Ronda Rousey’s story is one of great resilience and determination. Today she is a legend because of her trailblazing in male-dominated sports and impact on women’s combat sports all over the world. She started out as a judoka, then moved on to MMA and lastly wrestling where she’s still active today. Learn more about Ronda Rousey and her incredible story right here.
Ronda Rousey is an absolute legend in the world of combat sports. She’s world famous for her accomplishments in judo, MMA and wrestling. She was the first American woman to win an Olympic medal in judo as well as the first female fighter in UFC history. In 2012 she won the Women’s Bantamweight Championship which she later defended several times. In 2018 she became Raw Women’s Champion not long after having transitioned to WWE. These achievements among so many more have made her one of the most legendary figures in combat sports history.
Rousey started with judo
Ronda Rousey is the daughter of former judo champion AnnMaria De Mars. De Mars’ achievements in the world of judo made her encourage her daughter to follow in her footsteps. At 11 years old, Rousey began training with her mother and at the young age of 17, she was the youngest judoka to qualify for the Olympics. Four years later, in 2008, she won a bronze medal at the Beijing Olympics making her the first American judoka to take home an Olympic medal. Even though Rousey was very successful in judo, she grew tired of the lack of financial opportunities and general support of women in judo, which is why she then transitioned to MMA.
Transition into an almost unbeatable MMA fighter
In 2010 Rousey had her MMA debut. She had an advantage coming from the world of judo but still, it did take her a few years to become a MMA champion. In 2012 she manifested her excellence by becoming the first female fighter in the UFC. She made history right then and there as she began to change a male-dominated sport. The same year she became the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion. She was able to transfer so successfully from judo to MMA because of her untireable willpower, athleticism and continuous hard work. From here she became the face of women’s MMA as a trailblazer in the sport. After some difficult losses in 2015 and 2016 as well as a minor break from MMA, she decided to retire from the sport completely. She has spoken openly about how difficult especially the first loss was for her who had been unbeatable up until then. Then she lost again which led her to continue on to WWE.
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It is figures like Ronda Rousey that have made combat sports like MMA and WWE some of the most watched and engaging sports today. These sports have also become major in the betting world, where many engaging fans bet on big names and fights. If you also want to try your luck, we recommend clicking here to discover the best Fanduel betting offers on WWE, MMA, and many other types of sports. For many fans being an engaging sports lover and betting from time to time has become integrated leisure activities. All this is because of history-making sportspeople like Ronda Rousey.
From MMA to WWE and beyond
In 2018, Rousey made her first WWE appearance. It wasn’t long until she was a legend here too, as she won the Raw Women’s Championship that same year. Ever since then, she has been a prominent figure in the world of WWE where she still competes from time to time today. Her WWE matches are often quite intense and highly physical due to her strength and impressive athleticism. In 2019 she was the center of a historic triple-threat match and even though she lost one of the matches, it was still an incredible milestone for a woman to be headlining at a WrestleMania event. After a couple of year’s break, she returned to the WWE stage in 2022 where she won the SmackDown Women’s Championship. In 2024 it is still possible to see her in the ring from time to time.
Besides being a combat sports legend, she has also become a prominent public figure and continues to fight for women’s rights and gender equality in sports. As she has broken down a lot of barriers throughout her career, she’s an excellent advocate for exactly these issues. She has not only made a difference in women’s combat sports but for female athletes in all types of sports. The story of Ronda Rousey is an inspirational one. She is a perfect example of what you can achieve when you set your mind to it and continue to fight for it — no matter which type of ring you’re fighting in.
