Reason why Gina Carano was immediately suspended from MMA after brutal loss to Ronda Rousey in 17 seconds
Niamh Shackleton
Featured Image Credit: Sarah Stier/Getty Images for Netflix
Gina Carano won't be headed back into the Octagon anytime soon following her dramatic loss to Ronda Rousey over the weekend.
Carano and Rousey went head-to-head on May 16 in a highly anticipated exhibition fight between the two MMA legends.
Carano last fought in 2009, while Rousey – the UFC's inaugural women’s bantamweight champion – had retired from the sport in 2018.
The fight took place at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California, but the entrances ultimately lasted longer than the fight itself...
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Within 17 seconds, 44-year-old Carano submitted to Rousey's signature armbar.
Both women embraced immediately after the very short-lived bout, with Rousey, 39, confirming in her post-fight interview that her professional fighting career was over.
She said on Netflix: "There is no way I could have ended it better than this. I want to have some more babies and I have to get cooking."
Someone else who won't be fighting again anytime soon is Carano who has been suspended from MMA for the foreseeable.
Carano hasn't done anything wrong; it's standard practice for fighters to have a respite period post fight to heal from any injuries. With this in mind, Rousey has also been suspended.
The length of a person's suspension depends of the extent of their injuries sustained in the fight. Per International Sport Combat Federation (ISCF)'s MMA rules, a fighter must wait seven days or 168 hours before stepping into the ring or cage to fight again — but this suspension can be significantly longer if someone is seriously hurt.
For example, had Carano or Rousey been chocked unconscious, they would have faced a 30-day medical recovery suspension.
The ISCF holds and regulates bouts and fighter rankings in the likes of North America, Canada, Mexico, the UK, Australia, and South Africa.
The longest suspension is 180 days. This is enforced if one of the competitors suffers a broken bone, like Jake Paul did in his boxing match against Anthony Joshua.
In Paul's case, his injuries (which included a broken jaw) were so bad that he's been handed an indefinite suspension by the the Florida Athletic Commission.
Per the ISCF, if someone breaks their seven-day suspension, that fighter 'will be suspended from competing by the ISCF for a minimum of 60 days and fined a Medical Rest Period Fine of $250'.
"Suspension will remain until fine is paid," it adds.