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Ronda Rousey is not exactly excited about the prospect of a return to the ring.
Rousey spoke with WrestleZone to promote her graphic novel, Expecting The Unexpected. The former MMA and WWE Champion last competed as a pro wrestler for a run of matches for Lucha VaVoom, Wrestling Revolver and Ring Of Honor in late 2023. After that, she told TMZ Sports that she was not signing with AEW, and was focused on being a full-time mom.
Despite that statement, MMA and pro wrestling fans have continued to speculate about her future in both respective sports. Rousey recently told Sports Illustrated’s Justin Barrasso that she’d return to UFC “if she could.”
Ronda Rousey on her final WWE run
WrestleZone’s Bill Pritchard asked Rousey if she still gets that same attention or offers to return to pro wrestling. Rousey said that it’s good that some people might want her back, but her last WWE run was a negative experience.
Rousey previously said she didn’t intend to return. Now, she knows things have changed in the company since she left. However, it’s hard to let go of the feelings she has about the situation.
“Yeah, I feel like it’s a good thing. I guess it means that I’m missed if people still to this day ask me if I’m going to be fighting or going to be wrestling. My last run, just with Vince [McMahon], Bruce Prichard and John Laurinaitis, it just was such a negative experience,” Rousey explained. “Most of them are gone. Bruce’s little sh*t ass is still around. But I’m not overly excited to come back like I was the last time.
“Even though I had so many matches that I very much enjoyed and had a great time, when I look back on it, I don’t really think of the joy that I had in those matches and those live shows, or that I had so much fun,” she continued. “I just think of the anxiety of never knowing what was going on until the very last minute, not being allowed to prepare, and getting our time cut over and over and over again. The experience itself was so needlessly stressful. I think that’s what drove me so hard towards screenwriting and graphic novels. This story is kind of like a refuge from that. I know that things are a lot different now. I’ve heard from the girls that it’s so much better, but it’s kind of hard to shake that and be excited to come back like I was before.”
Ronda Rousey on being a parent on the road
Calling back to her comments about being a full-time mom, Rousey agreed that being a parent was the best job she could have. Rousey tried to be a parent on the road. However, it was starting to be too much to ask her daughter to go through. Family comes first, and Rousey wants more time with her family at home, instead of being away and on the road.
“Imagine taking them on the road every week, flying with them and going to different cities. It’s hard on kids,” she explained. “And after a while, you have to think, am I doing this for me or am I doing this for them? It got to a point where it was just too much to be putting my baby girl through. It was too much time to spend away from my husband and my boys.
“We want to have more kids. I can’t imagine taking multiple kids on the road or leaving one home,” she continued. “Family has gotta come first. We want to have a whole army of kids. I’ve been putting it off long enough. I gotta get to work.”
On Thursday, Rousey announced she is expecting her second child with her husband, Travis Browne. Rousey made the announcement during her San Diego Comic-Con panel to promote her graphic novel.
Expecting The Unexpected is live on Kickstarter now. Check out our full interview with Ronda Rousey below:
