UFC President Dana White: A Female Division Is 'Absolutely Going To Happen'
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - The Ultimate Fighting Championship is famous for its male fighters, but they may have plenty of company in the near future.
UFC president Dana White told Sports Illustrated that he's currently working on a UFC female division.
"It's absolutely going to happen," White said on Tuesday.
White has long resisted the idea of forming a women's division, but much of his change in thinking is due to the success of Ronda Rousey, the most dominant female fighter in mixed martial arts.
The 25-year-old California native is the current Strikeforce women's bantamweight champion. She also became the first American to take home an Olympic medal in Judo when she won the Bronze at the 2008 summer games in Beijing.
As for when White plans to institute the female division? Well that remains to be seen, as the president told Sports Illustrated that a time frame has yet to be determined.
Regardless, White maintains that he's absolutely sold on women fighting in the UFC.
"The point is I'm committed to this," White said definitively.
New York is one of only two states in America that does not permit professional MMA events. But the UFC has urged New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to make mixed martial arts legal in the Empire State.
"Millions of New Yorkers watch the UFC on Fox and other networks, buy our pay-per-view events, travel out of state to see our events, attend and follow the growing number of amateur MMA events in New York, play our video games and read about UFC and our fighters in their local newspapers," UFC Chairman & CEO Lorenzo Fertitta said, according to UFC.com. "There are hundreds of MMA schools and training facilities across the state.
"New Yorkers are helping to make MMA the fastest growing sport in history -- both in fans and in participants."
Do you think that a female division would be successful, and would you watch it? Let us know in the comments section below...
