Next July, UFC president Dana White plans to christen a new multipurpose arena in Las Vegas with the biggest championship fight in the history of women’s prizefighting between Holly Holm and Ronda Rousey.
There’s only one problem with White’s multi-million dollar proposal: his new champion loathes the idea of getting benched for almost eight months.
Holm, who became an overnight mainstream celebrity after defeating the previously unbeaten Rousey, plans to capitalise on her newfound fame by keeping a busy schedule.
The 34-year-old UFC queen is angling to face bantamweight contender Miesha Tate to remain active until Rousey is fit to return.
“We’re from the old school and we believe the number one contender is there for a reason. [Tate] deserves a shot,” her manager Lenny Fresquez told The Los Angeles Times.
Rousey, who was issued a medical suspension of up to 180 days following the highlight reel loss to Holm, spoke with ESPN earlier this week, suggesting that her immediate fighting future is clouded by uncertainty.
“It might be three to six months before I can eat an apple, let alone take an impact,” a candid Rousey explained.
White, the UFC’s figurehead, recently revealed that he keeps in daily contact with Rousey, so he must be aware of the former titleholder’s mental and physical condition after the brutal loss that left her with a broken lip and a likely concussion.
Despite that, the bald-headed promoter still insists that Rousey will get the first crack at the newly minted champ in July.
“It’s Rousey,” White told The Los Angeles Times to the surprise of nobody.
As a businessman, who could blame the savvy promoter for ordering the biggest fight available, and slotting it into headline UFC 200 – a landmark pay-per-view event over 22 years in the making.
The first championship fight between Rousey and Holm was an unabashed success, with a record-breaking 56,214 screaming fans paying top dollar to witness the action-packed battle.
White later told UFC commentator Joe Rogan on his podcast that the event “broke every record we’ve ever had. From the venue, to merchandise, to commercial pay-per-view, everything”.
Early indications have Rousey and Holm all but confirmed to join the exclusive million-plus buys club on pay-per-view.
While the official numbers are yet to be released, UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta told Yahoo Sports that the event is on track to become the second-most purchased event in history – behind only UFC 100, which sold 1.6 million units for a card headlined by former WWE and UFC champion Brock Lesnar against Frank Mir.
With those type of numbers, it’s no wonder that White and his associates are hankering for a second Rousey versus Holm bout.
In terms of dollars and cents, booking the fight seems like a straightforward decision – Rousey is the sport’s biggest international box office attraction, and the rematch against Holm is a can’t miss affair.
In all likelihood, the former UFC and judo champ should even be ready for the title fight by the tentative date of July 10.
Whether Rousey can be mentally and physically prepared to reclaim her position as UFC and pound-for-pound queen, well that’s an entirely different story.
The fourth-degree judo black belt, who said she’s “really f***ing sad” after her first MMA setback, didn’t just suffer a defeat last month. She didn’t drop a competitive decision or even get crushed by a flash knockout.
Rousey was used as a golden-haired punching bag. She was exhausted, gushing blood, and eventually stunned by a head kick.
Watching the once-invincible champion look absolutely helpless in the UFC’s cage, it became increasingly apparent that Rousey needs to go back to the drawing board.
According to seven-time boxing trainer of the year Freddie Roach, Rousey needs to “learn to box” before she has any chance of returning to the top of the sport. But learning to box is no simple feat, even for a champion athlete with a tremendous work ethic like Rousey.
Holm had a superb professional boxing career. In all, the American pugilist racked up 33 wins, won titles in three weight classes, lodged 18 title defences and was twice named Female Fighter of The Year by the bible of boxing – The Ring magazine.
And to compile that list of accolades, it took 14 years of blood, sweat and tears while training under famed striking guru Mike Winkeljohn.
Rousey only began her education in stand-up fighting in late 2009, learning from heavily criticised coach Edmond Tarverdyan.
The Olympic bronze medal-winning athlete developed a hyper-aggressive striking approach, designed to catch opponents off guard and make critical mistakes.
That worked against previous opponents, but it was a flawed strategy against a seasoned puncher like Holm.
Patching the holes in Rousey’s game will take time. And rushing the crossover UFC star back to action is a short-term success, with potential long-term ramifications.
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