Ronda Rousey: I don’t have a bad thing to say about Sara McMann

After seeing Ronda Rousey flip-off Miesha Tate throughout the recent season of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’, it was a nice change of pace to hear the champion say something nice about her upcoming opponent Sara McMann. The two are set to duke it out in the middle of the octagon at UFC 170 for the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship.

“I couldn’t be more excited than to have an athlete on Sara’s level to test myself against,” Rousey said. “I don’t have a bad thing to say about her.”

Despite being ranked #4 in the women’s bantamweight rankings, Sara McMann was announced as the next challenger to the division’s title after Rousey’s victory at UFC 168. Even though she is ranked below Cat Zingano, many believe she will prove to be a tougher challenge to Rousey’s throne. McMann is the only American woman in the Olympic history to win a silver medal in wrestling.

At a recent media event, the “Rowdy” one commented on how she will have to approach the fight differently considering McMann’s athleticism. Yahoo! Sports’ Dave Doyle transcribed the following: “I’m absolutely positive that the way I threw Miesha when she came in for her shots, it will not be possible to do that against Sara, just because of the time she’s put in and the level of athlete she is and the technique she has,” Rousey stated. “I’m going to have to approach her completely different than Sara, the level that she’s at, she has to be approached entirely differently.”

Both Sara McMann and Ronda Rousey made successful mixed martial arts debuts in 2011 and have gone undefeated since then. At 8-0, Ronda made a name for herself while breaking arms in Strikeforce with victories over the likes of Miesha Tate and Sarah Kaufman. The 7-0 McMann won an Olympic Silver medal for wrestling in 2004 and made the transition over to MMA in 2011. She never made her way into the Strikeforce, but her career was worth following from the start, Rousey mentioned.

“‘I’ve been following Sara’s career since the very beginning,” Rousey said. “We pretty much started around the same time, and I always thought this will be the perfect fight to bring up on the big venue. This is the perfect time for everything coming together.”

Will Sara McMann be Ronda Rousey’s greatest challenge to date? Let us know what you think! Share your thoughts in the comment section below!