Gina Carano on ESPN

Gina Carano is the real deal–a very dedicated and talented fighter who has a great mindset to be a champion in the sport. Is she the best female fighter in the world? You can’t give her that title she has to take on the best and beat them to earn that accolade.

Carano has a very positive attitude and is a great ambassador for not just women’s MMA, but MMA in general. She definitely would not be where she is at without her physical beauty, but she definitely is a true fighter and a very genuine and kind person outside the cage. I can understand how other female fighters who have been in the business would feel like they’re being slighted in not receiving the recognition and opportunities as Carano, who has had many doors opened to her due to her sexy image. Unfortunately for those fighters who do not possess the unique combination of top caliber beauty in conjunction with a heapful of brawn, they have to face the reality of the “sex sells” aspect of the business world.

Ticket sales, pay per view buy-related issues unfortunately allow some athletes to receive more lucrative opportunities in the business world, and despite all the positive points attributed to the sport we all love, it still coexists within a domain that has to cater the bottom line. Brock Lesnar was able to leap towards a title shot way quicker than any rookie fighter who would enter into the UFC and likely fueled some resentment from his heavyweight brethren. Nonetheless, it was the fact that he had such a big name and could bring in such a huge amount of attention and money to the table that allowed him to jump into a main event, receive a title shot and become a marquee fighter in the organization. Did he deserve it? No. Did he make the most of it? Yes.

In the that’s what it comes down to, making the most of whatever opportunity arises. It’s analogous to the fights we watch. The fighters who win often are not the best or the most talented, but they just make the most of an opportunity. They might strike first, capitalize on the opportunity that comes up, or perhaps never give up despite the circumstances and find some opening to score a victory.
Some situations might not be “fair” but you do the best you can and control all the variables you have in your disposal. Former UFC champ Forrest Griffin said it quite well when he talked about training. All he worries about is doing the most he can possibly do in training and work as hard as possible to win his upcoming fights. He controls all the variables at his disposal. He said:

“The thing I always say is control all the variables you can control, don’t worry about the rest..There’s a little prayer they give to the druggies and alcoholics, ‘God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.’ Yeah I live by that.”

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