Ronda Rousey has been very open about her concussion historical past as she’s launched into a profession as an writer.
The previous Final Combating Championship (UFC) and World Wrestling Leisure (WWE) champion has put her aggressive days behind her seemingly for good. In fact, you possibly can by no means say by no means in fight sports activities or skilled wrestling, however Rousey has already put loads of focus in her writing this previous 12 months.
Rousey, 37, returned to the media highlight for a number of promotional excursions earlier than the discharge of her newest memoir, Our Struggle. In these appearances, Rousey revealed her reoccurring dealings with concussions, which in the end led to her retirement after her first and solely losses in combined martial arts (MMA), knockouts from Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes. Nevertheless, based on Rousey, they had been truly a lifelong concern.
“If the concussions weren’t a difficulty, issues would’ve occurred utterly in a different way,” Rousey advised CBS Sports activities. “Accumulative neurological harm is one thing individuals don’t discuss in MMA. It’s one thing that everyone is coping with at a unique tempo. I began coping with it at six years outdated. I began getting concussions a lot earlier on in swimming. Two children doing a backstroke within the different course crack heads or hit the wall doing the backstroke.
“I began doing judo at a younger age and saved getting concussions commonly and a number of occasions a 12 months and never being allowed to talk up or say something about it,” she continued. “As a fighter, you’re not supposed to point out any weak spot or discuss issues like that or the inevitable neurological decline that comes with taking headshots. Lots of people discuss it as if it’s making excuses or weak spot.”
Rousey retired from MMA in early 2017 after the aforementioned loss to Nunes that got here in 48 seconds at UFC 207 in December 2016. Though she went on to have a strong run in WWE afterward, Rousey knew she might not stick round within the sport she made her identify in even when she wished to.
“I’ve an entire listing for my life to consider, and also you’ll by no means know if you take one hit too many till many a long time later,” Rousey mentioned. “However I additionally don’t suppose I’d be serving the game or the division the fitting approach if I caught round too lengthy. I received to some extent the place I knew that I actually couldn’t be taking these head impacts and proceed to compete at that very same stage. It doesn’t do the game any favor. It’s a foul look on girls’s MMA usually. I’m the consultant of that sport.”
