When Ronda Rousey made it into the UFC, some continued to call her a one trick pony with little striking prowess. But under coach Edmond Tarverdyan’s careful eye, she has evolved to the point where even an all time great like Mike Tyson is impressed with her hands.
Tyson spent the day watching Ronda train at the Glendale Fight Club in preparation for her UFC 190 fight against Bethe Correia, and the Baddest Man on the Planet had nothing but glowing words for the Baddest Woman. Via Yahoo Sports:
“Ronda is a lady and she’s bright, kind, sweet and adorable,” Tyson said. “But her whole barometer [as a fighter] is, she’s the killer. She has that killer aura, meaning anything is capable of happening. Whoa! That’s exciting before the fight even starts.”
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“All of us are here to see her, and how does she stay focused with all of this?” Tyson said. “How does she not say, ‘I am the [expletive]. I am beautiful. I am a god.’ I’m serious. Listen, if you want to become anything close to being a god, the first thing you’ve got to know how to do is know how to decimate. If you’re a god, you have to know how to decimate, and that’s what she does.“It would be very easy for her to have a big head: [Speaking as if he were Rousey], ‘I can beat anybody in this world.’ I don’t know. Maybe she’s a likeness of a god.”
Here’s some footage from the training session care of Instagram user Abletowill:
This isn’t the first time Iron Mike has gushed over how much he respects Rousey and her skills. Earlier this year he weighed in on a hypothetical fight with Floyd Mayweather and sided with Ronda, saying “Sh*t, Ronda Rousey might kick my ass!” And back in 2013 the former world champion looked like a bashful superfan meeting his idol when Good Day LA surprised him and brought Rousey out to share the interview with him.
