Ronda Rousey had one of the most impressive journeys to the top in women’s MMA history, but she accepts that she made a mistake during that rise. In a recent interview with fellow UFC world champion Daniel Cormier, Rousey explained that her career was not flawless, and she made one rather large error that effected how her career will be remembered. She put together a perfect 6-0 professional record before signing to the UFC and being given the women’s Bantamweight world championship, which she then defended an amazing six times before eventually losing it to Holly Holm.
Ronda Rousey then took an extended break from MMA and didn’t fight for over a year before she attempted to regain her title from Amanda Nunes, although this too was unsuccessful. Since that second loss, she has remained retired from the sport and transitioned into becoming WWE superstar instead. It isn’t all about the grind anymore either, as she’s also been able to enjoy parenthood with her partner and fellow UFC veteran Travis Browne. Regardless of her achievements in the sport and her journey since retiring, she is still aware of the mistake that she made during her time in the UFC:
“I think that’s a mistake that I made with MMA was when I got to that point where I didn’t want it anymore, I kept doing it for everybody else.”
“I think to be at that top level, you kind of have to be a people-pleaser. You want to please your coach, you want to please your parents, you want to please everybody watching. It’s one of the things that make you excel, but it’s one of those things that… it can be an obstacle a lot of times,” she explained.
“Knowing when is the right time to walk away, it’s got to be your decision, ‘cause not everybody else is going to come to a consensus. And nobody knows what you’re actually going through and what it actually takes.
“You’re, like, a novelty on TV every couple of months. Whereas that’s your everyday and your reality. And I think setting boundaries with that relationship of everybody else and not doing things for them and doing things for you, even though you won’t be understood.
“That was the hardest part — letting go of that need of feeling understood. ‘Cause no one’s ever going to.”
Ronda Rousey revealed the one mistake that she made during her MMA career in a conversation with Daniel Cormier on a recent episode of the DC Check-In, which was uploaded to his official YouTube channel:
