Ronda Rousey did herself a favor and disservice in the same night.
The former UFC women’s bantamweight champion opened up about her first-round TKO loss to Amanda Nunes in December 2016 during a candid video package alongside WrestleMania partner Kurt Angle on “Monday Night Raw.” She finally addressed the elephant in the room WWE has somewhat ignored during her brief run with the company.
First, Rousey gave insight into why she chose to be cocky and confident during her rise from living out of her car to the darling of the UFC — successfully defending her title five times.
“I knew that I could beat up any woman on the planet,” she said. “I’m not arrogant. I just know that I’m the best. Why can’t I say it? Why, because I’m a woman it makes me a bitch. I think people need to stop being offended by the confidence of a woman. I was the best in the world. I believed I was right and I was.”
All of that came crashing down around her after losses to Holly Holm and Nunes.
“I remember my last fight walking away thinking, ‘God hates me,’ ” Rousey said. “I had nothing left in me.”
The disappointment became doubt that husband Travis Browne helped snap her out of.
“He would just look at me and just say like, ‘You’re just not only this. You’re more than just a fighter,’” Rousey said, fighting back tears. “That’s not a bad thing. That’s not something I should be ashamed. It’s something I should embrace and showcase to the world, and that’s why I’m here [in WWE].”
It appears she has moved on. When asked on “The Ellen Show” this past week if she would ever return to the UFC, Rousey said she didn’t know, and it would be “just as likely as me going back to another Olympics for judo.”
The video package on “Raw” was technically her appearance on the show – at least the televised portion. Rousey did appear when the show went off the air, getting physical for the third time in four weeks.
In a clip for WWE.com, she suplexed Dana Brooke, who at the moment isn’t even wrestling. She is a baby-faced executive assistant for “Titus Worldwide” and not a true heel, despite playing one in the segment.
So we have now seen Rousey slam Triple H through a table, Samoan drop Stephanie McMahon and toss Brooke.
We get it. Rousey knows wrestling basics. Now save something for WrestleMania.
“There’s a lot of pressure, but it brings out the best in me,” Rousey said.
Her physical interactions should be limited and meaningful leading up to WrestleMania. Throwing around Brooke doesn’t accomplish anything; all it offers is YouTube views and fun for the live crowd.
Part of the anticipation for her match at WrestleMania against Triple H and McMahon is to see how she will handle herself in the ring. Each time they let her pull off a move before April 8 in New Orleans, it only raises the expectations for Rousey.
