Ronda Rousey Drops Sara McMann with Liver Blow: Was Booing Justified?

Ronda Rousey received a lot of loud booing from the crowd following her UFC 170 victory on Saturday night against her opponent Sara McMann.

She retained her UFC women’s bantamweight title after dropping McMann with a painful blow to the liver after just over a minute of the first round.

During the post-fight interview the crowd booed Ronda Rousey after the main event was halted by referee Herb Dean at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.

Rousey said, post-match: “I didn’t think it was too soon. Obviously, that’s why we have a referee in there. I just went to that spot.”

She continued to speak about how she has become a more accomplished, all-round martial artist:

I told (UFC President) Dana (White) I will fight on 24 hours’ notice. I know we spent a lot of time training in the clinch. We were focusing on the knees. I’m still learning. I was doing the judo when I was kid. I feel I’m more rounded as a martial artist now.

McMann responded to questions from reporters noting that she could have done better:

Looking back, it seem kind of quick. I should get up quicker. If you want to win fights, you have to get up quicker. When I hit the ground, I got my bearings back. When I heard his voice, I was reaching for a leg.

Ronda Rousey seemed to be enjoying her win as she blew a kiss to the crowd following the fight. After all, McMann only managed to land one good shot on Rousey and her victory was a comprehensive one.

Ronda Rousey spoke about the promises she had made to her coaches: “I promised my coaches I would drop her with a body shot. It was a goal I had for this fight. I’m happy I did that for them tonight,” she said.