TUF 20 finalist Rose Namajunas talks about the pressure she faced going into her title fight with Carla Esparza.
“It’s not an excuse. At the same time, it kinda is because I’m mentioning it. It’s to make people understand what’s really going on. It’s not just the punching and kicking. It’s not just who is the better fighter. It’s also who is the better fighter that day and who feels better. There’s so much more that goes into it. More than people think.”
“Let’s take it in baby steps. I’m only 22. I’m doing pretty well for myself. Let’s not jump the gun and say that I’m Ronda Rousey. She’s been competing at elite levels since she was very little. She’s got that time in. To compare me to her, it’s like, ‘Oh yeah, of course I’m going to go to practice today. I’m the next Ronda Rousey.’
“It’s kind of cringe worthy when you hear Pat [Barry] in the corner yelling all these obscene things. He’s overly hype. He bought into the hype. Everybody did.”
[source:MMAFighting]