“There’s Still A lot To Come..”
For those of you who have been living under a rock that was burried in the ocean floor followed by the shifting of a tectonic plate, former kickboxing champion Holly Holm defeated Ronda Rousey this saturday at UFC 193 and is now the new women’s bantamweight champion. Holly ultimately defeated the heavyweight champion with her patented left foot head-kick followed by a flurry of punches at 57 seconds in the 2nd round of the bout before Herb Dean stepped in. But now that she’s done the impossible what’s next for champ? Well, things just got interesting… Rematch While this probably seems the most logical for a dominant former champion who before this looked damn near unbeatable with her 6 title defenses, this rematch isn’t exactly automatic. For one UFC has just released a statement that Ronda Rousey will be on a 60 day medical suspension which could be extended to 180 days depending on the results of CT scan. Despite Ronda’s physical health is her mental health. The usually vocal Rousey has pretty much been a recluse after the fight withdrawing from social and public media. She was even spotted entering LAX airport with boyfriend and UFC heavyweight Travis Browne with a pillow covering her battered face. If the fight does go down rumorville is saying it would take place around UFC 200, mid 2016. Holly has already to the rematch and Dana White said in an interview that it would make sense. This seems to be the most likely outcome but this all depends on how long Ronda will take to come back. Meisha Tate Former Strike Force champion Meisha Tate was highly vocal and very angry when the Holm vs. Rousey bout was set up as she felt she was next in line for the title. While we’re sure the dethroning of her arch nemesis Ronda made the bout more palpable; she has to be licking her chops to get a new shot at the title with a fresh opponent. Winning 4 of her last 5 bouts Tate is a wrestler/grappler with very good striking capabilities. Tate is a lot to handle on the feet but ultimately her keys to victory would be to take her to the ground and make it an ugly fight. Tate is ranked #2 in her division. Cyborg Hailed by many as the one to take Ronda out, Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino must now set her sights on the expert striker Holly Holm…if she want’s to join the UFC that is. While there’s been much buzz of the current Invicta women’s featherweight joining the UFC, not much has been doing as 145 lb champion refuses to make the 135 weight cut. Cyborg is a big woman and it would be a hard cut, that is unless Dana implements a woman’s featherweight division? Will it happen? probably eventually, but right now it’s a fantasy match up until one side decides to give. Definitely a stand up war, power vs. skill. Julianna Pena Okay this one’s just for fun but we do think in the near future this could be a match up with fireworks. Pena, a teammate of Meisha Tate, is an electric striker with no nonsense power. Undefeated in the UFC, she won her first 2 coming back from injury with the latest victory over the much touted Jessica eye. In that fight she also showed her ground prowess attacking and defending off of her back. If Pena wins her next 2 fights, we think she’ll definitely has to be in the conversation. What do you guys think of these predictions? Willy Holly wait for Ronda or stay fresh with another bout?
