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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
After it was reported that Ronda Rousey would be coming to the UFC next year, making her the first female fighter signed by the UFC, her and her manager were quick to feign ignorance and say that nothing had been confirmed. Well, now it's confirmed.
UFC President Dana White himself confirmed her signing in an interview this week with Jim Rome.
"Yes, it's official," White said. "Ronda Rousey did sign with the UFC."
One of the questions and concerns about bringing Rousey in is whether the UFC will be investing in women's MMA, or just Rousey herself. At this stage, it's essentially the Rousey show, but White sees enough from the women's bantamweight division to believe they've got something worth starting with there.
"She has the whole package," White said. "I've never been interested in women's MMA. First there weren't enough girls to create an entire division. And when I talk about a superstar standout, you know, people talk about Gina Carano, [but] I'm telling you, this girl, she's nasty. She might be beautiful on the outside, [but] she's a Diaz brother on the inside. She's a real fighter, and she's very talented. She has the credentials, the pedigree, everything, and I think she has that 'it' factor, and I think she's going to be a big superstar."
"You can never tell how fights are going to go, and she's got four or five good fights lined up. The next two years we've actually got really good opponents for her, and it's going to be really interesting, we'll see what happens... There is [enough depth] in that division. In the 135 lb. division there is. These other women's divisions? No, there's not."
Penick's Analysis: There's no official announcement from Strikeforce or Showtime yet that their working relationship is over with, or that Strikeforce's January event will be their last, but it will come soon enough. This is confirmation of a major story for the UFC and for the advancement of women's MMA. Rousey's going to need to continue winning fights in the cage, but White thinks they've got several fights they can sell with her if she does so. With that in mind, Rousey will make history in 2013, and the UFC will bring Women's MMA to the next level because of that.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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Frank Hyden - Rich Hansen
Chris Park - Matt Pelkey
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