LAS VEGAS One of the entertaining signatures of a Ronda Rousey fight is the menacingglare she maintains on her ring walk from her arena dressing room to theoctagon.
Rousey, in an exclusive interview with The Times on Friday less than three hours before her weigh-in for Saturday nights UFC 170 pay-per-view fight against 2004 Olympic silver medalist wrestler Sara McMann, said the focus intensifies on fight day.
When I start putting my hair in fight hair, and put my outfit on its fight time. We walk, and we go, Rousey (8-0) said from her Las Vegas suite. Its not a good time to talk to me.
I dont know why everyone thinks Im angry. Im not going around bubbly when Im about to go fight. Im focused on what Im doing. Im not playing around. This is a fight. I have to be entirely present and focused.
She said she expects to make weight at Fridays 4 p.m. weigh-in after working with nutrition expert Mike Dolce. McMann told The Times on Thursday she too is fine for the 135-pound limit.
Rousey said she appreciates the tiny window of rest after the weigh-in and the second eye of the storm, of the fight.
For Rousey, the bout comes less than two months after her third-round armbar victory over Miesha Tate on Dec. 28 at MGM Grand.
She said McMann, 33,is her toughest fight yet. I rise to the occasion when the opponent is better. I have a high-level opponent and a short layoff. That really brings out the best in me.
Shes an Olympian, a different level of athlete, like [UFC debut opponent and U.S.military veteran] Liz Carmouche that level of mental capacity, that level ofpressure youve already been trained to deal with is special.
Sara will not come in having already defeated herself. Im not counting on her to beat herself. Im counting on me to be the fighter thats more technical, more skilled and wants it more. I know I want it more than her.
Rousey, having sharpened her body-punching this camp in Glendale to complement her armbar skill and 2008 Olympic bronze-medal judo discipline, said she believes she believes shes superior to McMann (7-0) on the canvas or in stand-up.
All the throws that exist in wrestling exist in judo, Rousey said. Theres a lot of things in wrestling that dont exist in judo -- submissions being one of them. Those are brand new to her. Transitioning from a throw into a submission is new to her. The gripping in judo translates more to the clench work in MMA than wrestling does.
Rousey has won all eight of her mixed martial arts fights by armbar, where she grips, pulls, contorts the arm of her opponents until they tap out. In an earlier meeting, Rousey broke Tates arm.
Her mother, a world champion judo fighter, taught her the skill.
Theres certain points where I know, I got it, Rousey said. A person might not even know theyre caught yet, but Ill know Im on the path.
Rousey said her armbars happen with such regularity because she can produce one from every single position I have. Same thing with throws. Its never-ending, a chain.
She said a mom-ism is that once shes settled holding an opponents arm, If you lose the armbar from there, you deserve to lose the whole fight.
Thats why the clutch tightens so painfully, Rousey said.
I know that I have it, but I get hyper-focused, thinking, Dont get too happy. I have such confidence at that point, I could wave to my mom, say, Hi everybody, and then finish.
She said her feeling at victory is a sigh of relief and cry of victory at the same time.
Its a judo thing. I dont jump on cages, run around, scream. I try to make sure the persons OK and give some hugs. Even Miesha, when I broke her arm, I didnt smile. I made sure she was OK.
Rousey took heat for not shaking bitter rival Tates extended hand after beating her in the rematch.
She explained, Thats how I show respect. I might not show respect in the way other people want me to, but I show respect in the way I was taught.
Rousey said she expects to feel the itch to fight again in late summer after beginning filming for the Entourage movie in Los Angeles in mid-March.
ALSO:
Ronda Rousey ready for a gripping UFC title fight
Johnny Manziel ready to show he is less flash than substance
Did the Browns try to trade for 49ers Coach Jim Harbaugh
Source: http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-ufc-ronda-rousey-mcmann-20140221,0,1701660.story
No comments:
Post a Comment