

Holly Holm, right, knocked Ronda Rousey out at UFC 193 in November. (EPA/Joe Castro)

Holly Holm wants a rematch with Ronda Rousey. Rousey really wants a rematch with Holm. The UFC and MMA fans everywhere really, really want to see those two square off again.

Just one problem: the rematch can’t happen anytime soon, because of the beating Holm (10-0) gave Rousey (12-1) in their first encounter in mid-November. That’s actually fine, though, with their company, which would like nothing more than to have Rousey-Holm 2 headline UFC 200 in July, already set to be an extravaganza at a state-of-the-art arena still under construction in Las Vegas.

It’s not so fine with Holm and her manager, who don’t want the new bantamweight champion to have to wait that long for her next fight. They would rather see her get back into the octagon in February, and they even have an ideal opponent: none other than longtime Rousey antagonist Miesha Tate.

“[UFC officials] want Holly to wait for Ronda,” Holm’s manager, Lenny Fresquez, told the Albuquerque Journal. “Anything can happen in the sport, but we haven’t come to terms on the rematch, and until we come to terms we just want to keep plugging away.”

Following her loss to Holm at UFC 193, one that ended with a kick to the head, Rousey was given a medical suspension of up to six months by the UFC. She recently told ESPN, “It might be three to six months before I can eat an apple, let alone take an impact.”

Rousey added to ESPN, “I got hit in that first round. … I cut my lip open and knocked a couple of my teeth loose. I was out on my feet from the very beginning.” While Rousey was still in Australia, site of the fight, UFC president Dana White brought in a plastic surgeon to fix her lip, but it is clear that the previously undefeated fighter will need a lengthy recovery.

“I’m not sure Ronda will be ready for a July fight,” Fresquez told the Los Angeles Times. “She took a severe beating, and I don’t think it’s in her best interest to take the next fight so fast. They told me she’s been ready and cleared, but … ”

Whether or not Rousey is ready by July, Holm is anxious to keep from getting rusty. Tate is the UFC’s No. 2-ranked contender in the women’s bantamweight division, making her the top challenger as long as Rousey is out.

“Holly’s used to staying active,” Fresquez said (via the L.A. Times). “We’re from the old school, and we believe the No. 1 contender is there for a reason. … [Tate] deserves a shot, but it’s not for me to decide.” … “We’d like to fight Miesha,” Fresquez added. “We understand there are risks, but Holly’s a dominant champion, and she wants to fight the best. Right now, Miesha is the best.”

The risk, of course, is that Tate beats Holm in the spring, throwing the bantamweight division into chaos and taking much of the luster out of the Holm-Rousey rematch, although it’s fair to speculate that it would still be of major national interest.

Tate (17-5) has yet to fight Holm, but she has tangled with Rousey twice. Prior to November, their second encounter was arguably the toughest fight Rousey had been in, as Tate became the first opponent to get past Round 1, and actually extended the contest to three rounds.

After defeating Jessica Eye at UFC Fight Night in July, Tate thought that she had earned the right to face Rousey one more time, but the latter chose to take on Holm instead. Now Rousey is sounding near-desperate for a rematch — telling ESPN, “I need to come back. I need to beat this chick.” — but Tate may get the first crack at the new champion.

(H/T Fox Sports)