Ronda Rousey made her triumphant return back to the MMA octagon — and is ready to take on her next challenge.
After defeating fellow retired fighter Gina Carano in just 17 seconds via submission on Saturday, May 16, at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California, Rousey, 39, revealed what she plans to do in the wake of her dominant win.
“I said, ‘She’s my f***ing hero and just thank you for everything and thank you for bringing me back home,” Rousey told the in-ring reporter of what she said to her opponent after the live Netflix fight.
“It was so quick — is there any chance we can see more of this?” the reporter asked. “I think everyone wants to see more of you competing. You looked so good, so dominant out there. Listen to this crowd, look at the reception you’ve had since coming back to MMA. Is there any chance we’ll leave that door a little bit open?”
Rousey quickly responded, explaining to the reporter and the crowd that she couldn’t have imagined a better way to walk away from the sport for good.
“There’s no way I could have ended it better than this,” she said. “I want to have some more babies and I gotta get cooking.”
Rousey retired from the sport of MMA in 2016 after back-to-back losses to fellow fighters Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes. After retiring, Rousey married former UFC star Travis Browne in 2017. In 2021, the pair welcomed their first daughter, La’akea Makalapuaokalanipō, followed by their second daughter, Liko’ula Pā’ūomahinakaipiha, in 2025. (Brown also shares two sons, Kaleo and Keawe, with a previous partner.)
Rousey announced her surprise return to MMA in February, officially ending her nearly decade-long retirement.
“Been waiting so long to announce this: Me and Gina Carano are gonna throw down in the biggest super fight in women’s combat sport history!” she said in a statement at the time. “And we’re partnering with the fighter-first promotion MVP as well as the biggest and baddest streamer on the planet Netflix. This is for all MMA fans past, present and future. More to come… much more.”
Carano, 44, said that a long-awaited dream match against Rousey was the only offer intriguing enough to bring her out of her own, near 17-year retirement.
“Ronda came to me and said there is only one person she would make a comeback for and it has been her dream to make this fight happen between us,” Carano said in February. “She thanked me for opening up doors for her in her career and was respectful in asking for this fight to happen. This is an honor. I believe I will walk out of this fight with the win, and I anticipate it will not come easy, which I welcome. This is as much for Ronda and me as it is for the fans and mixed martial arts community. What a time to be alive.”
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