Ronda Rousey willing to fight at 145 for Gina Carano – and only Gina Carano
DALLAS – UFC women’s bantamweight champ Ronda Rousey will fight in her former weight class for one person, and one person only.
Spoiler alert: It’s not Cristiane “Cyborg†Justino.
While Rousey (8-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) still eyes Cat Zingano (8-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) as the next challenger to her UFC women’s bantamweight title, she is willing to fight at 145 pounds if Gina Carano decides to come out of retirement.
“For Gina, there would be exceptions that I would make for Gina that I wouldn’t for anyone else,†Rousey told MMAjunkie.
Rousey is expected to fight Zingano later this year in her fourth attempted title defense. Zingano is nearing 100 percent as she recovers from a torn ACL suffered nearly a year ago and recently made headlines by announcing her readiness to take a title shot offered her before the injury.
Lately, though, rumors are buzzing of a possible fight between Rousey and Carano, the first “face†of women’s MMA who last fought under the now-defunct Strikeforce banner.
Carano’s reps have been silent on the rumors, which were stoked by an interview UFC commentator Joe Rogan gave to a Los Angeles radio show. UFC President Dana White has downplayed talk of negotiations, as well.
And yet Carano persists as a topic of discussion for Rousey.
The woman who sent Carano (7-1) into retirement, of course, was Justino (12-2), whose longstanding rivalry with Rousey has fueled endless jawing between the two online.
Weight, however, has been an issue. After beginning her career at featherweight, Rousey dropped to bantamweight to first secure the Strikeforce belt and was then crowned UFC champ.
Late this past year, Justino entered negotiations with the UFC parent Zuffa, who stripped the Strikeforce title she won in the Carano fight with a positive steroid test. The two sides were unable to reach a deal, and Justino signed with the all-female MMA promotion Invicta FC.
Recently, though, Justino revealed a plan to fight Rousey after testing the waters this at 135 pounds in Invicta. The Brazilian and her reps repeatedly have called for a catchweight bout at 140 pounds, to no avail.
