Ronda Rousey's foil is also her most sensible defender.

Holly Holm said on The Dan Patrick Show on Thursday that fans shouldn't bash Rousey too much, considering most of them would never "even have the nerve" to get in the Octagon and fight.

"I hope people don't get too brutal with it," Holm said. "This is a hard job to be in and a lot of people can't get in there. When you get in that Octagon, it's one of the loneliest places in the world, because it's only up to you to do it. A lot of people wouldn't even have the nerve to be able to get in and just put it all on the line.

"Millions of people are watching you and you might get knocked out, you might not. You might do well, you might not. But you kind of have to go in being OK with knowing millions of people are going to be watching this. There's a reason why only certain people fight. You're putting yourself out there and you know people are going to say something one way or another."

Holm, who knocked out Rousey with a second-round head kick at UFC 193 last Saturday, does somewhat understand where the fans' vitriol comes from, though.

"Any time you're on top, people are going to want to talk one way or another," Holm said. "She's been pretty vocal in her career, I think it's easier for people to want to pick at things. I thing she's strong enough. She can handle that."

Holm (10-0) said she didn't see Rousey after the fight and has not spoken to her. Rousey (12-1) had plastic surgery to repair a split lip in Melbourne and returned home to Los Angeles earlier this week. TMZ cameras captured the former champion hiding her face with a travel pillow as she walked through the airport.

"I hope she's doing well," Holm said. "I know she's obviously been at the top for a reason. She's very dominant and a great athlete. She's been the reigning champion for a long time. I'm sure she'll come back soon."

Holm, 33, said that Rousey should be respected, because competing in the UFC in front of millions is a difficult thing to do. Holm, a former three-division boxing champion and two-time Ring women's boxer of the year, beat Rousey with more than 56,000 inside Etihad Stadium.

"It's kind of a brutal place to be, but it's what makes winning that awesome and makes losing that devastating," Holm said. "But it makes winning that awesome. If you're a fighter, you're always chasing that feeling of that victory. That's why we do it."