Holm Vs Rousey

By Dina El Hallak

The meeting of the giants occurred on November 14, 2015 when Holly Holm and Ronda Rousey faced each other in Melbourne. Ronda, who obliterated everyone in her division, took the sporting world by storm and put the mainstream eye on MMA like never before, got knocked out from opponent, Holly Holm in the second round. The latter, also a professional boxer with several titles under her belt, ended the fight with a beautifully timed head kick during a very fragile time. Rousey collapsed, pushing the referee to even hesitate on the stoppage due to her dominant and well known past. Consequently, this allowed Holm to add two unnecessary kicks to Ronda’s unconscious cranium, which ended the legendary one-on-one on the spot. Earlier, prior the game, Holly explains: “When I get out there I think, you know what, the time is right now, you gotta make it happen right now” she says in an interview. She also adds that she would be the one to blame if she lost the fight: “If I lose this fight its my own fault. I have all the help in the world, I had all the preparation in the world, the best coaching, the best teammates, and everybody in the family and number one my husband everyday supporting me”. All of this positive attitude and determination brought Holly a very well deserved victory. Obviously this was a great accomplishment for her but being the fair person that she is, and having all this respect for the champion, she agreed with UFC promoters that Ronda deserves a rematch. Holm highlights: “I don’t look at this fight and think I’ve made it. I think I’ve still got some things to do”. Before the fight, both champions were interviewed and Rousey’s confidence didn’t allow her to acknowledge an option besides winning. Nobody had any doubt about that and losing hasn’t pushed her fans away nor changed the way they perceived their idol. Holly herself did not let this victory demean Ronda and did not lose any respect for her as she made it clear that she was open to giving her another chance. Despite all that, some people are glad Rousey lost. The way she will recover from a loss will definitely be far more interesting than another dozen wins. The 12 time UFC champion was losing focus, getting distracted and drowning in her own craze. This loss will push her to get her head back in the game and refocus her. The problem isn’t losing; it’s falling and not be able to get back up. All great legends struggled and got knocked down, it isn’t about how hard a fighter can hit, it’s about getting hit and still moving forward.