Strikeforce Quick Quote: Ronda Rousey Vows To Choke Sarah Kaufman Until She Is Dead

"Sarah Kaufman should be thanking her lucky stars that MMA is properly regulated in California. I respect her so much that I'm not taking any chances: If i get her in an armbar I'm going to try and rip it off and throw it at her corner, if I get her in a choke I'm going to hold it until she's actually dead. And if I get a knockout I'm going to actually try and pound her face into the ground. She's relying on the competence of the California athletic commission to walk out of that cage alive. That has nothing to do with whether I like her or respect her, she seems like a nice chick, but I go into every fight like my little sister's life is depending on it. And in that kind of situation, no one can ever beat me."

-- So much for Ronda Rousey keeping it classy. The Strikeforce 135-pound champion went off on a blood-thirsty tirade earlier today (Aug. 16, 2012), during the pre-fight press conference to promote her fight this weekend (Sat., Aug. 18, 2012) against Sarah Kaufman on Showtime. "Rowdy" threatened bodily harm and even death upon her opponent if the referee in charge of the action is not competent (and quick) enough to keep Kaufman safe should she find herself in a dangerous situation. Fighting words, for sure, and likely just a sensational way to sell a fight, but mincing "death" and mixed martial arts (MMA) innuendos typically go over like the Hindenburg with Zuffa brass. Just ask Frank Mir, who got spanked and then fired from his job as a World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) announcer when he expressed his desire break Brock Lesnar's neck and make him the first in-cage Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) casualty. But, perhaps it's different for girls. Most things, unfortunately, are in life and sport, for better or worse. Let's just hope it's not the same referee who let Pat Curran nearly kill Joe Warren earlier this year under the Bellator banner. That was scary.