Rousey: Nunes needs 1st-round finish, 'everyone knows she gasses out'

Ronda Rousey is taking Amanda Nunes' boasts as a sign of mental weakness.

The former women's bantamweight champion is vying to regain her status as the division's top dog when she battles Nunes in the main event of UFC 207 on Dec. 30 in Las Vegas. Rousey lost the belt to Holly Holm last December, and it eventually made its way to Nunes' waist while Rousey took a year off from competition.

A fierce finisher, Nunes has been predicting she'll put away her star opponent early, but Rousey responded to those comments Wednesday with some pointed jabs of her own.

"Well she kind of has to say that because everyone knows she gasses out in the second, so she has to tell herself that," Rousey said on "Conan," according to Damon Martin of FOX Sports. "What else is she going to tell herself? She has to sleep at night somehow."

As impressive as Nunes has been during a stretch of four straight wins, Rousey's retort isn't without evidence. Nunes' lone UFC loss came via third-round TKO in a fight against Cat Zingano that she appeared to be winning up to that point, and she showed signs of fatigue against Valentina Shevchenko this past March in a bout that Nunes would go on to win by unanimous decision.

Rousey and Nunes both have five first-round finishes in the UFC, so there's a good chance "The Lioness" is right about their fight being brief, whether it's in her or Rousey's favor.