Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano: Fight card, date, complete guide as MVP makes debut in MMA
Saturday also features plenty of MMA stars back in action, like Francis Ngannou and Nate Diaz
Ronda Rousey is back. At the height of her popularity, Rousey rivaled Conor McGregor as UFC's biggest superstar. The former women's UFC bantamweight champion ends her decade-long retirement against Gina Carano in Netflix's MMA debut.
Saturday's headliners are two of the most influential women's fighters of all time. Rousey's rise was unlike anything the sport had seen. The inaugural women's bantamweight champion stopped her first 12 opponents, all but one of whom faltered in Round 1. The Olympian parlayed her stardom into Hollywood blockbusters and a main event WWE run. She raised the bar for women in combat, but another woman laid that foundation.
Carano is widely considered the pioneer of women's MMA. The Strikeforce and Elite XC alum brought new eyes to women's MMA. She rode that popularity to an inaugural Strikeforce women's featherweight title fight. Carano faltered to Cyborg, one of the most dominant fighters of any gender, before retiring.
Rousey and Carano haven't fought in 10 and 17 years, respectively. They return in a long-lost dream match in Los Angeles.
"I'm just trying to relish every moment and not rush through it. I mean, I'm going to miss this so much, but it's been so incredible to be back in the next martial arts community. I never thought I would be doing this after ... Five years ago I gave up the dream, and then a turn of events and I'm so grateful to Ronda for bringing me back into this and just the people."
Jake Paul's Most Valuable Promotions is behind Netflix's foray into MMA. They've assembled arguably the most impressive non-UFC card in a decade. Nate Diaz and Mike Perry, two of the most popular active fighters on the free market, duke it out in a welterweight co-main event. Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou will fight Philipe Lins on the card.
"I think all the stars are aligned for me to prove that [I'm among the heavyweight greats] on Saturday night," Ngannou said. "I don't think there's a doubt about it, but if somebody have a doubt about it, I have to prove it on Saturday night."
Below is the complete fight card for MVP MMA, along with the latest odds. Check back all week long for the latest news, features and other content around this massive event.
Rousey vs. Carano fight card, odds
- Ronda Rousey -535 vs. Gina Carano +400, women's featherweights
- Mike Perry -218 vs. Nate Diaz +180, welterweights
- Francis Ngannou -1450 vs. Philipe Lins +850, heavyweights
- Salahdine Parnasse -1100 vs. Kenneth Cross +700, lightweights
- Robelis Despaigne -500 vs. Junior dos Santos +380, heavyweights
- Namo Fazil -360 vs. Jake Babian +285, welterweights
- Adriano Moraes vs. Phumi Nkuta, catchweight
- Jason Jackson vs. Jeff Creighton, welterweights
- David Mgoyan -550 vs. Albert Morales +410, featherweights
- Aline Pereira -410 vs. Jade Masson-Wong +320, catchweight
- Brandon Jenkins -360 vs. Chris Avila +285, catchweight
Rousey vs. Carano info
- Date: May 16
- Location: Intuit Dome -- Inglewood, California
- Start time: 9 p.m. ET (Main card) | 6 p.m. (Preliminary card)
- How to watch: Netflix (Main card, subscription required) | YouTube (Preliminary card)
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