Gina Carano - Blast from the Past - MMA Women

Still one of the most popular female MMA fighters in the world is Gina Carano.
Although she hasn't fought since 2009, this five foot eight, 143 pound beauty from Dallas, Texas still has a lot of fans.
I have to admit, she was the person that got me to pay attention to female MMA, and MMA in general.

Female MMA - Gina Carano vs Ronda Rousey?

Gina Carano vs Ronda Rousey?

While we know that Dana White would kill himself to do anything to make his "girlfriend" look better in the cage, this is ridiculous.
Or silly as Randy Couture put it.

Gina hasn't fought in over five years, after that crushing defeat by Cristiane "Cyborg" Justino.
To put her back in the ring and right in there with Ronda would be stupid.
And it would be a very hollow victory when she won.
Even though I'm sure Dana would tout it as the greatest win ever.

Maybe they need to put that fight on the back burner and focus on women like Amanda Nunes and Cat Zingano.
Ladies that are still actually fighting in the UFC.

Gina Carano's Next Fight

Well It's been a long time since I have even mentioned Gina Carano here other than in passing.
But now it looks like she really will be returning to the steel cage.
And it looks as though it will be on June 18th, 2011 at Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum.
Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem will be taking on Fabricio Werdum and Josh Barnett will be facing Brett Rogers.
And sure enough on the card it has "Gina Carano vs TBA".
Who is "TBA" gonna be?
So far Amanda Nunes' manager has denied that it will be her and Meisha Tate has already said that she wants the fight.

Gina started training at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas, Nevada back in February so she's getting in shape.
She did a promotional appearance for the UFC Personal Trainer for Xbox 360 Kinect, PlayStation Move and Nintendo Wii on March 23rd in New York city.
Oh yeah...Dana doesn't want the women to fight for him, but he has no problem using them to promote UFC stuff.
What a guy.

Gina is finishing up re-shoots on her film Haywire with Channing Tatum, Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, Michael Douglas, Antonio Banderas and Bill Paxton.
Haywire is set to be released in August of 2011.
Is it just me, or does Gina look like she has packed on a few pounds?

The Top Ten Female MMA Fighters of 2010

While doing some work on my female MMA lenses over at Squidoo (RIP) I came up with a list of the most searched for female mixed martial artists on the net.
Now you have to keep in mind, these are actual fighters, not people that are inactive like Gina Carano.

Actually Gina would STILL be number one by a wide margin, but she hasn't competed since the Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg fight when Cris beat her by TKO at 4:59 in the first round.
Gina has made no indication that she is coming back into the ring so far.

So here are the top ten most searched for female MMA fighters on the net right now.....

1. Miesha Tate (11-2-0)
2. Cristiane Santos (10-1-0)
3. Marloes Coenen (18-4-0)
4. Sarah Kaufman (12-1-0)
5. Amy Davis (1-2-0, 1 NC)
6. Megumi Fujii (23-1-0)
7. Zoila Frausto (10-1-0)
8. Carina Damm (15-5-0)
9. Lisa Ward (14-6-0)
10. Roxanne Modafferi (15-6-0)

You may notice that in this list, all of these women are really fighters.
With the exception of Amy Davis, they are all in the ten plus fight range and seven of them are ranked in MMARising.com's "Top 15 Women’s Pound-For-Pound MMA Rankings".
This leads me to believe that female MMA fight fans are actually going for talent and not looks.

I mean c'mon, would Gina have been as popular as she was were she not as hot as she was?

And speaking about that, Miesha Tate needs to watch out for that trap.
She's 11-2-0 and ranked number 11 on the top 15 pound for pound, but a lot of people are looking to her as the new "Face of Female MMA".
She hasnt fought since Strikeforce - Challengers 10 back on August 13th, 2010 when she beat Hitomi Akano by unanimous decision.

Of course all that will change when she takes on Strikeforce women’s 135-pound champion Marloes Coenen for the title, probably some time in March.

Then we'll see if she's the new "Face".



The Top Ten Female MMA Fighters of 2010, posted to http://femalemixedmartialartists.blogspot.com/ on January 9th, 2010

Who's Next for Cristiane Santos?

Well as pretty much everyone expected...Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos beat Jan "Cuddles" Finney at the "Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum" event at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California.
And hey, Jan did go more than one round; you have to give her credit for that.

So who is the next victim...I mean opponent for Cris?

Probably the most popular choice is Erin Toughill.
Erin has had some problems with Strikeforce before, but that may all be in the past.
At least for now.
Strikeforce could probably bill this as a "The Beauty vs The Beast" match up and really rack up if it was promoted correctly.

But who are some other worthy opponents out there?

Cris already taken out Marloes “Rumina” Coenen and Gina “Conviction” Carano.

How about Hiroko Yamanaka?
Hiroko is five foot eleven and weighs169 pounds, so she actually has the height and weight advantage over Cris.
Her record is also 9-1-1.

Another possible opponent is Cindy “Battlecat” Dandois.
Cindy is 5'7, 145 pounds and has a record of 4-0-0.
One of her biggest wins was a unanimous win over Marloes Coenen at BOTE - Beast of the East in 2009.

Another good possibility is Amanda “Lioness of the Ring” Nunes.
Amanda is 5-1-0 but one important thing to me here is that she holds a victory over Vanessa Porto, the woman that defeated Cristiane Santos back in 2005.
Of course 2005 was 5 years ago.....

You could also add to this list Shana “Rock Solid” Olsen (4-0-0), Jamie Seaton (2-1-0), Yoko Takahashi (14-11-3) and Emily “Timebomb” Thompson (3-2-0).

And of course the woman that Cris said gave her one of the toughest fights of her life...Vanessa Porto (10-4-0).



Who's Next for Cristiane Santos?, posted to http://femalemixedmartialartists.blogspot.com/ on June 28th, 2010

Female MMA News - Miesha Tate, Zoila Frausto , Gina Carano, AZUMA and More

At ShoMMA 7: Johnson vs. Mahe, at the Save Mart Center in Fresno Calif. on March 26, female MMA fighters Miesha Tate and Zoila Frausto went at it, with Miesha coming out on top, winning via an arm bar submission at the 4:09 mark in the second round.
This victory brings Miesha up to 9-2-0, and drops Zoila to 5-1-0.

Over at the The Zeitgeisty Report, they pose an interesting question....
"What ever happened to Gina Carano?"
One of the conclusions they come up with is...
"I’ll wager she never returns to the ring and if she does, it won’t be with anyone that could further damage her looks. If that turns out to be the case, it’ll mean the end of women’s MMA which has tied its entire future up in Carano."
You can read the full article here



Although it's kickboxing, not technically MMA, AZUMA defeated Megumi Yabushita in a New Japan Kickboxing Federation (NJKF) fight on Sunday, March 28th, 2010 at Differ Ariake, Tokyo, Japan.
AZUMA won by decision.
Like I said, it was a kickboxing match up, so I dont think it affects Megumi's 18-16-0 record.

And speaking of Megumi, she is sponsored by MMA apparel company Fight Chix, and CEO of Fight Chix, Elisabeth Nuesser, was just recently interviewed by the MMA Torch.
(Boy I went a long way around to get that segue didn't I?)
Although you may look at it as just a sponsorship, Fight Chix is just as important to female MMA as TapouT and Affliction are.
You can read the interview here

And you can check out Fight Chix's website here:
http://blog.fightchix.com/


After having Lisa Marie Varon (TNA Knockout Tara) and Erin Toughill both gunning for her, Kim Couture went down to Mexico to take on Rosa Vizcarra and get a first round TKO.
To add a little Lucha Libre flavor to the match, Kim wore a mask before the bout.
You can see the whole fight here:



And speaking of Erin Toughill (see how good I'm getting at this?), she recently announced on her Facebook page that she was done with Strikeforce, and maybe female MMA altogether.
She said:
"U R hearing it first: I will no longer b fighting 4 Strikeforce. Its a personal decision tht I mde & one tht was NOT made in haste, trust me. Ill b doin interviews in cming days tht explain "WHY" I have made this hard decision. Cant subject myself 2 wht has bn going on (any longer) Retiring? Dunno, but am on verge due ...to basic issues like: NOT being able FIGHT!!! I am getting zero return for all I have put in...DONE."

I hope she doesn't leave female MMA, because she has always been one of my favorites.

Posted to http://femalemixedmartialartists.blogspot.com/ on March 31st, 2010

WAMMA's September Female MMA Rankings

WAMMA's September female MMA rankings are out, and rather than waiting till October to do a top ten list, I thought I'd go ahead and go over the Featherweight rankings now.
Mainly because for the first time since they started doing female MMA rankings, there is a new number one.
Can you guess who it is?



1. Cristiane Santos
Yes the "Queen" was finally unseated.
Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos is the new number one female MMA fighter.
The Strikeforce Women's Lightweight Champion will be fighting next at Strikeforce: Fedor vs Rogers on November 7th, 2009.
Who will she be fighting?
Hopefully one of the following ladies.

2. Marloes Coenen
One of the women that actually stand a chance against Chris is this Dutch female mixed martial artist.
Marloes is 16-3-0.

3. Erin Toughill
Another lady that could hold her own with the Cyborg is Erin Toughill.
Erin beat Marloes Coenen back in 2004, and since her loss to Megumi Yabushita in 2004, she has been on a winning streak.

4. Gina Carano
Gina finally slipped down to number four.
And now the "Face of Female MMA" may just be looking at a Hollywood career.

5. Kelly Kobold
I did an entry on Kelly way back in April of 2007, so I feel pretty good about showcasing a lady that is now number 5 in the MMA world.
Although her last three fights were losses (Gina Carano, Julie Kedzie and Tara LaRosa) this 16-3-1 fighter is still a force to be reckoned with.

6. Yoko Takahashi
No not the singer.
The Japanese female MMA fighter Yoko Takahashi has a record of 15-10-1 and her last fight was a loss to Cristiane Santos by Unanimous Decision at EliteXC - Heat, 0n October 4th, 2008.

7. Cindy Dandois
Cindy "Battlecat" Dandois is a Belgian female MMA fighter with a 1-0-0 record.
I think the reason this lady came in at seven is because her one win was a Unanimous Decision over number two Marloes Coenen.
That's no small feat.

8. Ediane (Ediene) Gomes
Ediane "India" Gomes is a 4-0-0 fighter from Brazil.

9. Revelina Berto
Revelina "Nana" Berto has a fight record of 3-0-0.

10. Emily Thompson
3-2-0 female MMA fighter came in at number 10.


For the whole list of female MMA rankings, you can go to the WAMMA site here.
http://www.gowamma.com/Rankings

BTW...if anyone has any info on what happened Saturday night at “FEMALE FURY II” let me know.
I have looked everywhere for the results.


WAMMA's September Female MMA Rankings, posted to http://femalemixedmartialartists.blogspot.com/, on Sept 22, 2009

Female MMA: Gina Carano to Debut in Knockout

Well if you were wonder what female MMA fighter Gina Carano's next move is, wonder no more.
According to Variety, Gina will make her feature film debut in the upcoming spy thriller "Knockout" directed by Academy Award-winning film director, Steven Soderbergh.

Variety says....
"Scripted by Lem Dobbs, “Knockout” casts Carano as a girl from the wrong side of the tracks who is given a second chance to use her skills for constructive purposes. The film is a closer cousin to “La Femme Nikita” and “Kill Bill” than “Million Dollar Baby,” in that it doesn’t take place in the fight ring. Rather, Soderbergh considers the film as a flat out action film in the James Bond mold, and will shoot in locations around the world that include Ireland, Turkey and the U.S."

Gina is putting her debut in good hands.
Soderbergh won an Academy Award for Best Director for his film "Traffic" and has directed hits like Sex, Lies, and Videotape, Erin Brockovich and Ocean's Eleven, Twelve and Thirteen.

Even though this will be Gina's first major motion picture, she did appear in Michael Jai White's "Blood and Bone" as Veretta.
She also starred in the cult film "Ring Girls", she was in the Oxygen reality series Fight Girls and of course she appeared as "Crush" on the NBC show American Gladiators.

So is Gina Carano gonna pull a Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson?
Bye bye female MMA and hello Hollywood?


posted to http://femalemixedmartialartists.blogspot.com/, Sept 9th, 2009

Female MMA Rankings For August

I haven't done this in awhile, so here are the top ten female MMA fighters on this blog, and how they ranked at WAMMA.
Now WAMMA ranks their fighters on six different points all having to do with fighting, and all I rank mine on is popularity.
So you'll see some wide differences in the two lists.
Except of course for the number one position.....



1. Gina Carano (7-1-0)
Of course Gina came in at number one on my ratings and the WAMMA ranking.
Is anyone surprised?

2. Karen Williams (3-3-0)
Even with 3 losses in a row, Karen Williams still came in at number two here.
I didnt see her at all on the WAMMA rankings.

3. Latasha Marzolla (9-3) Muay Thai, (1-0-0) MMA
Latasha Marzolla came in third here, but again, I didnt see her on the WAMMA page at all.
Of course with only one pro MMA fight, you wouldnt think she would show up on their rankings.

4. Cristiane Santos (8-1-0)
You would think the champ would come in at number one wouldnt you?
But she came in fourth here and third on the WAMMA.
In all fairness though, the WAMMA rankings came out before the Carano - Santos fight.

5. Emily Thompson (3-2-0)
Emily Thompson came in fifth here, and tenth at WAMMA.

6. Erin Toughill (10-2-1)
One of my favorite female MMA fighters Erin Toughill came in sixth here, and fourth at WAMMA.

7. Alexis Davis (6-2-0)
Another female mma fighter that came up ranked here, but not on WAMMA.

8. Jessica Aguilar (5-3-0)
Jessica Aguilar came in eighth here, and sixth in the Flyweight division at WAMMA.

9. Lisa Ward (12-5-0)
Lisa Ward came in ninth here and fifth in the Flyweight division as WAMMA.

10. Yoko Takahashi (15-10-1)
Yoko Takahashi rounded the list out here, but came in sixth in the Featherweight division at WAMMA.

To see WAMMA's full female MMA rankings go here:
http://www.gowamma.com/Rankings


posted to http://femalemixedmartialartists.blogspot.com/ on Sept 4th, 2009

Female MMA - The State of the Art

In the aftermath of the Gina Carano-Cris Santos fight, I was looking around for inspiration for today's entry.
Here is a sample of the headlines I ran across.....

Do women belong fighting in mixed martial arts?
Baltimore Sun

Does women's MMA have a future?
Baltimore Sun
(Do I sense a pattern with the Baltimore Sun here?)

Carano's loss to 'Cyborg' hurts women's MMA
FOXSports.com

Strikeforce postmortem: Is Santos' win good for women's MMA?
ESPN

Though growing, women's MMA not equal to men's
Florida Today

Female MMA is far from accepted yet.
I keep hearing terms like "not as good as the guys", "lack of depth", "women shouldn't be fighting each other".
And of course "she's ugly, she looks like a man, I don't like her."

Wow.
I thought we had outgrown that kind of thinking.
No Cris Santos is not gonna get in the cage with Brock Lesnar.
Just like Laila Ali has no business in the ring with Mike Tyson.
But that doesn't mean Santos isn't great in her division.
Maybe the WWE and their Diva division has poisoned the minds of sports fans to where they think that a woman cannot be just as good as a man.
(perhaps Lisa Marie Varon will change that idea)

These ladies work just as hard as their male counterparts and should be treated with the same respect.
I'm not saying we should praise sloppy execution in either division.
The women should be (and from what I have seen are) held to the same standards.
But no matter how good some female MMA stars are, they will be judged less than the guys and thats just not right.

Female MMA News and Updates

In my last entry, I asked what was next for female MMA champ Cris "Cyborg" Santos.
Well it looks like Elaina Maxwell wants to be the next thing.....

Top 10 MMA Pro Female Fighter Elaina Maxwell, a Student of Cung Le and Randy Couture, Calls out Strikeforce Champion, Cris Cyborg
Cyborg, a Strikeforce phenom, beats a crowd favorite in Gina Carano in complete dominance, yet Elaina Maxwell is not impressed. In fact, when Elite Broadcast Media interviewed Elaina, she told us this, "I saw many holes in Cyborg's standup, and if she fights me, she will get knocked out." Elaina has over 24 titles and championships in the fighting world, trains with the best in the world, and feels it is her time to end the hype, and start a new one. Elaina, goes on to say, "I have much respect for Gina and Cris. It is not about them, it's about me. To be honest, I am sick of only training with the best, I want to fight the best."
You can see the whole press release here

And in other female mma news ( yes there are other female mma fighters besides Carano and Santos) Jennifer "Visegrip" Martin will face Priseilla Cuevro at the first female mma bout in New York.
Don't get too excited, MMA events are still banned in New York.
They are getting around the ban by having the match at the Jo Jo Redeye Building on the Seneca Nation reservation in Salamanca.
You can read more about this here

And finally, here is an article from MMA Fanhouse by David Whitley titled " MMA Is No Breakthrough for Women".
"On a practical level, I doubt the Carano vs. Cyborg was the fighting equivalent of the 19th Amendment. When it comes to female fighters, the MMA still has less depth than Paris Hilton. Carano was its Danica Patrick, and now she's been beaten by Ivan Drago."

You can read the whole article (and comment, the comment section seems very spirited) here.

Female MMA: What's next for Cyborg Santos?

Now that the dust has settled over the Carano vs. Cyborg fight, what's next for the newly crowned female MMA champ?
Will she appear on talk shows (with a translator) or start appearing in ads for MMA apparel?
Who knows?
But let's focus on the fighting side of her, which seems to be what Cris "Cyborg" Santos is all about.
Who's next in the Cyborgs sights?

Well I reported awhile back that Erin Toughill (10-2-1) would likely face the winner of the match.
But at Saturdays event, Erin was nowhere to be seen.
There are rumors that Erin and Strikeforce had a "break down in communication" and Erin wasn't there.

But Strikeforce's new acquisition was there, and ready to step in if anything had happened to Carano or Santos.
And that fighter is veteran Marloes Coenen (16-3).
Remember, Santos almost faced her back in February of 2009, but Santos pulled out because she signed with Strikeforce.
Now that would be a match.
The 5'9, 145 pound Marloes might not be bulled around the ring by Santos as easily as Carano was.
Although Marloes has lost to Erin, so would Erin still be the most logical choice?

Another fighter beigin mentioned is Roxanne Modafferi (who has beaten Marloes).
Roxanne is currently 13-4-0.
But Roxanne fights at 135, although that didn't stop her from beating Marloes.

Sarah Kaufman is another name I have heard mentioned.
I think Sarah has a pretty big base of loyal internet fans.
With wins over Miesha Tate and Shayna Baszler she would seem like a good choice.
And she does have a 10-0-0 record right now.
But wouldn't Sarah also have to put on some weight to get in this fight?

Of course there is the possibility of Gina Carano facing her in a rematch.
But I didn't hear Gina's people yelling "Rematch!" after the fight.

And now we come to my "Wildcard" pick.
Lisa Marie Varon.
If you read my blogs, it's no secret I'm a big fan of female wrestling.
Lisa Marie (Victoria in the WWE and Tara in TNA) might be the first female wrestler to follow in the footsteps of her male counterparts like Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley.
She is training for MMA, and could you imagine the hype of an ex-female pro wrestler going after the women's MMA champ?
Of course Lisa needs some checks in her win column before that ever happens.
But remember, Gina Carano only trained in Muay Thai for what, 4 months before her first fight?
Lisa is 5'8, 155 pounds and has about nine years of wrestling training to fall back on.

Female MMA got the hype Saturday, so lets see if the fights they pick can keep the interest going.

Gina Carano vs. Cristiane Cyborg Santos Result

http://mmafrenzy.com/

In the Strikeforce Female 145-Pound Championship, Gina Carano vs. Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos

Cyborg wins at the end...and I mean very end.. of the first round.
It was like 4:58 of a 5 minute round.

Well I said Cris would win......
You could see where the power was too.

Good Luck Gina Carano and Cristiane Santos

Well here we go.
Only five days till what is the most hyped female mma match ever.
I love it really, when I started this blog back in 2007, I started going down a list I made of female mma fighters and tried to do bios and at least one pic of each one.
Why?
Because I always root for the underdog.

Female MMA really didn't get much attention, a lot of people frowned on it.
Two women out there beating the crap out of each other didn't appeal to everyone.
But having spent 14 years in martial arts (not MMA mind you) I had some idea of what these women go through to get out there and do their best.
And I hate it when someone works that hard and gets overlooked.
So I tried in my own way to get these ladies out there and hopefully get some attention for them.

You'll note that you don't (and never will) see pictures of bikini clad women here just for the sake of having them.
Now if a fighter is good looking (Kyra Gracie, Gina Carano, Michelle Waterson, Erin Toughill, LaTasha Marzolla just to name a few) I have no problem with posting an attractive picture of them.
But no matter how good you look, if you get in the ring with another woman that's there to take you down and take you out, it wont matter.
This blog is for fighters both known and unknown.

And that brings me back to the upcoming match up.
(I know I went off on a mini rant there)
Here is a chance for female MMA to really shine and pick up some fans.
You'll have the MMA poster girl Gina Carano going up against a fighting machine Cris Santos.
As of right now, no one is injured and we can expect to see both women go in there and give everything they've got.
This could be the match that really puts women's MMA on the map.
There's already talk of the winner facing Erin Toughill at a future date.

So I wish both women luck and cross my fingers that the match will be as good as the hype leading into it.

Not only does the sport need a good show, but so do all those ladies out there in little known gyms pounding away at bags and wondering if they'll ever get the chance to climb into a ring and show everyone just how good they really are.

Gina Carano Updates

Gina Carano is featured in the August 10th issue of ESPN the Magazine.
On page 26 there is an article titled " Six Things You Should Know About Being A Female MMA Fighter."
Also at http://espn.go.com/mma/ there are two videos up with Gina featured.

Rolling Stone (who rarely dose sports much less MMA) has an article in their August 6th issue called "Athletes Without Fear".
And Gina is on that list.

And if that's not enough Gina for you, she's hosting Carano-Cyborg Week on SHO 2, a series showcasing her past fights and those of her opponent Cris Santos.
Nice to see Cris finally get a mention.

Since Gina is such a media darling (I'm not taking anything from Gina, I think she's great), whats gonna happen if Cris demolishes her in Round 1?
Will Cris be propelled to superstar status?
Will you see Cris in ESPN, Maxim, Rolling Stone?

Yes Another Gina Carano/Cristiane Santos Update

Well I keep trying but all I seem to come up with these days is Gina Carano/Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos stuff.
Maybe I should just quit fighting and give into the hype.
After all, it's only 12 days till showtime.
(That wasn't a pun...really)

Anyway, word has come out now that Cristiane Santos is the odds on favorite to beat Gina on August 15th.
And adding to that is Carano's ex-boyfriend Kit Cope coming out on MMAJunkie Radio saying that (to put it nicely) Gina is gonna get beat if she keeps training at (as he puts it) "Xtreme Fashion" with Shawn Tompkins and Randy Couture.
Randy, by the way, will be in Gina's corner at the fight, but not long time friend Kim Couture.
This has lead to the totally unfounded (as far as I can tell) rumor that Gina is seeing Randy.
But think about it realistically a minute.
You're in the fight of your life, who do you want in your corner?
Mixed martial artist, Greco-Roman wrestler, former collegiate wrestler, and only five-time champion in UFC history Randy?
Or 1-1-0 Kim?
I'd go with Randy.

Female MMA - Erin Toughill

One of my favorite female MMA stars won't be making her debut with Strikeforce on August 15th.
Erin Toughill was originally slated to appear on the card, but now she is being held in reserve in case (okay, I know, I mention them every entry now....) Gina Carano or Cristiane Santos gets injured before their match.

Erin is 10-2-1 in MMA and also 8-2-1 in boxing and what an incredible break it would be for her to step into that match and win.
We could actually see a new star made right before our eyes.
Of course I am not wishing anything bad on Gina or Cristiane, that IS the fight everyone wants to see.

And according to Strikeforce, Erin just might get a shot at the winner of the Carano-Santos fight.



Female MMA - Erin Toughill, posted to http://femalemixedmartialartists.blogspot.com/ on 7-31-2009

Female MMA News Today, Gina Carano, Chris Santos and Kyra Gracie

In female MMA news today....

There's an article over at Bleacher Report by Josh Sanchez about the idea of bringing Kyra Gracie over to Strikeforce's women's division, which I think is a very good idea.

And speaking of Srikeforce, they have put a video up promoting the ( I know, I cant even go a week without saying it) Gina “Conviction” Carano vs. Chris “Cyborg” Santos fight.


The MMA promotion "MMA Big Show" had a 16 round card Saturday night (Saturday July 25th) called Unstoppable and on that card, Big Show had their first female mixed martial arts bout.
It was Erica Ellington, a freestyle fighter, took on Marissa Caldwell, a jiu jitsu specialist.
Marissa defeated Erica with an armbar at 2:33 of the first round.
(They didnt need a five minute round did they?)

Cannot Avoid Gina Carano and Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos

Okay, I was gonna try to go for a bit without mentioning Gina Carano and Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos and their upcoming fight.
But right now, all eyes seem to be turned towards this.


Crave Online has an article about the match up, as does The Las Vegas Sun, The Examiner, ESPN and a host of others.
This is looking to be the defining moment (so far) in female mixed martial arts.
Finally the women get the coverage and recognition that the men get.


Could it all blow up in their faces?
Oh yes, easily.
A bad fight and all the hype and build up will go down the drain with a loud SWOOSH!
But a good fight, and the hype will be justified and we may just see a turning point in female MMA.
I would hate to be Carano or Santos right now, because even though their opponents are their top priority, you know the media pressure has got to be in the back of their minds.

WAMMA's Female MMA Rankings Versus Mine

How many pictures of Gina Carano are on this blog anyway?

I thought this month I would list the most searched for female MMA fighters here, and also list their WAMMA rankings so we could see how popular these ladies are verses how they are ranked.

Of course number one here and on WAMMA's list is (take a wild guess....)

1. Gina Carano
Yes, Gina Carano is still number one.
Was there any question?

2. Karen Williams
Karen got votes on the WAMMA list, but not enough to rank.
She was recently beaten by Erin Toughill by a first round TKO.

3. Cristiane Santos
Yes the "Cyborg" is riding the publicity wave from the upcoming Carano versus Santos match up.
But if Santos wins...will she become the next media female MMA sweetheart?
Strikeforce will be holding a pre-fight press conference tomorrow (July14th) at the Madison Square Garden's WaMu Theater in New York City.
She came in 3rd in the featherweight division at WAMMA.

4. Emily Thompson
Emily was ranked number 9 in the featherweight division at WAMMA.
Number 4 here.

5. Erin Toughill
At WAMMA she came in 4th, and she came in 5th here.
Erin will be on the "Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg" Aug. 15 card facing an as of yet un-named opponent.
Erin came in 5th here and 4th at WAMMA.

6. Alexis Davis
Alexis didnt rank on WAMMA, but she did get votes and she came in 6th here.
The Canadian lost to Tara LaRosa on January 23, 2009 at Extreme Challenge: War At The Shore.

7. Jessica Aguilar
Jessica came in 6th in the flyweight division at WAMMA and she came in 7th here.
This lovely young lady has a MySpace page here:
http://www.myspace.com/jaguilar_smiles

8. Lisa Ward
Lisa came in 4th in the Flyweight didvision at WAMMA and 8th overall here.
You can visit Lisa at her MySpace page here:
http://www.myspace.com/lisa_ward

9. Yoko Takahashi
Yoko came in 9th here and 7th in the featherweight division at WAMMA.
Her fight stats are 15-10-1 including a loss to Cristiane Santos at EliteXC Heat on October 4th, 2008.

10. Elena Reid
Elena came in 10th here and she didnt rank at WAMMA, but got votes.
Elena's last bout was at Extreme Beatdown on April 18th, 2009, when she defeated "The Karate Hottie" Michelle Waterson.

For more female combat, check out my other blog:
http://womenboxing.blogspot.com/