WWE Superstar Ronda Rousey Talks UFC Hall Of Fame Induction: ‘You Have To Be Pissed Off For Change’
While she may be currently busy in the WWE feuding with Alexa Bliss, “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey built her impressive legacy in the UFC. With an MMA record of 12-2, Ronda Rousey was the first-ever UFC women’s champion, and on Thursday night, she became the first woman, and first active WWE wrestler, to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame. Shortly before the UFC Hall of Fame Ceremony, Rousey participated in a Q&A for the Orange County Register, and she spoke of what that honor meant to her.
“It means an incredible deal to me to receive this honor. Coming a lot sooner than I thought it would. I thought I’d be getting around town on some wheels or something at this point. I’ve had arthritis since I was 19, so I feel like you have to at least have arthritis to get into the Hall of Fame, so I feel like it’s a good time.”
As the Orange County Register documented, seven years ago, Ronda Rousey stated that men who criticize women’s MMA are those who sit on the couch in their mother’s basement and don’t want to think about “some chick doing better than they are.”
The former UFC champion was asked if she thinks the perception of men toward women’s MMA has changed and why.
“I definitely had a chip on my shoulder, huh? (Laughs)…You have to be pissed off for change. I think perceptions have changed a lot, so I’m glad I was hell-bent on making those changes.”
Ronda Rousey discussed her feelings regarding UFC president Dana White. She said that White gambled on her success in the UFC, and that it was a great investment. The WWE superstar also said that Dana White is a great man, and that she still considers him one of her best friends.
“I look around and think ‘together we built this.’ This division. This sport. This revolution.” – @RondaRousey on her #UFCHOF induction pic.twitter.com/QNLhsQqup5
— WWE (@WWE) July 6, 2018
The WWE wrestler then talked about success and going for her dreams. She remarked that she learned she could be the best in more than just one thing, and that you don’t have to pick just one thing to be great at. She said that a lot of people get scared by their own success in that they master one thing, and they never want to change doing anything differently, even if it’s something they don’t enjoy doing anymore. She commented that she’s been very lucky, and that she feels she’s lived four lifetimes by now.
Ronda Rousey closed the Q&A session by saying that she now does whatever she wants as far as her training, that unlike her UFC coaches, no one in the WWE tells her to do more or less, and that she’s listening to her body, and she’s never felt healthier than she does now.
