Ronda Rousey’s tumultuous UFC exit was her own fault, says fierce rival

Holy Holm believes much of Ronda Rousey’s gripes with her UFC exit were self-inflicted.

Rousey’s star power and success inside the Octagon paved the way for women’s fights under the UFC banner. “Rowdy” was one of the most beloved athletes in MMA, but her downfall was quite brutal after suffering a knockout loss to Holm back in 2015. The following year, Rousey was stopped by Amanda Nunes in 48 seconds before retiring from pro MMA competition.

Since her retirement, Rousey has lashed out and fans and media members. During an interview with MMAFighting.com, Holm shared her belief that Rousey did herself no favors.

“I think Ronda, she definitely didn’t like how her career ended, but she’s a lot responsible for that,” Holm said. “Because she pulled herself away. You see some of these champions that are reigning champions, they run into a hiccup and they at least face the crowd, face the camera, face the fans, face it. I believe a little bit of higher respect in that aspect, and I think that a lot of fans were like she just took off.

“If she was to come back for a fight, people would cheer for her. I feel like she always feels like everybody’s against her, but she took herself away from the fans rather than them leaving her. Martial arts fans and fight fans, they can be brutal but also they’re fans, they’re fans of the sport. They realize things happen, not everything is always perfect, and I think if she would have faced it differently, no judgment on it, but I think if she would have faced it differently, it probably wouldn’t have been so negative as a whole in her own mind and how she felt.”

Rousey recently got the MMA world buzzing again when she posted some new training videos. “Rowdy” said her love for the sport was starting to resurface. Rousey is reportedly in discussions for a boxing match with Katie Taylor, although UFC CEO Dana White denies that claim.