Ronda Rousey Announces Permanent Departure from MMA, Citing Neurological Damage
Ronda Rousey has officially dismissed any speculation regarding her potential return to mixed martial arts (MMA). The pioneering female fighter and former UFC champion revealed the harrowing reasons behind her early departure from the sport in 2016, emphasizing that her decision is final.
One of the primary reasons for her departure was irreversible neurological damage. Rousey explained that she is no longer neurologically fit to compete at the highest level. "It's nice to feel missed, I guess. But it's not happening. I'm not neurologically fit to compete anymore at the highest level. I just can't. You just get to a level where the neurological injuries you take accumulate over time. They don't get better," she candidly shared.
Rousey's journey from the bottom ranks of regional competitions to becoming a household name in Strikeforce and later the UFC is well-documented. As a breakthrough athlete, she played a pivotal role in changing UFC President Dana White's stance on women's participation in the UFC. Her influence raised the profile of women's fighting in the MMA world significantly.
However, her MMA career, marked by rapid ascension and stardom, came to a rather abrupt halt following back-to-back knockout losses to Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes. These defeats shed light on the hidden and accumulating toll her body had undergone over the years.
Reflecting on her condition during fights, Rousey recounted, "I got to a point where I couldn't take a jab without getting dazed, without getting concussion symptoms. It just got to a point where it wasn't safe for me to fight anymore. I just couldn't continue to fight at that higher level." Her descriptions underscore the severe impact of sustained head trauma, which eventually made it impossible for her to compete safely.
Rousey's battle with concussions began long before her MMA days. Astonishingly, she began experiencing concussions at the tender age of six while swimming competitively. Rousey recalled the innocence of childhood activities turning dangerous, saying, "I started dealing with it at six years old. I started getting concussions much earlier on in swimming. Two kids doing a backstroke in the other direction crack heads or hit the wall doing the backstroke."
This trajectory continued into her judo pursuits, where she frequently suffered concussions, multiple times each year, often without being allowed to speak up about her condition. "I started doing judo at a young age and kept getting concussions regularly and multiple times a year and not being allowed to speak up or say anything about it," she explained.
By the time she transitioned into MMA, her medical history included dozens of concussions, many sustained without appropriate recovery time. "When I got into MMA, I had already had dozens of concussions that I trained through. Like, not even stopped for. So that was about a decade of having concussion symptoms more often than not. So when I got into MMA, I was playing a game of zero errors," Rousey recounted, highlighting the precarious nature of her fight career.
She revealed that the physical demands and frequent competition exacerbated her condition, making even the lightest hits increasingly dangerous. "Then it got to the point where I was fighting more often than anybody. I had more outside of fighting responsibilities than anybody, and it just got to be lighter and lighter hits were hurting me more and more and more," Rousey shared.
The culture within combat sports often discourages athletes from showing any signs of weakness or discussing long-term neurological decline. Rousey spoke out against this ingrained mentality, stating, "As a fighter, you're not supposed to show any weakness or talk about things like that or the inevitable neurological decline that comes with taking headshots. A lot of people talk about it as if it's making excuses or weakness."
The courage to break her silence on these issues opens up critical discussions on athlete health and safety, particularly in sports rife with concussion risks. Rousey's story adds significant weight to the ongoing conversation about better concussion management and support systems in contact sports, spotlighting the invisible battles many athletes face.
Though she has permanently hung up her gloves, Rousey's legacy in MMA remains intact. Not only did she elevate women's fighting to new heights, but her candid revelations also serve as a powerful reminder of the importance of prioritizing athlete health over the allure of competition.