If there was any credibility left to Ronda Rousey as a MMA fighter, it went out the window after she got knocked out by Amanda Nunes in just 48 seconds, making her comeback another trial of humiliation, leading to a downpour of memes making fun of her.
After dominating and rising to the top of the sport in terms of popularity through a very quick round of fights in which she beat everything in her way, usually within less than a minute, Rousey became too in love with the attention, and for the second straight time, looked completely outclassed and unprepared. Maybe she just can’t fight pure boxers in the Octagon, but someone must have told her at some point that just like against Holly Holm, her first career loss a year ago that was also her last fight, she can’t try and outbox these fighters.
So from the face of the sport, Rousey is probably going out as a loser. Not that losing is such a disaster, but the way it happened, contrasted with her arrogant approach before the first loss and the complete media silence following it, make her out to be a sore loser. Fans of the sport don’t care about personal difficulties, and Rousey claiming she contemplated suicide following the loss to Holm. She talked a lot, and couldn’t back it up, so everyone claiming was speaking the truth.
What now? Maybe WWE, where she’ll try to carry over what remains of her superstardom and cash in on it, without the risk of actually getting beaten up. Maybe movies, her ultimate dream, which was always a bit of a reach. Rousey is a star, still a major draw, but people like winner, and unless Rousey suddenly changes the trajectory of her career, that’s not how she’s walking away from the UFC.