The UFC's latest moneymaking superstar will be featured in a new role in the fall as a coach on the next season of The Ultimate Fighter, which will film over the summer for a probable September debut. Rousey will be the first ever female head coach in the history of the show (adding to her lengthy list of "first evers"), and will be opposed as coach by the winner of April's fight between Miesha Tate and Cat Zingano, with the winner also fighting Rousey after the conclusion of the show. The show will also feature women contestants for the first time, as both male and female 135 pounders will be featured (though I assume they won't be fighting each other).
After a stagnant final few seasons on Spike and a flat debut year on FX, The Ultimate Fighter has taken off in its new Tuesday night timeslot this winter, with this season's coaching matchup between Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen drawing the best ratings since season 14 of the show in the fall of 2011 on Spike, the final one on the network.
Rousey getting thrust into a coaching slot is obviously an attempt by the UFC to keep ratings strong going into the 18th season of The Ultimate Fighter. With interest declining due to a Friday night timeslot and two boring coaching matchups in 2012, the series has new life thus far in 2013, and the inclusion of Rousey as a coach during the fall season will look to keep momentum rolling along. It's still unknown whether or not the show will be moving to Fox Sports One or will remain on FX, but having Rousey as a draw would be huge to bring eyeballs to FS One, if they're not already going there.
I'm not sure how much juice the show has left after playing their trump card in Rousey, but if this is going to be the beginning of the end, the UFC is at least going out with a bang.
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About Joe Lucia
I hate your favorite team. I also sort of hate most of my favorite teams.