Former UFC women’s bantamweight champion and current WWE star Ronda Rousey has never been a particularly big fan of the media. In the wake of her MMA losses to Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes, her relationship with the media got even more tense.
Speaking during a recent Q&A to promote her new movie Mile 22, Rousey explained why she’s been so impatient with the media — particularly of late.
“We live in an age of trial by Twitter,” she said. “What is really gained by stating opinion on anything? It whittles people down. It gets cut and pasted 10 times and it’s in [a] headline.”
“Why should I talk? I believe hearing me speak is a privilege, and it’s a privilege that’s been abused, so why not revoke it from everyone?”
Miesha Tate, the chief rival of Rousey’s MMA career, has gotten wind of these comments, and she’s not impressed.
“People are gonna say I’m being a hater but I’m gonna be honest, I think it’s a bit ridiculous and I think it’s very above herself,” Tate said on the most recent episode of UFC Tonight (transcribed by Jed Meshew for MMA Fighting). “This kind of attitude, this is where we butt heads. This is the point where we don’t agree. Sometimes Ronda will say something that’s humble and I’ll be like, ‘Hey, that’s a great comment.’ This is asinine.”
“I think this is not the kind of attitude that you should have when you’re someone who is in the position of Ronda. Ronda’s very fortunate. Granted, she’s worked very hard, but there’s a lot of people that work really, really hard and don’t get to that point of stardom or financial benefit or whatever it is. It’s a combined effort. To say ‘it’s a privilege to hear me speak’ is just sounds rude and full of herself. She really sounds full of herself.”
What do you think of Miesha Tate’s take on Ronda Rousey’s recent comments?
This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 5/4/2018.