Ronda Rousey Will Get the First Crack At Amanda Nunes If She Wants It

The match-up could be the UFC’s next big superfight.

In the seven months since Ronda Rousey lost the UFC women’s bantamweight title, it has changed hands three times. Holly Holm took the belt from Rousey, then Meisha Tate took it from Holm and last weekend at UFC 200, Amanda Nunes took it from Tate.

Could Rousey be the one to take it from Nunes? 

“Ronda’s going to make that decision,” UFC president Dana White said on Saturday. “I would like to see her fight this year, but it could be early next year, too.”

“Whoever the champion is at the time is who Ronda will fight,” he added.

If Rousey’s ongoing sabbatical continues into 2016, Holly Holm will probably get a shot to take the belt from Nunes. As for Tate, she’s received a 185 day medical suspension due to a broken nose. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZNFH-jH-eo

She would likely need Nunes to successfully defend the title if she wanted a shot to take it back in a rematch. Given how the last three defenses of the belt have gone though, Nunes won’t have it long. 

Recently, there are actually signs Rousey may finally make her return to the UFC. In a newly released Rebook ad, she talks about her “shot at redemption.” Nunes–who happens to be the UFC’s first openly gay champion— would provide that shot. 

Not only would beating Nunes allow Rousey to take back the belt that she held for more than 1000 days, but it would give her an opportunity to show that she can beat an expert striker. 

Nunes, like Holm, is a excellent puncher, as she proved in her fight with Tate. Short of getting back in the cage with Holm, beating Nunes is Rousey’s best chance to redeem herself. All she has to do is want it.