McMann likes Zingano over Rousey

UFC women’s bantamweight contender Sara McMann recently did a wide-ranging interview with Marc Raimondi for FOX Sports. The Olympic wrestling silver medalist is coming off a split decision win over Lauren Murphy at UFN 47, and has verbally agreed to fight with Miesha Tate, but most of the conversation centered on division champion Ronda Rousey.

Rousey recently said McMann was her toughest fight, and the wrestler could only agree.

“I thought that anyways,” said McMann. “I will always be the hardest one, because I’m the hardest one for her to control. Compared to everyone else, I have the strongest wrestling background.”

McMann hopes that with a win over Tate, and maybe one more, she can earn a rematch with Rousey. One thing that helps make a fight is trash talk in the media, and McMann, who is intensely private, however inadvertently got into it a little.

This Summer Rousey had criticized McMann for not meeting her media duties.

“I don’t think she really wanted what came along with being the UFC champion,” said Rousey then. “She did, really, zero media for the whole thing, because she felt like the media would interfere with her training. Well, the media needs to be part of her training.”

McMann took issue with the remarks.

“I don’t want somebody else speaking about what I am or am not,” she said. “I don’t say what Ronda Rousey is and isn’t, because I don’t know her personally. She is not the authority for what I am and what I am not ready for.”

“I had to come to terms that that is part of my job. I enjoy privacy. But I know if I want to be the No. 1 girl, I have to compromise. She wasn’t right in that respect. Once I accepted the title fight, I was a big girl. I put my big girl panties on.”

Rousey fights Cat Zingano at UFC 184 in Los Angeles on Feb. 28. McMann has known Zingano since their teenage years via USA wrestling, and thinks that Zingano can beat the odds.

“I think so, yeah,” said McMann. “Cat Zingano is a very tough athlete.”