Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano makes Perfect Sense – MMA Critics do not make sense
By David Potter
MMA critics are fascinating creatures.
Yes. I am friends with a solid amount of them and i can vouch for their big beautiful combat sport brains, even if we are disagreeing. But some of them are like Olympic-level swimmers who have never once gotten into the pool. Never promoted their own show. Never built a fighter. Never risked a dollar. Never put their name, reputation, or money on the line. They’ve never done anything great — but they’ve built entire brands talking about greatness.
If these people actually ran the sport? It would collapse in six months. Ticket sales would die. Casual fans would vanish. Fighters would make less money. And they’d blame “the algorithm.”
And let’s be honest — some of the MMA critics are just addicted to being negative. Negative content. Negative opinions. Real boner shrinkers. Mostly for clicks. The type of people who complain about fireworks because they’re too loud. About steak because it’s too juicy. About fun mega-fights because they’re “not competitive enough.” Trying to sound like a fight purest but to fellows like me who loved combat sports my entire life, they sound stupid. Trust me, Ronda vs. Gina is doing more to help the business than they are.
Now here we are with Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano, and suddenly everyone’s a business analyst. Well, I’m not like other MMA Journalists. I don’t hide in my safe space to pretend i’m above the community i cater to. I don’t mind my logic being challenged. I love educated debates, i also love the MMA community like my own family. So I gathered my favorite comments, complaints and debates from MMA Critics in attempts to sway public opinion about this fight.
“They Don’t Matter!”
Then why are you talking about it?
Why are you tweeting about it more than hypothetical freak shows like Tyson vs. Mayweather in Congo? Why are you arguing about it more than Sean Strickland fighting this weekend?
They do matter.
You just don’t understand why.
“They Never Did Anything Important!”
This is where it gets embarrassing.
This is a legacy fight.
Ronda Rousey wasn’t “UFC made.” She was already a star before the UFC bought Strikeforce. The UFC essentially handed her the belt and said, “Here. The future of women’s MMA is on your shoulders.”
If she fails? Women’s MMA gets delayed five, maybe ten years.
She didn’t fail.
She carried an entire gender’s opportunity into the mainstream.
Meanwhile, Gina Carano never even fought in the UFC. She was the first woman to main event an MMA card on a major PPV network in 2009. She became a global star when the machine was just putting itself together. She proved women could headline.
Before that? Women were fighting their asses off in promotions like Bodog and Smackgirl — putting on wars nobody watched.
Carano and Rousey didn’t invent women’s MMA.
They made people care.
If you don’t see why that matters — you don’t understand combat sports.
“They Haven’t Fought in 10–15 Years!”
And yet in their absence — outside of Conor McGregor — no active or retired fighter has matched their crossover magnitude.
Not popularity. Not cultural impact. Not mainstream recognition.
Which is why you’re talking about this fight more than the current champions.
“It’s a Disgrace! It Hurts the Business!”
This one’s my favorite.
They didn’t just pioneer women’s MMA.
Now they’re pioneering MMA on Netflix.
Two globally recognizable names outside of combat sports will attract what could be the largest audience for a combat sports event in history.
And here’s the part critics conveniently ignore:
The main event is an anchor — not the show stealer.
The undercard will be stacked. Young killers. Talented fighters who major promotions somehow overlooked. Fighters who will suddenly perform in front of 20–50 million viewers.
New stars are built off established stars.
- Netflix wins.
- The fighters win.
- The sport wins.
- Fans get a mega-event instead of another Apex Fight Night in front of 600 people and a cough.
This isn’t just good business.
It’s desperately needed business.
“Why Aren’t Active Fighters Headlining?”
Simple.
Who benefits more?
- Gina vs. Ronda
- Two names unknown outside hardcore MMA Twitter
If I ran a poll right now — who would casual America recognize more?
Valentina… or Ronda Rousey?
Be serious.
The main event isn’t about who’s ranked #3 at bantamweight.
It’s about eyeballs.
Eyeballs feed fighters.
“They’re Too Old!”
Daniel Cormier retired at 40.
Randy Couture retired at 50.
Glover Teixeira retired at 42.
Mark Coleman retired at 45.
Don’t project your own limitations onto people who made history.
“They Lost Their Last Fights!”
Yes.
World title fights. Against killers.
They weren’t losing to Jane Doe off the couch.
Winning and losing is guaranteed in this sport.
Changing the sport is not.
They changed it.
That’s why they can get off the couch after a decade and make millions in a fight you’re definitely going to watch — even while pretending you won’t.
The Reality You Don’t Want to Admit
This fight isn’t about rankings.
It’s about history.
It’s about unfinished business.
It’s about two pioneers finally sharing a cage after a decade of “what if?”
It’s about mainstream exposure for fighters who need it.
It’s about shaking a sport that has grown comfortable being predictable.
And most importantly?
It’s about spectacle.
Combat sports were built on spectacle.
Muhammad Ali didn’t sell fights because of numbers on a spreadsheet.
He sold them because people felt something.
Ronda vs. Gina makes people feel something.
Closing Shot
You don’t have to like it.
But if you think this fight “doesn’t matter,” you don’t understand legacy, economics, star power, or how combat sports actually grow.
This isn’t desperation.
This is strategy.
This isn’t nostalgia.
This is leverage.
And when tens of millions tune in — when young fighters become household names overnight — when the sport expands beyond its weekly routine and reminds the world what a real event feels like…
You’ll still complain.
But you’ll be watching.
And that’s why Rousey vs. Carano makes sense.
And you don’t.