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Dominick Cruz Understands How Ronda Rousey Feels About Her Losses

February 27, 2017 | Posted by Joseph Lee

In an interview with the Joe Rogan Experience (via Bloody Elbow), Dominick Cruz talked about Ronda Rousey’s loss against Amanda Nunes at UFC 207, showing empathy. Cruz himself lost a championship fight at the event, with Cory Garbrandt becoming the new UFC bantamweight champion. Here are highlights:

On how Rousey feels after the loss: “It’s heartbreaking for me, I know what she’s feeling, I know what she’s going through. And as a female, it’s even on another level, I can’t really imagine that. It’s a different level of scrutiny, I would imagine. It shows how hard it is to deal with this, man. The ups and downs. Because the downs hit hard, just as hard as the ups hit. There can’t be any separation in who you are with the win and a loss because if there is, it’s gonna show. And you got to be who you are and not be solely connected to fighting as your whole being. Otherwise, you’re over when it ends.”

On not putting so much into title wins: “We’re all putting so much into this one thing that we think that is our everything. When really, it sounds cheesy, but if you put all that energy towards loving yourself and not the fight career, the fight career will still be there just as heavy as it is. She’s using the fighting as her identity. With that championship belt, she is Ronda Rousey, the Ronda Rousey. Without the championship belt, we don’t know who she is. She won’t come out. So, who are you unless you’re winning? We don’t know. Do you know? You’re counting on that belt to know who you are now,” he continued. “And that was my biggest point. That was a hurdle I ran into when I lost my belt. I didn’t know who I was anymore. And that’s how I knew this. That’s how I figured out what my issues were.”

article topics :

Dominick Cruz, Joseph Lee