Former woman’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey has been competing an extremely low profile in the build-up to her comeback fight with Amanda Nunes at UFC 207 on Friday night, but during the UFC 207 countdown show she gave an insight into the mind of a fighter who’s painfully aware that she’s standing at a pivotal moment in her life.
“I’m still grieving the person that could have won it all,” Rousey said. “But I have to live up to the fact that I’m not her. That’s just who I’d like to be. And instead I’m what I need to be for myself and everyone else. You have to go through those stages of acceptance and renewed optimism.
“I’m coming back to win this title for the people that believed in me. Everything in my whole life that I’ve always worked for. Everything depends on it. Everything is at stake.”
The fact that Rousey has refused to undergo the usual media blitz we’ve come to expect from her pre-fight, even passing up on key fight week activities like the open workouts and pre-fight press conference, has left many questioning whether she’s mentally strong enough for the challenge that lies ahead, but some of her comments suggest she’s still as headstrong as before.
“Fighting is my life, and I need to do it again,” Rousey said. “After going through all of that, I have a much bigger point to make this time. … I have more experience (than Nunes) being under the most pressure possible, and the pressure’s different. I’m still the greatest fighter in the world.”
