Almost as stunning as Liz Carmouche's near-miss submission on Ronda Rousey on Saturday was UFC president Dana White's late-night announcement that featherweight champion Jose Aldo is refusing to face Anthony Pettis.

Pettis is the UFC's No. 1-rated lightweight contender who, you may recall, texted White not long after Aldo defeated Frankie Edgar at UFC 156, begging for a featherweight title shot.

Jose Aldo doesn't think Anthony Pettis deserves a title shot. (MMA Weekly)The media and fan base seemed to love it, and White announced plans for the bout to be held Aug. 3.

Following Rousey's UFC 157 victory over Carmouche on Saturday at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., White said that Aldo and manager/trainer Andre Pederneiras didn't feel Pettis was deserving and were thus not willing to accept the fight.

"Jose Aldo came out and said, 'There's no way in hell I'm fighting Pettis,' " White said. "He's absolutely refusing to fight Pettis. [He] doesn't think he deserves the shot."

It's clearly a bonehead move by both Pederneiras and Aldo. There are

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Nothing was more predictable, nor nearly as significant, as Ronda Rousey's arm bar victory over Liz Carmouche in the first round of their bantamweight title fight on Saturday.

The fight marked a monumental moment in sports history, a time when the women stood above the men in every way. Ronda Rousey and Liz Carmouche jostle for position Saturday. (USA Today Sports)

For one, Rousey and Carmouche saved UFC 157 after a stinker of a co-main event between Lyoto Machida and Dan Henderson. When the Rousey-Carmouche fight was announced as the main event in December, a small but very vocal portion of the UFC fan base howled in protest.

Of course, they simply showed themselves as clueless bigots because there was no doubt who everybody had come to see Saturday.

All 15,525 fans who jammed the Honda Center and paid a $1.4 million gate were there to see if Rousey could stretch her incredible run of first-round arm bars to 10 in 10 amateur and professional fights.

When Machida won a sleep-inducing split decision in the co-main event, Rousey and

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Nothing else would have seemed appropriate.

It took her longer than it ever had before, but Ronda Rousey sent the huge crowd at the Honda Center home happy by submitting Liz Carmouche in the first round with, what else, an arm bar.

Rousey won the first women's fight in UFC history by doing what she had done nine previous times, three in the amateurs and six in the professional ranks.

Ronda Rousey celebrates her win over Liz Carmouche. (Getty)Carmouche had Rousey's back at one point and it looked like she may pull off the monumental upset by securing a rear naked choke submission or a neck crank.

With the crowd roaring, Rousey dumped Carmouche off her back and then worked relentlessly to get the submission. It came at 4:49 of the first – the latest of Rousey's career – and sent the crowd into a delirium.

Rousey was the object of a massive media blitz and was profiled in Time Magazine, on HBO's "Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel" and on CNN – places that normally don't cover mixed martial arts.

Rousey, though,

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Ronda Rousey has fought nine mixed martial arts fights, six as a pro and three as an amateur. All nine have ended in the first round with the same move.

Rousey's signature arm bar has become the sport's most dominant finishing move. Her coach, Edmond Tarverdyan, laughed off the notion that she might be a one-trick pony.

Ronda Rousey works out Wednesday in preparation for her big bout. (USA Today Sports)If Liz Carmouche, Rousey's opponent Saturday in the main event of UFC 157 at what for one night will change from the Honda Center to the Ronda Center, can avoid the arm bar, Rousey's chance to win won't diminish, Tarverdyan said.

"I'll be honest with you," Tarverdyan said after Rousey completed a workout at the Glendale Fight Club, "I'd rather see her finish her career with all first-round arm bars. That would mean the chance of her getting hurt would be way less. I would like it that way.

"But Ronda is way more than an arm bar [specialist], way more. She has great hands. Her striking is improved so much. People say she is all about the arm

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Lyoto Machida is one win away from fighting again for the UFC light heavyweight title.

He'll face veteran slugger Dan Henderson on Saturday in the non-women's main event of UFC 157 at the Honda Center, with a spot at stake against the winner of the April 27 title fight between champion Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen.

Lyoto Machida works with Melvin Manhoef during a public workout. (USA Today Sports)Machida enters the Henderson fight at a strange spot in his career though, suddenly more vulnerable than ever and unable to put together any kind of streak. The seemingly untouchable fighter of the early part of his career has vanished, replaced by an easier-to-hit, aging version of himself.

After his first seven UFC fights, when he was 7-0 and held the 205-pound belt, Machida was the UFC's most difficult fighter to hit. According to Fight Metric, he only took 0.75 strikes per minute, far better than the UFC average of 2.61.

His striking defense, which measures the percentage of strikes avoided, was similarly strong. His rate of 73.6 percent far

Floyd Mayweather will fight Robert Guerrero on May 4 in Las Vegas. (AP)

The wristwatch Floyd Mayweather wore Thursday to a Detroit news conference was probably worth more than Robert Guerrero's Gilroy, Calif., home.

Mayweather probably made 25 times more money in 2012 – a conservative estimate – than Guerrero has made in his nearly 12-year career. When they meet on May 4 in Las Vegas on Showtime pay-per-view for Mayweather's welterweight title, the income disparity between them will only widen.

On many levels, the differences between the men are vast. Mayweather is an iconic figure headed for the Hall of Fame. Guerrero is a largely anonymous fighter best known for the grace he showed while caring for a seriously ill wife.

But there is one striking similarity between them that at least gives Guerrero a fighting chance to become the first man in 44 tries to defeat Mayweather.

Guerrero has the sharp, analytical mind that long has been Mayweather's greatest asset. For all of his physical skills, Mayweather's ability to outthink his opponents is

Dan Henderson laughs softly and answers a familiar question, "Oh yeah, I feel great. Fine."

Then, the 42-year-old perpetual contender sighs. It's as if every fall and every kick and every punch sting a bit more now. Dan Henderson answers questions from a fan during an expo. (Getty)

Since defeating Mauricio "Shogun" Rua at UFC 139 on Nov. 19, 2011, in what many regard as the greatest fight in UFC history, Henderson has been on the sidelines.

He waited for a title shot for what seemed like ages. And when he was finally days away from getting a crack at Jon Jones' light heavyweight belt at UFC 151, he injured a knee and had to pull out.

It will be a year, three months and four days between trips to the Octagon for Henderson.

Henderson is only eight years away from qualifying for an AARP card, but says he doesn't have battle fatigue. He's been fighting professionally for almost 16 years and had been wrestling for years before that.

He's probably taken tens of thousands of spills in his life. What's another one or 100?

"Hey," he added

Nothing changes for Floyd Mayweather Jr. He'll fight when he wants to fight, against the opponent he handpicks. He'll fight in the venue he decides upon and he'll have final say over everything from the music in the arena to the color of the towels in the locker room.

Floyd Mayweather signals to the crowd after a win. (Getty)The only thing the six-fight, 30-month deal he signed with Showtime will unquestionably change is his payday. 

The guy's already known as "Money" because he's the world's highest paid athlete, according to Forbes. But after signing Showtime's massive deal, Mayweather may want to consider upgrading his name to "Mega-Money."

"He was already, by far, the highest-paid fighter in the world," Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe said. "This is going to take him to a whole other level."

In 1990, promoter Don King pulled a similar move when he engineered Mike Tyson's exit from HBO and convinced the former heavyweight champion to sign a lucrative deal with Showtime.

Landing Tyson in those days was like getting a