Many are angling for Ronda Rousey to lace up the gloves for another UFC fight, but one ex-fighter does not think it would go well.
Rousey, a pioneer in mixed martial arts who was part of the very first women’s fight in the UFC, has not appeared in the cage since 2016.
After Rousey was knocked out by Holly Holm in one of the greatest upsets in UFC history, the 2008 Olympic bronze medalist in judo fell to the same fate in her return a year later against Amanda Nunes.
That two-fight skid looked to have spelled the end of ‘Rowdy’s’ time in MMA. Rousey crossed over to pro wrestling and began a career with WWE, and further cold water was poured on talk of a UFC return when Rousey revealed neurological injuries would prevent her from competing.
However, comeback rumors were recently ignited once again courtesy of the 38-year-old’s social media activity.
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Ronda Rousey urged to stay away from MMA return by UFC veteran Matt Brown
Rousey sparked UFC return speculation in September by posting a training video on Instagram. In the caption, the former bantamweight queen admitted she was finding her “love” for MMA again.
Her remarks unsurprisingly got the rumor mill spinning and talk of a UFC comeback for a woman who sits on Dana White’s Mount Rushmore of MMA has risen back to the surface.
During the latest episode of MMA Fighting’s The Fighter vs. The Writer show, Matt Brown became the latest to discuss the potential return. While he would obviously tune in for a comeback fight, ‘The Immortal’ thinks Rousey would be comfortably defeated.
“We know everyone would get behind bringing Ronda Rousey back,” Brown said. “As big of a star as she was, yeah, f— yeah everybody would be all about it. Whether they love her or hate her, we’ll watch 100 percent.
“(But) I would say the same thing with Conor (McGregor)…you cannot take that time off and expect to come back at a high level.
“Everybody else is working every day,” Brown continued. “This isn’t 1998 anymore, where you can just kind of be a fighter in training camp and then chill and then come back. We’re not even talking about that. We’re talking about years off.
“She’ll get destroyed.”
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Cris Cyborg offers to welcome Ronda Rousey back to MMA
Should Rousey end up committing to an MMA comeback, she has one legend outside of the UFC ready and willing to welcome her back.
Cris Cyborg is currently on her “legacy tour,” as she prepares to wrap up her illustrious career as a fighter.
The Brazilian great has two fights remaining on her PFL contract, the first of which will be against Sara Collins on the undercard of Vadim Nemkov’s heavyweight title fight against Renan Ferreira in Lyon, France, this December.
While the Brazilian would likely need to delay her retirement plans for it to happen, Cyborg raised her hand to be the opponent for Rousey’s possible return on social media.
“#CyborgRousey,” she wrote in the comments section of an X post regarding Rousey’s comeback tease.