Tag: Ronda Rousey

Dana White explains why Ronda Rousey, Conor McGregor included on his UFC Mount Rushmore

Dana White put his business hat on when selecting his latest version of a UFC Mount Rushmore.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] put his business hat on when selecting his MMA Mount Rushmore.

White’s decision to have [autotag]Ronda Rousey[/autotag] and [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] on his list was questioned by many, with his other two choices of [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] and [autotag]Georges St-Pierre[/autotag] widely accepted.

The UFC CEO explained that the impact these four former champions had changed the sport.

“If you look at Ronda Rousey, which I’m sure everybody goes crazy, ‘Uh, Ronda Rousey,’ women aren’t fighting here,” White told MMA Junkie and other reporters Tuesday at a post-fight news conference. “The knockout that happened last weekend doesn’t happen without Ronda Rousey. Ronda Rousey opened the door for all women and became a huge superstar for us and the biggest superstar in the history of female fighting. As far as the gates, pay-per-views, attention, all of it, nobody was bigger than Ronda. She started it all.

“Conor McGregor took this sport to another level when he became not only the biggest star in the sport but one of the biggest stars in all of sports. You had NFL and NBA and soccer players mimicking Conor McGregor during the games. If you guys want to get into the Jon Jones sh*t, we can get into that. I’m obviously going to have a different criteria when you ask me who I think are because of things I know that happened inside the business and how it changed the game.”

White’s 2020 MMA Mount Rushmore included Amanda Nunes instead of Rousey, as well as Jones, Royce Gracie, and Chuck Liddell. White said he was looking at a different criteria when making his updated list.

White said even Season 1 “Ultimate Fighter” winner Forrest Griffin could make someone’s MMA Mount Rushmore based on his iconic ‘TUF Finale’ fight with Stephan Bonnar that arguably saved the UFC.

He spoke about his final choice in St-Pierre, and the kind of impact he had on Canadian MMA – pointing to the 55,724 fans who attended his UFC 129 title-fight headliner vs. Jake Shields in Toronto.

“My other one was Georges St-Pierre,” White said. “In the evolution of this company, when you think back, anybody who was around – a lot of people weren’t around then, but the people who were, when you went up to Canada with Georges St-Pierre, I’ll never forget the time we were up there. I got stuck in a corner. I’m not kidding you: thousands of people.

“That’s when I was tweeting tickets. Remember those days? When I had video blogs and I was tweeting tickets, we literally almost got killed up there one day. By killed, I mean trampled by people looking for tickets. How big that was up there at that time was absolutely insane, and it was all Georges St-Pierre.”

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Dana White’s updated UFC Mount Rushmore ‘absolutely, positively’ includes Conor McGregor

Dana White took a slightly different approach when revealing his updated UFC Mount Rushmore.

UFC CEO [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] took a slightly different approach when revealing his UFC Mount Rushmore.

Ahead of Saturday’s UFC 306 (pay-per-view, ESPNews, ESPN+) at Sphere in Las Vegas, White was asked to list his MMA Mount Rushmore. There were some obvious choices, but White put emphasis on impact in his list.

“You’ve got to go with [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag]. You have to go with [autotag]Ronda Rousey[/autotag] – women would not be fighting if it wasn’t for her,” White told ESPN’s “First Take” (h/t Championship Rounds). “You would have to put GSP ([autotag]Georges St-Pierre[/autotag]) in there and absolutely, positively [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag]. He elevated and changed the game globally.”

White’s list is drastically different than the MMA Mount Rushmore he shared in June 2020. That list included Amanda Nunes, Royce Gracie and Chuck Liddell, along with Jones.

No surprise, White included UFC heavyweight champion Jones again. A former longtime UFC light heavyweight champion, Jones joined a select few when he was able to realize gold in a second weight class by beating Ciryl Gane in March 2023.

St-Pierre is perhaps another obvious choice. A former nine-time defending UFC welterweight champion, St-Pierre retired in 2013 before returning in 2017 to submit Michael Bisping for the middleweight title at UFC 217. He retired for health reasons just a few months later.

Rousey might not make everyone’s list, but the women’s MMA pioneer certainly had her impact on the sport by convincing White to allow women in the UFC in 2013. Rousey defended her UFC bantamweight title six times in one of the most dominant championship runs in company history.

White’s fourth choice is the sport’s biggest star. McGregor is not only the biggest draw in company history, but he was the UFC’s first fighter to hold two championships simultaneously. His performances to capture those belts are two of the greatest championship-winning finishes – a 13-second knockout of Jose Aldo to capture the featherweight title in 2015, followed by a striking masterclass over Eddie Alvarez to capture the lightweight title in 2016.

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Ronda Rousey’s apology for sharing Sandy Hook conspiracy long overdue – but still timely | Opinion

There are several lessons to be had from Ronda Rousey’s apology for sharing, however briefly, a Sandy Hook conspiracy video.

There are several lessons to be had from Ronda Rousey’s apology for sharing, however briefly, a Sandy Hook conspiracy video.

The first is that it’s never too late to acknowledge a wrong and take responsibility for it. In a post Thursday night on X, the former UFC champ apologized for something she’d done 11 years ago, a veritable lifetime in this age of warp-speed news cycles fueled by our constant connection.

The apology followed a disastrous “Ask Me Anything” on Reddit, in which Rousey was inundated with questions about her posting of a video that cast doubt on the horrific massacre that killed 20 first-graders and six educators and shattered the idea there were still some places in this country safe from gun violence.

Regardless of the convenience of the timing, Rousey said she has long regretted sharing the video. She’d written an apology many times over, even tried to put it in her last book, but never published it. Out of fear. Out of shame. Out of concern it would send others down the conspiratorial rabbit hole. Out of calculated self-interest.

Whatever the reasons, she now knows they weren’t worth more than making amends for the harm she’d done.

“I convinced myself that apologizing would just reopen the wound for no other reason than me selfishly trying to make myself feel better, that I would hurt those suffering even more and possibly lead more people down the black hole of conspiracy bullshit by it being brought up again just so I could try to shake the label of being a ‘`’Sandy Hook truther,’ ” Rousey wrote.

“I apologize that this came 11 years too late, but to those affected by the Sandy Hook massacre, from the bottom of my heart and depth of my soul I am so so sorry for the hurt I caused. I can’t even begin to imagine the pain you’ve endured and words cannot describe how thoroughly remorseful and ashamed I am of myself for contributing to it. I’ve regretted it every day of my life since and will continue to do so until the day I die,” Rousey wrote, putting the words in bold so no one would miss their importance.

The second lesson is apologies are owed even if no one knows you’ve done wrong.

Rousey said she “quickly realized my mistake” in posting the video and took it down. Somehow, despite being at the height of her fame and dominance in her sport, what she’d done went largely unnoticed by the general public. MMA fans might have been aware, but Rousey was able to move on unscathed.

A wrong is a wrong, however, whether the whole world sees it or it’s only known in the quiet of your own heart.

“I should have been canceled,” Rousey wrote. “I would have deserved it. I still do.”

Feb 23, 2013; Anaheim, CA, USA; Ronda Rousey celebrates after defeating Liz Carmouche (not pictured) after their UFC women’s world bantamweight championship bout at the Honda Center. (Jayne Kamin-Oncea, USA TODAY Sports)

The last, and most important, lesson in Rousey’s apology is her word of warning.

There have always been people who’ve been suckered into believing nonsense; those newspapers in the grocery store checkout line with headlines about alien babies and Elvis sightings weren’t there for decoration. But it’s gotten worse in the last 15 years, with bad actors preying on people’s fears and ignorance and, in the worst cases, hate.

It’s how we ended up with a pizza parlor in Washington, D.C., getting shot up. People taking a horse dewormer to combat COVID or downplaying the seriousness of a pandemic that killed millions worldwide. People storming the U.S. Capitol and attacking police officers. An NFL MVP spreading misinformation under the guise of “doing his own research.”

An MMA star reposting a video questioning the veracity of the bullet-riddled bodies of 6- and 7-year-olds and the bottomless chasm of their parents’ grief.

But rather than leading to some enlightened truth, Rousey wrote, dabbling in conspiracy theories only sends you further into the abyss.

“To anyone else that’s fallen down the black hole of bullshit,” Rousey wrote, “it doesn’t make you edgy or an independent thinker, you’re not doing your due diligence entertaining every possibility by digesting these conspiracies. They will only make you feel powerless, afraid, miserable and isolated. You’re doing nothing but hurting others and yourself.

“Regardless of how many bridges you’ve burned over it, stop digging yourself a deeper hole, don’t get wrapped up in the sunk cost fallacy, no matter how long you’ve gone down the wrong road, you should still turn back.”

It’s never too late for the truth. Or an apology.

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Ronda Rousey apologizes for Sandy Hook conspiracy video, warns against falling down ‘black hole of bullsh*t’

Nearly 12 years after a social media post resurfaced, a UFC Hall of Famer has issued a warning over “black hole” of conspiracy theories.

Nearly a dozen years after a mostly forgotten-about social media post resurfaced, [autotag]Ronda Rousey[/autotag] has apologized for what she called “the single most regrettable decision” of her life.

In the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Ct., in late 2012, Rousey reposted a conspiracy theory that, among other things, said the shooting was a hoax, a decision that Dana White defended at the time. During the Dec. 14, 2012, massacre, Adam Lanza killed his mother, then 20 children between the ages of 6-7 and six teachers at the school. He then killed himself.

Rousey later deleted the tweet and her comment on the video that went with it that she said was “extremely interesting” and “must-watch” content. But she posted a new tweet at the time that said her philosophy is “asking questions and doing research is more patriotic than blindly accepting what you’re told.”

But this past week, during a Reddit “Ask Me Anything” meant to promote her new graphic novel “Expecting the Unexpected,” things took a turn when she was inundated with questions and criticisms and reminders of her promotion of the conspiracy theory, and suddenly the MMA and WWE and sports world in general remember or knew for the first time that she went down that road.

Her late Thursday apology on social media cautions others against doing the same thing she did.

“I can’t say how many times I’ve redrafted this apology over the last 11 years,” Rousey posted. “How many times I’ve convinced myself it wasn’t the right time or that I’d be causing even more damage by giving it. But 11 years ago I made the single most regrettable decision of my life. I watched a Sandy Hook conspiracy video and reposted it on twitter. I didn’t even believe it, but was so horrified at the truth that I was grasping for an alternative fiction to cling to instead. I quickly realized my mistake and took it down, but the damage was done. By some miracle it seemingly slipped under the media’s radar, I was never asked about it so I never spoke of it again, afraid that calling attention to it would have the opposite of the intended effect – it could increase the views of those conspiracy videos, and selfishly, inform even more people I was ignorant, self absorbed, and tone deaf enough to share one in the first place.

“I drafted a thousandth apology to include in my last memoir, but my publisher begged me to take it out, saying it would overshadow everything else and do more harm than good. So I convinced myself that apologizing would just reopen the wound for no other reason than me selfishly trying to make myself feel better, that I would hurt those suffering even more and possibly lead more people down the black hole of conspiracy bullsh*t by it being brought up again just so I could try to shake the label of being a ‘Sandy Hook truther.’

“But honestly I deserve to be hated, labeled, detested, resented and worse for it. I deserve to lose out on every opportunity, I should have been canceled, I would have deserved it. I still do.

“I apologize that this came 11 years too late, but to those affected by the Sandy Hook massacre, from the bottom of my heart and depth of my soul I am so so sorry for the hurt I caused. I can’t even begin to imagine the pain you’ve endured and words cannot describe how thoroughly remorseful and ashamed I am of myself for contributing to it. I’ve regretted it every day of my life since and will continue to do so until the day I die.

“And to anyone else that’s fallen down the black hole of bullsh*t. It doesn’t make you edgy, or an independent thinker, you’re not doing your due diligence entertaining every possibility by digesting these conspiracies. They will only make you feel powerless, afraid, miserable and isolated. You’re doing nothing but hurting others and yourself. Regardless of how many bridges you’ve burned over it, stop digging yourself a deeper hole, don’t get wrapped up in the sunk cost fallacy, no matter how long you’ve gone down the wrong road, you should still turn back.”

Conspiracy theories, largely from right-wing fringe groups, have claimed any number of things about the shooting since 2012, but most say the entire thing was faked by the government. Alex Jones, arguably the country’s most infamous conspiracy peddler and a past guest on UFC analyst Joe Rogan’s podcast, less than a year ago was found guilty of defaming families and victims in the massacre and is on the hook for nearly $1.5 billion in damages. Jones filed for bankruptcy less than two months later.

When Rousey reposted the video in January 2013, she had been named the UFC’s inaugural women’s bantamweight champion a couple months prior but hadn’t yet had her promotional debut. That came a month later when she defended her title against Liz Carmouche in the first women’s fight in UFC history.

Rousey, a UFC Hall of Famer, set the standard for women’s MMA after her arrival to the UFC from Strikeforce. After back-to-back title losses to Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes, she retired from MMA and took on a short-lived WWE career. She recently parted ways with that company and has been publicly critical of WWE head Vince McMahon, including saying he’s an “a**hole.”

Comments on her Twitter apology ran the gamut, which is to be expected from the MMA fanbase. While many lauded her for the apology and taking responsibility for it, as well as for her warning to others who buy into far-flung conspiracy theories, the other half accused her of everything from apologizing for a publicity stunt, to trying to avoid getting sued the way Jones did.

Rousey, 37, has been married to former UFC heavyweight Travis Browne since 2017. They have one daughter and a second child on the way, Rousey announced in July.

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Miesha Tate criticizes Ronda Rousey for lack of growth as a person years removed from UFC rivalry

“This is not a Ronda Rousey vs. the world situation,” Miesha Tate said of her old rival’s recent remarks reflecting on her UFC career.

[autotag]Miesha Tate[/autotag] says she doesn’t hold a grudge against [autotag]Ronda Rousey[/autotag] these days and wishes her former foe was simply capable of doing the same, but she doesn’t see it.

Rousey, who became a mainstream star as the first UFC women’s bantamweight champion when females broke into the promotion in 2013, has spoken candidly about the downfall of her MMA career in her most recent interviews. It began with Rousey opening up about her history of concussions as she admitted it was a major factor in her retiring from MMA. Rousey said she was concussed when she stepped into the cage for her November 2015 fight with Holly Holm, which Rousey lost in stunning fashion by head-kick knockout. Those remarks weren’t received well by critics who considered them an excuse that took away from Holm’s performance.

Rousey, who was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2018, also said recently that she believes Joe Rogan and MMA media are “a bunch of a**holes” for turning on her after her knockout losses to Holm and Amanda Nunes 13 months later.

For Tate, Rousey’s remarks are telling.

“I personally don’t have the animosity that I had for Ronda at one point,” Tate said on Sirius XM’s “MMA Today” show with Ryan McKinnell. “The disdain, the frustration, I’ve been able to work through those things and see my fault in it and try to be a better person. I wish that I could say that I saw the same growth from Ronda, but it doesn’t seem that way. It certainly seems that she’s holding onto the resentment, the frustration and the anger, and allowing it to dictate her next moves.

“I do not think the MMA community, in large part, ever turned their back on Ronda.”

Rousey was a media darling during her heyday, which included a bitter rivalry with Tate. Rousey first submitted Tate in Strikeforce in March 2012 and then again in December 2013 at UFC 168. That fight capped off a heated season of “The Ultimate Fighter” with Tate and Rousey as opposing coaches.

Rousey left no doubt about how much she hated Tate back then as she focused so much on the negative. To this day, Tate still believes focusing too much on the negative is Rousey’s biggest issue.

“She forgot that there were hundreds of thousands of little girls around the world that were still idolizing her,” Tate said. “They didn’t care if she won or lost. They thought she was amazing either way. She doesn’t seem to have come to the point where I would like to see her be yet. I think she’s still really hurt by it, but I think she’s very focused on self instead of self-growth. I think she’s still focused on, ‘Well, this is what happened to me, all these people turned on me, I had all these concussions happen to me, and nobody was thinking about me.’ It’s like, well, hang on, it’s not quite like that.

“People beat you down a bit. It comes with fame. Nobody gets away unscathed in life, much less if your life is put on a magnitude scale where everybody gets to witness your rise like they witness your fall. But it happens to every champion. This is not a Ronda Rousey vs. the world situation. It’s when you are great, sometimes people just want to see greatness fall.”

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Ronda Rousey: I’d be booed if I went back to a UFC event

Ronda Rousey was, at times, a polarizing figure in the MMA world. She might still be years after she left it.

[autotag]Ronda Rousey[/autotag] was, at times, a polarizing figure in the MMA world.

And though she’s been gone from the sport for longer than she was in it, she remains a significant personality in the space – and remains polarizing.

With the release of her second book, “Our Fight,” in February, Rousey has been back in the spotlight more than she’s been at any time since she left the WWE. One of the big takeaways from the new book, aside from her admission that a history of concussions helped make up her mind to leave MMA, is that Rousey thinks she was treated poorly by members of the media after her back-to-back losses to Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes, which were her final two MMA fights.

“MMA media” is a fairly all-inclusive term that many people equate not just with members of legacy and traditional media outlets – i.e. the Los Angeles Times, USA TODAY/MMA Junkie, ESPN – but also with broadcast analysts, former fighters who have preview shows on YouTube, or even a random blogger whose podcast gets 40 streams a week. It wasn’t clear if Rousey was talking about specific segments of the MMA media space.

Rousey told Jake Humphrey and Damian Hughes of the High Performance podcast that what she wrote in her book about people hating her when she left MMA was “pretty accurate in my mind.”

“Ask the MMA media (why what I gave wasn’t enough) – they’re the ones saying it … that I was a fraud and I was hype and I was exposed and I was never anything and just lucky and all of these things, that I was ungracious or I was a loser, or every other thing that I just assume at this point because I don’t take the time to read it,” Rousey said.

“Everything that could be said that was negative was said, and I feel really vilified by MMA media at this point and not really welcome back, which is why I haven’t gone to a UFC fight since (I left). I’m pretty sure if I walked into the arena, I’d be booed. That’s how it feels.”

After her concussion revelation, Rousey has been supported by some high-profile figures in the MMA world – like Daniel Cormier. But she’s also been roundly criticized by others, like Jimmy Smith.

When it was suggested by the hosts that she perhaps was being hard on herself, Rousey reaffirmed she was talking about “what it’s like to have everyone hate you.”

“I live it,” Rousey said. “I guess I wish it didn’t (bother me). I gave them everything I had, and it wasn’t enough. But that’s why a lot of people don’t give everything that they have, because they don’t want to face it if it wasn’t enough. I realize it was enough for me, but not enough for people on the outside. But it really wasn’t for them.”

After she won bronze in judo at the 2008 Summer Olympics, Rousey moved to MMA. She finished her first three amateur opponents in less than a minute, all by armbar. After she turned pro in 2011, the armbar barrage continued. She won the Strikeforce women’s bantamweight title against Miesha Tate and set off arguably the biggest rivalry in women’s MMA history.

She was the reason Dana White relented and ushered the women’s era into the UFC in 2013. But after a 12-0 start with 11 first-round finishes and six UFC title defenses, she was upset by Holly Holm in 2015. Thirteen months later, when she tried to recapture the belt against Amanda Nunes, she was stopped in just 48 seconds.

The loss to Nunes remains her final MMA fight in December 2016. In 2017, Rousey signed with the WWE and started actively performing for the company in 2018. She left the WWE this past fall and announced her pro wrestling retirement, though she’s made one-off appearances for other wrestling organizations.

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Daniel Cormier on Ronda Rousey’s concussion history revelation: ‘All she’s doing is telling her truth’

Daniel Cormier believes Ronda Rousey’s words were misconstrued to mean something she may not have itended.

So what if [autotag]Ronda Rousey[/autotag] waited until years later to open up about her history with concussions? That’s essentially [autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag]’s take on the situation surrounding his fellow UFC Hall of Famer.

Rousey raised eyebrows in March when she admitted that too many concussions was the primary reason for her abrupt MMA retirement. A few weeks later, Rousey followed up to specify that she was concussed before her 2015 fight with Holly Holm in which she was stunningly knocked out to lose the bantamweight title at UFC 193.

Rousey’s remarks rubbed some people the wrong way, including Jimmy Smith. But that’s not the case with Cormier.

“Only Ronda knows about the concussions,” Cormier told MMA Junkie Radio. “If she (was) having these types of concussions, the only mistake she made, to me, is by saying it later. Because nobody knows if she had concussions, but I will also say this in defending Ronda: She’s always been one that people want to critique, even if it was unjust. So when she lost to Holly, it was almost like the world celebrated. They felt like everything got given to her when, in reality, she was winning those fights. She was beating people. And then for her to come back and lose to Amanda (Nunes at UFC 207)) the way she did, everybody celebrated and said ‘to hell with Ronda, go and be gone.’ So now when she comes back and says, ‘Well, I’ve had these issues over my life,’ I don’t know how she couldn’t.

“I understand how difficult it is to do this sport as she did Olympic level – the throwing, everything in the room. It’s hard, man. I couldn’t even count how many concussions I’ve probably had in my life. Ultimately only she knows. I don’t disagree with her as much as most might because all she’s doing is telling her truth.”

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For those critical of Rousey, the issue is a perceived case of making excuses for her demise, but Cormier doesn’t see it that way and said he wouldn’t if one of his former foes suddenly came out in a similar fashion.

“I would be thinking to myself on that night I was better – unless that person walked in there with a concussion,” Cormier said. “I don’t think it changes what happens in those fights unless she specifically goes, ‘The only reason I lost was because I had those concussions.’ And I don’t think that’s the case. I don’t think she said that. … If she flat-out said, ‘The only reason I lost is because I had concussions,’ now that’s a problem. That’s taking something from Holly. But if she’s just telling her story and concussions became part of it then it is what it is.”

Photos: Ronda Rousey through the years

Check out these photos of former UFC champion and UFC Hall of Famer Ronda Rousey through the years.

Check out these photos of former UFC champion and UFC Hall of Famer [autotag]Ronda Rousey[/autotag] through the years

Jimmy Smith slams Ronda Rousey for saying Joe Rogan, media turned on her: ‘Don’t give me this victim sh*t’

Jimmy Smith did not mince when speaking about Ronda Rousey playing the victim card years after her two UFC losses.

[autotag]Jimmy Smith[/autotag] did not mince words when speaking about [autotag]Ronda Rousey[/autotag].

In a recent interview, Rousey said she felt mistreated by UFC commentator Joe Rogan and other members of MMA media after back-to-back knockout losses to Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes in 2015 and 2016.

Smith, a former Bellator and UFC commentator, is not fond of the way Rousey handled herself following her losses, especially after she later revealed she was dealing with concussion symptoms going into her bantamweight title fight against Holm.

“I’ve never been a religious person,” Smith said on Sirius XM’s “Unlocking the Cage with Jimmy Smith.” “One thing that’s always said about God: He gets all the credit, none of the blame. That’s what Ronda Rousey wants: all the credit, none of the blame. ‘I want credit for all my wins. My losses, I had CTE and I had this and I had that. I’m the greatest to ever do it, but when it didn’t work, it was so and so and never me.’

“She never gives credit to the people who actually beat her. The idea that (she) left MMA and went to the WWE because (she) had concussion problems makes no sense.”

Smith was not having any of Rousey’s complaints and accused the former UFC women’s bantamweight champion of mistreating staff members and being hard to work with.

“The people behind the scenes, camera people, audio people, the people you can push around and the people you can bully and the people you can talk down to can’t stand (her) f*cking ass,” Smith said. “Everybody behind the scenes that had to put a mic on Ronda Rousey couldn’t stand her. I said why? They said, ‘She was a b*tch to us from the moment she sat down to the moment she got up. Like it’s our fault she has to do this interview to hype her next fight. And she’s just miserable, and she’s mean to us, and we can’t stand her.’

“They were cheering when she got knocked out. This is what I was told. Those are the people you can be mean to and rude to, and they can’t fight back. Those people couldn’t stand Ronda Rousey, so don’t sit here and tell me that you’re the victim when the poor guy sitting behind the camera is doing his job gets sh*t on by you, or you’re mean to the person asking you questions when we’re hyping your fight. Don’t give me this victim sh*t.”

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Ronda Rousey thinks Joe Rogan, media turned on her after knockout losses: ‘They’re a bunch of assh*les’

Former UFC champion Ronda Rousey doesn’t have fond feelings toward commentator Joe Rogan or the sport’s reporters.

As she looks in the rearview mirror at her MMA career, [autotag]Ronda Rousey[/autotag] doesn’t agree with the way she was treated by some in the space including UFC commentator Joe Rogan and the sport’s media members.

In a recent interview with The Chris Cuomo Project, Rousey discussed recent revelations from her book, “Our Fight: A Memoir,” that she struggled with concussions throughout her career.

Rousey also vented why her taste has been soured by her perception of other’s perceptions toward her during and after the decline of her competitive combat sports career.

“It was really disappointing to see how happily everybody turned on me and how people like Joe Rogan, who were crying in the ring about the honor to be able to call my fights, people I considered friends in the media, so quickly turned on me,” Rousey said. “I also am kind of grateful for it in a way because it forced me to separate other people’s perception of me from my own perception of myself, which I realized had really become intertwined when you have that kind of outpouring of love and support from people.

“It was like you’re being love-bombed by the world. You’re like, ‘How do I keep this going? How do I keep this going?’ It was pushing me into a lifestyle that was to impress everybody else. Like, I was pandering to everybody. I was doing things that I felt like other people would think was cool but that I didn’t really enjoy. I don’t enjoy being paparazzi famous. I hate it. I do not want to be that level of fame where I can’t have a normal life.”

Following her consecutive knockout losses to Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes, Rousey claimed the sport’s media members’ attitudes toward her changed. Rousey said she feels disrespected by what she deemed a lack of credit.

“MMA media hates me,” Rousey said. “No, not a single person has called me or anything like that. They’ve all just doubled down or said I’m making excuses or lying or blowing things out of proportion or not giving credit where it’s due. No, I have not. I’ll be waiting for that call forever. … I’m not waiting for it, and I get they’re a bunch of assh*les. That’s what I get. I get f*ck you. At least, I would rather not have those fake friendships in my life. I would rather have those people expose themselves, and I don’t leave myself open to them. I would rather cleanse myself of all those fake, superficial relationships than have them still around.”

In the end, Rousey said her experience of being drowned in love and then criticism gave her mental clarity. It helped mold a new perspective and direction, including a passion for farming with her husband, former UFC heavyweight Travis Browne.

“I was pursuing that kind of lifestyle because I felt like that was what I was supposed to do,” Rousey said. “Being put through that, it really forced me to see this isn’t real love. This is fake. They don’t actually know me. They don’t actually love me. They don’t actually hate me. This is a reflection of themselves and what they’re going through and what I represent to them. So it really forced me to take a step back.”

Rousey, 37, stepped away from fighting after the December 2016 loss to Nunes. She transitioned more fully into professional wrestling and WWE in 2017. In October 2023, Rousey indicated her retirement from professional wrestling. However, she made a few appearances on the independent wrestling circuit in the weeks that followed.