While Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano is still set for May 16th, the blockbuster MMA card has already taken an early hit.

Former UFC and Bellator veteran Lorenz Larkin withdrew from his scheduled welterweight bout against Jason Jackson due to a knee injury, removing one of the more notable fights from the undercard just weeks before the event.

Larkin announced the news on social media this week, confirming the injury and apologizing for the late change. His bout is one of 11 fights on the books before the main event at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California.

However, despite the setback, the spotlight remains firmly on women's MMA stars Rousey and Carano.

The two MMA pioneers made their first public appearance together last month to promote the Netflix event. This marked a historic return for both fighters.

"There are no two people in this sport with more international name recognition than me and Gina. Except Conor [McGregor], but no one is going to sanction that," Rousey said.

Rousey, 39, last fought in 2016 before stepping away from MMA and starting a family. She said she proposed the matchup more than a year ago while pregnant, pinning her comeback on this specific matchup.

"This is the only fight I wanted to come back for, the only fight that can inspire me like that," Rousey said.

Carano, who turns 44 next month, has not competed since 2009. She was the first major women's MMA crossover star before transitioning into film and television, helping lay the foundation for the sport's growth.

Even with Larkin out, the card still carries major names. Francis Ngannou will face Philipe Lins, while Nate Diaz and Mike Perry will also square off. MVP and Netflix will move forward as planned, with a replacement for Jackson reportedly being explored.

How to Watch the Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano Netflix MMA Fight

Jake Paul's Most Valuable Promotions is behind the fight, running in five five-minute rounds on May 16th on Netflix.

The UFC announced it will induct a 2020 bout between Weili Zhang and Joanna Jedrzejczyk into it Hall of Fame Fight Wing this summer, marking the first women's bout to receive the honor.

Zhang and Jedrzejczyk fought for the strawweight title in the co-main event of UFC 248 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The fight was later regarded as the greatest women's fight in MMA history.

"I knew this was going to be a badass fight and it absolutely delivered," UFC CEO Dana White said. "Congrats to Joanna and Weili on a fight that will always be remembered!"

In the ring, Zhang battered Jedrzejczyk with left hooks and straight rights. The Polish fighter countered with punching combinations and kicks. Jedrzejczyk developed a massive hematoma on her forehead that quickly became a lasting images.

The fighters combined for 351 significant strikes over 25 minutes — the most ever in a women's bout. Zhang eventually captured the split-decision victory.

Zhang and Jedrzejczyk later met in a rematch at UFC 275, with Zhang knocking her rival out with a spinning back fist in the second round. Jedrzejczyk retired after the loss.

Zhang currently competes in the UFC strawweight division, defending the title multiple times to remain one of UFC's top competitors.

The fight subsequently won several awards. Yahoo! Sports, The Athletic, CBS Sports, and others dubbed it the Fight of the Year.

"UFC 248 is one of the greatest fights I've ever seen," White added. "This fight was incredible."

Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano made their first public appearance together on Tuesday, promoting their May 16th comeback fight — marking a historic return for both MMA pioneers.

Speaking to the press, Rousey declared the upcoming Netflix matchup the biggest fight in mixed martial arts today.

"There are no two people in this sport with more international name recognition than me and Gina — except Conor [McGregor], but no one is going to sanction that," she said.

Carano, who turns 44 next month, hasn't competed since 2009. The former Strikeforce star became the first major women's MMA celebrity in the 2000s before transitioning to an entertainment career.

Rousey last fought in 2016 before having two children, with the 39-year-old proposing the matchup over a year ago while still pregnant. "This is the only fight I wanted to come back for, the only fight that can inspire me like that," she said.

Both fighters moved beyond the ring as the sport continued to accelerate, as Rousey convinced UFC to create women's divisions in the 2010s after Carano proved female fighters could draw audiences.

At the press conference, Rousey sharply criticized the UFC for offering far less money than she'll receive for May's MMA fight. She said she initially wanted to return on a UFC pay-per-view card, but rejected their proposal.

How to Watch the Gina Carano vs Ronda Rousey MMA Fight on Netflix

Jake Paul's Most Valuable Promotions is behind the May 15th Netflix fight, set to run in five five-minute rounds. Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou also appears on the card against Philipe Lins.

Amanda Nunes, considered the greatest women’s fighter of all time, announced her retirement on Saturday at UFC 289.

Nunes shared her decision after defeating Irene Aldana via unanimous decision (50-43, 50-44, 50-44) to defend her UFC women’s bantamweight title at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia.

“Double champion forever,” Nunes shouted into the microphone while her gloves were cut off. “This is the perfect night to retire.”

Asked after what she hopes she’s remembered for, Nunes didn’t hesitate. “The greatest of all time,” she said. “I did everything. I broke a lot of records.”

Nunes retires with the most wins in UFC women’s history (16), the most UFC women’s title fight wins (11), and most finishes in women’s UFC history (10).

The Professional Fighters League’s annual championship event went down on Wednesday night in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and it was a huge night for women’s combat sports.

The card was topped by a 155-pound lightweight fight between unbeaten juggernaut Kayla Harrison (12-0) and a massive underdog in Taylor Guardado (3-2). The PFL lightweight title hung in the balance, as did the million-dollar prize the league awards the champion of each weight class at the end of each year.

As the pre-fight odds suggested, Harrison made it look easy, grounding and battering the outmatched Guardado en route to a second-round submission via armbar.

The fight marked the final obligation on Harrison’s latest PFL contract, making her arguably the hottest free agent in MMA today. She will undoubtedly field offers from other promotions like the UFC and Bellator, but could certainly be coaxed back to the PFL cage by the prospect of more million-dollar paydays.

“I have a lot to think about,” she said at the event’s post-fight press conference. “I have a family now. I still want to be the best in the world. I still want to continue to challenge myself. I feel like I can do that no matter where I go, but I got two mouths to feed and a family to take care of. We’ll see what happens.”

While Harrison’s latest domination was deserving of its headlining spot, it certainly wasn’t the only big-ticket women’s bout on the bill. Earlier on the main card, three-division boxing world champion Claressa Shields (11-0 boxing, 1-1 MMA) competed in her second MMA bout, taking on Mexico’s Abigail Montes (3-0) in a 155-pound scrap.

Shields had her moments in the fight, landing plenty of her Olympic-caliber punches and even competing her lone takedown attempt of the fight. Unfortunately for the boxing champ, Montes proved a little too much, too soon. The Mexican prospect completed two of four takedown attempts and controlled her foe against the cage for the vast majority of the fight—enough, in sum, to sway two of three cage-side judges and earn a split decision victory. The win will more than likely earn her a spot in the 2022 PFL season.

“I was always very confident in the work I put in and all that I did in my camp,” Montes said at the event’s post-fight press conference. “That’s why I looked very confident inside the cage.”

Shields, meanwhile, will have to return to the drawing board if she intends to continue her quest to become a two-sport world champion. Before she gets back to training at Jackson-Wink MMA in Albuquerque, New Mexico, of course, she’ll need to prepare for her December boxing match with Ema Kozin.

The first women’s bout of the night, also contested at 155 pounds, pitted Minnesota’s Kaitlin Young against Canada’s Julia Budd. Young, a striking specialist, gave Budd some interesting looks on the feet, particularly in the first round, but Budd was able to ply her wrestling to secure multiple takedowns en route to a well-deserved unanimous decision victory.

The win marks a successful PFL debut for Budd, who recently ended a lengthy stint with Bellator, one that included an impressive reign as the promotion’s featherweight champion. With Wednesday’s victory, she can look forward to a spot in the 2022 PFL season and a potential fight with Harrison. Budd is easily the stiffest challenge for Harrison in the PFL at present.

Young may also be invited to compete in the 2022 PFL season, but after going 1-2 in the PFL cage in 2021, it’s also possible she’ll lose her spot on the roster.

Claressa Shields has made it a habit of doing the undoable. The two-time Olympic gold medalist and three-division world champion has seldom been the underdog in her boxing matches, but she has repeatedly left her skeptics in stunned silence with the feats she achieves. 

“I’m a person who does the impossible,” Shields told Just Women’s Sports. “Like when I won the Olympics twice for America, I was the only American to ever do so, back-to-back. They said it was impossible. I did it. 

“They said it wasn’t possible for anybody to become a three-division world champ faster than [Vasiliy] Lomachenko. He did it in 11 fights, I did in 10. Boom.” 

“Being a woman in boxing, we’re not treated good,” she added. “Also being a Black woman: how they stereotype us and how they portray us from the beginning makes it hard for us to be successful in our fields, and I’m one of the best woman fighters ever.”

Shields’ appetite for seemingly insurmountable challenges not only helped her conquer the boxing world, but drove her to seek out new tests in an entirely new sport: mixed martial arts. 

The pugilist put pen to paper with the Professional Fighters League (PFL) late last year and made a successful MMA debut with the promotion in June, rallying to defeat the amply more experienced Brittney Elkin.  

“They said no boxer could transition into MMA and win against a person who’s good at BJJ [Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu] or good on the ground,” Shields said proudly, looking back on her debut. “I did it again: third-round TKO over Brittney Elkin.”

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Claressa Shields won via TKO in her first MMA fight against Brittney Elkin. (Professional Fighters League)

Shields’ next MMA bout is Wednesday. She’ll look to make it 2-0 against Mexico’s Abigail Montes at an October 27 PFL event in Fort Lauderdale, which will also feature a whopping six world title fights.

Shields knows she has a dangerous opponent on her hands but is confident her diligent training will serve her well.

“I think it’s a good matchup,” she said. “She’s mostly a striker with punches and kicks. From the fights that I’ve seen, she likes to be the bully. She likes to push forward and push girls back and beat the girls up. I’m excited for her to try that against me, because I don’t let nobody bully me in a fight.

“We’ve listened to her interviews and she said she’s basically going to out-strike me,” Shields added, oozing confidence. “I can’t wait to see that happen.” 

If Shields defeats Montes on October 27, it will set her up for more tough challenges in the PFL cage. If her success continues thereafter, she may ultimately earn a shot at the promotion’s lightweight title, currently the property of two-time Olympic judoka and unbeaten mixed martial artist Kayla Harrison. If Shields wins that title, she’ll be able to call herself a two-sport champion, and one of the greatest fighters in the history of combat sports, period.

As ever, her mission looks almost impossible from the outset, but she believes it can be accomplished. 

“I feel like becoming the PFL lightweight champion is very, very possible,” she said. “I know there’s some girls standing in my way right now, the main one being Kayla Harrison. She’s like the top tier [in MMA]. I’m very respectful of her and her skillset, and of her being the champion, and how hard she works. That’s why I’m working very, very hard to be on that level, so when the time comes for me and her to fight, or for me and any of the other top-ranked girls to fight, it’ll be a very, very competitive fight and it’ll be worth the fans’ money.

“It’s not impossible, and that makes me very happy,” she added. “I’m just enjoying the process.”

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Shields prepares to enter the cage against Elkin. (Professional Fighters League)

Amazingly, two-sport glory isn’t where Shields’ ambition ends. She also has eyes on other industries, with big plans percolating behind the scenes.  

“I still got a lot of work to do,” she said. “I’ve got a lot of dreams to accomplish that people don’t know about. I got stuff I want to do in music, stuff I want to do in modeling and movies.”

Shields’ ambition knows no bounds, but many of her goals seem to hinge on the outcome of her upcoming matchup with Montes. She isn’t big on specific, pre-fight predictions, but it’s fair to say she doesn’t see her habit of conquering massive challenges faltering now.

“I’m not even going to put that kind of pressure on myself, to say third-round, second-round, first-round knockout,” she said. “I just know that I’ve trained harder for this fight than I did for my last fight. I’ve changed a lot of things up. I feel a lot healthier, a lot better, a lot more focused, and I have a lot more support this camp than I did last camp. I feel good.

“I’ve come a long way and I can’t wait to display that.”

Tune in: Watch PFL 2021 on ESPN2 October 27th at 4:30pm ET. Learn more about the event and additional ways to watch here.