Ronda Rousey's judo and grappling coach has taken a shot at critics slamming the former UFC women's bantamweight champion after her shocking loss at the hands of Holly Holm at UFC 193.
Justin Flores, who has worked with Rousey for years, told MMAjunkie's John Morgan too many "fly-by-night ‘MMA media’ publications” have been running “click-bait stories,” and that Rousey will come back to “mark her legacy as the greatest of all time":
These click-bait stories (they) run diminish all the hard work we do and undermine just how important her judo takedowns, transitions and submissions are. Many of these publications do zero research and are now turning on her, slamming the most popular, talented and hardworking athlete I have ever known after a performance that was not to her normal standard that we all know, expect and are used to seeing.
[…] Look out MMA world. Every great hero has trials and tribulations and loss – it’s how she recovers and comes back that will mark her legacy as the greatest of all time. Mark my words.
Rousey was the overwhelming favourite entering her title defence against Holm at UFC 193, having won her last three fights in less than two minutes combined, per ESPN.com. She was undefeated in 12 fights, winning all by submission or knockout, and only one fighter?Miesha Tate?ever made it out of the first round with her.
But leading up to her bout with Holm, something seemed different about the 28-year-old. She lost her composure during the weigh-in, briefly scuffling with her opponent before calling her out on social media, per MMAjunkie's Brent Brookhouse.
The fight itself was a complete disaster for Rousey. Holm did a fantastic job sliding her feet and avoiding the clinch, and before long, she was landing big shots on Rousey, who dropped her hands far too early and failed to lock in an armbar the one time she managed to bring the fight to the mat.
By the end of the first round, the undefeated champion was visibly exhausted and bleeding severely, and Holm finished the job with a huge kick early in the second round, as seen below:
During his interview, Flores congratulated Holm on fighting a “great fight,” but he also thought the constant media attention and absurd hype clearly impacted Rousey inside the Octagon: “There was so much anxiety and things circling before the fight, it kind of manifested that way.”
There's plenty of speculation regarding Rousey's future following the first loss of her UFC career, with UFC star Jose Aldo even suggesting we may never see her fight again, as he told MMA Fighting's Guilherme Cruz.
Aldo thinks she may draw inspiration from Gina Carano, arguably the biggest female MMA star before Rousey came along. Carano was already working on becoming a mainstream star when she suffered her first career defeat at the hands of Cris Cyborg, and she never returned to the Octagon.
Others have suggested a rematch, but UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier thinks Rousey would need plenty of time to prepare before meeting Holm again, as he said while appearing on The Herd with Colin Cowherd on Tuesday:
Per MMA Fighting's David St. Martin, he said:
Holly Holm looked like a world-beater on Saturday. Going forward, they're talking about an immediate rematch for Ronda Rousey? The improvements Ronda needs to make will take much longer than the six-month break she's anticipating. She needs a year or so. I would actually not fight her back again, if I was Team Rousey.
Flores, who knows Rousey better than most, seems convinced she will return to the Octagon, and she'll return victorious and reclaim her spot atop the women's bantamweight division. He thought back to her days as a judo champion, when she was forced to deal with adversity as well:
I’ve seen her lose before, and her world was over. It didn’t make sense. Black was white. Day was night, and nothing made sense, but she was able to step back up. Obviously, that was a different stage, and she’s under a much bigger microscope now, so everything is amplified. But a loss is a loss still, if it’s getting knocked out or just having a referee say you lost in judo.
Of course, the physical repercussions of a vicious knockout like the one she suffered against Holm can leave a far greater impact. For the first time in her UFC career, Rousey and fight fans all over the world learned she's not invincible, and that could take its toll both physically and mentally.
One loss doesn't erase years of complete dominance, and there's every reason to believe Rousey will return to the Octagon in style. A win against Holm in a potential rematch would surely silence the critics, and it would do wonders for Rousey's UFC legacy.
