There was a time when the noted female combat sports personality Ronda Rousey, took the UFC by storm. Rousey entered the UFC with an undefeated record of 6-0 and continued her victory run even after joining the UFC. She also became the first-ever UFC women’s bantamweight champion during this period. Rousey’s superb victories also made her the inspiration for several young athletes, including the Russian UFC strawweight, Victoria Dudakova.
But, ‘Rowdy’s’ fall was also a terrible one. The Olympic medalist could never recover once her victory train got derailed. The fans who used to hail her to date suddenly started criticizing her. Dudakova might have been one of them as well. In a March 2023 interview, the 24-year-old Russian revealed how her appreciation for Rousey decreased severely. But why was it so? Let’s find out.
Victoria Dudakova accused Ronda Rousey of having Dana White privilege
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‘MMA.Metaratings.ru’ conducted the interview in which Dudakova gave her feelings about Rousey. She revealed how she idolized Rousey when she was preparing to make it big in the sport of MMA. But the ‘Baddest Woman on the Planet’ decided to call an end to her MMA career, following two consecutive losses against Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes.
A large chunk of the UFC world saw this action as a rather surprising act from Rousey. UFC fans expect fighters to battle adverse situations and get back to their best, but Rousey decided to quit the battlefield. Her repetitive victories via armbar submissions prompted fans to call her a one-trick pony. However, Dudakova knows how the UFC works.
The promotion has given unusual boosts to a number of athletes whom they thought could be good for business. The Russian accused ‘Rowdy’ of having such a boost from the UFC CEO, Dana White. This is commonly known as the ‘Dana White privilege’ in the UFC world. Dudakova’s words, “I realize that she was nothing special. But it was presented correctly to the public. She knew how to speak. Of course she was presented with the title, she didn’t fight for it. Later, in battles in force with equal rivals, she lost”, was enough to reveal what she now thought about the former UFC women’s bantamweight queen.
Will Victoria Dudakova be able to achieve the stature of Ronda Rousey ever?
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Much like the noted UFC color commentator, Joe Rogan, Ronda Rousey also draws her fame from multiple fields of work. She is an Olympic Medalist, and MMA icon, currently one of the biggest female stars in the WWE, and an actress as well. It can be rightfully said that she is one of the most noted faces in the history of female combat sports around the world.
Dudakova may smash Rousey’s UFC records and become a bigger name in the UFC universe than Rousey was. But, will she be able to match the fame that Rousey drew from multiple fields? Although these are pretty early days in Dudakova’s UFC career, it won’t be an easy feat to touch the stature that Rousey has built over time.
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Before all that, she needs to secure a victory in her UFC 294 bout against Jinh Yu Frey. Do you think she will?
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