UFC is Getting a Women's Divison

[Next Big Thing]

Ronda Rousey, the most dominant female fighter in MMA, could be its most historic, too. UFC president Dana White tells SI.com he's working on a female division of the UFC, largely because of Rousey's influence. "It's absolutely going to happen," White said Tuesday of the women's division. The inclusion of women in the sport's highest ranks is an about-face for White, who had long rejected the idea of a women's division, deriding the quality of fighting and the depth of competition in the female ranks. White attributes his reversal to Rousey, 25, who has beaten each of her nine opponents -- three amateur, six professional -- with a devastating armbar in the first round. Only one opponent, wrestling specialist Miesha Tate, endured longer than one minute in the cage with the Strikeforce bantamweight title holder and 2008 bronze medalist in judo White says no time frame is set for the new division. Rousey's transition to UFC, White says, "could happen tomorrow, it could happen a year from now." Rousey's manager Darin Harvey says, "Nothing is immenient. She's a Strikeforce champion not a UFC fighter. We still have three fights left for Strikeforce." Regardless of the time frame for the women's division, White says, "The point is I'm committed to this."

Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/201...#ixzz2AGIBq47z

The popularity of Rousey and stream figures for Invicta FC probably helped this along. Wouldn't be surprised if the UFC bought Invicta and used it to kept it around exclusively to groom talent the same way they kept the WEC around for the lighter weight classes.

I think it's pretty dope. Not because I'm expecting a bunch of girls that look like WWE Divas to suddenly take up fighting, but because I've never seen a boring women's fight on Strikeforce. Not only do they bring it, they usually don't go to decision. I'd watch them over the 135 and 125 pounders all day.

Plus, with the Dana committed to this, I think it might attract more high level judokas, jiu jitsu fighters, and Olympians in sports like boxing and wrestling because they will know there is a place for them to earn a decent living without worrying about the company folding or the boss shutting the division down.