“Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” – That is one of the most iconic statements made in sporting history, by one of the most iconic athletes, Muhammad Ali. There is a famous saying that the reason Muhammad Ali became the greatest boxer on the planet was because people paid to see him lose. Ali proclaimed on more than one occasion that he wasn’t in the sport to win the admiration of the people, but to win, and win he did.
Athletes like Ali come few and far between; people who polarize the fans, those who bring a reaction out of them – either good or bad. These are the athletes who succeed, who rise to the top of their sport, and etch their names in sporting history. UFC 168 which happened in December was a huge success, as it was rumored to have crossed 1 million PPV buys! Dana White predicted the PPV to do massive numbers before it happened, and that was because of the two fights that had the fans captivated, one of which was for the Women’s Bantamweight championship between Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate.
Dana White has said time and again that the only reason he brought the women’s division to UFC was because of one person – Ronda “Rowdy” Rousey, and why wouldn’t he? If anyone watched the Strikeforce fight between Ronda and Tate in 2012, they would’ve paid to see a rematch, and with the history between the two going into the event, everyone expected it to be a cracker of a fight. In November, I had the pleasure of talking to Miesha Tate, who told me that she was in a better place emotionally, and had managed to be on the other end of the mind games. Going into UFC 168, Miesha got under the skin of Ronda Rousey, and during the PPV, so did the entire crowd. In the end, although Miesha managed to push Ronda into the third round, it made little difference. Ronda Rousey defeated Miesha Tate once again to remain the undefeated Women’s Bantamweight champion.
Now, there are two things that became evident. People might have had mixed feelings about Ronda, but it was evident that Ronda did what very few athletes could do – Get the fans to pay to see her lose. Like Muhammad Ali, Ronda Rousey has taken the sport by storm. She proved Dana White right, and she proved that she is one of the best fighters in UFC. With the likes of Brock Lesnar, Anderson Silva and GSP gone from UFC, at least for the time being, it leaves a huge void to be filled by the “next big thing” in MMA, and that could very well be Ronda Rousey.
The second thing which was evident was regarding Ronda Rousey’s drawing power. UFC 168, from a neutral standpoint was as much about Tate – Rousey as Silva – Weidman. The hype surrounding Tate and Rousey was arguably as big as any other fight in UFC history, and that says a lot! If Dana White can count on anyone in UFC to draw good numbers, it is Ronda Rousey, and all of this happened within just a year! There have already been comparisons between what Ronda has done for WMMA to what Muhammad Ali had done for boxing, and that isn’t completely untrue. The fact of the matter is that WMMA needed someone like Ronda Rousey to make the kind of noise she has. You might not like her, but you will pay to see her fight – at least to see her lose.
Ronda’s next fight will arguably be her biggest test, as she faces McMann at UFC 170. Dana White has been criticized of protecting Ronda Rousey, and even if Dana has done that, it makes a lot of sense. Ronda’s next title defense will prove how good Ronda Rousey really is. With both the fighters winning medals in the Olympics (And thereby having a similar background), it will be interesting to see if McMann will finally solve the mystery of the armbar technique perfected by Rousey, or if Ronda would steamroll her way through McMann like she has done with all her opponents. But the fact remains that Ronda Rousey is the kind of champion we all pay to see, and the kind of competitor any sport would love to have.
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