Sportskeeda MMA Awards 2016: Top 10 Fights of the Year

#3 Amanda Nunes vs. Ronda Rousey

There is a part of me that feels sorry for Rousey but yet I know this was the final nail in the coffin to pass on the torch to more advanced talent in the division

Many people believed that after getting dismantled by Holly Holm at UFC 193, Ronda Rousey had lost the mental toughness required to undergo a slump in her MMA career and come back stronger.

Because of the manner in which she lost, her personal and professional life morphed into a simmering soup of negative emotions, constant ridicule and harsh criticism. With critics often questioning her stand up abilities and even her mindset and ethics.

Labelled almost universally as a sour loser and a classless act, Ronda took an extended vacation of 13 months to make a picture-perfect return.

In the UFC's last PPV of the year in UFC 207, Rousey's return was promoted as the biggest attraction on the card and the most anticipated bout in all of MMA as the queen marked her return to the throne in a rather trouble-free fashion.

Almost neglecting Amanda Nunes' prowess, technique and raw power, the promotion focused solely on Ronda Rousey and her struggle, how she overcame her suicidal tendencies to come back even stronger; a promise that was yet to be fulfilled.

But Ronda's true skill that made her a household name was being a product that had the marketers and PR campaign strategists on a roll. #Therouseyrevolution is something you can't go wrong with, the beauty with which Ronda's personality, background and antics inside the Octagon fit with her market appeal was almost impeccable.

Once again with #Fearthereturn, Rousey proceeded to show up to fight Amanda Nunes for the sake of her own legacy. Although, as we were about to witness, nothing much had really changed.

The first jab that Amanda Nunes landed ended up making Rousey give up on her feet a little, the second rattled her and the third made me question how she was able to absorb the punishment. All within the span of the first few seconds of the fight.

Amanda Nunes then went on to put on the best performance of her career and finish Ronda Rousey with punches in 48 seconds, topping off the fashion in which she was defeated by Holly Holm, exactly a year ago.

If we follow conventional wisdom and Rousey's state of mind, she is very likely to retire and say good-bye to a division which would not exist in the UFC without her spearheaded leadership.

But those days are long behind her and so are her hopes of ever regaining the crown as the ‘baddest’ woman on the planet. After Mcgregor's loss to Diaz and Rockhold's loss to Bisping, we now had an upset that tops both of them. But not so much to the hardcore fans who never bought in on the hype.