Mike Dolce: I don’t want to see Ronda Rousey fight at UFC 200

Ronda Rousey

Nutrition guru Mike Dolce now considers himself more a friend to Ronda Rousey than the consultant who helps her shed weight prior to fights. In his opinion, it’s a bad idea for the former champ to get back into the cage in July at UFC 200.

That’s when UFC executives are targeting a rematch between Rousey (12-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) and the woman who dethroned her this past month at UFC 193, women’s bantamweight champ Holly Holm (10-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC). Dolce thinks it’s way too soon for Rousey to compete.

“No way – absolutely not,” he told MMAjunkie Radio when asked whether Rousey should take the summer rematch. “Personally, it makes absolutely no sense for any athlete who is TKOd.”

Rousey did not lose by technical knockout, but in fact, lost consciousness and was knocked out when Holm connected with a high kick in the second round of their headliner at this past month’s pay-per-view event. But regardless of the distinction, Dolce said the timeline for her return simply doesn’t make sense.

“They need a minimum – a minimum – of three months no contact,” he said. “And then they need another three-month period of light contact just getting back into the gym again. That puts us at six months, which is May (2016). And then you get into more intense training. That’s even before training camp kicks in.”

Dolce joins others who think Rousey is rushing back into the cage, including her longtime rival and two-time opponent, Miesha Tate, who recently told MMAjunkie Radio that the ex-champ is likely to go 0-2 if she jumps back into fighting too soon.

Dolce has worked with Rousey since her rematch with Tate at UFC 168, employing his famous “Dolce Diet” to refine the ex-champ’s weight-cutting methods. He was working with Rousey when she headed to Australia to face Holm and denied any lapses in training though he backed her post-fight comments that distractions outside the cage had taken a toll.

A strength and conditioning coach in addition to his work in nutrition, Dolce said Rousey should target a more gradual comeback. He cited the periodization program, which emphasizes a long-term approach to gains in strength and conditioning, as a guide for her timetable.

“I would much rather see Ronda fight in fall to late winter,” he said. “Maybe even that December card of next year. Optimally, I believe that’s the best interest in the health and safety of my athlete.”

Aligning that interest with UFC President Dana White, who has batted aside any delay to a rematch, and Rousey, who’s already expressed interested in fighting Holm at UFC 200 and plans to film two movies in the interim, is admittedly going to be a challenge.

Dolce said he hadn’t yet spoken to his client on the issue and said he was aware of the promotion’s desire to book the second fight sooner than later.

“I hear the quotes, and they’re running a business, so that’s right for the business, for sure,” he said. “Ronda will probably get paid more money if she fights on UFC 200 as opposed to UFC 204 or 206 or whatever happens because that will be the bigger event, the biggest, most stacked card, and she’ll get the pay-per-view points as a result of that.

“But this isn’t about money. From our perspective, it’s about the health and safety of the athlete.”

For now, the UFC hasn’t officially booked Holm vs. Rousey 2, so Dolce’s concern is based on a hypothetical situation. But he hopes the ex-champ will consider the bigger picture when making her decision. And that future, he said, is ultimately more lucrative than a one-night event.

“She has years to go,” Dolce said. “She’s going to be doing (800,000), one million pay-per-view buys for the next three, five, nine fights of her career. Financially, this young lady is going to be OK. She’s not fighting for money; she’s fighting for pride. She doesn’t need to fight for money.

“Of course, she deserves to get paid. But strategically, it makes no sense from a business perspective to fight before she’s ready, specifically when we’re talking about health.

“This is serious business, getting punched and kicked in the skull, risking traumatic brain injury – these are all serious things that we do not take lightly. It makes no sense for an athlete to come back two seconds too soon in order to make money. They are much better coming back a little later to be even more prepared and ready, to go out there and be devastating on their own, which is really going to catapult their career moreso than just coming back for a quick payday. It’s not the short money, it’s the long money.”

For more on UFC 200, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.