Ronda Rousey says she saved women's MMA because 'no one' wanted to watch women 'pumped to the f***ing gills with steroids'

UFC Hall of Fame member Ronda Rousey praised herself in a recent interview for saving women's mixed martial arts after numerous organizations had failed to make lasting stars in the sport.

Rousey appeared on the podcast "Insight with Chris Van Vliet" and was asked if she ever considered retiring while still undefeated. The MMA star retired after two consecutive losses, finishing with a record of 12-2.

The champion said that while she considered retirement, she didn't want to leave the women's bantamweight division without a star to push the sport forward.

"People forget how fragile that situation was and how last-minute I was able to get us in [to the UFC]," she told Van Vliet. "Strikeforce was the only organization that was really showcasing women, and that was because of Gina Carano, because her dad was involved with the Nevada Athletic Commission."

Carano, a fighter turned actor, was one of the original women's MMA stars who was undefeated until losing to Cris 'Cyborg' Justino in 2009, a fighter whom Rousey revealed she despises. Carano never returned to MMA despite being booked for a fight in 2011.

Rousey said she stepped in for Carano both for the fight and as the new star in the sport.

"When [Carano] was gone, Cris Cyborg's pumped to the f***ing gills with steroids. No one wants to watch that cheating-ass bitch; everything just tanked. The division was dying."

"Retiring undefeated would have been such a selfish goal to be able to accomplish because I would have taken all that equity with me," Rousey continued. "No one would have respected the rest of the women that I left behind."

Cyborg responded to a clip of Rousey's comments on X and asked if Rousey realized she only won six out of eight UFC fights.

"Does [Ronda Rousey] realize she only has 8 fights in the ufc and only won 75% of them?!" she wrote.

Responding to a fan comment, Cyborg also stated that she never "quit" like Rousey did and called the idea of Rousey saving the sport "goofy."

By all accounts, Rousey did save women's MMA by being a dominant force in the sport as well as being a marketable face for the UFC.

Rousey also said in her recent interview that the WWE is where she learned that retiring undefeated would have been selfish. However, Rousey has previously stated that her retirement was due to concussion issues.

"I was so done fighting after that [first] loss. I'd had so many concussions I literally couldn't take a jab without getting a concussion at that point," Rousey explained. "My body and mind started to fall apart, and when I couldn't give anything any more, they hated me for it, but you couldn't even tell them why."

In a series of 2024 interviews to promote her book, Rousey caused controversy over her recollections of different events and stories. The fighter has claimed that members of the media, such as Joe Rogan, have turned their back on her while also falsely recalling the outcome of fights.

This spawned a series of responses from former UFC employees, including fighter Brendan Schaub, who said a story from Rousey's book "never happened." Former UFC commentator Jimmy Smith also said Rousey was "miserable," "mean," and widely disliked by UFC staff.

UFC legend Matt Brown also offered Rousey the advice of practicing humility, because "no one wants to hear" what she has been saying.

Rousey last fought in MMA in 2016 and has showed no interest in returning.

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