Ronda Rousey's entrance into the Octagon has become a grand spectacle in the sports world.
The women's bantamweight phenom has become one of the biggest stars in the mainstream sporting sphere, and her presence draws attention far beyond the borders of the MMA community. In less than three years competing under the UFC banner, the former Olympic judoka turned MMA sensation has dominated the women's 135-pound ranks to become one of the biggest stars on the landscape of combat sports.
Rousey's championship reign has kicked open the doors to Hollywood for the California native to produce roles in blockbuster franchises, and the future appears to be megawatt for the 28-year-old wrecking machine. That said, everything that could potentially materialize on the horizon for Rousey is directly attached to her ability to continue her dominance on the biggest stage in MMA.
All she needs to do is continue doing what she does best, and her next opportunity to do so came front and center at UFC 190 on Saturday night in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The women's bantamweight titleholder put her strap on the line against undefeated contender Bethe Correia in a highly anticipated grudge match that came on the challenger's native soil. Pitbull worked a diligent campaign to earn her shot at championship gold, and Rousey was determined to prove the scrappy Brazilian had bitten off more than she could chew.
And while the UFC touted Correia as Rousey's biggest test inside the Octagon to date, those are the measures a promotion has to take when their champion has looked nothing short of bulletproof in her five previous title defenses in the UFC. She was a heavy favorite going into the main event tilt, and rightfully so, as Rousey absolutely trucked Correia via knockout 34 seconds into the fight.
Rousey came out guns blazing from the jump, and half a minute later, Correia went crashing face first into the canvas. Going into the fight, many figured turning the bout into a brawl would be Correia's only hope, but even a slug fest couldn't save the challenger, as Rousey snuffed her out with a right hand in a wild exchange to make her sixth successful title defense.
It was another amazing showing from Rousey and added one more lightning-quick finish to her already amazing resume.
It was a solid night of fights in Rio de Janeiro. Let's take a look at the good, the bad and the strange from UFC 190.
The Good
If there is a ceiling for Rousey's talent, it has yet to be found.
The women's bantamweight champion has steamrolled and finished every opponent she's faced inside the Octagon, and she added another victim to her list on Saturday night at UFC 190. The Rowdy one absolutely drubbed title challenger Correia in a fight in which she abandoned her signature clinch game and employed a full-throttle striking attack. Rousey went after the scrappy Brazilian from the get-go, and a short time later, Correia was lights out on the canvas.
Where she earned her superstar status for her penchant for armbarring her opposition, Rousey has added a new page to her run of dominance over the past year, as she's been settling opponents at the end of her strikes. Rousey has always been well above her competition from a technical and athletic standpoint, but developing knockout power in her hands serves to create that much more distance between the champion and the rest of the women's 135-pound collective.
And that brings us to Cyborg. Cristiane Justino is the only fighter in the realm of women's MMA who could compete with the juggernaut that is the current version of Rousey. The Brazilian wrecking machine and the bantamweight phenom have been hovering around one another since they were both fighting under the Strikeforce banner, and the time has come for the UFC to go all out to make their long-awaited fight finally come to fruition.
Granted, getting Cyborg down to 135 pounds will be a big hurdle to clear, especially with USADA's upcoming IV ban coming into place, but that is the only fight left to make. Rousey is slated to face Miesha Tate for a third time in the coming months, but with the previous two fights ending in dominant fashion, there is no reason to think the third fight will end any differently.
Rousey is just that good, and from the work she showed en route to toppling Correia on Saturday night, she's only getting better.
***
While he's no longer the perennial contender he once was, Mauricio Rua can still get out there and bang with the best of them. Anytime the former UFC champion steps into the cage, he brings the violence, and there was certainly plenty of brutality to go around in his rematch with Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC 190.
Lil Nog rocked Rua in the opening round, which forced the legendary striker to shift into full desperation mode. Fortunately for fight fans, a desperate Rua means fists fly with reckless abandon, and the opening round turned into a full scale shootout between the two gritty veterans.
The final two rounds slowed down a bit, as Rua and Nogueira went to the ground, but the closing moments of the tilt saw the fisticuffs once again in full force. Rua ultimately took the win on the judges' scorecards and snapped a two-fight skid in the process.
***
Stefan Struve broke out of his recent rough patch on Saturday night, outworking Brazilian legend Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira to pick up unanimous-decision victory at UFC 190.
The Skyscraper used his reach advantage to pepper Minotauro with big shots throughout the three-round affair, as he wobbled the former heavyweight champion with crisp punches on several occasions. While the Dutchman was unable to put Nogueira away, Struve did enough to sweep the judges' scorecards and pick up his first win inside the Octagon since defeating Stipe Miocic back in 2012.
***
No fighter on the lineup for UFC 190 needed a victory more than Antonio Silva. The former heavyweight title challenger came into his bout with Soa Palelei having failed to find the win column in four straight showings inside the cage, and a loss to the Hulk would have all but sealed his fate in the UFC.
Nevertheless, Bigfoot rebounded from a tough opening round to flex his power on Palelei and put away the veteran powerhouse with a flurry in the second round. It wasn't a pretty performance from Silva, but his win guarantees he'll live to see another day under the UFC banner.
***
After the women's strawweight title barely eluded Claudia Gadelha in her first attempt at championship gold, the Nova Uniao product wants nothing more than to get another crack at Joanna Jedrzejczyk.
The 26-year-old Brazilian striker left zero doubt about a title shot being next up for her as she battered highly touted newcomer Jessica Aguilar from pillar to post in their fight on Saturday. While Aguilar has built a career on her aggression, Gadelha's out-savaged her en route to picking up the unanimous-decision victory.
The only fight to make is a rematch with Joanna Champion. It needs to happen. It needs to happen so much.
***
Demian Maia has been competing against the best fighters in the world for the better part of the past decade, and he was determined to stop Neil Magny's attempt to break through into deeper waters at UFC 190.
As it was, the Brazilian submissions ace allowed the Colorado native to step out into the deeper waters, then drowned The Ultimate Fighter alum with his signature brand of jiu-jitsu. Maia snapped Magny's seven-fight winning streak by working his ground talents until the up-and-coming welterweight was forced to tap to a rear-naked choke in the second round.
It was a clinic in ground fighting from Maia from start to finish, and his win on Saturday night will keep his status in the talent-rich 170-pound division intact.
***
There isn't a whole lot of flash in Patrick Cummins' game, but he continues to get the job done inside the Octagon. The former Penn State wrestler played to his strengths once again, pounding out Rafael Cavalcante in the final round of their tilt at UFC 190.
While Durkin's face got shredded in the first two rounds, he stuck to his guns and used his wrestling to wear down the heavy-handed Brazilian until he used a storm of elbows on the canvas to secure the victory. With his win on Saturday, Cummins has now found victory in four of his six showings under the UFC banner.
***
The welterweight division has a certified prospect in Warlley Alves. The undefeated 24-year-old Brazilian gained entry into the UFC by winning the third season of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil and has carried that momentum into his run in the 170-pound ranks under the UFC banner.
With each step taken, the buzz around him has increased, and it will do so even more following his submission victory over Nordine Taleb at UFC 190. It was a closely contested affair, but Alves secured the guillotine choke in the second round to pick up his third consecutive victory inside the Octagon.
The Bad
There was a time where Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira was one of the best heavyweight fighters in the world. Those days have officially come and gone.
While walking away from the fight game is a decision every fighter makes on their own, retirement seems to be a conclusion Minotauro will be arriving at soon. The former UFC and Pride champion suffered his third loss in as many fights when he came out on the wrong end of a unanimous decision at the hands of Stefan Struve at UFC 190. Nogueira has now been defeated in all but one of his past five showings inside the Octagon and has looked to be a shell of his former self in the process.
That's a tough look for a fighter who was once at the top of the game, but time and a collection of memorable wars under the bright lights, have combined to take their toll on Nogueira. The 39-year-old Brazilian grappling ace simply can't perform at the physical level he once could, and when a fighter is unable to use the weapons that made him successful in the first place, it's high time to call it a day.
Nogueira built a legendary career on his ability to overcome adversity, but Father Time is an opponent who won't let up at the bell.
***
The rough road Rafael Cavalcante has been traveling of late is about to get a lot rougher following his loss at UFC 190. The former Strikeforce champion was outworked by Patrick Cummins en route to taking a loss via TKO on Saturday night, which is his third setback over his past four showings inside the Octagon.
While only two of those defeats have come in consecutive fashion, and he'll more than likely hold his roster spot following his performance in Rio de Janeiro, the days of Cavalcante being considered a major threat in the light heavyweight ranks are all but over.
***
While a Ronda Rousey fight is going to amp up any card, filling said card with six other fights is a tough pull for fans tuning into a pay-per-view. Granted, more action is typically something fans are going to celebrate, but seven bouts was just too much.
A lot of that had to do with the UFC planting two TUF fights in the middle of the main card line up. Granted, at least one of those bouts turned into all-out slug fest, but having no clue about who was involved in the bouts only made them more of an annoyance in the grand scheme of things.
All we can hope is that putting TUF fights on a pay-per-view card is a decision they don't make again. Even UFC fanatic Mario Lopez thought it was too much to handle, and he put up with Screech for five seasons.
The Strange
The Ronda Rousey Effect is true cultural phenomenon.
While anything that manages to carry out of the small, insular bubble that is the MMA community and reach the mainstream is always worth noting, the level of insanity of Rousey's climb to the top of the combat sports world has produced a reaction never before seen in mixed martial arts.
Pound-for-pound greats such as Georges St-Pierre and Anderson Silva never registered the pop the women's bantamweight champion brings, and even the tremendous buzz surrounding Irish star Conor McGregor pales in comparison.
That's an impressive accomplishment by any measure, especially since UFC President Dana White once infamously stated women would never compete inside the Octagon. Rousey has broken down barriers during her time competing in the structure, and her efforts to blaze a trail have extended far beyond the sport she competes in.
Fans cry when they meet her. Celebrities take to Twitter in force to show their support for her on fight night. Joe Rogan threw around labels such as "cultural icon" and "hero" to describe her in the buildup to her bout with Bethe Correia on Saturday night. While you can either take or leave any one of those things, the thing that can't be denied is the caliber of dominance and destruction she brings into the Octagon.
Rousey is simply a force of nature, and one that delivers punishment with the worst of intentions. Neither of her previous two opponents coming into UFC 190 made it out of the opening round with her, as she used Alexis Davis and Cat Zingano to cement her place in the record books with 16- and 14 second finishes respectively. Finishing elite-level fighters with tornadoes of violence will make people sit up and take notice, but continuing to do it is going to launch her even further out into the stratosphere.
Her meteoric rise will have only picked up more speed after she smashed Correia in 34 seconds at UFC 190. Deservedly so. At this point, it seems as if Rousey is in full control of how far she will travel into stardom, and the higher she flies, the greater her impact will become. Her continued rise will also serve to the greater overall good of the sport, and that's just one of what seems like a million feathers in Rousey's cap at the current time.
The dominant champion has truly transcended the sport in which she competes, and fans need to enjoy her while she's around. No fighter stays great forever, and there is no question we are seeing Rousey at her greatest. How long will that last? Only Rousey knows that at this point, but with big Hollywood gigs and paydays that don't involve eating punches filling up her schedule, it's safe to say Rousey's run in the UFC could be ending just up around the bend.
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
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