Ronda Rousey takes direct aim at UFC with Gina Carano fight: ‘Bet you we can beat’ UFC on Paramount+
MMA Fighting
February 18, 2026
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - AUGUST 01: Ronda Rousey of the United States looks on prior to her bantamweight title fight Bethe Correia of Brazil during the UFC 190 Rousey v Correia at HSBC Arena on August 1, 2015 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images) | Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Ronda Rousey is taking direct aim at her former employers at the UFC after booking a fight against Gina Carano with the event airing on Netflix.
The announcement about the showdown between Rousey and Carano on May 16 was met with plenty of surprise but perhaps even more shocking was that the fight is being promoted by Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions. Rousey later revealed that she actually approached UFC CEO Dana White about making the Carano fight happen in the octagon but for whatever reason it didn’t happen.
Now the former women’s bantamweight champion is throwing down the gauntlet with the expectation that her fight against Carano will trump the ratings for the UFC on Paramount+.
“This rivalry has so many layers,” Rousey wrote on Twitter. “Netflix isn’t playing around. Bet you we can beat Paramount+ UFC numbers.”
This rivalry has so many layers – @netflix isnt playing around – bet you we can beat @paramountplus’ @ufc numbers 😈👊🏼🔥https://t.co/0GyZ1M2d2B
— Ronda Rousey (@RondaRousey) February 18, 2026
At her peak, Rousey was undeniably one of the two biggest superstars in the UFC alongside Conor McGregor and her fights routinely received huge attention no matter who she was facing. She also earned a lot of crossover appeal with the mainstream sports audience after demolishing the vast majority of her competition in record time.
Add to that, Netflix boasts the largest audience for any streaming service with over 300 million subscribers, which has helped past fights like Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson and Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford score monster numbers on the network. By contrast, Paramount+ currently has just over 79 million subscribers.
While the UFC did earn nearly 5 million viewers for its debut event on Paramount+ in January, it’s likely that Rousey and Carano will crush that number with Netflix promoting the fight.
That said, the UFC also has the highly anticipated card at the White House happening almost exactly one month later on June 14.
While Rousey has always maintained a strong relationship with the UFC following her exit from the sport in 2016, it appears she’s ready to challenge the promotion to a ratings’ contest with her upcoming fight booked against Carano.
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Originally published on MMA Fighting on 2/18/2026