Women’s mixed martial arts continued to make its mark on MMA’s biggest stage in 2014. A year after announcing that they had signed undefeated Strikeforce champion Ronda Rousey and would be debuting the women’s bantamweight division in the UFC, the Las Vegas-based fight promotion revealed in December 2013 that it was bringing in the women’s 115-pound weight class. The year saw an entire female cast being showcased on the twentieth season of The Ultimate Fighter for the first time in the reality series’ nine-year history. The season held a 16-woman tournament to crown the inaugural UFC women’s strawweight champion. Most of the world’s top 115-pound women were among the field of competitors. Carla Esparza entered the tournament as the top seed
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MMAWeekly 2014 Female Fighter of the Year: Carla Esparza – MMA Weekly