Ronda Rousey's former coach discusses decision to accept short notice fight against Holly Holm for reported "$4.5 million"

UFC 193 Ultimate Media Day - Source: Getty
Ronda Rousey's former coach recalls conversation about accepting short notice title fight against Holly Holm [Image courtesy: Getty Images]

Ronda Rousey's former coach recently opened up about her decision to accept her short-notice title fight against Holly Holm at UFC 193 in November 2015. The bout took place at Docklands Stadium in Melbourne, Australia and set a new attendance record for the promotion.

Ad

It turned out to be a costly decision for Rousey as she lost her women's bantamweight championship in devastating fashion. Holm exploited openings in 'Rowdy's' stance and used her exceptional striking to her advantage en route to a second-round knockout via head-kick.

VICE TV posted a clip to their Instagram account from the latest episode of 'Dark Side of the Cage' in which Rousey's former coach Edmond Tarverdyan recalls the decision to accept the short notice title fight against Holm. The reported fee was '$4.5 million' and Tarverdyan mentioned that his pupil had very little time to prepare and was admittedly skeptical that she would perform at her best:

Ad

Tarverdyan said:

Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more

"When Dana White or some of the executives ask you to do something, whether it's a short-notice fight, you're going to say yes. Dana offers Ronda a potential payout that could rise higher than any in UFC history, over $4.5 million."

He added:

"I think we had like, 29 or 28 days [to prepare for the Holm fight]. It's so hard for you to compete at that level. You know, in those circumstances. So I said, 'Are you asking me, should we fight? Or are you already agreed?' And [Rousey] said, 'You know what I did already.'"
Ad

Check out the full clip featuring Edmond Tarverdyan's comments regarding Ronda Rousey below:

Ad

Edmond Tarverdyan says Ronda Rousey was a once in a lifetime athlete

Edmond Tarverdyan heaped praise on his former pupil Ronda Rousey's skills in an interaction with Robin Black on 'Deeper Into the Cage'.

Tarverdyan mentioned that he witnessed Rousey's impact on the sport and the fanfare she generated from the general public. He said:

"It is once in a lifetime, you know?... Mainstream, she is. I witnessed that when we went out to Brazil and all those kids and all the people on the streets... it was different. It was not like, only an athlete, it was a female doing something that men have a hard time doing, finishing fights like that with that intensity, with that speed, power... nastiness."
Ad

Check out Edmond Tarverdyan's comments regarding Ronda Rousey below (10:03):

youtube-cover

Follow One Championship News, Schedule & Results at Sportskeeda.

Quick Links

Edited by Tejas Rathi
Sportskeeda logo
Close menu
WWE
WWE
NBA
NBA
NFL
NFL
MMA
MMA
Tennis
Tennis
NHL
NHL
Golf
Golf
MLB
MLB
Soccer
Soccer
F1
F1
WNBA
WNBA
More
More
bell-icon Manage notifications