Ronda Rousey

At 37 years old, Ronda Rousey has this physical status:

Olympic judo career

Rousey and her mother began judo at the age of 11. Rousey lived with her mother until she was 13 years old, when she mistakenly broke her mother's wrist. Rousey, 17, was the youngest judoka to qualify for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. In her first match against silver medalist Claudia Heill in the 63 kg division, Rousey lost. Also in 2004, Rousey earned a gold medal at the World Junior Judo Championships in Budapest, Hungary.

She became the first female judoka in nearly ten years to win an A-Level tournament in April 2006, going 5–0 to win gold at the Birmingham World Cup in Great Britain. The 19-year-old earned the bronze medal at the Junior World Championships in 2011, becoming the first American woman to win two Junior World medals.

Rousey ranked as one of the top-ranked women in the world in February 2007. She earned the bronze medal at the 2007 Pan American Games in the middleweight division and the gold medal.

Rousey competed in Beijing, China, in August 2008. She lost her quarterfinals to the Dutch ex-world champion Edith Bosch, but she qualified for a bronze medal match in the repechage bracket. Rousey won a bronze medal over Annett Boehm (Judo has two bronze medals in each weight class). Rousey became the first American woman to win an Olympic medal in women's judo since its inception as an Olympic sport in 1992.

Mixed martial arts career

At 21 years old, Rousey retired from judo after the Olympics. Rousey, the Olympic medalist, shared a studio apartment with a roommate in Venice Beach, California, and worked three years as a bartender and cocktail waitress to help herself and her dog.

Rousey's mother took her to judo clubs run by her old teammates when she first started learning judo. Rousey left Hayastan MMA Academy, which was operated by Gokor Chivichyan, where she trained with fellow future MMA fighters Manny Gamburyan and Karo Parisyan. Hayastan's "more brawling style of judo compared to the more modern Japanese style," Rousey said. Rousey worked mainly with males older than she was, became more angry and cried when she was kicked and could not throw someone. "I cried every single night of training from 2002 to 2005," Rousey remarked.

Rousey worked closely with Gamburyan. Gamburyan volunteered to open the gym every afternoon and work with her personally after Rousey fractured her knee when she was 16 years old. Rousey "will kill these girls" in MMA, according to her coworkers, but she also thought she was "too pretty to be struck in the chest" and should keep doing judo. Rousey stayed with judo during MMA's first moves into MMA, but kept in touch with the fight through them. Manny Gamburyan versus Nate Diaz in the Ultimate Fighter finale was the first MMA match she took an interest in watching. Rousey claimed she never got excited about judo or some other sport. She decided to start MMA through Team Hayastan after the 2008 Olympics.

Rousey has also worked at the Glendale Fighting Club, where she was introduced by Gamburyan and other Hayastan teammates. Edmond Tarverdyan, a long-serving MMA coach at GFC, began training.

She studied Jiu Jitsu from 2011 to 2014 and went on to train with Ryron Gracie and Rener Gracie of Gracie Academy, as well as BJ Penn of Art of Jiu-Jitsu. Rousey competed under Leo Francicu, a Romanian.

On August 6, 2010, Rousey made her mixed martial arts debut as an amateur. In 23 seconds, she defeated Hayden Munoz by submission due to an armbar.

On November 12, 2010, she reached the quarterfinals of the Tuff-N-Uff 145 lbs women's tournament, where she presented promotional veteran Autumn Richardson with an armbar in 57 seconds.

On January 7, 2011, Rousey met Taylor Stratford in the Tuff-N-Uff tournament semi-finals and was disqualified by technical submission due to an armbar in 24 seconds. She then announced plans to turn pro and was disqualified in the tournament. Rousey has a 3–0 record in amateur MMA, and the total length of all her amateur matches is less than two minutes.

Rousey made her professional mixed martial arts debut on March 27, 2011 at King of the Cage: Turning Point. In 25 seconds, she successfully submitted Ediane Gomes with an armbar.

On June 17, 2011, in Calgary, Canada, Rousey met kickboxing champion Charmaine Tweet in a MMA match against the School of Hard Knocks 12. In 49 seconds, she made a tweet with an armbar.

On July 30, 2011, Rousey would make her Strikeforce debut against Sarah D'Alelio in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. The match was postponed and then took place on the Strikeforce Challengers 18 main card in Las Vegas, Nevada, on August 12, 2011. Rousey won the first round by a technical forfeiture due to an armbar. The victory was tense. Rousey said that D'Alelio yelled "tap" more than once, and that D'Alelio denied this and said to have yelled "Aaahhh." Both of these utterances would still be a verbal submission, according to the joint martial arts laws.

On November 18, 2011, in Las Vegas, Rousey met Julia Budd at the Strikeforce Challengers 20. In the first round, she won by submission due to an armbar, dislocating Budd's elbow in the process. Following the fight, she announced plans to drop down to 135 pounds to face Miesha Tate, the Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Champion at the time, with whom she had forged a well-known rivalry.

During Rousey's appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience, Rousey's manager Edmond Tarverdyan said Rousey began her MMA career in the 145 lb division because she had to lose weight at short notice due to a lack of willing opponents.

In Columbus, Ohio, Rousey challenged Tate for her Strikeforce crown on March 3, 2012. She defeated Tate by an armbar in the first round, effectively dislocating her opponent's elbow, and become the first Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Champion.

On showtime, Rousey appeared in All Access: Ronda Rousey. On August 8, 2012, the half-hour special premiered. "If there is a woman in the octagon, it's probably going to be Ronda Rousey," UFC President Dana White said during the program. On August 15, 2012, the second installment of the special premiere aired. Rousey appeared on Conan as well.

At Strikeforce: Rousey vs. Kaufman, Rousey defended her strikeforce title against Sarah Kaufman on August 18, 2012, in San Diego, California. After ripping it off with an armbar, Rousey said she'd throw Kaufman's arm at her corner and threatened to choke or pound Kaufman's face to death. Rousey snagged Kaufman and handed her an armbar in 54 seconds to hold the Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Championship. Rousey revealed that if former Strikeforce Women's Featherweight Champion Cris Cyborg wanted to fight her, it would have to take place at bantamweight.

Rousey had become the first female fighter to sign with the United NationsFC in November 2012. Rousey was the first UFC Women's Bantamweight Champion, according to UFC President Dana White at the UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Diaz pre-fight press conference.

Rousey has always opposed using the word "rowdy" in her nickname, feeling that doing so would be disrespectful to professional wrestler "Rowdy" Roddy Piper. Piper approved him after meeting Piper (circa 2012 or 2013) through Gene LeBell, who aided in the preparations.

On February 23, 2013, Rousey defended her title against Liz Carmouche at UFC 157. Despite being trapped in an early standing neck crank attempt from Carmouche, Rousey went on to win her Bantamweight Championship title, defeating the fight at 4:49 due to an armbar. During the war, Carmouche dislocated Ronda Rousey's jaw.

After Cat Zingano defeated Miesha Tate at The Ultimate Fighter: Team Jones vs. Zingano will be a mentor of The Ultimate Fighter 18 against Rousey, according to Dana White of Team Sonnen Finale. Miesha Tate would coach The Ultimate Fighter 18 against Rousey on May 28, with Zingano suffering a knee injury.

On December 28, 2013, Rousey met Miesha Tate in a rematch against Strikeforce at UFC 168. Rousey finally submitted Tate via armbar in the third round after progressing to the first two rounds, with Tate surviving an armbar assault and a triangle attempt. In an interview with Los Angeles Daily News, Rousey said she had lost muscle during her film appearances and not been able to regain full strength for the Tate war.

Rousey will defend the UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship against fellow Olympic medalist and undefeated fighter Sara McMann in the main event at UFC 170 on February 22, 2014. Rousey won the fight by TKO after knocking down McMann with a knee to the body just over a minute into the first round. Rousey's first victory in his career was won by a different strategy than armbar. The stoppage sparked controversy, with some sports journalists and attendees finding it premature.

Rousey was named one of espnW's Impact 25 in 2014.

Rousey will defend the UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship against Alexis Davis in a co-main event at UFC 175 on July 5, 2014. She won the fight by a mere 16 seconds in the first round. During the fight, Rousey broke her thumb. Rousey received her second appearance of the Night bonus award for her emphatic triumph.

At UFC 182 for the women's bantamweight title, a match between Rousey and Cat Zingano was scheduled to take place. However, the match was postponed to UFC 184 on February 28, 2015. Rousey defeated Zingano with an armbar in 14 seconds, the shortest match in UFC championship history until Conor McGregor defeated José Aldo in 13 seconds 11 months later.

On August 1, 2015, Rousey faced Bethe Correya in Brazil, winning the match by 34 seconds in the first round. Rousey dedicated the game to "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, a young girl who died the day before, who said Piper was one of her inspirations and had approved the use of his name.

The match was Rousey's sixth appearance in the UFC, all of whom had been victories. She took 1077 seconds in the octagon to win all six of the contestants and raised $1,080,000 in prize money; this equaled to nearly $700.79 for every second spent fighting. Her average time of 2 minutes and 59 seconds was less than the average time of a single match in every UFC weight division, the fastest of which was the Heavyweight division, which took place in a record time of 7 minutes and 59 seconds.

Rousey faced Holly Holm in the main event at UFC 193 on November 15, 2015. Despite being a strong betting favorite, Rousey was outstricken by Holm for the majority of the game and was disqualified by a head kick in round two, ending her career and her undefeated streak in the process. Rousey and Holm were each given a $50,000 reward for their fight. She was also banned from football by UFC on November 18, 2015. On December 9, 2015, she was medically cleared. Rousey was greatly affected by Holm's defeat. She shielded her face from the paparazzi on her return to the United States after the war. She used a purple pillow to hide her face from the paparazzi. Rousey said in a The Ellen DeGeneres Show appearance on February 16, 2016, she considered suicide in the immediate aftermath of her head kick KO loss to Holm.

Rousey returned from the sport to meet Amanda Nunes on December 30, 2016 in the main event at UFC 207. In round one, Rousey was defeated via TKO early.

Although Rousey did not officially announce her retirement, she said, "I think it's just as likely as me going back to another Olympics for judo." In July 2018, she was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.

Professional wrestling career

Rousey is a professional wrestling fan. The four Horsewomen, Shayna Baszler, Jessamyn Duke, and Marina Shafir have dubbed themselves "The Four Horsewomen," a reference to The Four Horsemen's professional wrestling stable, with the blessing of members Ric Flair and Arn Anderson.

In the front row at WWE's SummerSlam event on August 17, 2014, the Four Horsewomen were acknowledged on camera and comment as such. During the performance, the group went backstage, including Paul Heyman, among other things. Rousey was on television that night; when asked if she, like Brock Lesnar, would cross over to wrestling, she replied, "You never know."

The Four Horsewomen were seated in the front row at WrestleMania 31 on March 29, 2015. McMahon slapped the Rock and ordered him to leave "her ring" during an in-ring confrontation between The Rock and The Authority (Stephanie McMahon and Triple H). She chastised him, insisting that he would not assault a woman. He blasted Rousey, paused, and marched over to Rousey for a raucous ovation. He accompanied her into the ring and said she would be able to smash McMahon for him. The Rock screamed Triple H out of the arena during a staredown. McMahon proceeded to slap her, but Rousey grabbed her arm, hinting at an armbar, before throwing her out of the contest. In the Ring, Rousey and the Rock were feted, while the Authority retreated with the suggestion of revenge. The segment was replayed and discussed during the next night's Raw, with Rousey hyping a tweet she posted earlier that day, in which she implied a return to WWE with the inscription "We're just getting off, gettin' off."

The Horsewomen performed in the audience of the Mae Young Classic on July 13, 14, and September 12, 2017 to help their compatriot Shayna Baszler, who was making her WWE debut in the tournament. In addition, all four Horsewomen faced Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, and Bayley, who, alongside Sasha Banks, are also known as the Four Horsewomen, hinting at a future feud between the two groups.

In 2017, Rousey had joined the WWE on a full time basis and was training at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando. At his wrestling academy, she also trained under Brian Kendrick.

On January 28, 2018, Rousey made a surprise appearance at Royal Rumble, confronting Raw Women's Champion Alexa Bliss, SmackDown Women's Champion Charlotte Flair, and Asuka, who had just won the inaugural women's Royal Rumble match. During the interview, ESPN announced that she had signed a full-time deal with WWE. Rousey's jacket during this appearance belonged to "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, which was given to her by his son. Rousey was involved in an in-ring dispute with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, after which she decided she was a part of the Raw brand on February 25.

Rousey's debut at WrestleMania 34, WWE's flagship match, was secured by her team's victory over Stephanie McMahon and Triple H on April 8, during a match that featured Rousey and Kurt Angle as her team's partner against Stephanie McMahon and Triple H. Both fans and wrestling commentators lauded her debut, with Jim Cornette lauding it as her best debut ever, while Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer noting that she "at no point looked out of her element, she was crisp in just about every part," describing her appearance as one of the best pro wrestling debuts I've ever seen." The Washington Post highlighted the positive fan reaction, including "The match met all expectations, with fans clearly behind Rousey" and "[fans] were surprised [at her] high-level coordination and quality of wrestling." And those that were not convinced that the game was amusing."

Rousey was first disqualified by then-champion Nia Jax in May, and it was announced that she would have her first chance at the Raw Women's Championship at the Money in the Bank. Rousey defeated disqualification by Alexa Bliss, who smuggled both Rousey and Jax and declared her Cash in the Bank contract, gaining the title instead. Fans and critics alike applauded her performance in her first singles match and championship debut, with CNET naming "for the first time, [WWE's] biggest mainstream celebrity is a woman." Despite the fact that "worry" was that the match would reveal Rousey's own inexperience, which would greatly damage her reputation and fame, they came out as a believable, believable wrestler," she said. The game was good, but she was amazing." Rousey will launch her first feud as part of WWE with Alexa Bliss over the title, which also included a suspension (again in kayfabe) after Rousey attacked Bliss, Kurt Angle, and several others in a two-month span. Rousey was awarded a Raw Women's Championship match by Raw general manager Kurt Angle against Bliss at SummerSlam after honoring her suspension from in-ring action. Rousey defeated Bliss to win the championship on August 19, her first appearance in WWE. Rousey submitted Bliss again on a month later in a match that took place a month later at Hell in a Cell.

Rousey continued to win over championship favorites such as Nikki Bella (in the first all woman's pay-per-view Evolution in the first all women's pay-per-view Evolution on October 28), Mickie James, Nia Jax, Natalya, and Sasha Banks. Rousey had intended to face Becky Lynch at the Survivor Series pay-per-view in an interbrand champion versus a champion match, but Lynch was actually injured during an invasion stunt only minutes after she struck Rousey backstage. Rousey faced Charlotte Flair instead, and won by disqualification after Flair attacked her with a kendo stick and steel chairs at the event on November 18, 2010. Rousey returned to Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 16, a month later, while assisting Asuka in winning the SmackDown Women's Championship. Rousey continued her feud with Bayley on January 28, 2019, the latter's first appearance in a championship match at WrestleMania 35. Vince McMahon suspended Lynch for 60 days in storyline on February 11, and Charlotte Flair announced Lynch as Rousey's WrestleMania opponent. Rousey came back to heel on the first time in her career as she attacked both Flair and Lynch on March 4 in Raw. Lynch met Flair in a match in which if Lynch wins, she will be relegated to the Raw Women's Championship match at WrestleMania. During the match, Rousey hit Lynch, causing Lynch to disqualify and thus the WrestleMania triple-threat match between Rousey, Flair, and Lynch was declared official. Rousey's title defense against Lynch and Flair will be the main event of WrestleMania 35, making it the first women's match to close WrestleMania. Lynch controversially pinned Rousey to win both titles at the event on April 7, which was subsequently changed to a Winner in Rousey's Raw and Flair Women's Championships. Rousey was in the ring saying her shoulders were not down for the full three count, according to the commentary and production team, and a replay of the ending pin pointed this fact. Nevertheless, this was Rousey's first loss in WWE and ended her championship reign at 231 days; it will remain the longest reign as Raw Women's Champion until Lynch's own exceeds Rousey's.

Rousey returned to WWE as a celebrity on January 29, 2022, defeating Brie Bella, Nikki A.S.H., and Shotzi. Charlotte Flair was defeated by last week, gaining a championship match at WrestleMania 38. Rousey challenged Flair at the SmackDown Women's Championship in WrestleMania on February 4 (her first appearance on the site). At the Elimination Chamber on February 19, Rousey and Naomi defeated Flair and Sonya Deville. Rousey's rift with Flair spanned the next few weeks, and Flair secured the title in the first night of WrestleMania 38, snaping Rousey's undefeated singles streak and allowing Rousey her second defeat. Rousey challenged Flair to a "I Quit" match, which she refused to accept on the following SmackDown. However, the match was later scheduled and rescheduled for WrestleMania Backlash on May 8, where Rousey defeated Flair to win the title.

She retained her title against Raquel Rodriguez in an open challenge on May 13 of SmackDown. Rousey defended her title against Natalya on July 2, but Liv Morgan won her Money in the Bank contract on Rousey, bringing an end to her reign at 55 days. On the following episode of SmackDown, Rousey would face Morgan for the title at SummerSlam. Rousey lost in a controversial fashion to Morgan on July 30, with Morgan winning by pinfall despite being attached to Rousey's armbar when her shoulders were lower. Rousey and the referee threwled Morgan and the referee after the match, turning heel for the first time since 2019. Rousey was suspended from WWE as a result of punching the referee. Rousey's suspension was postponed until she was released from her service on September 9 in a thrilling five-way elimination match that would guarantee a rematch against Morgan for the SmackDown Women's Championship at Extreme Rules. Morgan challenged Rousey to an Extreme Rules match for the title, which Rousey accepted. Rousey won her second SmackDown Women's Championship on October 8, defeating Morgan.

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