THE BIGGEST EVENT in the UFC’s history takes place next weekend and you probably won’t be surprised to hear that Ronda Rousey is the star attraction.
The organisation is expecting to host 70,000 fans at the Etihad Stadium in Melbourne for UFC 193, which will be headlined by Rousey’s latest UFC bantamweight title defence.
The undefeated champion takes on Holly Holm, with the UFC aiming to break its current attendance record of 55,724, which was set at UFC 129: St Pierre vs. Shields in Toronto back in April 2011.
Rousey has been a phenomenon since the UFC introduced its first women’s division three years ago, overcoming all six of her opponents with ease. Her three most recent fights have lasted a combined time of just 64 seconds.
The 28-year-old has subsequently garnered unprecedented levels of mainstream fame for an MMA fighter, earning a host of significant commercial deals and movie roles.
Her success is profiled in the first episode of the ‘Embedded’ series for UFC 193 — which takes place in the early hours of Sunday, 15 November.
The episode features glowing tributes for the former Olympian from the likes of Mark Wahlberg, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Michael Strahan and some other people we had to look up on Google but who are apparently very famous nevertheless.
“She’s the Michael Jordan of her sport. She’s basically transcended the sport,” said Wahlberg.
There’s also a token tip-of-the-cap to Rousey’s opponent Holly Holm — a former world boxing champion — from Oscar De La Hoya and Freddie Roach. But it’s obvious who the big star is on the UFC 193 bill.
