Ronda Rousey called mixed martial arts the "most responsible" form of violence in a recently released clip for a documentary on MMA.
Rousey, 29, a former UFC champion, was interviewed for "The Hurt Business: A Deep Look at MMA." In a clip from the film, set to be released Sept. 29, Rousey is asked about opinions that mixed martial arts should not have a place in "civilized society today" because of its violence.
"I think a lot of people that are ignorant about (MMA) think that it promotes violence, when it really is the most responsible outlet for it," said Rousey, one of main subjects of the documentary, according to ESPN.
"It's a human instinct to fight, and if you try to suppress it entirely and put everyone in a bubble-wrapped society, that's when people end up going nuts and shooting movie theaters," Rousey continued. "If any of those people that had all of that aggression built up in them had some sort of outlet, I think that we would have a lot more societal health."
Rousey has not entered the octagon again since losing her UFC bantamweight crown to Holly Holm in UFC 193 last November, the first of her career, Sports Illustrated noted. UFC president Dana White said that Rousey will skip UFC 205 at Madison Square Garden in November.
In the clip, Rousey added that she doesn't think MMA is violence for the sake of violence.
"I go in there, yeah, I'm fighting, but really what I'm trying to do is outsmart the other person," Rousey said. "It's a puzzle to be solved. I'm not going in there and spazzing out, swinging my hands — lifting weights so I can swing my hands even harder. It's more mental and tactical than anything else, and I think it's the purest, most beautiful sport in the world."
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