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Ronda Rousey stopped Gina Carano with her signature armbar just 17 seconds into the iconic fighter’s mixed martial arts comeback fight on Saturday night.
Rousey, 39, ended a nine-and-a-half-year absence from MMA when she took the cage with Carano, 44, who hadn’t fought in 17 years.
Rousey (13-2) wasted no time closing the door on the end, charging and tackling Carano as the opening bell rang.
Rousey quickly moved into position and applied her famous finishing move, striking Carano’s arm as the fight came to a close.
“I really didn’t want to hurt him,” Rousey said. “Fortunately it was just beautiful martial arts, that’s all.”
The bout also marked a return to the Octagon for Gina Carano
Rousey famously won eight fights in less than a minute during her meteoric rise through MMA in the 2010s. When asked if she’s looking forward to finishing a fight that’s been years in the making, Rousey laughed.
“Hell no,” she said. “My husband and my kids are watching me. I don’t want to put more on them than what I want to do.”
Carrano was all smiles after a quick end to one of the longest layoffs in pro sports history. Rousey and Carano hug and share warm words after the finish.
“I felt very prepared,” Carano said. “I’ve never felt so good. But I haven’t been here in 17 years… and I wanted to hit him.”
This unlikely double comeback fight brings together two of MMA’s most important fighters of the past two decades.
Rousey became one of the most famous athletes in the world after winning the first women’s title in the UFC.
Rousey first became interested in MMA in the late 2000s when the sport was still struggling for legitimacy and acceptance, thanks to Carano, whose athleticism and star power made her a television headliner.
Carano was happy to finally make the comeback she sometimes considered, saying she used her preparations to overcome multiple health issues in recent years.
Rousey has repeatedly said this will be her final fight, while Carano says she doesn’t know what the future holds.
Ngannou has won and teased potential boxing and MMA bouts
Veteran heavyweight star Francis Ngannou finished Philip Lins in the first round of his second MMA fight in four years.
The former UFC champion immediately teased the possibility of a boxing match with promoter Jack Paul or an MMA fight with fellow superstar Jon Jones, who also appeared on the show.
Nganu traded strikes and clinch with Lins before finishing the Brazilian with a sweeping left hand to the head in the final minute of the first round.
Ngannou won the UFC belt in 2021 and unified it in 2022 before stepping away from the world’s dominant MMA promotion. He has since had just one MMA bout and lost two big money boxing matches to Saudi Arabian heavyweight stars Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.
