“I Could Feel the Stitches Bulge” – Ronda Rousey Had to ‘Fool’ Officials to Clear Medical Check That Proved Hindrance to MMA Debut

One of the biggest attributes that champions have is that they never give up. Whatever the odds may be, champions find a way to make things work in their favor. Ronda Rousey is no exception. The Olympian Judoka, who turned into a professional MMA fighter, had a long journey. She had to deal with her father’s early demise, ignorant coaches, and many other hurdles, but she won the United States’ first Judo Olympic medal. Her MMA journey was no different. But there was also a time she had to hide an injury and fool the officials to let her fight in her Pro-MMA debut fight.

In her memoir, My Fight/ Your Fight Ronda Rousey remembered how she had to get stitches on her leg after she got bitten by a Pitbull named ‘Porkchops’. ‘Rowdy’ was days away from her MMA debut when the incident happened and thus she had to deceive the officials to get weighed in and be allowed to fight her first professional MMA fight.

Ronda Rousey fights with stitches

MMA rules don’t allow fighters with existing injuries to fight. Rousey was in danger of being disqualified for the fight, as she had multiple stitches on her leg. Despite the injury, ‘Rowdy’ was desperate to fight. Finding a good opponent was a difficult task in MMA in those days; more so when it came to female athletes. Thus, Rousey did not want to lose this opportunity. In her Memoir, Ronda Rousey explained how she hid her injuries from officials.

She performed all the tests, fighting through the pain. Rousey felt her stitches bulge when she had to hop. Yet it was the weigh-ins where she had to use her brains to delude the officials and hide her injuries. She wrote, “It took nearly all of my energy not to limp into the building for the weigh-in. The doctor performed a cursory exam. “Hop on one foot,” he said. I hopped on my right leg. “Now the other.” I shifted all my weight to my left foot and hopped with a stoic face. I could feel the stitches bulge under the weight.” 

Read More: “I Wanted To Beat Someone up “- Ronda Rousey Was “Disappointed” in the Early Days of Her MMA Career Due to the Lack of Opponents

The ploy worked and Rousey weighed in behind a towel. This meant that her leg injury remained hidden, and she was allowed to fight in her pro-MMA debut. Ronda Rousey went on to defeat her opponent, Ediane Gomes. She submitted her in just twenty-five seconds.

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