Amanda Nunes: ‘I Don’t Know How Ronda Rousey Went Too Far in This Division’

Amanda Nunes emphatically ended any hype that might have remained for Ronda Rousey last week, but the UFC women’s bantamweight champion doesn’t understand how her opponent reached such lofty heights in the first place.

“I don’t know how Ronda Rousey went too far in this division,” Nunes recently told TMZ Sports. “I don’t understand how those girls lost to Ronda Rousey. I know since my first fight in the UFC I can beat Ronda Rousey. Of course I had to take my time and put everything together. That day was the day to prove to everybody and I did it.”

Nunes demolished Rousey at UFC 207 last week, winning via technical knockout 48 seconds into the opening frame. The Olympic judoka looked lost as the Brazilian known as “Lioness” blasted her with hard left and right hands, and Rousey was unable to drag the fight into her comfort zone — the clinch — before the contest was halted.

It was Rousey’s first appearance since a headkick knockout defeat to Holly Holm at UFC 193 in November 2015. After beginning her MMA career with 12 consecutive victories, back-to-back lopsided defeats have many questioning Rousey’s legacy in the sport. Nunes, for one, believes that the UFC put “Rowdy” on a pedestal that she didn’t deserve.

“Yes for sure [she’s overrated]. UFC made this happen,” Nunes said. “They put her in a place where she’s not at, but I know I could beat Ronda Rousey since I saw her first fight.”