Former UFC champion Ronda Rousey will return to mixed martial arts after nearly a decade to face fellow combat sports pioneer Gina Carano on May 16 at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California.
Netflix confirmed Tuesday that the fight will headline the streaming platform’s first professional MMA event, promoted by Most Valuable Promotions, the boxing promotion company co-founded by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian.
The bout will be contested at 145 pounds under the Unified Rules of MMA, featuring five five-minute rounds with 4-ounce gloves inside a hexagon cage. The event will stream live globally on Netflix at no additional cost to subscribers.
“Been waiting so long to announce this: Me and Gina Carano are gonna throw down in the biggest super fight in women’s combat sport history,” Ms. Rousey said in a statement to ESPN. “And we’re partnering with the fighter-first promotion MVP as well as the biggest and baddest streamer on the planet Netflix.”
Ms. Rousey, 39, holds a 12-2 professional MMA record and was the first American woman to win an Olympic medal in judo in 2008. She became the UFC’s inaugural women’s bantamweight champion in 2013 and still holds the record for six consecutive title defenses. Her professional debut in 2011 sparked an era of dominance in which 11 of her first 12 fights ended in the first round.
After losses to Holly Holm in 2015 and Amanda Nunes in 2016, Ms. Rousey retired from MMA. She later pursued a successful WWE career from 2018 to 2022, becoming a three-time world champion. The UFC inducted her into its Hall of Fame in 2018.
Ms. Carano, 43, competed professionally from 2006 to 2009, compiling a 7-1 record before transitioning to acting. She gained recognition as a women’s MMA pioneer who enhanced the sport’s visibility during an era before women competed in the UFC. Her final MMA fight came in 2009 when she lost to Cris Cyborg for the inaugural Strikeforce women’s 145-pound title.
After retiring, Ms. Carano appeared in films, including “Haywire,” “Fast & Furious 6” and “Deadpool,” and starred in the Disney+ series “The Mandalorian.” Lucasfilm fired Ms. Carano in 2021 after controversial social media posts comparing political divisions to the Holocaust-era persecution of Jews. She later settled a lawsuit against Disney and Lucasfilm in August.
“Ronda came to me and said there is only one person she would make a comeback for, and it’s been her dream to make this fight happen between us,” Ms. Carano said. “This is an honor. I believe I will walk out of this fight with the win, and I anticipate it will not come easy, which I welcome.”
Gabe Spitzer, Netflix’s vice president of sports, said the streaming service wanted its first MMA event to be “truly legendary” following the November Jake Paul versus Mike Tyson boxing match, which Netflix said attracted 108 million live viewers.
A press conference for the fight is scheduled for March 5 at the Intuit Dome.
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