2009 was the year of Gina Carano. She was everywhere one would look. Whether it was on American Gladiators, magazines, or video games, Carano burst onto the scene and was arguably the biggest name in mixed martial arts for a short time. However, Carano hasn’t been seen or heard from lately leaving some to wonder her status in the sport.
Carano was built up to be the face of female MMA in the country until she faced Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos last August. Carano lost to Cyborg for the Strikeforce Women’s Featherweight championship in the first round via TKO. The loss was the first of Carano’s career.
At this past weekend’s Strikeforce show in St. Louis, CEO Scott Coker spoke about the popular Carano.
“We will be reaching out to her soon,” Coker said after Saturday’s event. “She’s still part of the family. We miss you Gina.”
Carano is slated to star in the upcoming Steven Soderbergh film “Knockout” that will be released in 2011.
While Carano still trains mixed martial arts, she currently has no upcoming fights scheduled. As perhaps the biggest star in Strikeforce, one can bet that we’ll see her back in the cage before the end of the year, possibly back on CBS later this fall.