Ronda Rousey hasn’t fought in the Octagon in nearly two years, but as arguably the most dominant woman in UFC history, she’s still quite the authority on what happens inside that cage.
TMZ recently caught up with the former bantamweight champion where Rousey shared her thoughts on the Khabib Nurmagomedov-Conor McGregor fight, and the insanity that ensued in the fight’s aftermath.
“I understand promoting fights and having to sell them. I really do. I get it. But I don’t think people have to get arrested in order to do that,” Rousey said. “Their performances aren’t going to get enough credit because of what happened and I really hope it doesn’t become an ongoing trend. I want people to feel safe bringing their kids to fights.”
The leadup to UFC 229 was one of the more tense in the organization’s history. McGregor was arrested following an attack on a UFC bus in April after a member of Khabib’s team allegedly assaulted McGregor’s trainer. McGregor took things a step further by calling Nurmagomedov’s manager a “terrorist rat,” and called Nurmagomedov’s father a “quivering coward.” That resulted in the brawl that followed the conclusion of the championship fight, where Nurmagomedov threw his mouthpiece at McGregor’s corner and jumped over the Octagon to attack Conor’s team outside the cage before members of Nurmagomedov’s entourage hopped into the cage to brawl with McGregor.
The Nevada State Athletic Commission is considering fines and suspensions against McGregor and Nurmagomedov, which could result in Khabib being stripped of his title. But Khabib’s actions will likely draw a steeper punishment than McGregor’s bus stunt.
“I think that Khabib jumping out of the Octagon was not as bad as throwing objects at a bus, because my friend Rose Namajunas was on that bus. My friend, Michael Chiesa, missed his fight because (he suffered an injured from broken glass),” said Rousey. “So I just feel like there has to be equal treatment all the way across the board. I don’t think that anyone should get special treatment because they’re a bigger draw.”
Rousey absolutely has a point here, and it’s worth acknowledging across the board. McGregor was not punished by the UFC (he was briefly arrested) in the aftermath of his bus attack, and it seems the same goes for their post-match skirmish. There has to be some control from the organization, and at this point it’s pretty clear the biggest draw in the company — McGregor — can do as he pleases.
(H/T MMA Fighting)
