Before experiencing the most devastating moment of her career against Holly Holm at UFC 193 last November, Ronda Rousey was on top of the world.
Apart from the movie deals and talks show appearances, Rousey was even touted by Sports Illustrated magazine as the “most dominant athlete.”
Rousey was essentially living another life outside of fighting, given her obligations as a celebrity figure. And for veteran analyst Joe Rogan, these extracurricular obligations may have taken a toll on her.
“These themes play themselves out over and over again,” Rogan said in his podcast “The Joe Rogan Experience.” “The traps are all there, but everybody keeps going for the candy and they keep getting caught in the trap. The traps of Hollywood are always there for any superstar athlete, especially fighters and we’ve seen it all throughout history.”
“It becomes this Hollywood trap. And Ronda was — and still is — a giant superstar. She’s this undefeated women’s fighter. She’s crushing all the competition, she looks like a destroyer and then the f—-ng traps.”
Prior to her loss to Holm, Rousey did live up to the hype placed behind her, with her highlight reel finishes of Alexis Davis, Cat Zingano, and Bethe Correia respectively. These wins had rightfully given her the aura of invincibility, which according to Rogan, was one of the main reasons for her own downfall.
“That’s something that happens when someone gets so absorbed with this idea that they’re special,” Rogan said. “So absorbed with this idea — when you’re on top, you think you are the f—-ng person, you are the woman, you’re the man, you’re the sh-t. No one’s gonna f—k with you, I’m just going to run through this b-tch! And then you get cracked.
“Then you realize this game doesn’t give a f–k. This game doesn’t give a f–k about your charisma. It doesn’t give a f–k about the Vegas odds. It doesn’t give a f–k about how much money you made or how many times you’ve been on ‘Entourage’ or how many movie deals. This game doesn’t give a f–k.”