Holly Holm’s name will forever be linked to one of the most important moments in UFC history. In 2015, she entered UFC 193 as a massive underdog and walked out as the women’s bantamweight champion after stopping Ronda Rousey with a head kick that stunned the sport.
Nearly ten years later, Holm has long moved past that rivalry. Still, renewed discussion around Rousey has pulled that fight back into the spotlight once again, especially after reports surfaced of Rousey returning to training.
Holm believes curiosity about a comeback is understandable.
“I don’t know if Ronda will ever fight again, but if he she does, I won’t be shocked,” Holm told MMA Fighting. “She was an Olympian. She was a champion. You don’t get to that point without having a passion for sports. A passion for what you want to do. If she’s back feeling that, that’d be great. I don’t think it will happen, but if it does, I mean if she comes back. I’m always open for a rematch, too. You never know what’s going to happen with life.”
Training Versus Truly Returning
Holm made a clear distinction between enjoying the gym and committing to another fight camp.
“But I think if she’s just enjoying training and coming back and has a little passion and just get back and train, that’s one thing. If she wants to fight, I never put anything out of the possibility. I feel like everything is possible, and if she does come back, well she fought before and she had passion for it before. Maybe she will find it again or if she has found that again and actually wants to compete with it again, who knows. Maybe she’s just enjoying training.”
Rousey’s fighting career ended abruptly after knockout losses to Holm and Amanda Nunes. After those defeats, she largely disappeared from MMA before starting a new chapter in professional wrestling with WWE.
Why Holm Disagrees With Rousey’s Frustration
Recently, Rousey has spoken about feeling mistreated by fans and disappointed with how her UFC run ended. Holm understands frustration but believes the outcome was influenced by Rousey’s own choices.
“I think Ronda, she definitely didn’t like how her career ended, but she’s a lot responsible for that,” Holm explained. “Because she pulled herself away. You see some of these champions that are reigning champions, they run into a hiccup and they at least face the crowd, face the camera, face the fans, face it.”
Holm believes visibility matters, especially after a loss.
“I believe a little bit of higher respect in that aspect, and I think that a lot of fans were like she just took off.”
The Fan Relationship That Changed Everything
According to Holm, distance created misunderstanding rather than hostility.
“If she was to come back for a fight, people would cheer for her. I feel like she always feels like everybody’s against her, but she took herself away from the fans rather than them leaving her.”
She added that criticism is part of combat sports, but it is rarely permanent.
“Martial arts fans and fight fans, they can be brutal but also they’re fans, they’re fans of the sport. They realize things happen, not everything is always perfect, and I think if she would have faced it differently, no judgment on it, but I think if she would have faced it differently, it probably wouldn’t have been so negative as a whole in her own mind and how she felt.”
Rousey did not speak publicly after her loss to Holm and avoided media obligations during her return fight against Nunes. Following that second defeat, she exited MMA entirely.
Holm Understands the Urge to Rewrite the Ending
As an athlete still competing, Holm recognizes the emotional pull of unfinished business.
“Maybe she feels she wants to come back and make it right for her and feel better about it and maybe she’s got some itch in her that wants to get out and have a win,” Holm said. “Every athlete’s going to feel that and if she does, more power to her. We’ll see what happens.”
She admits the desire is universal.
“It’s one of those things, every loss I’ve had I wish I had the chance to avenge it. I feel like every fighter should be able to have that so who am I to say that somebody else can’t try and come back.”
Holm closed with a warning rooted in experience. Returning for the wrong reasons can lead to disappointment.
“I think that it definitely needs to be if she really wants to fight, not just because she wants it to be different,” Holm said. “Because it won’t be different if she doesn’t truly actually want to fight.”
As Holm prepares for her own upcoming boxing title fight against Stephanie Han, she remains focused on the present, even as questions about the past continue to follow both women.
