After losing the UFC Bantamweight belt to Holly Holm back in November, mixed martial artist Ronda Rousey hasn't gotten into the Octagon. New reports say she might not step into the battlefield at all this year.
UFC president Dana White is no longer sure when Rousey will fight again, although she expressed her desire to see her in the ring once more.
"Ronda's going to come out and let us know when she's ready to fight again," White said on the "Dan Patrick Show."
"I would really like her to fight this year. I hope she does," she continued, adding that Rousey also deserves some vacation time especially for all the hard work she has put in.
White's statement definitely carried a change of tone from the last time she spoke about Rousey's comeback. Not too long ago, she teased that Rousey will be back to reclaim her title from Meisha Tate, who stole the bantamweight title from Holm in March.
Rousey admitted that she fell into depression after she experienced her first loss in her career through Holm.
However, despite staying away from the Octagon this time, Rousey continues to train and make herself stronger for her next battle. She was spotted in Venice beach early this month with some friends training.
It looks like Rousey will be doing intense preparation in the months to come, especially if she does not want to be handed another heartbreaking loss again.
When she returns, Tate will be waiting for her. The current bantamweight champion is determined to fight Rousey in a trilogy-capper where she intends to put to sleep Rousey.
"The fight with Ronda is something I want to happen. I don't know when it will happen. It could be anticipated for November," Tate told Joe Rogan on "Joe Rogan Experience."
"I've heard that tossed around in the UFC that she's planning on coming back and it might be Madison Square Garden. That would be great," she added.
Tate also said that she knows and has been through what Rousey is going through right now. It was actually the fighter from California herself who put her in that same position not once but twice.
However, it feels odd to Tate that her rival's disposition towards her loss is not what she expected from "someone who wants to come back and someone who is really, really a fighter at the core."
