Ronda Rousey sustained an injury prior to Gina Carano bout: “I’ve never had a fight where I wasn’t injured in some way”

Ronda Rousey didn’t enter her comeback fight in the MVP MMA 1 headliner at full health.

Few could’ve noticed that Rousey suffered an injury prior to her 17-second submission victory over Gina Carano this past Saturday. “Rowdy” looked as focused as she’s ever been, and it allowed her to secure the quick finish over the fellow women’s MMA pioneer.

Rousey had a chat with reporters during the MVP MMA 1 post-fight press conference, and she revealed an injury she sustained during the final stretch of her preparation.

“I sprained my ankle or foot pretty bad like two and a half weeks ago, but it just makes me think of my first injury as a kid,” Rousey said. “As a kid, I broke my big toe in judo and my mom made me run laps around the mat for the rest of the night. She said, ‘You don’t know if you’re going to get hurt on the most important day. You could get hurt the day of the Olympics. You could get hurt when it really matters, and you need to know that your body listens to you. Not the other way around.’ I was like, thanks for the trauma, momma.”

The injury had no impact on Rousey’s efforts, although some might wonder if she would’ve been more willing to test her standup against Carano if she had entered the fight unscathed. “Rowdy” insists that she’s never truly entered a bout fully healthy.

“I basically have never had a fight where I wasn’t injured in some way,” Rousey said. “I didn’t ever pull out of a fight because I’ve never been injured, I just never pulled out of a fight because I always fight anyway.”

Rousey doesn’t foresee a return to the cage again, at least not anytime soon. She has put her attention on having more children. MVP co-founder Nakisa Bidarian has said that Rousey has a place in the promotion whether she decides to compete again or not.

Do you think Ronda Rousey went for the quick takedown against Gina Carano because she was injured, or was that always the plan? Share your opinion in the comments below.