Jason Statham has opted out, but if he has one female counterpart in Hollywood, it has to be break-out star of Haywire, the MMA fighter Gina Carano. She’s now picking up the pieces, as THR reports the actress has jumped on board the sixth iteration in Universal’s huge action franchise, Fast & Furious.

Fast Six will see the return of Justin Lin who helmed far and away the best film in the series last year. Most of the ensemble will be back as Carano will land on the good side, linking up with Dwayne Johnson‘s security service team. We have no plot details, but I can most certainly see a girlfight in the works between her and Michelle Rodriguez or Jordana Brewster, although I’m confident she can also kick the crap out of Paul Walker and Vin Diesel.

Her debut role this year in Steven Soderbergh‘s stylistic Haywire immediately cemented her as one of the most convincing female action stars in Hollywood. It’ll be great to see someone like Lin display this talent to a large audience, as Haywire was unfortunately overlooked on the box-offce side. Shooting should begin fairly soon as Fast Six is set to rev into theaters on  May 24, 2013.

Are you looking forward to see Carano flex her action muscles in one Hollywood’s biggest franchises?