Down Goes Rousey

Early in the 2^nd round of her UFC 193 title fight with Ronda Rousey, Holly Holm put to rest the notion that a boxer would be destroyed by someone using mixed martial arts (MMA).  And this wasn’t just any MMA fighter Holm was up against, it was the seemingly unstoppable woman who rarely allows an opponent to survive 30 seconds into the 1^st round.  But the armbar submission queen was actually up against a “striker” who was previously a professional boxer…and that boxing prowess showed.

Was Rousey exposed in this fight?  ABSOLUTELY! 

Rousey was repeatedly taking straight jabs to the mouth all throughout the match.  Her face was reddened and her mouth was bloodied early on.  Indeed Holm also made effective use of her kick, but this looked like a boxing match in which one fighter was consistently able to land precise, crisp punches while the other had no clue how to defend against them.  And though Holm’s final kick to Rousey’s head was the nail in the coffin for Rousey, it was the punch to the face immediately preceding the kick that staggered her and opened her up to be kicked (just like many knockouts in boxing in which the knockout punch is preceded by a punch that staggers or stuns the eventual loser).

Prior to the match, I read an article on fivethirtyeight.com that pointed out how different Rousey and Holm were as fighters.  Most of Rousey’s wins came by submission while most of Holms came by knockout.  In fact, Holm has never won by submission.  The article also pointed out Rousey’s deficiencies in both striking defense and offense, both strengths for Holm.

After reading the article I thought, “If the styles are that different, Holm could win…if she keeps distance.” 

To me, victory in sports often comes down to specific matchups, and this seemed like a different enough matchup for Rousey that it could be problematic for her (although I’d never seen Holm fight before).  Rousey’s style is predicated on grappling her opponent and then taking them down for a submission.  As pointed out by the fivethirtyeight.com article, Rousey is not an efficient or effective striker, and she does not defend well against strikes.  For the 1^st time, Rousey faced someone who could expose those weaknesses; someone who was effective at keeping distance by throwing precise jabs (thus avoiding grapples), and who lands many of the punches she throws (exposing weak defense against strikes).

Punch! Kick! Ground and Pound!!!  And Rousey’s undisputed dominance was over!

Personally, I think anyone, no matter their style or record, can be beaten.  And I don’t have a “dog in the fight” between the fans of MMA versus the fans of boxing.  But I do know, what seemed to be the prevailing line of logic, i.e. “a boxer wouldn’t stand a chance against an MMA fighter,” took a major punch to the face with Rousey’s loss to Holm last night…pun intended!

-Maelstrom