4. Ariel Helwani Leaks Rousey Announcement
Dana White has said that Ronda Rousey could potentially fight by the end of the year, and rumours persist that they are working on a Rousey vs. Nunes fight for UFC 207.
As is common, this is being kept under wraps. The UFC loves to make big and shocking announcements, for instance when they revealed that Brock Lesnar would be fighting at UFC 200. Ariel Helwani, the polite but pandering host of the MMA Hour, leaked information regarding Brock Lesnar’s return early in the day, and rather than allow fans to be surprised by the video announcement during the show, Helwani reported it himself beforehand. Journalists will say that they have a duty to report on news, even if someone else wants to keep that secret. The difference here is that the UFC planned to unveil the news hours later, so it was really about Helwani getting himself in the limelight. Helwani was then thrown out of the event, and cried on his show about having missed Michael Bisping beat Luke Rockhold. He seems like a nice guy, but he is very annoying.
It is likely that the UFC uses the upcoming super-show, when all eyes will be on the promotion, to unveil when Ronda Rousey’s return will take place. If Helwani gets ahold of the information earlier in the day, he will report on it, and all hell will break loose.
