According to a Jan. 21 report from the New York Post, UFC champ Ronda Rousey recently appeared in a commercial for the Fighters Only 2012 World MMA Awards parodying the popular, yet oft-criticized, “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo” TLC show.
The “Here Comes Ronda Boo Boo” clip stars Rousey, the undefeated UFC women’s champion, as the lead character. The 25-year-old standout judoka appears casual and loose in the commercial, joking around and showing off her comedic range.
Rousey, who fights Liz Carmouche on Feb. 23 at UFC 157, comes off in the clip like the complete opposite of her opponent. Her "jokey," casual style gives off the appearance that she isn't worried about losing in her UFC debut, especially not to a 12-to-1 underdog like Carmouche.
Rousey's recent interviews seem like casual discussions with a Hollywood superstar, not an MMA fighter about to engage in the biggest fight of their life. She has been busy making clips like "Here Comes Ronda Boo Boo," and backtracking off her controversial Sandy Hook truther tweet, rather than talking about her upcoming fight.
Are female MMA fighters secretly getting annoyed at Rousey's glamorous approach? Former Strikeforce women's bantamweight champ Miesha Tate certainly thinks so.
"This is beyond stupid," Tate said of Rousey's comments about Caraway on Jay Mohr's "Mohr Stories" podcast. "Ronda knows it will never happen, yet she keeps making digs and calling him out. [She hides] behind the fact that she's a girl, which somehow makes her actions okay. To me it's a pathetic cry for attention and I'm done feeding into her [expletive]. People are already getting sick of her trashy comments and loud mouth. Let her talk, let her show her true colors."
The rest of the women's MMA community hasn't been quite as vocal, but there are little hints to show that many female fighters will be cheering for Carmouche to beat Rousey on Feb. 23.
Carmouche revealed in a Jan. 2 interview with Ariel Helwani that she is training for Rousey with the help of those who know the former Olympian's biggest weaknesses.
"I guess you find all her sparring partners and kinda get a little information, a little insight from them and tweak my game from there," Carmouche told Helwani.
As if that's not enough proof to show that many in the women's MMA community are plotting against Rousey, there's the fact that over a dozen female fighters are making arrangements to train with Carmouche at her gym in San Diego.
Jessica Penne, Kaiyana Rain, Autumn Richardson, Amanda Bell and Tiffany Van Soest are among the top names helping Carmouche prepare for Rousey.
Invicta FC champ Carla Esparza is carpooling down this weekend, and Jessica Martinez expects to join Kristi Lopez to lend a helping hand to Carmouche.
Carmouche also has the backing of Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc and Bec "Rowdy" Hyatt. "I hope that you win your next fight," Rivera-Calanoc tweeted to Carmouche.
It's unclear at this point which female fighters are helping Rousey train for Carmouche, but it appears the odds are stacked against her as far as support from the women's MMA community.
Carmouche fights Rousey on Feb. 23 in the main event of UFC 157. The event is set for PPV, live from Anaheim, Calif.
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