Thursday 13 October 2016 12:43, UK
Ronda Rousey will finally end her year-long hiatus when she returns against Amanda Nunes, but does this fight make sense for the former queen of the cage?
What can Rousey gain?
Despite a crushing knockout loss last November to Holly Holm, stripping Rousey of her world title but more importantly her invincibility, she has been fast-tracked into challenging the new champion. Does she deserve it? If any former title-holder deserves an immediate opportunity to reclaim their gold, surely it's Rousey, who pioneered women in the UFC.
Rousey, the inaugural women's bantamweight champion, stands to become the first female to reign for a second time if her return goes to plan. She remains the most notable name in the women's divisions, but the championship belt wrapped around her waist affords her extra gravitas in plotting the rest of her unique career.
Holm, who ended the Rousey mystique with a masterful boxing-based performance last November, lost the world title in her next outing and finds herself on a two-fight losing streak. Miesha Tate, who took Holm's title, has already lost twice to Rousey and swiftly dropped the belt to Nunes. This run of events made Brazil's Nunes, the first openly gay UFC champion, the outstanding candidate to welcome Rousey home.
So who's likely to win? Rousey built her reputation on eating up aggressive fighters who pile forwards - Nunes cannot repeat the elusiveness of Holm that proved to be Rousey's sole undoing. If Rousey needs extra confidence, she can point to two previous results - in a combined 30 seconds, she defeated Cat Zingano and Alexis Davis, both of whom knocked out Nunes.
What is Rousey risking?
The biggest concern should be over her legitimacy - Nunes may be the current champion, but is that who Rousey needs to defeat to restore her supremacy? Critics will suggest that other fights are a more suitable challenge.
Holm may have lost twice in a row, but until Rousey avenges her sole defeat we will never understand the limit of her ability. Perhaps the long-term plan is for a rematch down the road, but Holm is aged 34 and Rousey has alluded to retirement too often for this to be a sure-thing. Throwing Rousey back to wolves (much like Conor McGregor swiftly re-matching Nate Diaz) would have been a fascinating show of determination. Fighting Nunes can easily be interpreted as avoiding Holm.
And what about Cristiane 'Cyborg' Justino - the Brazilian contender who Rousey seemed destined to fight until last November's setback. There are mitigating circumstances because 'Cyborg' has never made the appropriate weight for either of the UFC's female divisions, but the prospect of Rousey colliding with a powerful KO artist would be the most difficult assignment possible.
It was reassuring to see Rousey take a whole year to recover from her knockout loss, but her attention must swiftly turn to preparing accordingly for her return. Has she taken the correct amount of time off? Can she stand up to Nunes' heavy hands after losing so dramatically last time?
Rarely has such a dominant athlete been knocked off their pedestal quite as brutally as Rousey, but she's finally back on the horse. The only question that remains is whether she'll ever be the same...
