UFC 207: Amanda Nunes vs Ronda Rousey Review

RESULT: Amanda Nunes beat Ronda Rousey via first-round technical knockout and retained the Women's Bantamweight Championship.

Nunes' record is now 14-4, whilst Rousey suffered her second career loss with her record now being 12-2.


Ronda Rousey's return to the Octagon was short-lived as she was mulled by Amanda Nunes. The pioneer of Women's UFC suffered her second career loss at the hands of the 'Lioness' as she looked to match her in striking.

Obviously this didn't work well, as Nunes rocked the inaugural Women's Bantamweight Champion with 47 punches (landing half of them) in those 48 seconds.

After the fight, Nunes said "Before I walk out, I knew, this moment is my moment, she had her time and she did her thing for the sport," "Thank you Ronda Rousey, but this is my time now. I am Amanda Nunes, I am the lion." 

She also added "Now she’s going to retire and go to movies and make a lot of money now,” Nunes said. “You have lots of talent in this division. Forget about Ronda Rousey."

Rousey, who didn't do any media during Fight Week, left the Octagon before commentator Joe Rogan could get a word with her about the loss and what the future holds for her. It was left up to UFC President Dana White to fill in that gap. 

Speaking on Fox Sports 1's post-fight show, White said “I’ve been with her the whole time,” White said on FS1’s post-fight show. “Obviously, she’s so competitive. She’s devastated. She’s a competitor.”

Rousey's future in MMA will be surrounded in even more mystery following this dramatic loss and despite having various avenues to go down, such as WWE, Hollywood etc, it seems it will be a while before Rousey resurfaces and makes her choice clear.  

Ultimately, heading away from the last UFC event of 2016, it's clear that Dana White and co may have lost one star in Rousey but what they certainly gained one in Nunes.

Amanda Nunes celebrates as the official decision is read, confirming her 48 second first-round technical knockout win over Ronda Rousey.

UFC 207: Amanda Nunes vs Ronda Rousey Preview

On 30th December, at UFC 207 in Las Vegas, Ronda Rousey will return to the Octagon for the first time since UFC 193 (where she lost her Bantamweight championship to Holly Holm in a devastating second-round high kick knockout) to fight Bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes in the main event.

This bout is not only highly anticipated because of Rousey's return since her first career loss but is also due to the fact that the California native has stated that this fight will be one of her last.

With champion Nunes stating that she's been preparing for a fight against Rousey since 2013, let's preview what could be Rousey's last-ever MMA fight.


Nunes not there to lie down

The result of the fight could massively influence Rousey's decision to carry on in the UFC and a factor that will pressure Rousey in her preparation is her opponent's determination.

Winning the Bantamweight championship at UFC 200 via first-round rear-naked choke against Miesha Tate, Nunes (13-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) broke through into the upper-tier of the Women's division and established herself as the woman to try and stop Rousey (12-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) having a successful return.

The Brazilian is confident heading into her first title defense against the first-ever woman to be signed by the UFC and said to TMZ that she was 200 percent sure she would beat Rousey, also commenting that she knows Rousey is a tough opponent but that she's the best in the World.


Rousey's Mental and Physical Strength must be on Point

To say that Rousey's loss to Holly Holm damaged the former StrikeForce fighter mentally and physically is an understatement.

She said in a recent interview with Ellen "Honestly, my thought in the medical room, I was sitting in the corner and was like, 'What am I anymore if I'm not this?'"

"Literally sitting there thinking about killing myself. In that exact second, I'm like, 'I'm nothing. What do I do anymore? No one gives a shit about me anymore without this.'" 

It's worrying yet inspiring that Rousey has come out and said this. Aside from explaining why she took over a year out, this should be a catalyst for other fighters to talk about their mental health after a big loss. In relation to this fight, Rousey must be 100% in avenging the most devastating moment of her career. 

In terms of physical strength, Rousey said that she's trained twice a day since the start of August. Whether they'll be any rust and nerves that will affect her performance is up in the air, especially when looking at the ludicrous amount of submission victories she has via armbar. 

It's very interesting to see the UFC's second biggest money draw be in a position were there are a lot of question surrounding her and I'm sure to be one of my tuning in to see how she bounces back. 


What's Next?

So say Rousey loses in convincing fashion, i.e. by KO and submission, and Nunes solidifies herself as a dominate Women's Bantamweight Champion. What's next for Rousey?

Retirement is a real possibility, as she has stated herself, but the two ventures that Rousey could do if she loses in Las Vegas on December 30th are making films and wrestling in the WWE. 

Rousey has already been in a good number of films, including a chance to choreograph her fighting skills in Fast and Furious 7, and with appearances in Mile 22 and Road House coming up, Rousey's path to Hollywood is there for her to have a huge career. 

In terms of going to the WWE, which Stephanie McMahon has said would be a fantastic accomplishment for WWE, Rousey could even just make several appearances before a handful of matches (and a massive payday). 

She's already experienced being in the squared circle at WrestleMania 31, in a segment with Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon so again the opportunity is there.

On the flip-side, if Rousey wins, I think she'll continue to fight until she either loses the belt or retires following a big defence. 

Whatever happens, it's sure to be an awesome main event Women's Bantamweight Championship fight. 


PREDICTION: Amanda Nunes wins via second-round TKO (technical knockout). Rousey announces retirement in post-fight interview.

Amanda Nunes and Ronda Rousey face-off at the end of the UFC 205 weigh-in in November.

  

10 Bad Matches From Good WrestleManias

Sometimes even when everything seems to be going well, there's often one blip on what would have been perfection. Not even WrestleMania is immune to this.

Recently, I did a post detailing the best matches from bad WrestleManias. It seems only fair that I should switch it around to give the top 10 worst matches from good WrestleManias.



10, Undertaker vs Bray Wyatt (WrestleMania 31)

Although WrestleMania 31 could be seen as one of the best WrestleManias of the last decade, this match did let it down slightly. A mix of Taker and Bray working at a slow pace (due to Wyatt suffering an ankle injury) and the Undertaker's infamous WrestleMania streak being ended last year by Brock Lesnar resulted in an underwhelming 15 minute match.


9, Tazz and the APA vs The GodFather, Val Venis and Bull Buchanan (WrestleMania X-Seven)

WrestleMania X-Seven is widely considered not only the best WrestleMania of all-time, but the best PPV of all-time. However, this tag match went under four minutes and was clearly set up to kill time and warm the crowd into the latter matches of the card.


8, Red Rooster vs Bobby Hennan (WrestleMania V)

Rooster Irish-whipped Hennan, but had it reversed. Hennan missed a charge in the corner and Rooster pinned him. 31 seconds in total. Moving on.


7, Chris Jericho vs Triple H (For the Undisputed WWF Championship) (WrestleMania X8)

Now this is more of a mistake in terms of card replacement rather than an actual bad match. In Toronto at WrestleMania X8, Chris Jericho and Triple H had a very muted main event battle for Y2J's Undisputed Championship after the crowd was exhausted from a genuine dream match between The Rock and Hulk Hogan.

The build-up to the main event didn't have a hype package, was focused more around Triple H vs Stephanie McMahon (Jericho's manager at the time) and ultimately was slow and underwhelming, as often happens in a Triple H WrestleMania main event, and robbed The Rock and Hogan of a deserved main event slot.


6, Torrie Wilson and Sable vs Stacey Keibler and Miss Jackie (PlayBoy Evening Gown Match) (WrestleMania XX)

Looking at WWE's past treatment of Women's wrestling, it's amazing to see how far the company has come in legitimatising the athletic ability of Women rather than solely focusing on their physical appearances. However it's still slightly cringey to look back at this absolute mess from WrestleMania XX. I'm not even going to say go and watch it because it's a joke of a WrestleMania match.  



5, Earthquake vs Adam Bomb (WrestleMania X)

35 seconds. Earthquake performed one move on Adam Bomb (the Powerbomb). Moving on (again!).


4, Akebono vs Big Show (Sumo Match) (WrestleMania 21)

The Big Show has had to do some real crappy things during his time in WWE but the fact that he had to compete in a sumo match (yes a SUMO match) on the biggest night in the history of Professional Wrestling has got to be one of the worst. The former WCW man had this 'match' for 62 seconds and ended with him being thrown out of the ring.


3, Butterbean vs Bart Gunn (Brawl For All Match) (WrestleMania XV)

The Brawl for All tournament of 1998 was a very, very dumb idea that saw Wrestlers fight for real (I know, what a ludicrous idea) and it resulted in a 35 second 'shoot', i.e. real, match were Bart Gunn was legit knocked out, as well as an appearance by the San Diego Chicken.


2, Kane vs Chavo Guerrero (ECW Championship) (WrestleMania XXIV)

From 2006 to 2010, WWE really did devalue the return of the ECW Championship, a belt that had been held by hardcore leaders such as Tommy Dreamer, Shane Douglas, The Sandman and Sabu.

An example of this devalue and neglect was at WrestleMania XXIV when Kane, who had earlier in the night won a battle royal to become Number 1 contender for the ECW title, beat one of the most underrated Wrestlers of all-time, Chavo Guerrero Jr, in 11 seconds. 11 SECONDS.

This was done by Kane coming behind Chavo and hitting him with a chokeslam. The reason this match ranks so highly is that Chavo deserved to wrestle a decent match as he was in the mists of a good heel champion run (something which many thought he wouldn't get in WWE). But no, they had to give it to Kane in 'dominating' fashion.


1, Goldberg vs Brock Lesnar (WrestleMania XX)

The hype for Goldberg vs Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania XX at Madison Square Garden, New York, was spectacular. When Goldberg debuted the day after WrestleMania XIX, fans knew that a clash between the WCW legend and WWE's newest star was inevitable.

It was set up for WrestleMania XX, with Lesnar effectively costing Goldberg his chance of winning the Royal Rumble and Goldberg costing Lesnar the WWE Championship against Eddie Guerrero at No Way Out.

Oh but then... but then.

It was leaked that both men would be leaving the company after WrestleMania, with Goldberg not renewing his contract (due to backstage politics killing his World Heavyweight title run) and Lesnar wanting to move to the NFL. The crowd rejected the match, chanting "You Sold Out!."

Whether through sheer laziness or pure nervousness, the duo didn't lock up for moments and generally worked a sloppy match.

Goldberg beat Lesnar but no-one cared and the only pop from the crowd was when special referee Stone Cold Steve Austin stunned both men before they both parted ways with Vince and co.

Goldberg spears Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania XX.