storming her opponents, putting them on their heels and in a defensive mindset from the beginning. Ronda Rousey is literally trying to submit you from bell to bell.

Rousey may or may not continue to be flawless but the point is that she’s got more potential than almost anyone in the sport because of her elite athletic pedigree and superior competitive mindset. Former Strikeforce 145 pound champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos has dismissed Rousey as an easy mark that has never yet been kneed hard on the chin, as Santos is good at doing to people.

That may be true, and if Santos ever comes down in weight to face Rousey we might see how the two match up. “Cyborg” is certainly the larger and more experienced fighter. But, while Cristiane passes the time during her doping suspension by trash-talking Ronda, we should appreciate what we’ve got on our hands with Rousey.

She’s entertaining in and out of the cage, fights more aggressively than anyone else in the sport right now and has the biggest upside of anyone in MMA.

The best prospect in MMA is the chick already wearing the gold.