Where’s Ronda? Former UFC Star Performing In WWE’s Money In The Bank In Las Vegas Saturday With Little Hype
By Cassandra Cousineau of LVSportsBiz.com
Ronda Rousey put women’s MMA on the map after making her debut in UFC in November 2012. Yes, it’s been nearly a decade.
After Rousey’s UFC debut, she also became one of the biggest box office draws in the history of MMA.
And this weekend, Rousey is back in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, except she’s a performer not for UFC but for WWE.
And the marketing twist this week is that if you are not a diehard pro wrestling fan, you’d hardly know Rousey was in Las Vegas, which also hosts the UFC 276 fight event across The Strip from MGM Grand Garden at T-Mobile Arena.
Not only has Rousey been pulled from WWE’s “Money in the Bank” event advertising, she’s been noticeably absent from the Las Vegas press junket that accompanies these types of events.
It’s an odd omission in this entertainment-fueled market considering the Rousey name appeared on marquees promoting numerous events around the globe.
The Ronda Rousey brand is especially synonymous with big-time fight cards on The Strip — and for good reason.
The California native and former Olympian cashed in millions of dollars worth of checks headlining UFC shows in Las Vegas during her career. Rousey received a $3 million purse guarantee for her hyped return to the Octagon in the main event of UFC 207 in December 2016. Her opponent, current women’s featherweight champion Amanda Nunes, got a $100,000 purse with a matching win bonus.
UFC President Dana White has said Rousey was the reason why he reversed his opinion that women would never compete for the MMA promotion. “Everything in life is about timing. When I was saying we’ll never have women in the UFC, I was having a hard enough time getting men fighting in a cage accepted, let alone women,” White recently told Rousey on her ESPN series ‘Rowdy’s Places.
“You approached me, and we had like a 45-minute conversation, and halfway through it, I started going, ‘Oh my God, I think I’m gonna do this.’ And she’s definitely the one to do this with.”
Rousey’s first 12 professional MMA fights were dominant victories. Rousey became a force for promotion Strikeforce, and then she won five of her first six fights in the UFC in the first round, with four of those fights lasting less than a minute and a half.
Rousey officially signed with the pro wrestling entertainment company in 2018, eventually winning the Raw Women’s Championship at that year’s SummerSlam. In October of that year, she was featured in Evolution, WWE’s inaugural all-women’s pay-per-view.
“This historic event marks another milestone in WWE’s women’s evolution,” Stephanie McMahon, WWE’s interim CEO, said at the time. According to WWE, 40 percent of its fans are female.
The 35-year-old new mom’s post-MMA career has also led to movies, a Saturday Night Live hosting gig, and even a robust real estate portfolio.
Still, Rousey seemed destined for WWE having inherited her nickname, Rowdy, from legendary figure “Rowdy” Roddy Piper through “Judo” Gene Bell who trained them both.
WWE’s Money in the Bank will be held Saturday, July 2 at MGM Grand Garden Arena.
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