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Ronda Rousey Reveals Pressure to Save Women’s MMA and Capture Dana White’s Attention: ‘The Division Was Dying’
Ronda Rousey opens up about the challenges she faced to ensure women's MMA survived in the UFC. Discover how she changed Dana White's mind—read her story now!
Can one fighter change the course of an entire sport? Ronda Rousey certainly thinks so. In a recent candid interview with Chris Van Vliet, Rousey revealed the immense pressure she felt to elevate women's MMA to UFC standards, especially after the acquisition of Strikeforce. Remember Cris Cyborg?
Rousey didn't hold back, slamming her for steroid use and labeling her a detriment to the sport's integrity. As the only woman in Strikeforce’s lineup at the time, Rousey felt it was on her to make Dana White take notice. Did her efforts single-handedly open the octagon doors for women?
When Ronda Rousey signed with Strikeforce in 2011, she was just two fights into her MMA career. Strikeforce was the premier organization showcasing women’s MMA, largely thanks to Gina Carano’s popularity. But when Carano left the sport, things took a turn for the worse. The division started to decline, and Rousey knew she had to step up.
Rousey understood the stakes. She revealed, “People forget how fragile that situation was and how last-minute I was able to get us in.” With UFC buying Strikeforce, many assumed the women’s division would be cut. Rousey explained, “The UFC bought Strikeforce and it was assumed they were just going to absorb all of the male talent and fold the whole organization.”
But Rousey wasn’t about to let that happen. She knew she had to make a name for herself—and fast. “I knew the clock was ticking,” she said. “I had that much time to make sure that Dana [White] couldn’t go a single day without seeing my name somewhere.”
Her strategy worked. Rousey quickly became the face of women’s MMA, thanks to her dominant performances and outspoken personality. However, she didn’t shy away from criticizing Cris Cyborg, one of her biggest rivals. Rousey bluntly stated, “Cris Cyborg’s pumped to the f**king gills with steroids. No one wants to watch that cheating as* b*tch.”
Even after White decided to bring women into the UFC, Rousey never felt secure. “Once women were brought to the UFC, [Dana] said, ‘This is an experiment, this is to see how it goes,’” she recalled. Rousey knew she had to keep pushing, and her efforts ultimately paid off, securing a future for women in the UFC.
Ronda Rousey recently shared how she fought to keep her iconic entrance music in WWE, despite pressure to change it. During a Reddit AMA, Rousey revealed, “John Laurinaitis suggested I change it to save money, and I said ‘no.’” For Rousey, the song was more than just music—it was a key part of her image as a fearless trailblazer.
One of her most memorable moments was at WrestleMania 35 when Joan Jett performed Bad Reputation live. However, Rousey doesn’t look back on her WWE days with fondness.
In her memoir, Our Fight, she criticized WWE’s work culture and took aim at Vince McMahon, John Laurinaitis, and Bruce Pritchard, stating her career would’ve been better without their influence. Despite this, she praised Triple H, saying WWE is in better hands with him leading the charge.
