Ronda Rousey Suspended: 45-Day Medical Suspension Following Loss At UFC 207
Ronday Rousey suffered a tough defeat on December 30, 2016, at UFC 207. She was defeated in under 48 seconds to Brazilian MMA fighter Amanda Nunes. The speed at which the bout was over caused varied reactions.
The moment Amanda Nunes ended Ronda #Rousey's UFC career #UFC207 pic.twitter.com/ukd0axr3WH
— Chisanga Malata (@Chisanga_Malata) December 31, 2016
Ronda rousey's training footage should have told us it wasn't going to end well! #ufc207 #ronda #rousey pic.twitter.com/kwDccNZ8ou
— Big Dog MMA (@Bigdogmmadaily) December 31, 2016
Following the fight, NY Daily News reports, the Nevada Athletic Commission to MMA Fighting announced that Rousey would be placed on a 45-day medical suspension. The suspension was announced on Tuesday due to the loss being a TKO.
Suspending a fighter is common practice with the UFC following a KO, TKO, or serious injury. This is to ensure that the athletes take adequate time off to recuperate after a particularly hard fight. According to an article posted at MMA Fighting, 11 other fighters have received medical suspensions following UFC 207. This includes bantamweight fighter John Lineker, who suffered a broken jaw in the first round of his fight with T.J. Dillashaw. Following this, Lineker and four other fighters received medical suspensions of six months.
This was Rousey’s first fight since November 2015 and was thought to be her big comeback. ESPN reported on her first career loss to former boxing champion Holly Holm at UFC 193 in the second round. After that fight, Ronda was hospitalized shortly. She sat down for an interview on The Ellen DeGeneres Show afterward to discuss the fight and revealed that she had suicidal thoughts while recovering, the Daily Mail reports.
It’s currently unclear what Rousey will do after this second straight loss. It has been thought by some that she could perform as a Diva for WWE but some aren’t so sure. ESPN Analyst Jonathan Coachman expressed his thoughts on the matter in a few tweets.
Sorry no chance. You can't bring in her at any point. Perception matters. That performance mattered. https://t.co/0HGPgVNLod
— The Coach (@TheCoachrules) December 31, 2016
Michael listen to me. It will NEVER happen. They are not in the business of bringing in a broken star and rebuilding her. https://t.co/JUOAVig2ov
— The Coach (@TheCoachrules) December 31, 2016
Another avenue that she may explore is acting. IMDb credits her with roles in The Expendables 3, Furious 7, and Entourage. However, with the current state of her image, this may not be the best option right now. Perception seems to be key in these endeavors and Rousey may need to regain some of the notoriety that she once had. Though, her career up until the loss to Holm was nothing to take lightly. Yahoo! reported that she has been featured in many magazines, including an ESPN cover, even after her loss to Holly Holm.
Certainly, all is not lost for Rousey. If she decides to go back to training after her suspension, she still has many people in her corner. Complex reports that Rousey released a statement thanking her fans for their support and that she is going to “take some time to reflect and think about the future.” She has also received some words of encouragement from some other athletes. Jon Bones Jones tweeted out some encouragement. He goes on to suggest that she may find better luck with a bigger MMA team to help her out.
My advice to Ronda would be to pick yourself up and try again.
— BONY (@JonnyBones) December 31, 2016
Maybe she just needs to complement her coach with an MMA family. Maybe she should join one of the bigger MMA teams
— BONY (@JonnyBones) December 31, 2016
We will have to wait and see what Rousey does in the coming weeks, whether she returns to UFC following the medical suspension or tries her hand at something else.
[Featured Image by Christian Peterson/Getty Images]
