Holm to take interim fight before Rousey rematch

Never let it be said Saturday Night Live isn’t diverse in choosing its guest hosts.

UFC President Dana White confirmed on Wednesday’s episode of UFC Tonight that Holm will indeed fight before her second showdown with Rousey.

White had speculated that a rematch between Rousey and Holm could generate two million pay-per-view buys, but would people be as interested in the fight if Holm lost her title before then? But we’d argue that an athlete hasn’t topped the pop culture totem pole until he or she has come to us “live from New York” on a Saturday night. White also added that Rousey will return in 2016 after taking some “well-deserved time off”.

For the most part, Rousey has remained relatively silent after badly losing her championship match to Holly Holm in November. By knocking out the the most transcendent figure in MMA, and arguably one of the biggest names in all of sport she stepped up to that level, however.

In the meantime, UFC wants to give another fighter the chance at Holm’s crown. It wasn’t a matter of whether she’d win a fight, it was a matter of how quickly.

Yahoo Sports is reporting that UFC superstar Ronda Rousey has been tapped to host on January 23. Rousey, 28, of Venice, Calif., has largely been out of the public eye since losing the title to Holm at UFC 193 via head-kick TKO.

If you’re going to make a reappearance, you have to do it big, and Rousey understands that.

Holly inked a multi-year contract extension earlier this week, which means “The Preacher’s Daughter” will be punching faces inside the Octagon for quite some time. In addition to having UFC star Rousey as a host, pop star Selena Gomez will appear on the same night as a musical guest performer.

No event or date has been announced for Holm’s next fight.