Ronda Rousey On WWE Being Her Life Now, Her UFC Losses, Relationship With UFC President Dana White
Ronda Rousey sat down with ESPN's Ramona Shelburne on Sunday to discuss her WWE Royal Rumble debut, her future with the company, her MMA status and more. Videos can be seen above and below. As noted, Rousey has signed a full-time deal with WWE that is believed to be for several years.
Also below are highlights from the interview:
When asked if she will just pop up at big WWE events, Rousey says WWE is her life now as the company has priority when it comes to her time for the next few years. She says this is not a smash & grab or a publicity stunt. When she first met with Triple H she told him that there are other things she can do to make way more money but she won't enjoy them as much. Rousey says money only gets you the freedom to choose how you spend your time and who you spend it with, and she doesn't want to always be making money for the sake of just making money. Rousey says she just wanted to be a part of WWE and get the most out of her life, her opportunities, and she doesn't think trying to make the most amount of money each day is the best thing for her happiness. Rousey says she wants to wrestle, be a part of WWE and she wants the fans to respect her.
In regards to UFC President Dana White, Rousey says he is still one of her best friends and he has been very supportive through everything with WWE. She wants to bring White to a WWE show for the experience and White has agreed to attend one in the future. Rousey says she can't wait to show White why she loves WWE so much because she knows he will catch the bug too. When asked if she is retired from MMA, Rousey says that's what everyone else seems to say but she never retired from judo either, but that's what the media has been saying. Rousey really wants to devote 100% of her time to wrestling and says people can call that what they want to call it. She says she wouldn't doubt herself doing anything when asked if she could return to UFC for a return fight down the road.
Rousey gets emotional when mentioning her recent UFC losses to Amanda Nunes and Holly Holm, and says she doesn't want to talk about that topic. Rousey also talks about her Olympics experience and says she really believes that things happen for a reason, and that the worst things in life result in the best things that can happen. Rousey says this journey into WWE is proving that the belief is real.