Recalling The Moment When Dana White Banned Women From Fighting In The UFC

Ronda Rousey (Twitter @rondarousey)

JAKARTA - Given the status of superstar names like Ronda Rousey, Molly McCann and Amanda Nunes, it's hard to believe that there was ever a time when the UFC didn't allow female fighters.

UFC president Dane White claimed in 2011 that fans would "never" see a female fighter in the octagon.

However, that all changed after the 52-year-old saw Rousey, alongside Liz Carmouche, become the first women to compete in the octagon on February 23, 2013 at UFC 157.

"Ronda is the greatest," White said after watching the American beat Girl-Rilla in one round.

"He's vile. He's mean. He's like Chuck Liddell. He goes into the octagon and tries to finish off his opponents. And Carmouche is tough as nails too. He's a marine and he has great ground-and-pounds. I'm looking forward to the girls. join the UFC."

Today, the UFC women's fighters are as well-known as the men's with Meatball Molly, Nunes and Valentina Shevchenko leading the octagon after Rousey retired in 2016.

White exposed the impact of Rousey and her female fighters in the UFC when appearing on the ESPN+ series "Rowdy's Places" earlier this year.

"Everything in life is about timing," said White. "When I said we'd never have a female fighter in the UFC, I had quite a bit of trouble getting boys who fought in the octagon accepted let alone girls."

"You approach me, and we have a 45 minute conversation, and halfway there I start to say, 'Oh my God, I thought I was going to do this. And he (Rousey) must be the one who did this.'"

White was right in that assumption. The 35-year-old has made six successive title defenses and is one of the biggest pay-per-view draws in the sport.

It's fair to say that White is glad he changed his initial opinion of female fighters in the UFC.