Today's MMA Twitter mailbag delves into my interview with Jake Rosholt, the curiously low salary paid to Gegard Mousasi, the status of Gina Carano after her loss to Cris Cyborg, and more.Your questions and comments, and my responses, for the MMA Twitter mailbag are below.
PJHarrison: Good interview with Jake Rosholt. I'm picking Rosholt over Chris Leben at 102.
Thanks. I haven't decided yet who I'm picking in that fight, but the most striking thing to me about talking to Rosholt is how enthusiastic he sounds about his training. One thing you always find about accomplished amateur wrestlers is that they have a great work ethic, and that's certainly true of Rosholt, who loves nothing more than to push himself to the limit in the gym.
KellyGreen17: RE: Fighter Salaries. Why is Gegard Mousasi's soo low?
This is the No. 1 question I've heard from fans about the Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg salaries: How on earth could Gegard Mousasi make only $2,000 for smashing Renato "Babalu" Sobral?
The answer is that he didn't make only $2,000. He got $2,000 as his official purse as reported to the California State Athletic Commission, but a fighter's purse is only one part of his compensation. In the case of Mousasi, it's safe to say he got significantly more money than that in other forms, likely including a large signing bonus when he first agreed to fight for Strikeforce. I asked Mousasi last week whether he was satisfied with his contracts with Strikeforce, Dream and M-1, and he said he is.
brent_rogers Ask Randy Couture how Gina Carano is doing.
Couture said Tuesday that Carano was embarrassed by her loss to Cris Cyborg and a little down emotionally, but that he's confident she'll learn from her loss and come back better than ever. Couture also said Forrest Griffin, despite being anguished by the way Anderson Silva manhandled him, is already back in the gym and getting ready to fight again.
thebadbeat: Women bring as many or more fans to the sport as men. If there were more places to watch them, MMA would grow even faster.
I wouldn't say women bring as many fans to MMA as men, but they do bring a lot of fans. In fact, Showtime says the Carano-Cyborg fight was the most-watched MMA fight ever to appear on the network. I think it's shortsighted of the UFC not to have a women's division, and any MMA promotion that wants to compete with the UFC needs to have a women's division.
beewsee: Listening to the MMA Hour with @arielhelwani, @michaeldavsmith and @ray_mma. My favorite MMA podcast. All great MMA talk and no BS!
Glad you're enjoying it. This week's show is here.
Want to be part of our next UFC Twitter mailbag? Post a question or comment on Twitter.com, and be sure to start it with @MichaelDavSmith.
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