Overconfidence or arrogance?
One or the other played a pivotal role in the shocking KO of the UFC's top star, Ronda Rousey as Holy Holm sent her crashing to the canvas after a highlight reel head kick to claim the Bantam Weight championship in front of a record setting crowd in Melbourne, Australia. As a 14-1 underdog, not many gave Holy Holm, a former multiple time boxing champion, a chance in the main event of UFC 193, but a series of mistake led to Rousey being dethroned as the 135 LBS champion.
Nothing less than dominate prior to the last weekend's defeat, Rousey only needed more than a round to be victorious twice in his mixed martial arts career and become known for her lightening fast finishes more recently. In fact, Rousey finished her last four fights in a little over a combined two minutes, including a 34 second KO of Beathe Correia the last time she was in the cage this past August. Aside from adding wins to her MMA record, Ronda has appeared in movies, TV shows, a segment at Wrestlemania, and released an autobiography in 2015. She's also scheduled to film the remake of the film Road House early next year. The combination of skill and main stream exposure led to Rousey bringing a completely new demographic as well as a new dynamic to the UFC, but those outside projects may have set the stage for her to be defeated inside the octagon.
Ronda brought a 12-0 record into the cage on Saturday with a fierce offense of punches and her trademark arm bar to compliment the judo background that earned her a bronze medal in 2008. There's no doubt that Rousey is an elite fighter that has dominated skilled opponents during her career. However, when Ronda stepped into the octagon with the undefeated challenger, she was too aggressive and played completely into Holm's game. Sloppy striking from the judo expert and Holly's technical foot work allowed Holm to land jabs as Rousey tried to unsuccessfully rush into exchanges with wild punches. I was surprised that Rousey continued the strategy of chasing the challenger in the second round after she took damage in the opening five minutes of the bout, but Holm exploited the flawed attempted at offense. Less than a minute into the second round, Holm staggered Rousey with a punch to set up the previously mentioned head kick and the referee stopped the contest shortly after Ronda collapsed to the mat.
As mentioned, I don't know why Ronda would try to strike with a former pro boxing champion, especially considering how far advanced boxing striking usually is than the punches that are featured in MMA. Did Rousey just assume she would drop Holm with a flurry of punches as she had done to other opponents? With an Olympic grappling background, why would the former champion risk a striking exchange with a boxer?
Overconfidence or arrogance?
Whatever the case, Rousey assuming she would leave Melbourne with the championship and stating it very publicly in interviews before the fight gave Holly Holm the opportunity to overwhelm Ronda with top level striking. Not to take anything away from Holm, but Rousey's fundamental mistakes made it very possible for Holly to win the title. Why Ronda didn't attempt more take downs is anyone's guess, but her lack of precaution for Holm's ability led to the defeat. It has been said many times, but anything can happen in mixed martial arts and you can't overlook an undefeated opponent if you want to remain the champion. Instead of talking about planning to retire undefeated and when to film Road House, Ronda should have taken Holly's record into consideration.
Part of the draw for Ronda Rousey is she brings an authenticity to the sport, but some of the glitz and glamour of the main stream media could have diluted it. Make no mistake, there will be a rematch and it will be major money for the UFC. I would guess that Ronda Rousey will be more prepared and more cautious when she finds herself in the unfamiliar role of challenger. The reality check and the lesson learned from the UFC 193 defeat could be one of the most important things in Rhonda's career if she wants to be the UFC Bantam weight champion again.
Some have made comparisons to Buster Douglas beating Mike Tyson in Tokyo in 1990, but that's unfair to Holly Holm. Tyson was landing punches on Douglas before he got caught with a series on punches and couldn't beat the count. Holly Holm is undefeated with an extensive boxing record, she was more prepared for the fight, and exploited her opponent's mistakes to win the championship.
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