Issue 109

December 2013

If you haven’t been watching The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rousey vs. Team Tate from the first episode, do yourself a favor and sit down for a marathon session of the reality competition series. Seriously, even though critics are quick to dismiss the long-running show as ‘tired’ or ‘played out,’ the addition of women to the latest season has paid off with intense drama unseen since the early days of the show. The pressure, which seems particularly obvious among the veteran female competitors who obviously realize the show might be their final chance to make it on to the sport’s biggest stage, has produced both entertaining fights and incredibly emotional television moments.

But one of the most discussed aspects of the series has been the on-camera personality of head coach and UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey. ‘Rowdy’ has been as intense as ever, if not more so, and she’s taken heaps of criticism for her interactions with opposing coach Miesha Tate, as well as the rest of the cast. But I have to be honest – I just don’t see it.

Rousey has always been an intensely emotional competitor with incredible drive, heart and will to win. One simply doesn’t succeed at an Olympic level in any sport, much less serve as a trailblazer in women’s MMA, without being a little unbalanced. Competition drives Rousey, and she responds in intense fashion.

It was no less than UFC president Dana White who once described Rousey as “a Diaz brother,” and the comparison simply couldn’t be more accurate. Yes, she’s good looking, but her ease on the eye is not the reason she’s made it to the top of the sport. That incredible inner determination has fueled the flame that powers her already remarkable career, and it’s on full display on TUF.

I applaud Tate for her more even-keeled approach to the show. It would seem her first go-round with Rousey has taught her that responding with anger isn’t the approach that best serves her own mental preparation. But Rousey does work best under self-imposed pressure. Look no further than the scowl she wore on the way to the cage at UFC 157. There was absolutely no question that for her, this was go time.

Could the UFC’s first female fighter have toned it down a little on TUF in hopes of developing a reputation as America’s sweetheart? Sure. But ultimately, that’s not who she is, and I’m glad she decided to ‘keep it real.’ Have some of her antics been a little over the top? No doubt. But nothing about Rousey is necessarily normal or politically correct, and I think that aspect of her personality is something to respect.

The return of Kimbo?

Brace yourself, world, but Kevin Ferguson may just be returning to the MMA landscape very soon. That’s right – Kimbo Slice is looking to return to the sport that made him a superstar.

Behind the scenes, Slice has been angling for a return to the sport, and I’ve spoken to officials from a few different respected promotions who are at least considering the possibility, although not the UFC.

It’s funny, because when his name first re-surfaced, I rolled my eyes a little and thought back to the collapse of EliteXC as a reason why the former YouTube sensation should never, ever return to the sport. But embarrassingly I’ve changed my mind of late.

I was there for Kimbo’s first ride, and I was almost resentful of the attention he received during his run to network television fame. After all, everyone who understood the sport knew he wasn’t a complete fighter and that his skills would be quickly exposed. And it took just one Seth Petruzelli punch to end the hype and prove the naysayers right.

Listen, I don’t ever want to see Kimbo in a main event, and I don’t want any promoter trying to sell him as any sort of ‘next big thing.’ But you know what? Perhaps it’s just morbid curiosity, but I admit I’d tune into a fight featuring the bearded brawler against anyone willing to try and stand and bang.

If you didn’t see Kimbo’s January boxing match with Shane Tilyard in Australia, it’s worth your time to do a quick Google search. Is it a solid representation of the sweet science? Hardly. It’s a sanctioned bar fight. But close your eyes for a moment and listen to the crowd. It might as well be Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson.

 It’s a lesson I learned watching Brock Lesnar in the UFC, as well. Sometimes the most-skilled fighter isn’t necessarily the ones fans want to see. And while I don’t ever want to see the sport get too far away from wins and losses, the truth is: entertainment does matter – even if it’s a train wreck.

By John Morgan, former Fighters Only World MMA Awards ‘Journalist of the Year’.