Now, as an unbeaten Brazilian challenger has emerged in the UFC’s hottest worldwide market, Rousey has again jumped into a situation where others might have balked.
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If interim UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor has ever been scared of any man he’s fought in the Octagon, he sure hasn’t shown it. But when it comes to the hypothetical of ever getting into the ring with UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey, McGregor sounds uncharacteristically frightened. I remember one time, I’d seen her and I greeted her and I said ‘what’s up champ?’ and we embraced. She wants me to end it as quick as possible still.
The UFC’s branding of Rousey has allowed her to remain true to her toughness while accentuating her intense drive and unfiltered personality. When she realises she is not all that, I don’t even know what could happen.
Dana White, UFC’s president, marvels at how Rousey has risen to every occasion.
Somewhere along the path to this fight Bethe Correia got under the skin of Rousey. If that pattern of savage brevity has spawned comparisons with the impatient way a young Mike Tyson used to demolish pretenders, it has also caused concern about how much longer punters will pay $60 (€54) to watch. “Two-time ESPYS victor, undefeated champion, dominant, finishes all opponents, movie star”. Without her, all these women still would be going without food at night. Correia, however, has claimed since that she was unaware of Rousey’s family history when she made the comment.
In a July 28 interview with Cosmopolitan.com Rousey discussed being on the cover of the 2015 Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue and how she feels about her body. Perhaps the better question is if she can take Rousey to decision rather than if she can beat her… but I’ll be impressed if she lasts longer than she did in their first meeting. Tate built up a nice fanbase in the lead up to their second bout (thanks to TUF) and she hasn’t done anything to turn those fans off to her; her looks don’t hurt in that regard either.
Rousey’s enthusiastic endorsement of Australia comes just days after her arch-rival, Meisha Tate, was officially ordained as the number one contender after a stunning display of newly-found punching power in her defeat of Jessica Eye at UFC Chicago.
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“For us, it’s a good thing because it helps grow the sport”, Fertitta said.
