After promising a massive announcement over social media, Dana White did not disappoint, officially announcing the return of former Bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey.
Appearing on Fox Sports 1’s “The Herd, he revealed Rousey will return to fight for the UFC Woman’s Bantamweight title at UFC 207 on December 30 against champion Amanda Nunes. The event will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
This will be Rousey’s first fight since she was defeated by second round KO against Holly Holm (10-2-0) at UFC 193 last November. Rousey was previously unbeaten in her Mixed Martial Arts career and has taken time away from the UFC to work on other projects outside of the sport.
“Ronda Rousey is back. She will fight December 30th for the title,” stated White. “Rousey has been the biggest, baddest fighter on the planet since we moved into Woman’s MMA. Ronda had a bad loss but she’s still Ronda Rousey at the end of the day.”
When questioned further about the loss to Holm by host Colin Cowherd, White said “Everyone wins or loses. It happens. I don’t think anyone saw it coming.”
He was then asked about Rousey’s mental state and if she was psychologically in a good spot to which White responded, “100 percent. She wanted time off and she had worked so hard for us… so she had time off.”
Recently Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino (17-1-0 1NC) has stepped up her war of words and campaigned to be Rousey’s first opponent back. Although there is still a question mark hanging over exactly what weight the bout would take place at, White seemed confident that it’s still a bout which will take place in the near future.
“I know Cyborg wants that fight. Ronda wants that fight too,” he expressed. “Ronda wants to win her title back, and if that happens, the Cyborg fight will happen.”
Cyborg furiously responded to rumours of a Rousey vs. Nunes bout on her Facebook page earlier today and has stated how she no longer thinks the fight will happen.
The UFC President was also keen to express just how popular Ronda remains and how important she is to the sport saying, “Ronda Rousey is a mega star. Every time we go to Brazil, they always want the Brazilian fighters to win. When Ronda went down there with us, all of the fans were cheering for Ronda against the Brazilian fighter.”
With the fight now set in stone, only time will tell if the “Rowdy” one still holds the marketability and imagination of the mainstream audience’s attention. It was no secret that fans had started to turn on the Bantamweight star during the end of her first UFC stint.
But maybe, absence makes the heart grow fonder? We’ll find out on December 30.
