Holly Holm may have done the unthinkable when she beat UFC champion Ronda Rousey over the weekend, but she hasn’t let it go to her head. Holm said after the hard-fought match that she had a rough time training for the event because she knew exactly who she was going up against, and she never let herself think “when I win”, but rather, “IF I win”.
“This fight was a lot for me, mentally. I couldn’t tell you how many times I cried in the gym leading up to this fight. It’s a lot to take in. But those kind of fights are the ones that, a loss is that devastating, but a win is that sweet of a victory. It’s uncomfortable sometimes, but I just really like to take the chance and believe in myself,” Holly Holm told reporters after the fight.
Holm says she is absolutely down for a rematch if Rousey wants one, because she’s been on the losing end of a fight and knows the feeling of wanting to get back in the ring.
“I think a rematch makes sense for sure. I’ve been on the losing side of a fight and I wanted the rematch, I wanted to avenge my loss. With a champion like Ronda – who has gone out of her way, above and beyond, to do great things – absolutely she deserves a rematch. I don’t look at this belt and think I’ve made it. I think I still have things that I need to do. I think a rematch, I think that’s kind of unspoken common sense to me,” Holm said.
Ronda Rousey had a rough time in the days leading up to the match; at the weigh-in, there was a scuffle which led to Holm pushing Rousey away with a hand to the face, and Rousey later took to social media to call Holly out for taking a “cheap shot”. Clearly angry, Rousey may have let her temper get away with her in the midst of the match, as pointed out by the L.A. Times.
She came off as a bad sportswoman insulting and refusing to touch gloves with the even tempered and good natured Holm and then fought a wild, dangerous fight that didn’t show sufficient respect for her opponent’s ability, wrote Todd Martin.
Fake ass cheap shotting fake respect fake humility bitch – "preacher's daughter" my ass – I see… https://t.co/5jWOT4K5od
— Ronda Rousey (@RondaRousey) November 14, 2015
Ronda Rousey went down hard at the end of the match and was reportedly taken to the hospital, but is doing fine. The athlete took to Instagram to assure her fans that she’s okay and will be back in the ring soon. It’s unclear whether she’ll take Holly Holm up on the rematch.