Ronda Rousey has opened up on her losses to Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes, a decade after they marked the end of her UFC career.
On 16 May, Rousey will fight for the first time since her December 2016 loss to Nunes, which came 13 months after her defeat by Holm. Both losses occurred via knockout, with Holm stopping Rousey early in round two and Nunes doing so inside 48 seconds.
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The results and their nature led Rousey to leave the UFC and focus on acting and professional wrestling, but now she is preparing to face fellow MMA trailblazer Gina Carano live on Netflix, headlining a card organised by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian’s Most Valuable Promotions.
Ahead of that bout, 39-year-old Rousey spoke to The Independent about her title loss to Holm and failed title challenge against Nunes.
Ronda Rousey’s KO loss to Holly Holm felt like a moment in time – the end of her peak (Getty)
“I was having neurological issues, and I was getting hit and basically losing chunks of my vision, depth perception, ability to track moving objects, to think clearly,” Rousey said.
“I thought these were concussion symptoms, because the more concussions I got, the easier it was for me to get these symptoms. So, after my first loss, I was like: ‘F***, it’s finally caught up to me. I’m never gonna be able to compete at the highest level again.’
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“But there were a lot of other factors. I had a bad mouthguard, stuff like that. My teeth got knocked loose, the very first punch of the [Holm] fight, so I convinced myself: ‘Maybe it was just that.’
“I came back again, and again I had to drag myself through it, because I felt like I was expected to come back – and I was coming back for everybody else and not for me. But then the same thing: the first time I got hit, I couldn’t see.
“I just felt like I was forced to retire; there was no way I could safely compete at the highest level anymore.
“But it was also the toxicity of my training camp. The process wasn’t fun anymore, and I was just so over it. Everything was so result-oriented, and I wanted to enjoy the everyday and not just the possible results.
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“That’s kind of what led me to pro wrestling, but I didn’t wanna go public about it, because I didn’t want WWE to be like, ‘We don’t wanna work with you,’ because of the baggage – they’ve had bad press from concussions in the past. So, I had to keep it to myself, but that’s kind of what forced my hand.”
Rousey’s final UFC fight saw her stopped by Amanda Nunes in 48 seconds (Getty)
Ahead of her return against Carano, 44, Rousey added that she has seemingly found the cause of her neurological issues.
“Fortunately, because Dana [White, UFC president] sent me to the Cleveland Clinic, we got a diagnosis for what was actually going on with me,” she explained.
“They think it’s actually migraines, and they got me on preventative migraine medication, and we’ve been able to test with sparring and see that it works. It’s been absolutely life-changing for me.”
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The Independent also spoke to Carano ahead of the upcoming contest, while an extensive interview with Rousey will be published on fight week.
Their main-event clash will be supported by numerous fights, including a bout between ex-UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou and Philipe Lins, and a welterweight tilt between former UFC stars Nate Diaz and Mike Perry.
