While the rest of the world is wondering if we saw Ronda Rousey in the Octagon for the final time last night, her mother, AnnMaria De Mars, admits that she wanted her to retire a "long time ago." Following Rousey's loss to Amanda Nunes in UFC 207, De Mars spoke with TMZ Sports about wanting to see her daughter hang up her gloves for good, and pursue other interests.
"I would like to see her retire," De Mars said. "I would've liked to see her retire a long time ago. Who wants to see their kid get hit. I told her that at the very beginning when she started this, I said, 'You're smart, you're beautiful, let the stupid people get punched in the face,' sorry, stupid people."
Once the dust settled, De Mars took to her blog to defend Rousey against those individuals who have been critical of her daughter. "All of those who have criticized Ronda for taking a loss so to heart, for not just 'shrugging it off' don't understand that what made Ronda so successful is that she cares DEEPLY about winning to an extent that I don't believe the average person can wrap his/her head around," she wrote. "Caring deeply about something and working your hardest to achieve it doesn't mean you make the right decisions 100% of the time. Wouldn't it be a nicer world if it did?"
De Mars listed off a number of Rousey's accomplishments, which includes becoming the first American woman in a decade to win a world cup in judo, and the first female to earn $1 million in martial arts.
De Mars wants to make it clear that she's incredibly proud of her daughter, and in the words of her other daughter, Maria, to Rousey: "We love you just as much 10 minutes after every fight as we did in the 10 minutes before."
To read the letter in its entirety, click here.
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