Tyron Woodley, a former Strikeforce fighter, had the chance to witness women’s MMA first hand and gain its popularity, particularly the one with Ronda Rousey and Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino.
Rousey and Cyborg’s popularity did not happen overnight though. Back when women mma fighters were not allowed to compete in the UFC, both Rousey and Justino were already promising fighters in their division. Today, Rousey has made her mark in the mma industry by being the first ever female fighter to sign in the UFC as well as the first mma fighter to be the female bantamweight champion. If Rousey and Justino’s fight pushes through, it might be one of the most-awaited fights in the entire UFC history.
Like the other fans, Tyron Woodley is also amazed by the success Rousey is getting and how the women’s MMA earned its way to the top.
“I got a chance to watch Ronda come up; I got a chance to watch ‘Cyborg’ destroy many women. I think it’s great we’re even having this conversation right now. I’m in the airport and I see 50-year-old women looking at this Ronda Rousey clip on her phone. I hear people talking about it. I was just sitting there. People didn’t even know who I was, and I just hear them talking about Ronda Rousey’s last fight,” he revealed.
With all these great PR that Rousey is getting, Woodley thinks, however, that the hype Rousey-Justino MMA fight is getting is just a bit over the top. Of course, it will still depend on the circumstances. For now, there is no final agreement as to what division they would be fighting in; Rousey is firm on her stand that Justino should go down to 135 pounds while the latter is suggesting that they meet at 140-pound catchweight. UFC President Dana White has also backed up Rousey’s stand that there will be no fight unless Cyborg shows that she can reach the 135-pound weight.
Woodley admitted, however, that if Rousey will be able to maintain the rate that she is going today, the MMA fight wouldn’t be as exciting the people thought it would be.
“We’re not gonna see this fight happen for six months at least. And what happens is, if Cyborg makes the weight she’s gonna come down and lose the power, some of the things that make her who she is. Also, you’re gonna give Ronda Rousey six more months to get better. We haven’t even seen all of her training displayed in the Octagon because nobody can last a minute. I think the if it’s Cyborg we saw in Strikeforce [against] to the Ronda Rousey we saw [at UFC 190], it is a competitive fight. Now we’re seeing the Cyborg clear of any performance enhancing drugs, she would have to cut all the way down in weight, by the time that happens, we’re going to continue to see Rousey develop for another six to eight months, maybe a year. I don’t think it’s as competitive as people think it will be,” he further explained.