Rachael Ostovich: 'It's Not A Bad Life, Just A Bad Day'

Rachael Ostovich’s fight with Paige VanZant last weekend may not have turned out like she would have hoped, but there was a certain triumph in just making the walk.

On Saturday night, the main card of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s debut event on ESPN+ featured a flyweight bout between Ostovich and VanZant. Ostovich came into the fight having recovered from a broken orbital bone she sustained late last year as a result of an alleged attack by her husband, Arnold Berdon, and injury that had left the bout in apparent jeopardy.

The 27-year-old Hawaiian took the fight to her younger opponent, getting the better of the exchanges early before “12 Gauge” used her wrestling skills in the second round to take her opponent down, then locked up an armbar. Ostovich tapped to the hold and seemed to have hurt her elbow in the process.

Ostovich spoke to reporters backstage after the bout and said the injury she sustained during the fight is just part and parcel of the sport (via MMAJunkie.com):

“I could show you, but I don’t want to cry on camera,” Ostovich said. “You know, I’m grateful to be here. I’m grateful to be standing here, even though the outcome wasn’t what I wanted or expected out of myself. It sucks, losing sucks. But it’s life. And we learn a lot in this sport. And that’s just how fights are sometimes. You can be winning the whole time and, in a scramble, it happens. That’s MMA for you.”

Ostovich maintained a positive outlook after the loss and claimed that after a tumultuous few months, she is simply taking things one day at a time.

“It’s definitely been a whirlwind, this past couple of months,” Ostovich said. “And I just keep taking it day by day. And that’s just what it is, today, just another day. It’s not a bad life, just a bad day.”

The loss meant Ostovich’s record now stands at four wins and five losses while VanZant improves to 8-4.