Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano will headline the first MMA event on Netflix this Saturday in Los Angeles. The card also features notable fighters like Francis Ngannou and Nate Diaz, promising an exciting night for MMA fans.
Key points
Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano headline Netflix's first MMA event
Event takes place in Los Angeles this Saturday
Francis Ngannou is a notable fighter on the card
Includes fights like Nate Diaz vs. Mike Perry
Event aims to attract both casual and hardcore MMA fans
Regardless of the year, itās wild to realize Rousey vs. Carano will actually happen. Throw in the addition of Netflix and Paulās MVP brand, and weāre truly living in the most bizarro timeline imaginable. But who said bizarre canāt be fun or impactful? MVPās debut MMA event has plenty of that going for it, making for a compelling night of action.
Former UFC champion Francis Ngannou is realistically the only elite fighter on this card, with a claim to still being potentially the best heavyweight on Earth. But thanks to the addition of Nate Diaz vs. Mike Perry and some notable prospects littered throughout the card, Saturdayās lineup is a welcome breath of fresh air in MMA landscape that needed exactly that.
Itās far from the most competitive matchmaking ever, but MVP assembled a debut worth the attention of every MMA fan, no matter your fandom status, from casual to hardcore.
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Uncrowned Staff Picks for MVP: Rousey vs. Carano.
Uncrowned staff picks for Rousey vs. Carano. (Hassan Ahmad, Yahoo Sports)
NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 15: Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano attend Rousey vs. Carano NYC Press Conference at The Palladium on April 15, 2026 in New York, New York. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images for Netflix)
Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano will finally collide this Saturday.
(Sarah Stier via Getty Images)
145 pounds: Ronda Rousey (-600) vs. Gina Carano (+425)
Listen, itās fun to pretend this fight could be an instant classic or anything remotely resembling a back-and-forth war.
All things considered, though, thatās the least likely outcome.
Carano, 44, while seemingly in great shape for her 17-year comeback, has nothing more than a puncherās chance. During her heyday, she was one of the better strikers among her peers, but that was nearly two decades ago against underdeveloped opposition, which Cris Cyborg proved once they fought in Caranoās final bout in 2009 ā until now.
The size and striking acumen that Carano possesses, admittedly, is all she should theoretically need against the Judo-based Rousey. MMAās armbar queen has never been a notable striker and will be in danger from the opening bell until she gets ahold of Carano. The latter is inevitable unless she gets cracked early ā though to be fair, thatās not an outlandish concept, as weāve seen in similar matchups to one like this.
Hello, Ken Shamrock vs. Royce Gracie 3, Cesar Gracie vs. Frank Shamrock and Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz 3.
Those might sound like ludicrous comparisons, but the ages and time off comparisons simply donāt lie.
Interestingly enough, Rousey has planted her flag on this fight as her surefire grand finale. Carano, on the other hand, has not. That theoretically makes a Carano win a potentially intriguing outcome, as MVP could continue to roll well into the second half of 2026 with Carano as its face and Rousey working the promotional side.
I want this fight to be fun and crazy for, letās say, at least three rounds. But realistically, it has all the makings of being a classic, quick Rousey submission win.
Pick: Rousey
170 pounds: Nate Diaz (+165) vs. Mike Perry (-200)
Despite Perryās superior combat sports activity in recent years, he comes into this fight stunningly owning a longer hiatus from MMA than Diaz.
Both men last fought in MMA in their final UFC bouts ā Perry in 2021 and Diaz in 2022. The former lost his welterweight clash to Daniel Rodriguez, while Diaz secured a fourth-round guillotine against Tony Ferguson.
Age is on the side of the 34-year-old Perry here, whoās only honed his striking skills in life since the UFC. Heās become the poster boy for bare-knuckle boxing ā not just for BKFC, but the sport as a whole. Perry is as violent as they come, and his striking arsenal now gets reopened under MMA rules. Obviously, heāll be at a disadvantage on the ground against the sneakily underappreciated grappler that Diaz is. But thatās mostly in the jiu-jitsu department. Diaz has never been a strong wrestler by any means, and his submissions have often come off striking exchanges or getting taken down first ā the latter of which Perry is unlikely to do.
Even with that in mind, Diaz wonāt be shooting for takedowns either. This should largely be a kickboxing match disguised as an MMA fight, and Perry is an overall bigger threat with his tools, packing power in every strike. Diaz is more of a death-by-a-thousand-cuts type of boxer, but stopping Perry will be quite the task ā one that will require the 41-year-old Diaz to survive long into the night.
Pick: Perry
265 pounds: Francis Ngannou (-2500) vs. Philipe Lins (+1050)
Philipe Lins is the weekendās sacrificial lamb, folks.
Anyone throwing their support behind Linsā wildly slim chances has highlighted that he left the UFC on a four-fight win streak. However, that was two years ago ā at light heavyweight after he couldnāt make it in the UFC heavyweight division.
I mean, it doesnāt get rougher than that.
Sure, Ngannou has been mostly inactive since he left the UFC in 2022, particularly in MMA. But he still carries nuclear power that could sleep two horses at once. On top of that, heās continually worked on his overall game, as seen in his 2024 fight against Renan Ferreira.
Somewhat similar to Carano, Lins has nothing more than a puncherās chance here, hoping to land a concussive crusher before Ngannou metaphorically detaches his head from his body.
Pick: Ngannou
France's Salahdine Parnasse, two-time KSw champion, has his hands wrapped backstage before his English boxing duel fight against France's Franck Petitjean (not pictured), former European super-lightweight champion, at the Adidas Arena in Paris on October 4, 2025. (Photo by Anna KURTH / AFP via Getty Images)
Salahdine Parnasse is set to make an impact on U.S. soil after a strong career in Europe.
(ANNA KURTH via Getty Images)
155 pounds: Salahdine Parnasse (-1100) vs. Kenneth Cross (+700)
Donāt let the oddsmakers fool you on this one. Salahdine Parnasse vs. Kenneth Cross is one of the best matchups on the entire card. These odds just reflect a supreme belief in someone as talented as Parnasse.
The multi-weight KSW champion has solidified himself as one of the best fighters outside the UFC in recent years. Since claiming KSW gold at both featherweight and lightweight, Parnasse has focused on the latter division, continuing to finish everyone put in his way, whether standing or on the ground.
Cross, 31, is a great prospect in his own right and shouldāve been signed to the UFC after his Contender Series victory in 2020. Heās gone 6-1 since, and put himself in a reasonable position to earn a fight of this magnitude on this card.
Expect a very high-level striking match in this one, largely seeing Parnasse dictate the pace. Heās the more well-rounded overall fighter and often slices and dices opponents before getting them to the mat for ground-and-pound or submission finishes. The guyās a straight-up killer. Could the pressure of the moment be too big? Sure. But this is a man whoās accrued some great experience in KSW and shown up more often than not.
Parnasse is legit.
Pick: Parnasse
265 pounds: Junior dos Santos (+240) vs. Robelis Despaigne (-300)
Itās kind of funny to see two heavyweight fights thrown onto MVPās first MMA card, after continually seeing the UFC playbook bashed over our heads weekly. Obviously, theyāre two different kinds of heavyweight fights here, but they still have silliness at their roots.
UFC essentially bailed on the Robelis Despaigne project as soon as he was exposed to have zero wrestling defense. But clearly the guy is still a solid deliverer of entertainment when exclusively striking, and thatās why this matchup with Junior dos Santos was made.
The 42-year-old former UFC heavyweight champion has perpetually been a striker of the highest order. I truly canāt recall a single time dos Santos has ever shot for a takedown, and Iāve seen nearly his entire MMA career.
(Stunningly, according to UFC Stats, he attempted 10 in 23 fights, landing half.)
Dos Santos admittedly had a minor late-career resurgence in Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA with wins over Fabricio Werdum and Alan Belcher in recent years. You know, guys more around his current age range. Though those fights took place in 2023 and 2024, respectively, so he hasnāt been the most active.
Essentially, Despaigne is a monster of a man with freshness on his side. It wonāt take much from the 6-foot-7 giant to put out a weathered legendās lights.
Pick: Despaigne
Preliminary Notes
Former ONE Championship 135-pound flyweight champion Adriano Moraes is free from his old promotionās shackles and set for a great follow-up opportunity. His initial matchup with Muhammad Mokaev may have been axed, but Phumi Nkuta enters on late notice to make for an arguably more exciting bout. The opportunity doesnāt get much bigger for the undefeated 11-0 prospect.
Another notable former champion from the Bellator days, Jason Jackson, competes on Saturday. Like Moraes, he had an opponent change when Lorenz Larkin withdrew, but the āAss-Kicking Machineā remains, always seeking a big knockout.
Alex Pereiraās sister, Aline Pereira, also gets time to shine with her matchup against veteran striker Jade Masson-Wong.
MVPās MMA venture is something fresh and new for fans of every kind. Truly, this is a card that should be watched from start to finish. (Hopefully, it just isnāt paced like a boxing event.)
Quick picks:
Namo Fazil (-325) def. Jake Bobian (+260)
Adriano Moraes (N/A) def. Phumi Nkuta (N/A)
Jason Jackson (N/A) def. Jefferson Creighton (N/A)
