Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano: Questions still unanswered on how megafight is being allowed to happen (Exclusive)

When the announcement came that Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano would fight one another on Saturday, May 16, from the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, the world lost its mind in excitement. Two pioneers in women's sport are finally fighting one another after many years of wondering. 

Wednesday, Rousey and Carano went face-to-face for the first time, and you couldn't help but have goosebumps at what was being seen.

Not too long after the original announcement and shortly after Wednesday's press event, I had a couple of questions inside my head. One, how were Rousey and Carano allowed to just be able to stroll and have this event happen since neither woman has fought in nearly a combined 26 years come the night (16 years, nine months for Carano and nine years and nearly five months for Rousey)? So, DAZN News reached out to the Executive Director of the California State Athletic Commission to find out. An email was sent to Foster on the morning of Thursday, February 19. These three questions were asked  of Mr. Foster:

• Have both Mrs. Rousey and Miss Carano undergone extensive medical testing to get cleared to compete since they have been out of competition for a significant period of time?
• What went into this decision to sanction a fight between people who haven't fought in a combined 26 years (nine for Rousey, 17 for Carano)?
• What role did Commissioner Dr. AnnMaria De Mars play in getting this fight sanctioned, considering she is the mother of Mrs. Rousey?

Fair questions considering Rousey just turned 39, and Carano will turn 44 on April 16, one month before the scheduled fight. Also, Commissioner De Mars is the mother of Rousey, and it would make it easier for this fight to be sanctioned under the circumstances. 

I received a response the following day, Friday, February 20, but from Mr. Foster. Instead, someone by the name of Peter Fournier responded. Fournier is the Public Information Officer, Office of Public Affairs for the California Department of Consumer Affairs. 

Days went by. Nothing. A week went by, and still nothing. So on Thursday, March 5, another email was sent. This time it was sent to Mr. Fournier asking for an update to my questions. Finally, on Tuesday afternoon, I received a response, but again from Mr. Fournier and not Mr. Foster. Here was Mr. Fournier's response:

"The California State Athletic Commission will place the fighters through the proper medical exam protocols as the proposed fight date approaches, in accordance with Business and Professions Code 18648 and CSAC's Fighter Application Requirements (including additional requirements for fighters over 40). To ensure maximum safety and fairness for both participants, the Commission will require both fighters to undergo the same additional testing.

"Proposed fight event requests are reviewed and approved by the Executive Officer. 

"Fighters must still go through the regular licensure process — including additional testing noted above — before being cleared to complete."

While it was a response, it answers none of our questions. I have sent another email to Mr. Fournier asking him to answer the questions that were asked. If he or Foster makes a no comment, that's fine, but it still leaves a cloud hanging over the fight no one is really talking about. You can't deny either's credentials. But age is age, and Father Time remains undefeated.

Safety is of the utmost importance because of Rousey and Carano's respective ages. And don't forget the fact that Rousey has a history of admitted concussions that helped force her retirement.

What's the CSAC hiding? California is going to make millions of dollars from this fight and stands to lose a lot of money. 

But fighter safety is the only thing that matters. But does it matter to Foster?

Sign up for DAZN Ultimate Tier to get PPVs included in your subscription 

Subscribe to DAZN Ultimate Tier to get a minimum of 12 PPV events included per year, including Chisora vs. Wilder (April 4), Wardley vs. Dubois (May 9), and Usyk vs Verhoeven (May 23), on top of another 185 fight nights and Serie A football. 

Sign up for £22.99 / $44.99 per month. More details here.

 

What