Ronda Rousey and Liz Carmouche: Making a Real Contribution to the Female Cause

It was everything we hoped it would be and more. Last night’s UFC 157 main event between Ronda Rousey and Liz Carmouche was a tremendous vindication of women’s MMA and its supporters. The back-and-forth encounter both confounded and convert…

It was everything we hoped it would be and more. Last night’s UFC 157 main event between Ronda Rousey and Liz Carmouche was a tremendous vindication of women’s MMA and its supporters.

The back-and-forth encounter both confounded and converted many of those who initially objected to the notion of women competing in MMA’s premier organisation.

It would be easy to overstate the significance of what transpired last night. The press coverage that preceded the UFC’s first ever female fight would have led one to believe that the hopes and dreams of half the world’s population had been pinned to the performances of Rousey and Carmouche.

The champion’s immediate reaction following her win via first-round armbar was as much an expression of relief as it was euphoria. With a few short taps, it was as though a two-ton weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

It wasn’t just that the future of women’s MMA had been coupled to the career trajectory of Rousey, nor was it her status as a Goliath-esque favourite in the eyes of fans and media alike.

It was also the adversity she had overcome just minutes earlier, when her opponent had secured a rear-naked crank that almost ensured Ronda would leave the Honda Center minus a mandible.

Those who thought of the bout as a novelty or, worse still, an affront to MMA must have been forced to rethink their position in light of a contest that was of an extraordinarily high level—despite Roy Nelson’s misguided, vaguely sexist post-fight critique.

The effort put forth by both athletes made a mockery of the slacktivist culture of third-wave feminism that exists on social media websites such as Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr.

Ronda Rousey and Liz Carmouche made a tangible contribution to the female cause last night. It was a proud moment for our sport, and anyone who thinks otherwise is running outdated software on their brain.

Women’s MMA is here to stay. It’s time to embrace it, not fight it.

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[Video] Chael Sonnen Licks Rashad Evans’ Shoe – In Shocking Other News, Dan Henderson is Complaining About Something

In their other lives, UFC stars Chael Sonnen and Rashad Evans suit up and become television analysts for Fuel TV. It was in this role Saturday night that Chael Sonnen experienced the latest negative consequence of his mouth writing a check his…well, in this case I guess it was a check that Dan Henderson’s ass couldn’t cash.

Before UFC 157, Sonnen the analyst said that he’d lick Rashad Evans’ shoe if his long-time Team Quest training partner Henderson lost to Lyoto Machida in their featured bout Saturday night. After Machida won a split decision over Henderson Chael made good on his promise and made sweet mouth love to Evans’ shoe.

Yes, that was a needlessly disgusting sentence and this post is somewhat pointless in the grand scheme of Saturday’s historic event. But you’re a damn liar if you’re telling me you didn’t press ‘play’ on the video above to watch ‘The American Bad Ass’ French kiss Rashad’s boot once you read the headline.

In related news, Henderson isn’t surprised that one of the judges managed to somehow think he won the fight against Machida, he’s apparently upset that all three didn’t.

“I won the fight, but not officially. I hit him whenever he wanted to fight. He ran away most of the time,” Hendo said at the UFC 157 post fight press conference.

Listen, the fight was close-fought and the judges had to pay attention but there is no question that Machida landed the harder shots and more often, mostly thwarted Hendo’s wrestling while doing more with his own offensive wrestling and ground work than the former two-division champ did. Yes, Machida made Henderson whiff with many of his leaping over hand rights and left hooks but I’d hardly call that “running.”

Was Henderson surprised that his opponent would try to strategically stay out of range until he was ready to throw his own shots? Had he seen Lyoto Machida fight before?

In their other lives, UFC stars Chael Sonnen and Rashad Evans suit up and become television analysts for Fuel TV. It was in this role Saturday night that Chael Sonnen experienced the latest negative consequence of his mouth writing a check his…well, in this case I guess it was a check that Dan Henderson’s ass couldn’t cash.

Before UFC 157, Sonnen the analyst said that he’d lick Rashad Evans’ shoe if his long-time Team Quest training partner Henderson lost to Lyoto Machida in their featured bout Saturday night. After Machida won a split decision over Henderson Chael made good on his promise and made sweet mouth love to Evans’ shoe.

Yes, that was a needlessly disgusting sentence and this post is somewhat pointless in the grand scheme of Saturday’s historic event. But you’re a damn liar if you’re telling me you didn’t press ‘play’ on the video above to watch ‘The American Bad Ass’ French kiss Rashad’s boot once you read the headline.

In related news, Henderson isn’t surprised that one of the judges managed to somehow think he won the fight against Machida, he’s apparently upset that all three didn’t.

“I won the fight, but not officially. I hit him whenever he wanted to fight. He ran away most of the time,” Hendo said at the UFC 157 post fight press conference.

Listen, the fight was close-fought and the judges had to pay attention but there is no question that Machida landed the harder shots and more often, mostly thwarted Hendo’s wrestling while doing more with his own offensive wrestling and ground work than the former two-division champ did. Yes, Machida made Henderson whiff with many of his leaping over hand rights and left hooks but I’d hardly call that “running.”

Was Henderson surprised that his opponent would try to strategically stay out of range until he was ready to throw his own shots? Had he seen Lyoto Machida fight before?

In any case, Henderson gets the right to complain about this decision (and perhaps everything else he complains about, ie. losing title shots that he himself voluntarily gave up, Anderson Silva ‘ducking’ him even though ‘The Spider’ smoked him in under two rounds, Jon Jones existing, etc.) when he admits that he was lucky to get decisions in some of his biggest career fights. Go ahead, re-watch his all-time great fight against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua that made him the #1 Contender, his split decision win over Yuki Kondo and his title fight against Murilo Bustamante.

The honest truth is that Dan Henderson is one of this writer’s favorite fighters and one of the best and most fearless competitors in the sport’s history. This is why it hurts so much to hear him veer into Matt Hughes smack-talking, excuse-making territory more and more often.

Suck it up, get back to the drawing board and do what you do best, Dan – kick ass. Don’t let Chael Sonnen’s shoe licking have happened in vain.

Elias Cepeda

UFC 157 Results: 5 Fights for Urijah Faber to Take Next

This one probably makes the most sense, as Pickett is one of the more prominent names in the division and Easton is a guy on his way up. A win by either sets up a fight with Faber, the true poster boy for the lighter weight classes, and gives someone a…

This one probably makes the most sense, as Pickett is one of the more prominent names in the division and Easton is a guy on his way up. A win by either sets up a fight with Faber, the true poster boy for the lighter weight classes, and gives someone a chance to rightfully lay claim to a shot at either Renan Barao or Dominick Cruz when the time comes.

Pickett and Easton are booked for UFC on FUEL in April, so Faber won’t have to wait long to find out who his next opponent is if the UFC decides to go this route.

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UFC 157: What’s Next for Urijah Faber After Submitting Ivan Menjivar?

It seems like every time Urijah Faber’s stock plummets in the UFC’s bantamweight division, the former WEC featherweight champion uses a brilliant performance to thrust it back into relevance.Just like he had done after decision losses i…

It seems like every time Urijah Faber’s stock plummets in the UFC’s bantamweight division, the former WEC featherweight champion uses a brilliant performance to thrust it back into relevance.

Just like he had done after decision losses in title fights to Jose Aldo and Dominick Cruz, “The California Kid” bounced back from his loss to interim bantamweight champ Renan Barao with an impressive win via submission over Ivan Menjivar at UFC 157.

Faber won via rear-naked choke over Takeya Mizugaki at WEC 52 to respond to his setback against Aldo at WEC 48. He then redeemed himself from a loss to bantamweight champ Cruz at UFC 132 by guillotining Brian Bowles at UFC 139.

With his victories over Raphael Assuncao, Mizugaki, Eddie Wineland, Menjivar and Bowles, the 33-year-old Faber appears destined to clash with former interim title challenger Michael McDonald in his next bout.

One of the UFC’s youngest fighters, the twice-beaten McDonald saw his eight-fight winning streak come to a halt when he got strangled by interim champ Barao at UFC on Fuel TV 7.

Faber offered these sentiments regarding up-and-coming fighters like McDonald at the UFC 157 post-fight press conference.

It is true that our sport is getting tougher and tougher. You’ve got these young kids that are growing up and eating and breathing, everything’s MMA. And I feel like I was one of the trendsetters, that I was like that as a little kid myself, before there was even a UFC. So it’s great to see the new generation come in, and I’m right there. I’m ready to do this.

Faber also joked about rumors that his spot on the UFC’s roster was on the line against Menjivar by saying: “I was ranked No. 3 going into this fight and I performed well, so whatever these guys want to do. As long as Dana’s (White) not planning on cutting me this time—which you guys started, not him. I’m just ready to fight whoever.”

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Ronda Rousey vs. Liz Carmouche Results: What the Casual Fan Learned

UFC 157 was one of the UFC’s most historic events. It was the first card headlined by an all-female bout, with Ronda Rousey defending her anointed 135-pound title against Liz Carmouche. The fight in Anaheim, California, on Saturday night went muc…

UFC 157 was one of the UFC’s most historic events. It was the first card headlined by an all-female bout, with Ronda Rousey defending her anointed 135-pound title against Liz Carmouche.

The fight in Anaheim, California, on Saturday night went much as expected, with Rousey scoring the inevitable armbar stoppage in the first round. But for the casual fan, there were plenty of takeaways and realisations.

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UFC 157: Where Ronda Rousey’s Victory Ranks Among Top Women’s Sports Milestones

Ronda Rousey’s dominance in UFC has taken fans of the sport by storm. A usually male-dominated sport has seen a powerful woman grab hold of the public consciousness in a way that no man has, and her win has cemented her as a legendary figure in the spo…

Ronda Rousey‘s dominance in UFC has taken fans of the sport by storm. A usually male-dominated sport has seen a powerful woman grab hold of the public consciousness in a way that no man has, and her win has cemented her as a legendary figure in the sport. For that, Rousey‘s win over Liz Carmouche is one of the greatest achievements in women’s sports history.

To be clear, Rousey‘s win is in lofty company.

Billie Jean King always comes to mind when discussing women’s sporting accomplishments, mainly because of her 1973 Battle of the Sexes victory over Bobby Riggs. She struck a big blow for women’s sports, proving that women athletes were just as worthy of recognition as men.

Rousey‘s victory, though, didn’t need the affirmation that women can beat men. Instead, it was famous on its own merits. Two of the world’s best fighters caught the public’s attention, and their gender was only tangentially relevant. In a way, that puts this fight above King’s victory.

In terms of toughness, Rousey‘s win is reminiscent of Kerri Strug’s brilliant vault in the 1996 Atlanta Summer Games. Strug’s performance is memorable because she not only won the United States the team title over the Russians for the first time, but she did it on a broken ankle.

Rousey didn’t exactly measure up to Strug’s injury-stricken performance, but keep in mind that UFC is a violent sport that sees its competitors get brutalized constantly. Strug’s performance is legendary, but Rousey is tough in her own right.

One final comparable accomplishment is the 1999 U.S. women’s soccer victory at the World Cup. Like Rousey‘s fight, that victory captured the public imagination the way few women’s sporting accomplishments have. The Rose Bowl was packed to see the final match, and the team remains legendary to this day.

Every so often, a woman captures the public’s attention with a brilliant athletic performance. Rousey is the latest in a long line of brilliant achievements. Though her win wasn’t as important as Strug’s or the 1999 U.S. team, it will justifiably be mentioned in the same breath.

Rousey deserves that credit for her dominating performances in one of the most brutal sports in the world.

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