Ronda Rousey took a year off after losing the UFC Women's Bantamweight championship to Holly Holm at UFC 193, only to lose once more when she returned to face Amanda Nunes at UFC 207.

Both losses came via a form of knockout and Rowdy's loss to Holm was the first time she had suffered defeat in her professional MMA career. Both defeats happened due to Rousey's ineffectiveness when it comes to defending her head to strikes.

However, while speaking to Ariel Helwani on a recent edition of The MMA Hour, Cris Cyborg, a long-time rival of Rousey, believes the reason why she lost so easily to Nunes upon her UFC return was down to her previous fight with The Preacher's Daughter.

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Cyborg said, according to MMA Fighting: "I really don’t understand why she fight straight for the belt right after her loss to Holly Holm. One year, no fight, you know? She fights someone, Amanda, with a lot of fights in the year already, and she’s one year off.

"I think she needed one fight, get a win and be confident again, and go for the belt. I think it's hard to fight straight for the belt, somebody fights all year and she’s one year off. I really think if I’m managing someone, I don’t do like this. I’d give more fights for her, and she get confident again. Because after the Holly Holm fight, it broke her mind."

Many questioned Rousey's mental state after she took a year off before returning to the octagon, and now, following a second successive loss, there is speculation she could possibly retire from MMA altogether. 

It probably would have been better for Rowdy to take on an easier fight before going for a title once more in order to get a win under her belt and get confident once more, as Cyborg said. As for if we will ever see the long-time rivals finally meet inside the octagon, the Brazilian unfortunately dismissed the opportunity.

"I think me and her fight is the biggest fight ever, but after she lost two fights… I really knew she cannot take a punch. I knew this, you know? And the fight is never gonna happen and never happened before because she knows what’s gonna happen. And a lot of people know what’s gonna happen. Same thing Amanda did, I’m gonna do worse. And everybody knows this, and this fight never happened."