Ronda Rousey Talks WWE Experience: There’s Nothing Like It
A lifelong pro-wrestling fan, UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey surprised many by appearing alongside her “Furious 7” co-star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson at March 29’s WrestleMania 31 from San Jose, California.
The spot, where Rousey stepped into the ring to throw WWE executive Paul “Triple H” Levesque with her Olympic judo skills before putting his wife and WWE principal owner in some sort of shoulder lock, made huge waves as it signified Rousey’s true arrival as perhaps the biggest crossover star MMA has ever seen.
There was talk that she would be leaving the octagon for the bright lights of the WWE, and Rousey indeed fueled that fire by tweeting that she was just getting started in the WWE Universe.
But those rumors cooled down when her manager Brad Slater clarified that all of Rousey’s pro-wrestling appearances obviously had to be run by the UFC first, and with Rousey fully focused on her upcoming UFC 190 main event against rival Bethe Correia, there were no further spots planned for 2015.
However, it seems as if Rousey added a new wrinkle to this back-and-forth during a recent interview with the man whom she draws her “Rowdy” namesake from, former WWE champion “Rowdy” Roddy Piper. Speaking during his “Piper’s Pit” podcast, Rousey said she was floored by the whole experience and can’t wait to get back:
“I hit the ground running. The first I ever wrestled was at WrestleMania with an attendance record at Levi’s Stadium. I had a problem when I left. There’s no way I can’t not go back in there again. There’s no way. After experiencing that, there’s nothing like it.
“The second I left I was already thinking, ‘How can I possibly go back?’ I didn’t even change yet. I hadn’t even gotten out of my outfit yet.”
According to the dominant titleholder, she was beyond excited but tried to hold her true feelings back. Even with the experience of several elite-level UFC bouts under her belt, she still got butterflies:
“I was nervous, in a way, when I knew [the appearance] was coming up,” Rousey said. “I was trying to look like I was cool but my heart and my chest were [pounding]. I was trying not to look obvious but I think I totally did.”
It seems Rousey is intent on reappearing in the WWE ring, and with rumors circulating that she’ll face off with McMahon at next year’s WrestleMania, she could certainly become the next UFC fighter to make it big in both worlds.
But is that a good thing or bad thing for MMA?
