UFC president Dana White once said that women would never fight in the UFC under his command.

Now, ever since Ronda Rousey first fought Liz Carmouche in February 2013, the women’s division has been on the rise and is continuing to develop to this day. 

One of Britain’s pound for pound most successful fighters-Danny Roberts, who currently fights in the UFC welterweight division, has now weighed in on the subject.

Asked how the women’s game has transformed over the course of this decade, Roberts said ‘it’s massive.’ Beforehand ‘there used to be a lot of people who were derogatory, but this was sexist based.’

Roberts also stressed that many of the best fights this decade have come from women. Holm vs Rousey at UFC 193, Amanda Nunes vs Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 196 and of course Rousey vs Carmouche at UFC 157 are just some of the fights that will live long in the memory.

Ultimately, Roberts believes everything comes down to the amount of work each fighter puts in. ‘If a woman is going to break her body down, get back up and keep moving forward’ he said, then, of course, they deserve to have every success that comes their way.

Despite the UFC President’s initial reluctance to introduce a women’s division, Roberts emphasises that the current state of women’s MMA is a ‘credit to Dana White and the UFC.’ White famously credited Ronda Rousey as the sole reason why women are fighting now, saying ‘I wouldn’t have done it without Ronda, although she is now signed to the WWE.

UFC 245 takes place this Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Nevada, where the women’s bantamweight clash between champion Amanda Nunes and Germaine de Randamie will feature on the main card.