Ronda Rousey. AP FILE PHOTO
AMONG the gazillion sidebars to the highly anticipated prizefight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas on May 2 is the story of UFC sensation Ronda Rousey.
UFC as in Ultimate Fighting Championship whose immense popularity is a threat to boxing.
Rousey, as in the same mixed martial arts athlete who took down Cat Zingano in a UFC record 14 second-bout at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on March 1.
Rousey as in the same alpha female of her sport that is more than a punching contest who once said he could beat Mayweather in the octagon where kicking, kneeing and takedowns are legal.
The UFC women bantamweight champ says she can toss Mayweather around the cage and finish him off quickly with her signature armbar because the undefeated ring warrior is unfamiliar with the techniques of MMA fighting.
Of course, the greatest boxer in the world currently has arrogantly dismissed Rousey by saying he does not know who the MMA superstar was.
It won’t be hard to notice Ronda since she improved to 11-0 in her UFC career because she has tirelessly promoted herself since becoming a dominant MMA force.
The part-time Hollywood movie actress has launched her book, “My Fight, Your Fight.” It is now available through the Barnes and Noble chain.
Naturally, in the run-up to the ring’s most lucrative fight ever and the psychological warfare that ensues, Rousey and her bravado are mere tools in the sales kit of Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum.
Arum, still the ring’s best salesman at 83, sees the UFC fan base that idolizes Rousey as a goldmine for pay-per-view income for Mayweather-Pacquiao.
Without moving a muscle, Arum has offered Rousey one of the best seats in the house at MGM Grand come fight time. And she will get it for free.
The 28-year-old Rousey is not shy about her support for Pacquiao, either, a gesture that Arum wants to exploit with a ringside ticket “if she called me.”
Rousey earned a purse of $180,000 from her victory over Zingano. Her seat at the fight could be worth more, since Arum has been reported by several boxing websites as offering ringside seats only to high rollers with a $250,000 line of credit with the MGM Grand.
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With ringside seats available for a King’s ransom, it would be interesting to see how Pacquiao sycophants and hangers-on, including nonworking media members, could swing choice viewing spots for free come fight time.
The presence of these interlopers robs many legitimate deadline writers of a seat close to the action—a necessary tool for their job.
It also makes a mockery of the supposedly rigid process of issuing credentials handled by a private consulting firm.
But there is nothing the legitimate media can do if someone controls both the horizontal and the vertical and can also dictate on the credentialing agency to play dumb.