THE BLOG OF DRU #3: THE BIG HOUSE RULES

Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano are about to fight.

No, this isn’t a typo. This isn’t 2009, 2012 or even 2016. In the year of 2026, Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano are going to throw hands in a legit MMA fight.

I can’t even lie to y’all: I’m excited. For real, I am. But for a lot of different reasons you may not think. I’ll explain more in terms of why here shortly. 

Also, the UFC has recently announced their White House card for this upcoming summer. And once again, the card didn’t really match the hype behind the announcement or the build up to the announcement. 

Now, what do these two events have in common? Well, one of them is that no matter what, the Big House (the UFC) still rules all. Despite TKO stockholder’s effort in putting half ass events because they care about the bottom line (money), the UFC is still the big dog in the MMA world. The excitement, the energy and the fight matchups that ruled the sports world from 2009-2017 is over. I get the fighters retire and new ones come in for their runs. I think Dana White’s drive and focus on the UFC isn’t or hasn’t been the same since TKO bought them. It could also be because he’s getting involved in boxing (Zuffa Boxing) or Powerslap (IMO, is dumb). Either way, it’s noticeable. 

But that doesn’t mean the fans can’t have other options to choose from. To me, this is what MVP (Most Valuable Promotions, the company who is run by Jake Paul) is doing. I’m not sure if this is going to be a MMA one off OR the start of something, but as a fan, I want more options. Just like in pro wrestling with different promotions besides WWE, I want to be able to have more than once choice of my scripted or non-scripted fighting. Why? Because having options as a viewer is key in today’s viewing world. The attention span is already short, so having the ability to pick and choose is far better than having one option and nearly being forced to watch. 

But back to the topic at hand: Ronda and Gina. Now as someone who has watched both fighters in their primes (Gina’s being the shortest one) this matchup, dare I say, is still somewhat fascinating. Both women are a bit older, one is a mother (Ronda) and both have been involved in some controversies (Google is your friend, folks) in their professional and personal lives and both have made income in other forms of entertainment (Ronda with pro wrestling, Gina with movies). I can’t help but to be a bit giddy about this fight, the true MMA fan in me that is. This fight might be a train wreck. It may not. Despite MVP coming into the MMA world, the UFC is still the talk of the town, even if their fastball isn’t as dangerous as before.

Choices. They’re always good to have.