Holly Holm pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the UFC when she took down Ronda Rousey earlier this month. With such a spectacular achievement, fans and followers of the sport were stunned to find the then undefeated UFC Bantamweight champion fallible like the rest of the fighters in the roster. It was, however, Rousey who faced the biggest shock of her career when she fell victim to the strength and reach of Holm.
Weeks following the said match, Rousey comes out of hiding. The former undefeated champ was photographed walking a dog, along with boyfriend and MMA fighter Travis Browne. In fact, Rouser was seen enjoying this rare public appearance as a smile was caught plastered across her face. Needless to say, the plastic surgery she underwent immediately following the match against Holm healed nicely.
The fight against Holm not only resulted in the relinquishment of her title but also on a 60-day suspension due to medical reasons. The UFC fighter was banned from fighting for 60 days. Rousey's CT scan was also examined for possible brain damage; while her lips were sewn by a plastic surgeon. The stitches were performed by an expert flown from Australia.
"She had a huge [expletive] cut on her lip," explained UFC President Dana White via Fox Sports. He added, "Her lip was split open, and I was there and I was like, 'we don't want a doctor sewing that [expletive] lip up.' What's her lip going to look like if a doctor sewed it up? We brought in the best plastic surgeon from Australia (straight after the fight). He came in and sewed her lip up, and her lip looks awesome. They sew it from the inside out."
White further commented that hiring plastic surgeons is "so much better than doctors" because the outcome of the latter's work would cause Rousey's lip "to look weird." He further explained, "In fighting cuts need to be sewn up the right way. Not only cosmetically but if you're going to continue to fight, you have to sew them up, so they don't continue to rip open all the time and get a lot of scar tissue."
Although Rousey went on radio silence since her defeat, Holm is aware that a rematch is a definite possibility.
"Oh, I welcome it," said Holm in an interview in Late Night With Seth Meyers. The new champ added, "I've been on the other end of losing a bout before, getting knocked out and having to come back -- I did avenge my loss. And I know that she'll be wanting to do the same, so I'll have to train twice as hard. You know, she'll be coming back. She's a competitive person, and we all know that. She'll be coming back hard."
