Ronda Rousey justifies media silence: ‘I believe hearing me speak is a privilege’

Ronda Rousey was once one the most prominent figures in MMA, both due to her massive success inside the Octagon and her willingness to speak outside of it.

But following a brutal championship loss to Holly Holm in November 2015, Rousey essentially became a recluse outside of a few already scheduled appearances, and she hardly did any media ahead of her subsequent fight, a 48-second defeat at the hands of Amanda Nunes. Since then, Rousey has been reluctant to talk about the trials and tribulations of her fighting career as she transitions into her role as a performer for the WWE.

On Wednesday, Rousey participated in a Q&A at the Wild Card West boxing gym alongside director Peter Berg to promote their upcoming film Mile 22, and she elaborated on the reasons why she chose to become more private.

“We live in an age of trial by Twitter,” Rousey said, according to MMAjunkie. “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.

“(Famous people) keep more and more of it to themselves. 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? I don’t believe public criticism beating you down is the right thing to do.”

Rousey has been more active in social media since joining the WWE, posting videos of her training with her new peers, and she also took part in several interviews in the lead-up to WrestleMania 34.

However, she seemed to acknowledge Wednesday that losing took a toll on her not just because of the criticism that followed, but because of her lack of preparation for such an outcome.

“My parents expected me to be special, so I expected to be special,” Rousey said. “I was just trying to create the job I wanted, and I wouldn’t have the audacity to do that if my mom didn’t tell me I could.

“But one thing my mother never taught me was how to lose. She never wanted me to entertain it as a possibility. She’d say: ‘Let it suck. It deserves to suck.’”

Rousey has not competed in MMA since December 2016 and according to her, the last two years or so have been mostly spent recovering. She married fellow UFC fighter Travis Browne and changed careers, and is now preparing for the release of her next Hollywood film.