Ronda Rousey trades in MMA, acting to become WWE superstar

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Ronda Rousey was born to kick people’s asses. This can take place in the octagon for UFC, or on the silver screen. Hell, she could throw down at a children’s birthday party and people would probably cheer. Now she’s moving to the next phase of her face-kicking career and has officially signed on to become the latest, full-time WWE superstar.

Last night ended in a dramatic moment when, at the conclusion of the WWE’s first-ever Women’s Royale Rumble, Rousey emerged to Joan Jett’s “Bad Reputation” and a stadium of cheers. The other wrestlers in the ring – Asuka and WWE women's champions Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair – all looked stunned, the crowd looked thrilled and Rousey basked in it all. It’s better if you just watch the clip below.

This may wreak of a publicity stunt, designed to promote Rousey’s next movie or some sort of TV show, but the athlete assured ESPN this is a very serious move for her.

This is my life now. First priority on my timeline for the next several years. This is not a smash-and-grab; this is not a publicity stunt. When I first met with Triple H, I told him, 'There are other things I can do with my time that'll make way more money, but I won't enjoy nearly as much.”

Rousey’s involvement in the WWE has been on the table for some time now, with her hinting she may be interested in crossing over into wrestling as far back as 2015. She also had a bit of a moment back in 2015, when Dwayne Johnson (“The Rock”) brought her into the ring to help him deal with some other unruly characters. She's still feeling the buzz, saying she's going through a rare moment of speechlessness.

I don't have words at all. I'm like — this is the most overstimulated I've ever been in my life and … I'm just, like I'm still processing it.

At first, I saw this as a bit of a stunt, seeing as Rousey didn't have the best go of it in her last two UFC pay-per-view matches and may have been looking for some sort of new avenue. However, the woman is a born athlete, and I can't see why she can't be as successful in the WWE as she was the UFC and in the movies. I don't really pay attention to the WWE, so I'll have to hear about how she's doing through the grapevine, but I have a feeling she'll do well. Like I said, she was born to kick ass and throw people around.