Ronda Rousey ‘Sports Illustrated’ Cover: Rousey Becomes First MMA Star To Earn ‘SI’ Cover

Ronda Rousey just got the cover of Sports Illustrated. SI.com revealed the Ronda Rousey cover on Tuesday (May 12), making her the first MMA fighter to get that honor. It isn’t the first time that Rousey has broken down walls like this one, as she was also the first MMA fighter to appear in the SI Swimsuit Issue. That turned a lot of heads when it came out in February of 2014. Rousey spoke to the magazine about how she has dealt with become a celebrity.

“What I realized is once you become socially unhealthy, it’s impossible to stay psychologically healthy. [Celebrities] get surrounded by people that benefit off of them in some way. Every single person that they see in the day either gains financial stability, status, something from that person. And so the people around you reflect reality back to you.”

A report about this magazine release on Yahoo! Sports also noted that her next MMA fight has been scheduled. Rousey will fight against Bethe Correia at UFC 190 on Aug. 1 in Rio de Janeiro. That Rousey will enter that fight still undefeated shows why she was recently named The Most Dominant Athlete Alive.

As previously reported on the Inquisitr, the UFC fighter ranked ahead of NBA star LeBron James, tennis star Serena Williams, soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo, and Olympic athlete Usain Bolt. An 11-0 record in her MMA fights, coupled with winning her last championship fight in just 14 seconds, helped secure Ronda Rousey as the top athlete on the list. Moving forward, it might be hard for anyone to knock her off that pedestal.

Rousey has been gaining in popularity outside of the UFC and MMA fighting, as she recently appeared as a supporting character in Expendables 3. She was also a bodyguard in Furious 7, possibly opening the door for a future appearance in the either franchise. There are already rumored attachments to other films being chatted about on social media as well. Making it on the cover of the biggest sports magazine in the world could just be her next big step in the world of entertainment.

The Sports Illustrated cover for Ronda Rousey is for the May 13 issue of the magazine and it will hit newsstands shortly. SI also does an in-depth article about her, reportedly with a lot of quotes from a woman that continues to not only dominate the UFC, but the entire MMA world.

[Image Source: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images]