The idea of support during good and hard times is something that is difficult to come by in the world of mixed martial arts. MMA fans are quick to turn on an individual (or even a promotion as a whole) if something goes awry. UFC 184 is such an example. As Ronda Rousey prepares to defend her title against Cat Zingano in the main event, the Ultimate Fighting Championship is faced with a campaign aimed at turning people away from its product. This is clearly not a practice that will help the promotion in any way. In the end, one of the sport’s biggest stars may suffer the consequences.
As we approach UFC 184, fight fans and media members are beginning to question the strength of this card. Rousey is due to main event a card that was supposed to be headlined by Chris Weidman defending his title against Vitor Belfort. Losing this fight was a big blow to not only this event, but to the promotion as a whole, as other bad news crept out of the UFC’s closet to start 2015.
Los Angeles has already experienced one canceled card in the last 12 months. UFC 176 was expected to feature Jose Aldo defending his belt against Chad Mendes, but when the UFC Featherweight Champion was injured, the UFC pulled the plug on the whole event. Rather than give fans a less than appealing card, UFC 176 was shut down.
Fast forward to early 2015, where the promotion once again had a tough decision to make. Fortunately, the company booked two title fights for this event, and with Rousey being one of the biggest stars the company has to offer at this time, UFC 184 moved forward with Rousey-Zingano headlining the card. Yet and still, that has not stopped the questioning that has been coming from all angles.
Recently, the hashtag #SkipUFC184 has shown up across Twitter and received support from many MMA fans. Furthermore, during the UFC 184 conference call, Rousey was asked by a media member whether the lack of a male fighter’s presence in the main or co-main event would hurt women’s MMA as a whole. (After Rousey-Zingano was elevated to the main event slot, Holly Holm‘s UFC debut against Raquel Pennington was put into the co-main event.) Rousey’s response was on point when it came to addressing the interesting but somewhat offensive concern:
“Well I think it’s a great opportunity to be able to prove something. But you know what, I think that this card is going to perform extremely well, and compared to the guys, I think it’s going to hang in there and be respectable, and that’s why they have enough faith to put us in there.”
Of course, the PPV buyrates will truly determine how much faith the organization will put in this kind of booking in the future. As the topic of the supposed “oversaturation” of MMA continues to be raised, this buy numbers for event could be used to bolster the case that the UFC has stretched itself too thin. If this card does not sell, the UFC may hesitate to put Rousey or another woman in the main event slot. Demetrious Johnson could be considered “blacklisted” due to the poor numbers that UFC 174 brought in. The estimated 115,000 buys for that event was a number that the company could not find a way to turn into a positive story. If UFC 184 does not perform, women’s MMA could seriously be hurt in a way that Rousey will not admit to.
This isn’t Rousey’s first time headlining an event, but in the current PPV climate, there is much more on the line for Rousey than just her belt. Regardless of whether she walks away with the victory, if the show flounders, we can expect the UFC to adjust the way it books not only Rousey, but the women’s divisions as a whole. In the face of skepticism from fans and media alike, UFC 184 needs to succeed, or the ramifications will affect not only Rousey’s career, but the careers of every woman under UFC contract.
• Ronda Rousey vs. Cat Zingano (UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship)
Click the stars to rate your anticipation for this fight.
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UFC 184: Rousey vs. Zingano (formerly UFC 184: Weidman vs. Belfort) is due to take place on February 28, 2015 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
Click the stars to rate how good you think UFC 184 will be.
