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The following press release was issued:
MOST VALUABLE PROMOTIONS BRINGS PROFESSIONAL MMA TO NETFLIX WITH RONDA ROUSEY VS. GINA CARANO ON SATURDAY, MAY 16, 2026
LIVE FROM INTUIT DOME IN LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
Rousey returns to the cage after a decade for a dream showdown with Carano
Rousey vs. Carano Kickoff Press Conference will take place Thursday, March 5 at Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, California.
Tickets go on sale Thursday, March 5 at 10am PT/1pm ET on Ticketmaster.com and fans can sign up for pre-sale now at RouseyCarano.com
Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) and Netflix announced a colossal MMA showdown headlined by the return of former UFC champion and Olympic medalist Ronda Rousey (12-2, 9 Submissions, 3 KOs) vs. combat sports trailblazer Gina Carano (7-1, 1 Submission, 3 KOs) in a featherweight bout at 145lbs. This event will be professionally sanctioned under the Unified Rules of MMA and contested over five, 5-minute rounds using 4oz gloves, inside a hexagon cage. It will take place on Saturday, May 16, at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, CA, and will stream live globally, only on Netflix at no additional cost to its 300+ million members. More fights on the card will be announced at a later date.
Rousey vs. Carano represents a historic moment in combat sports as Netflix’s first-ever live MMA broadcast and MVP’s inaugural MMA event. The matchup unites Rousey, the woman who shattered the glass ceiling for female fighters and became the face of an entire, sport male or female, with Carano, the sport's first true crossover star in a highly anticipated fight that has been years in the making.
This event follows the unprecedented global success of MVP and Netflix’s boxing partnership, which has redefined the sport for the streaming era. The collaboration reached a historic peak in November 2024 with Paul vs. Tyson, which shattered records as the most-streamed sporting event of all time with 125 million viewers (Live+1), while the Taylor vs. Serrano 2 co-main event became the most-watched professional women’s sports event in U.S. history. Following the massive 2025 successes of Taylor vs. Serrano 3 and Jake Paul vs. Anthony Joshua: Judgment Day, MVP and Netflix are now bringing that same disruptive energy to Mixed Martial Arts.
Tickets for Rousey vs. Carano will go on sale Thursday, March 5 at 10am PT/1pm ET on Ticketmaster.com and fans can sign up for presale now at RouseyCarano.com. The event will also feature the return of MVP’s exclusive VIP experiences, including the MVP Owner’s Experience.
Rousey and Carano will meet face-to-face for the Rousey vs. Carano Kickoff Press Conference on Thursday, March 5 at Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, California. The press conference will be hosted by renowned combat sports journalist Ariel Helwani. All media interested in being credentialed to cover the press conference must apply HERE.
Ronda Rousey completely transformed the world of martial arts, with a record-setting career as the UFC’s first and most dominant female fighter and Bantamweight Champion. She was the first woman inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame and catapulted the women's WWE division towards its first WrestleMania main event in history. The self-proclaimed “Rowdy” Ronda
Rousey, Baddest Woman on the Planet, was the first America woman to win an Olympic medal in judo since it became official event. Rousey is also a New York Times bestselling author, one of the most-followed female athletes on social media, and an actress who has appeared in both the Fast and the Furious and The Expendables franchises. She is married to former UFC heavyweight contender Travis Browne. They live in Los Angeles with their two sons and two daughters.
Been waiting so long to announce this: Me and Gina Carano are gonna throw down in the biggest super fight in women’s combat sport history!” said Ronda Rousey. “And we’re partnering with the fighter-first promotion MVP as well as the biggest and baddest streamer on the planet Netflix. This is for all MMA fans past, present and future. More to come… much more”
Gina “Conviction” Carano had a pioneering and impactful career in MMA, compiling a professional record of 7–1–0. Before transitioning to MMA, she built a strong foundation in Muay Thai with a record of 12–1–1. She is widely recognized as a key figure in popularizing and legitimizing women’s MMA before women were invited to compete in the UFC. Due to her skill, marketability, and mainstream appeal, she was often called the “Face of Women’s MMA.” Carano headlined the first major MMA event featuring two women in the main event alongside Cris Cyborg in 2009, marking a landmark moment in women’s MMA visibility. Following her historic fighting career, Carano transitioned into an acting career, becoming a commanding presence in Hollywood action cinema and major franchises, including Haywire, Fast & Furious 6, Deadpool, and The Mandalorian.
“Ronda came to me and said there is only one person she would make a comeback for and it has been her dream to make this fight happen between us,” said Gina Carano. “She thanked me for opening up doors for her in her career and was respectful in asking for this fight to happen. This is an honor. I believe I will walk out of this fight with the win and I anticipate it will not come easy, which I welcome. This is as much for Ronda and me as it is for the fans and mixed martial arts community. What a time to be alive.”
“MVP has always been driven by disruption and delivering the biggest moments in combat sports on a global scale, and today we are officially bringing that energy to MMA for the first time,” said Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian, co-founders of Most Valuable Promotions. “Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano are the two most formative figures in the history of women’s MMA; they are the icons who shattered the glass ceiling and helped build the foundation this sport stands on. MVP's conviction in women’s boxing was driven by the success achieved by Ronda Rousey, who was the biggest star of the entire sport of MMA during her career. Following the unprecedented success of our boxing partnership, we are proving that MVP and Netflix can create blockbuster live events in multiple sports that engage fans across generations. This is what we do.”
Gabe Spitzer, Netflix VP of Sports, said: “After the record-breaking success in boxing, we wanted our first MMA event to be truly legendary. We're thrilled to continue our partnership with MVP and bring together Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano to deliver the kind of high-stakes, icon-driven competition that our members crave. These are more than just athletes—they are generational stars—and having them headline our MMA debut at the Intuit Dome is a defining moment for us.”
Additional information, including undercard bouts and full event details, will be announced in the coming weeks.
For more information, follow on X via @MostVPromotions and @Netflix, on Instagram via @MostValuablePromotions and @Netflix, or on Netflix’s Tudum.
About Most Valuable Promotions (MVP)
Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) was founded in August 2021 by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian with a fighter first ethos. Since inception, MVP has produced 30 live boxing events and currently promotes nearly 60 fighters, 16 world champions, and 26 top contenders.
MVP has led boxing’s evolution in the streaming era through partnerships with the world’s leading platforms. In November 2024, MVP’s Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson and Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano 2 was the first-ever live professional sports event streamed on Netflix. Paul vs. Tyson shattered records, becoming the most-streamed sporting event of all time with 125 million live viewers worldwide. MVP went on to partner with Netflix twice in 2025 for MVP’s Taylor vs. Serrano 3 and Jake vs. Joshua: Judgment Day.
Today, MVP is the global home of women’s boxing. MVP’s Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano in 2022 was the first female fight to headline Madison Square Garden, while Taylor vs. Serrano 2 in 2024 saw 74 million viewers globally on Netflix and became the most-watched professional women’s sports event in US history with 47 million AMA in the US. Their 2025 trilogy on Netflix topped an all-women’s megacard that set the official GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ title for the most world championship belts ever contested on a single fight card, male or female, with 17 world titles, earning nearly 6 million viewers globally.
About Netflix:
Netflix is one of the world’s leading entertainment services offering TV series, films, games and live programming across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can play, pause and resume watching as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, and can change their plans at any time.
ABOUT INTUIT DOME
Intuit Dome, the home of the LA Clippers officially opened on August 15, 2024. In its first year, Intuit Dome has hosted over 100 live events and Clippers games and welcomed over one million fans. Located in Inglewood, Calif., Intuit Dome is built different and redefines fans' expectations for live experiences. To sign up to receive all Intuit Dome press releases and updates, email intuitdomepr@intuitdome.com and follow @IntuitDomePR.
www.mostvaluablepromotions.com
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