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Ronda Rousey blasts marijuana testing in UFC

16th September, 2015
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“It is tiring fighting a bitch, it really is.”

Perhaps then it’s lucky that Ronda Rousey actually has some respect for her upcoming opponent in the UFC193 event at Etihad Stadium.

Rated as the top women’s mixed martial arts fighter, Rousey was at her abrasive best on Wednesday, promoting the defence of her bantamweight title against fellow American Holly Holm on November 19.

While she made it clear not all the women she took on are her cup of tea, there was no risk of this media conference spilling over.

“It’s nice to have a little time off from it and Holly is an awesome chick. She’s an amazing competitor,” Rousey said.

“As an athlete, I couldn’t have more respect for her.

“She’s the most decorated striker we have in all of mixed martial arts.

“She’s definitely my biggest challenge to date.

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“But the fact is, I’m still the greatest fighter in the world.”

Rousey is unbeaten in mixed martial arts with a 12-0 record and only one of the bouts has gone beyond the first round.

She is as much a rock star as a top fighter, organisers in Melbourne hoping to break venue attendance records with a 60,000-plus crowd for the event.

Wednesday’s media conference alone pulled in about 1000 fans.

While there were some kind things to say about Holm, there was plenty of other fighting words from Rousey.

She blasted the suspension of fellow UFC competitor Nick Diaz for marijuana use, saying it should not be tested for at all.

This week, the Nevada State Athletic Commission banned the welterweight for five years because of a third marijuana-related offence.

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“It’s so not right for him to be suspended (for) five years for marijuana,” Rousey said.

“I’m against them even testing for weed at all.

“It’s not a performance-enhancing drug … it’s only tested for political reasons.

Rousey was also asked what advice she would have for women wanting equality with men in sport.

“Just do whatever we can to take the word ‘women’ out of it,” she said.

“I don’t hear everyone saying ‘men’s this, men’s that’.

“People aren’t here today because they love women – it’s because they love fighters.”

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Holm, who had a strong boxing career before switching to mixed martial arts two years ago, will have her work cut out against Rousey but seemed unfazed about her opponent’s stellar reputation.

“Most of my interviews start like this – ‘so, do you really think you can beat her?’,” Holm said.

“Well, I signed the contract.”

The UFC193 main card will also feature a straw-weight title bout between Pole Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Canadian Valerie Letourneau.

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