Rousey may not heal mentally, says UBC professor

Ronda Rousey briefly looked like the "Rowdy" of old when she faced off with Amanda Nunes at Madison Square Garden prior to UFC 205, but her abrupt exit and reported backstage behavior have raised questions about her comeback trail.

The 29-year-old - who's scheduled to challenge Nunes for the women's bantamweight title at UFC 207 - had to be consoled after she'd wordlessly exited stage right, according to the Fight Network's Robin Black.

Rousey's behavior - also reported by MMAFighting's Dave Meltzer - doesn't help her chances at regaining her previous form, says Dr. David Klonsky, a professor of Psychology at the University of British Columbia. As far as Klonsky's concerned, whether the former champ can resume her dominant ways ultimately depends on the company she keeps.

"There’s no guarantee that Ronda’s gonna be completely fine mentally," Dr. Klonsky told Black, according to Bloody Elbow's Milan Ordonez. "If she has a good team around her, and unfortunately it’s not completely clear that that’s the case, there are ways to deal with this.

"There could even be smart ways where someone says 'yeah, it makes sense that this is hard for you, being in the spotlight again after a really difficult loss.'"

The prognosis comes after Rousey admitted to contemplating suicide after losing the title to Holly Holm by head kick KO at UFC 193 - the first of her career - then revealed her upcoming fight with Nunes would be one of her last.

"Rowdy" was seen smiling and waving at a fan as she was leaving the Madison Square Garden stage, and president Dana White later claimed a production snafu unjustly dramatized her exit, as Nunes was not supposed to be interviewed after their faceoff.

Rousey hasn't fought since the November 2015 loss to Holm. She meets Nunes in the main event of UFC 207 on Dec. 30 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.