Ronda Rousey Supports Paparazzi: They’re Just Trying To Make A Living
Most prominent stars choose to stay away from paparazzi if they can, but UFC champ Ronda Rousey isn’t one of them.
The undefeated women’s bantamweight champion is well-known for stopping on the street to give interviews to TMZ in her native Los Angeles, and several of her now-infamous barbs at boxing great Floyd Mayweather have arisen from said segments.
‘Rowdy’ isn’t quick to jump all over the unflappable photographers like so many others, instead choosing to voice her support for them, whom she believes are only trying to make an honest living, in a recent interview with Yahoo’s Kevin Iole:
“They’re trying to make a living, too. And you have to know how to make nice, because they really know how to play mean. I think one reason certain celebrities have bad interactions with them is because there is no mutual respect. If you walk past someone like they’re invisible and try to pretend that they’re not there, how can you expect them to be nice to you? But if I give them some time and treat them normally, they have no reason to have any ill will toward me.”
Apparently Rousey has devised a system for dealing with the nonstop attention, as she readily admits it’s not a good idea to get on their bad side in the glitz and glamour of her South California hotbed.
And not all paparazzi are bad people, Rousey says. She recalled the story of a photographer who had fallen on extremely tough times and had no choice but to snap photos of the stars to provide for his wife, voicing her unique view of relating to them as human beings:
“I ran into this one guy the other day who was doing paparazzi work. My mom was giving him a hard time and it actually hurt his feelings. He told me this story that was amazing, that his baby died and his dog died the next day. He said he couldn’t get work as a regular photographer, so he took a job doing that so he could pay his wife’s therapist bills, because she was so upset about the baby. When you look at them as other people with lives and real jobs, it’s easier to relate.”
Although not usually known for being the warmest fighter in MMA, Rousey clearly has a soft side, and surprisingly it’s come out in support of paparazzi. That’s extremely good news for them, as she’s undoubtedly risen to the position as the UFC’s biggest star, especially in terms of crossover multimedia exposure.
With the paparazzi on her side, she certainly ranks as one of their current favorite interviews, and that’s only going to increase her scope as her star continues to skyrocket. Is there any limit to how big Rousey will become?
