Roundtables
ROUNDTABLE: If Cris Cyborg doesn't get next shot at Ronda Rousey, who would be the most interesting challenger?
Mar 3, 2015 - 1:00:24 PM ROUNDTABLE: If Cris Cyborg doesn't get next shot at Ronda Rousey, who would be the most interesting challenger?

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If the UFC isn't going to give Cris Cyborg the next shot at Ronda Rousey, which opponent would you be at least somewhat interested in seeing Rousey face instead, and why?


RICH HANSEN, MMATORCH COLUMNIST

Anyone who thinks that Ronda Rousey's next opponent (sans Cyborg) matters is missing the point. Having interest in Jessica Eye relative to any other challenger is the same as going to the next Harlem Globetrotters game to see the Washington Generals' new small forward. You go to a Globetrotters game to see the Globetrotters, not to see the stiffs that the Globetrotters turn in to fools. You go for the brilliance relative to the field, not for the competitive nature of the performance. Ronda Rousey is the Globetrotters; the field is coached by Red Klotz, and ain't nothing wrong with that.


FRANK HYDEN, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

I guess I'd go with Bethe Correia. I think that's the most interesting fight. I don't know who else you would go with. I think Correia is the one to go with, even over Cyborg. I mean, it doesn't really matter who gets the shot because they're getting their ass kicked, but I'd go with Correia. At this point, the opponents don't matter as much as watching Rousey fight. That's the draw. She could be fighting Scarlett Johansson for all it matters. You don't watch a Rousey fight because you think her opponent has a chance to beat her, you watch to see how she beats them.


BRAD WALKER, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

Holly Holm and Beth Correia are the top choices trailed by Miesha Tate. The division has been epically thinned out by Rousey, and the dismantling so quickly of Zingano blew my mind. I don't know if a Cyborg fight is going to come to fruition anytime soon, but I hope it does. Rousey is fast running out of opponents, and the UFC doesn't have a lot of options to put in front of her from within or outside of the company.


KALE HAVERVOLD, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

There really is no one who I think can invoke any kind of interest from me. Ronda is just too good, and Cyborg is the only one that I think should be fighting Rousey next.


TOM STRONG, MMATORCH UK CONTRIBUTOR

Ronda seems to have named Bethe Correia and Holly Holm as potential match ups for her next fight, though I feel they're both not ready for her just yet. Holm got her debut out of the way against a a durable fighter in Raquel Pennington, but it certainly wasn't a performance to make anyone think she'd give Ronda a run for her money. Correia hasn't beat anyone inside the top 10 of the women's bantamweight division, and could you really sell this as a pay-per-view fight?

Outside of Cyborg, I'm really not interested in Ronda demolishing cannon fodder. If we have to wait for the Cyborg fight, how about Ronda vs. Tate III? With the roll Tate is on, and how easy the fight would be to sell, I wouldn't mind seeing this once again.


DAN MOORE, MMATORCH UK COLUMNIST

Now we know with Rousey's filming commitments there is a small possibility Cyborg is next, but it's very unlikely. Rousey probably won't fight again until September at the very earliest, so that delay will give Cyborg a chance to prove her worth at 135 lbs. with another convincing win in July. Even if it all plays out how I think it does, I still wouldn't make the Rousey vs. Cyborg fight next. This fight is the only true box office draw left for Rousey, so the New Year or Super Bowl weekend cards would be a much better fit.

She can fight anyone in the fall as a warm-up fight because the opponent doesn't matter. We already know Rousey is going to win, and win in under a minute. Fighting Bethe Correira next makes most sense despite the fact the Brazilian lacks a signature win and isn't currently top five. She's undefeated and the UFC can use the Four Horsewomen tag line to set up a plausible narrative. Put it on as a co-main event behind another title fight (lightweight for example) and it's still going to do significant pay-per-view numbers.