Ronda Rousey Makes Surprise Return To Wrestling
Ronda Rousey has made a shock return to wrestling, but it wasn’t in a WWE ring.
After making several cameos over the years, Rousey officially signed with WWE in 2017. The former UFC star made her in-ring debut at WrestleMania 34, where she teamed up with Kurt Angle to defeat Stephanie McMahon and Triple H.
From there, the Baddest Woman on the Planet went from stength-to-strength, capturing the Raw Women’s Championship from Alexa Bliss to kick off a 231-day reign. At WrestleMania 35, Rousey defended her title against SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch in a Winner Takes All Triple Threat match that was the first women’s bout to headline the Showcase of the Immortals.
Lynch walked out of the match the victor, and Rousey went on a lengthy hiatus following the loss. She returned at the 2022 Royal Rumble and quickly entered a feud with Charlotte Flair over the SmackDown Women’s Title. The star went on to have rivalries with the likes of Liv Morgan and Shotzi before setting her sights on the Women’s Tag Team Titles alongside Shayna Baszler.
The pair became a dominant force in the tag division until Baszler turned on her friend, blaming frustration over Rousey getting preferential treatment in WWE. The two finally faced off at SummerSlam in 2023, with Baszler winning an MMA Rules match by technical submission.
The bout was Rousey’s last in WWE, and in October she seemingly retired from the ring altogether. At least, until now.
Ronda Rousey makes Lucha VaVOOM debut
On October 26th, Ronda Rousey was in the crowd for Lucha VaVOOM’s event in Los Angeles, California. However, she couldn’t resist getting involved in the action, and joined her friend, and AEW star, Marina Shafir to take on Brian Kendrick and Taya Valkyrie in a Tag Team bout.
The short match saw Rousey get the victory by forcing Kendrick to submit to an Ankle Lock. After the show, Rousey posted the match to social media, noting that anyone who thought she and Shafir couldn’t make magic in the ring is “an idiot.”
“@luchavavoom was honestly the best Lucha/burlesque hybrid show I’ve ever had the pleasure of jumping into unannounced. Anyone who doubted me and @marinashafir could make magic in a ring is an idiot – thank you @thetayavalkyrie and @mr.briankendrick for being down to get down with us”