Ronda Rousey is a historic champion in both UFC and WWE, known for her groundbreaking achievements in mixed martial arts and professional wrestling.
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1987âpresent
American mixed martial artist and actor Ronda Rousey is best known for her reign as the first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) womenâs bantamweight champion. Rousey endured a tough childhood marked by a speech disorder and her fatherâs suicide. She became a judo champion, earning back-to-back golds at the Pan American Championships and a 2008 Olympic bronze medal. Rousey turned pro in 2010 and became a Strikeforce champion before headlining multiple UFC premium events. She transitioned to pro wrestling, becoming a WWE superstar and one of only eight female Triple Crown champions. With her starpower, Rousey has also appeared in The Expendables and Fast & Furious movie franchises.
FULL NAME: Ronda Jean Rousey
BORN: February 1, 1987
BIRTHPLACE: Riverside, California
SPOUSE: Travis Browne (2017-present)
CHILDREN: Laâakea and Likoâula
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Aquarius
Ronda Jean Rousey was born on February 1, 1987, in Riverside, California. Born with her umbilical cord wrapped around her neck, Rousey nearly died from a lack of oxygen and sustained slight brain damage. She exhibited signs of Childhood Apraxia of Speech, a rare speech disorder where a childâs mouth cannot make movements to form words, and didnât speak until she was 6.
A tragedy fell upon the family when Rouseyâs dad, Ron, broke his back while sledding with his daughters. A rare blood disorder prevented him from healing properly, and after learning he would be a paraplegic then regress to a quadriplegic in the few years he had left to live, he died by suicide when Rousey was 8.
Ronda Rousey became the first female champion in UFC history and successfully defended her title six times.
Ronda Rousey made her WWE debut in 2018 after a successful career in UFC, quickly becoming a prominent figure in professional wrestling.
Ronda Rousey significantly raised the profile of women's sports, inspiring many female athletes in both MMA and wrestling.
Ronda Rousey began her professional wrestling career in 2018 after her tenure in the UFC.
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Rousey struggled in class and was homeschooled for parts of elementary and high school, but she found an outlet for her frustration when her mom, AnnMaria De Mars, persuaded her to learn judo. A gold medalâwinning judoka at the 1984 World Championships, De Mars began drilling her daughter in some of the sportâs fundamentals, most notably the dreaded armbar used to pin an opponent to the mat.
Rousey was named to the United States Olympic team at age 15, and at 16 she became the youngest American to earn the national No. 1 ranking in the womenâs half-middleweight division. Although she didnât earn a medal at the 2004 Olympics, she claimed gold at that yearâs World Junior and Pan American Judo Championships.
After defending her Pan American Judo Championship title in 2006, Rousey became the first American woman in 12 years to earn a World Championship medal by finishing second in the 2007 tournament. She then won gold at the 2007 Pan American Games, despite a torn knee meniscus. After earning the bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics, she retired from judo at age 21.
Ronda Rousey holds up her bronze medal from the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China.Getty Images
Unsure of what to do in the wake of her judo career, Rousey worked as a bartender in Los Angeles and lived out of her car for a time. She eventually joined the Glendale Fighting Club and, in August 2010, made her amateur debut in mixed martial arts, a victory by way of an armbar after just 23 seconds. Two more amateur bouts ended via armbar submission after 57 and 24 seconds, respectively.
Rousey continued her run of domination after turning pro in the sport, reeling off four straight wins in under a minute apiece. In March 2012, she became the Strikeforce Womenâs Bantamweight Champion by defeating Miesha Tate in four minutes and 27 seconds.
By this point, Rousey had become a crossover star with her good looks and penchant for first trash-talking then brutally dispatching her opponents. She was featured on a cover of ESPN The Magazineâs 2012 Body Issue, and appeared as a guest on Conan OâBrienâs talk show.
After one more speedy victory, Rousey was the first woman to sign with the UFC, the worldâs largest mixed martial arts league. Designated Bantamweight Champion, she successfully defended her belt in the inaugural UFC womenâs bout in February 2012, submitting Liz Carmouche via her patented armbar in four minutes and 49 seconds, her longest fight at that point.
In the summer of 2013, Rousey appeared in another photo spread, for Maxim. At the end of 2013, she won a rematch with Tate that extended to the third round, suggesting she was losing her touch as the dominant force of the UFC womenâs circuit.
When she returned to the UFC octagon, Rousey won four consecutive first-round victories, two of them coming in under 20 seconds. However, her reign finally ended with a second-round knockout by Holly Holm in November 2015. The surprising loss sent ripples through the sporting world, and presented Rousey with her first serious athletic challenge since her days of competitive judo.
Ronda Rousey defends a punch during her UFC match against Holly Holm in November 2015. Holm won via second-round knockout.Getty Images
Over a year after her stunning 2015 loss, Rousey attempted a comeback on December 30, 2016, at UFC 207, facing off against reigning champion Amanda Nunes. However, Nunes defeated Rousey in just 48 seconds.
Rousey did not comment immediately following the stunning loss, but UFC president Dana White spoke about her reaction in an interview with ESPNâs SportsCenter: âI went backstage after and hung out with her for probably 40 to 45 minutes,â White said. âIâll tell you this: Sheâs in better spirits this time than she was after the Holly fight. Sheâs very competitive. She does not like to lose. She loves to win, and she loves to do what she sets out to do.â
In June 2018, the UFC released a statement announcing Rousey would become the leagueâs first female Hall of Famer the following month. âThis is an immense honor, to not only take part in bringing women to the forefront of this sport, but now the UFC Hall of Fame,â Rousey said in the statement. âMay I be the first of many.â
In February 2026, Most Valuable Productionsâthe fight promotion co-founded by influencer Jake Paulâconfirmed Rouseyâs return to the cage for a headlining bout against Gina Carano, the former Strikeforce competitor also known for playing Cara Dune in the first two seasons of The Mandalorian.
The main event and its undercard will take place May 16, 2026, at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California, and be broadcast on Netflix.
âBeen waiting so long to announce this: Me and Gina Carano are gonna throw down in the biggest super fight in womenâs combat sport history!â Rousey told ESPN in a statement.
Rousey told CBS Mornings she took the fight to rewrite the ending of her career, as she didnât formally retire before leaving UFC. She has also suggested the fight will be her last, revealing she and husband Travis Browne wish to expand their family.
On January 28, 2018, following months of speculation, Rousey confirmed she was joining World Wrestling Entertainment with her surprise appearance at the WWE womenâs Royal Rumble match.
âThis is my life now,â she told an ESPN reporter afterward. âFirst priority on my timeline for the next several years. This is not a smash-and-grab; this is not a publicity stunt.â
Although she didnât rule out a return to mixed martial arts, the move all but signaled the end of her historic run as the sportâs first female superstar. âIâm happy for her. This is something she has always wanted to do,â said White, her former UFC boss. âRonda continues to achieve everything she has ever wanted.â
Rouseyâs WWE debut, at Wrestlemania 34 on April 8, 2018, was a successful one: Teaming with veteran wrestler Kurt Angle, the duo dispatched the husband-wife team of Triple H and Stephanie McMahon in the Mixed Match Challenge, which ended with McMahon tapping out from a Rousey armbar. The following day, during Monday Night Raw, the newcomer further endeared herself to fans when McMahon attempted to kiss up to Rousey, only to get thrown to the mat for another armbar.
She adopted the nickname âRowdyâ in tribute to past WWE champion âRowdyâ Roddy Piper. Wearing similar ring gear to the star and Piperâs actual leather jacketâwith his familyâs permissionâRousey won the Raw Womenâs Championship by defeating Alexa Bliss at Summerslam in August 2018, and held the title until losing to Becky Lynch at Wrestlemania 35 in April 2019.
Ronda Rousey celebrates with WWE superstar Natalya after winning the Raw Womenâs Championship at Summerslam in 2018.Getty Images
Rousey, who also suffered a broken hand in the loss, confirmed shortly afterward that she was stepping away from the ring indefinitely to focus on starting a family with Browne. Later, she disclosed that she had no intention to return to WWE on a full-time basis.
Returning in January 2022, Rousey won the womenâs Royal Rumble match and challenged SmackDown champion Charlotte Flair at that yearâs Wrestlemania. Although she lost at the annual showcase, Rousey bested Flair at the Backlash event to win the brand title. With her 2023 WWE Womenâs Tag Team Championship victory alongside Shayna Baszler, Rousey became one of only eight female superstars to earn a Triple Crown championshipâwinning the Raw, Smackdown, and Tag Team titles.
Rousey took a break again later that year and confirmed in September 2025 that pro wrestling is in the ârearview mirrorâ in terms of her career.
As her MMA and WWE careers flourished, Rouseyâs celebrity status allowed her the opportunity to act in a number of high-profile movies and television projects.
Rousey joined the ensemble cast of 2014âs The Expendables 3, appearing alongside action icons including Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Harrison Ford, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. She played a nightclub bouncer who is recruited to join a team of mercenaries. Soon after, Rousey appeared in the 2015 films Furious 7 and Entourage.
In August 2018, Rousey starred opposite Mark Wahlberg in the international crime thriller Mile 22, a story about a special CIA force tasked to protect a valuable intelligence asset from a group of terrorists.
The following summer, it was announced Rousey would be joining season 3 of the procedural drama series 9-1-1 as a member of the Los Angeles Fire Department. Also in 2019, she made a cameo as a fight instructor in the Charlieâs Angels movie reboot starring Kristen Stewart.
Ronda Rousey married mixed martial artist Travis Browne in August 2017.Getty Images
Rousey married Travis Browne in August 2017 in Hawaii. Browne, a UFC heavyweight fighter, confirmed their relationship in October 2015 after the pair trained together at Glendale Fighting Club.
News of their relationship appeared while Browne was separated from his ex-wife, Jenna Renee Webb. The latter posted images to Instagram showing bruising on her arms, leg, and face in July 2015, and accused Browne of domestic abuse. According to Vice, the UFC conducted a third-party investigation and found there was no conclusive evidence of the allegations. Webb never filed formal charges, and she officially divorced Browne in 2016.
Rousey and Browne have two children together: daughters Laâakea MakalapuaokalanipĆ born in September 2021 and Likoâula PÄâĆ«omahinakaipiha born in January 2025. The MMA star is also a stepmother to Browneâs two sons from his previous relationship.
Rousey has spoken about how becoming a mother has changed her perspective and improved her mental health. âIâm just so much happier that Iâm no longer ruminating over myself all day,â Rousey explained to People. âI think the best part about it is that itâs mentally made me more healthy and made me stop beating myself up so much because Iâm so concerned with taking care of her.â
As of May 2026, Celebrity Net Worth estimates Rouseyâs total fortune at around $14 million.
Rouseyâs largest disclosed purse for a UFC fight is $3 million against Amanda Nunes in December 2016. That tied male fighter Conor McGregor for the then-largest in the promotionâs history.
Payment for her upcoming bout against Gina Carano hasnât been disclosed, but Rousey revealed every fighter on the Most Valuable Promotions event card will make at least $40,000. As a headliner, her earnings are likely to be much bigger.
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