Ronda Rousey Will Be the First Woman Inducted Into the UFC Hall of Fame
The legendary female fighter will make UFC history one last time–revisit her historic career in photos.
Dana White once said, “women will never fight in the UFC.” Now the organization has announced that “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey will join legendary mixed martial artists like Royce Gracie, Chuck Liddell and Matt Serra as the first female fighter to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.
It was only a year after White made his famously wrong remark that Rousey became the UFC’s first women’s bantamweight champion, thus beginning her reign as the baddest woman on the planet.
She became notorious for utterly destroying challengers to her title via submissions and KOs that often resulted not just in first-round finishes, but first-minute finishes.
Though her last two Octagon appearances ended in brutal knockouts by Holly Holm and current bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes, her lasting impact on the sport is undeniable. The MMA community recounted her achievements in the video above.
“Every now and again, you get an athlete that transcends sport, that transcends gender, that just stands for something so much bigger, ” said UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier.
UFC color commentator Joe Rogan boldly claimed that “there is no one who is a bigger pioneer of mixed martial arts.”
“This 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,” Rousey said in a statement. “May I be the first of many.”
The 31-year-old athlete is currently signed to the WWE and will probably never return to fighting, but we can still celebrate what may be Ronda Rousey’s final history-making UFC moment with her greatest photos in the gallery above.
h/t: New York Post