Ronda Rousey doesn't have to beat Cat Zingano this Saturday at UFC 184 to protect and nurture the women's MMA scene. In fact, a loss for Rousey would be the best thing that could happen to the women's 135-pound division—and for all ladies in the sport.
The time where the existence of women in the UFC was a fragile experiment that Rousey was personally care-taking has passed.
As we head into UFC 184, the popularity of the women's bantamweight division is in good condition. The same could also be said for the new women's strawweight group.
While Rousey has only competed and dominated at 135 pounds, her success and star power helped to set the foundation for the ladies at 115. There are potential stars on the horizon such as Zingano, Holly Holm (who will face Raquel Pennington in Saturday's co-feature) and Bethe Correia. That's not to mention past Rousey opponents like Miesha Tate and Sara McMann.
Carla Esparza will make her first defense of the strawweight title in the co-feature at UFC 185 against the undefeated Joanna Jedrzejczyk. There's also fighters like Paige VanZant and Felice Herrig coming down the pike to challenge for gold at 115 pounds.
Rousey has done her job as a trailblazer well, but someone has to challenge her seriously for the ladies in the sport to take the next step.
If Rousey should lose to Zingano, women's MMA would not only survive but flourish. Holm said as much in a recent interview with Marc Raimondi of MMAFighting.com. When asked how a Rousey loss would affect the UFC, Holm said:
"I think it would benefit greatly. I think when you see one person do well, or kind of bring down the No. 1, then everybody thinks, well if she can do that, I can, too."
It's time for a formidable rival to put doubt in the minds of MMA prognosticators and fans. Zingano looks like she could be the girl who at the very least makes us wonder. A Rousey loss—no matter how it happens—would immediately create the demand and interest for a rematch.
Rousey has faced Tate twice, but quite honestly, the rematch had to happen because there wasn't anyone of note left to challenge the champion. A win by Zingano—or even a tightly contested bout—would create an element of competition at the top of the weight class that we haven't seen since its inception.
Zingano isn't quite as prepared to be a box-office star and crossover sensation, but her journey through injury and personal tragedy is compelling enough to make casual fans take notice. She'd make a nice champion and would immediately become one of the most important fighters in the history of women's MMA.
By becoming the first to slay Rousey, Zingano would have an accomplishment that would be amongst the most hallowed the sport has ever seen. That is solely attributed to how good Rousey has been. And the champion is still in her prime, which would make Zingano's win all the more impressive.
If Zingano loses, it's business as usual, and there will be serious doubt as to whether any fighter can beat Rousey. It would be entirely plausible to see Rousey leave the UFC at some point to chase greatness in the WWE. That, in fact, may be inevitable. She's a big fan of sports entertainment and seems to be a natural for that scene.
She's attended live events and even made videos with friends performing pro-wrestling-style maneuvers.
No one could blame her for chasing other challenges after having beaten all comers in the UFC. Rousey's legacy is safe. She's the greatest women's MMA fighter in history, and one of the most dominant regardless of gender.
Every woman who steps into the Octagon Saturday—and in the future—should thank Rousey like boxers salute Al Haymon for his leadership and influence. Without Rousey, there's no way the stage for women's performances would be as large.
That said, it might be time to share the spotlight.
Follow Brian Mazique on Twitter. I dig boxing and MMA.
