Rousey makes stunning MMA return with trademark armbar submission over Carano

Ronda Rousey wasted no time announcing her return to mixed martial arts after nearly a decade away, submitting Gina Carano with her signature armbar in the opening seconds of their bout on Saturday night at the Intuit Dome, on the first MMA card promoted by Jake Paul's Most Valuable Promotions.

The 39-year-old, who won Olympic bronze in judo at the 2008 Games, took Carano to the ground almost immediately after the fight began, swiftly manoeuvring into position to lock in the armbar and force her 44-year-old opponent to tap out before risking serious injury. It was the same submission that defined Rousey's dominant reign as UFC bantamweight champion, and though Carano — returning to competition for the first time in 17 years — knew it was coming, she had no answer for its speed and precision.

"Gina is the person who brought me into MMA, she's the only person who could have brought me back into MMA," an emotional Rousey said in her post-fight interview, before turning her attention to her opponent. "You brought me back home ... you changed my world, and we changed the world. And I will never ever forget, and I will never be able to pay you back enough. I'm so glad we finally got to share this moment."

Carano, who had spent much of the intervening years building an acting career, was disappointed the fight ended as quickly as it did, but reflected positively on the achievement of simply being back in the cage.

"I wanted that to last longer. I felt like I was so ready. I felt so good. I've never felt that good, but I haven't been here for 17 years, so I mean I wanted to. I wanted to hit her," she said. "You feel a little unfulfilled, just because you didn't get a chance to at least show the world what you've been working on, you know. I'll probably feel that later. Right now, getting in the cage was a victory. Getting here after 17 years is a victory."

Elsewhere on the card, lineal heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou delivered a devastating knockout of Philipe Lins in the co-main event, while Mike Perry opened up severe cuts on fan favourite Nate Diaz to secure a second-round stoppage victory.

SportsLigue