“It’s unfortunate for Ronda but I’m happy for Holly in the same time. In this game, no one’s invincible. Sometimes you zig when you should zag. I needed to beat a lot of my own demons, a lot of my fear and I came back stronger. So in a way for Ronda it’s sad that she lost, but maybe it could be the best thing that ever happened to her, in that she will come back much stronger… The fact that I lost made me realize that I was a human being. It was very hard to come back from a loss. I needed [the help of] a sports psychologist. Because what is very important to a fighter is the confidence and sometimes with a loss like this, you can lose your confidence. Actually I thought it was kind of weird but I felt better after. It taught me what it takes to become world champion and when I lost to Matt Serra, it taught me what it takes to stay world champion.”
-Georges St-Pierre talks to The Canadian Press about Ronda Rousey’s UFC 193 loss, and why it could wind up being a positive for her career.
Penick’s Analysis: GSP came back strong after losing his title, but his loss to Serra was significantly different than Rousey’s loss to Holm. Serra caught St-Pierre early with a punch and didn’t let up. Holm showed off a much superior striking game that Rousey couldn’t figure out, which eventually led to the finish. There was a major talent gap between St-Pierre and Serra that was evident in the rematch, and I don’t think the same will be the case when Rousey and Holm meet again. That’s not to say Rousey’s incapable of winning the rematch, there’s just a lot more for her to fix to beat Holm than St-Pierre needed in order to beat Serra.
[Photo (c) Jason Silva via USA Today Sports]
Good analysis. I personally thought that Rousey also didn’t look to be in the same “championship condition” that she’s been in the past (I’m reminded of Tate/Rousey I). A LOT of people hyped her to the moon, which can conceivable blind almost anyone in that position.
She indeed has obvious holes in her stand-up game–but that’s not to say that she wasn’t steadily improving up to that point, either: She was simply exposed by someone who was already at an elite level in that dept. If she still has that competitive fire, I’d expect her to make the necessary changes to her training camp, and come back even better.