Ronda Rousey and Her Place in MMA - Joe Chacon's Blog

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Ronda Rousey and Her Place in MMA Stuck

Posted on August 22, 2012 at 10:44 AM.

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Photo Credit: ESPN

One minute and four seconds.

That is the average fight length for Ronda Rousey in her nine MMA fights -- all victories. Her six professional fights have ended in the first round at the marks of 0:54, 4:27, 0:39, 0:25 (twice), and 0:49. In the amateur ranks she finished her opponents in 0:24, 0:57, and 0:23.

Each of her fights have ended via armbar.

If you've had the opportunity to watch one of Rousey's fights then you have basically watched them all. As soon as the referee starts the fight Rousey rushes her opponent. She will get hit a few times but she takes the punches and gets her opponent to the ground. Generally on her first attempt she will put herself in a position to whip her leg around the head of her opponent and yank an arm across her chest until her opponent taps out.

In Rousey's last fight against Sarah Kaufman I was pulling for Kaufman. Rousey has become such an overwhelming favorite in WMMA that it's hard not to pull for the underdog. Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of Rousey for what she has done for the sport. She has brought females into the MMA spotlight in a way Gina Carano was about to do before she lost to Cyborg Santos in August of 2009.

Rousey's popularity has never been greater than it is today. She has a signature move people tune in for, she's fresh off of being placed on the cover of ESPN's "Body Issue", and her trash talking rivals that of Chael Sonnen.

And that's where Rousey starts to lose me -- when the trash talking becomes irritating for the fan. Especially when one threatens to kill another inside the cage. Rousey had this to say about Kaufman prior to their fight:

Quote:


	"If I get her in an armbar, I'm going to try to rip it off and throw it at her corner...If I get her in a choke, I'm going to hold onto it until she's actually dead. And if I get a knockout, I'm going to go all the way. I'm going to try to pound her face into the ground and she's depending on the competence of the California (State) Athletic Commission to walk out of that cage alive."

Rousey has become the champion that people will tune in to see lose. The curiosity and shock of seeing her lose now outweighs what fans get out of seeing her win. The biggest question will be what happens to WMMA if she does lose.

Will Rousey go the way of Carano and pursue other opportunities in the entertainment industry? Can the sport of WMMA survive if it doesn't have a face like Rousey's to carry the sport?

There is another surging aspect of WMMA with the all-female fighting promotion Invicta Fighting Championships. One has to wonder how many curious fans they are bringing in based on the success of Rousey alone.

Women's MMA is not what it was five years ago. These women are professional athletes and have a very polished and refined way of fighting. WMMA is no longer a novelty, and if you were fortunate enough to watch Miesha Tate versus Julie Kedzie fight on the undercard of Rousey/Kaufman, you saw a very exciting three rounds of action.

Who knows how long the Rousey train will continue to steam through the competition. I just want to see how WMMA sustains its health once she does lose.

OS Voice: If Rounda Rousey loses do you think she will go the way of Gina Carano and pursue opportunities outside of MMA or will she continue to try and grow the sport. Can WMMA survive without Rousey?

Joe Chacon is a Staff Writer for Operation Sports. You can follow him on Twitter @JoeChacon.

Comments

# 1 everydaygorship @ Aug 22

Ronda is a very good jiu-jitsu player hence the arm bars, she loves fighting and that what she does best. I think she already has the spotlight enough to be able and find other opportunities in the media when her career is over, but for now she is the most dangerous woman in MMA.

# 2 bigsmallwood @ Aug 22

She is very talented and her trash talking is good for the sport (just like Sonnen), but I just think she hasn't faced an opponent who is capable of beating her yet like Cyborg. I look forward to Rousey's future though.

# 3 DJ @ Aug 22

That one promo aside, Rousey has done a great job in positioning herself in the sport. Would there be as much interest in her fights if she wasn't able to cut effective promos? You can be great at your craft, but if you can't sell people to tune in and watch, then what is the point if you are a professional fighter?

That's why Jon Jones has openly balked at having to fight Machida. He knows Machida won't really "sell" the fight and thus, the payout for both guys won't be as much. MMA is as much entertainment as it is sport.

As to your other question, I don't know if I see Rousey going the acting route like Carano. It may happen at some point, but I don't see the urgency to get into movies like with Gina.

# 4 liberaluser @ Aug 22

So threatening to disfigure and kill your opponent is all part of marketing and good fun? If MMA wants to be taken seriously it needs better representatives that speak like trained athletes not wannabe gladiators.