Professional American Wrestler Ronda Rousey has made a name for herself in the wrestling industry. In addition to her mastery in grappling techniques such as throws, joint locks, pins, and clinch fighting, she gained popularity because of an infamous choke. Ironically, the UFC bantamweight champion was almost choked to death by an amateur. Ronda had no idea that teaching a self-defense move to a TV reporter could have such life-threatening consequences for herself.
Ronda Rousey was in Melbourne promoting UFC 193 and her fight against Holly Holm in 2018 when she decided to star in an Australian news program, A Current Affair. The TV show has a reputation for balancing light-hearted fluff pieces and serious hard-hitting exposures. The interview with Ronda, however, did not go as planned. The producers had assigned a clueless reporter to cover the story, and the outcome was painful.
Her appearance on A Current Affair shows that Rousey can be got at. A good chokehold will take out anyone, but the woman who choked the star UFC player was a TV reporter who had never even attempted MMA (or any self-defense) before! At the event, Rousey broke the mold by offering some one-on-one training to female reporter Elise Elliott. She provided a rundown of training regimes and also taught Elliott some special maneuvers and tips. Of course, the pro wrestler shamelessly included some self-promotion into the training section.
The viewers and Rousey may have sensed that she was facing an amateur when the TV reporter asked whether she should change her attire for the throwdown. After they both changed into attires more suited for combat, the pro wrestler walked Elliott through a few simple maneuvers on the mat and then proceeded to teach her a chokehold. The reporter learned some basic drills like the armbar and also learned the right way to deliver a rear naked choke (RNC). First, Ronda carefully demonstrated the choke on Elliott. Then, to everyone’s surprise, she allowed herself to be on the receiving end of the choke.
She perhaps assumed the reporter would not pose any threat as she barely knew anything about self-defense or wrestling. So, she was being a good sport and allowed herself to be the recipient of a rear naked choke administered by the journalist. Shockingly, when Elliott locked in the RNC on Ronda, she held tight and did not let go even when she was suffocating the UFC champion. It was clearly communicated during the briefing to let go of the recipient when she taps. However, the reporter ignored Ronda’s tap and continued to choke her.
Uncomfortable and fazed, Rousey politely reiterated that you are supposed to let go when the opponent taps, “You stop when the other person taps.” Eliot responded to that by cluelessly asking, “Can you please tap?” Rousey reaffirms “I tapped!” Oblivious to Rousey’s tap, Elliott immediately releases her grip, and the UFC champion lives to fight another day. When Rousey initiated the live demonstration, little did she know that an amateur’s rear naked hold could almost put her to sleep.
At the end of the fluff piece, Rousey mentions emphatically, “I know I’m gonna win, but I don’t know how.” Sadly, her self-confidence was not enough to get her a win at the UFC 193. The UFC superstar upset fans by losing against Holly Holm in the second round. While head kicks and follow-up punches by Holly Holm led to her Bantamweight title loss, being choked by A Current Affair reporter also made a lot of noise. If Elise Elliott choked Rousey a second longer, things could have taken a seriously embarrassing turn for the ex-UFC champ.
Check out the footage from her interview below: