20 Things You Didn’t Know About Ronda Rousey

20 Facts You Need to Know About Ronda Rousey

In just five years, Ronda Rousey has become perhaps the most successful female fighter in history. She's MMA's biggest star and just dominates her opponents each and every time she steps into the octagon. Here are 20 things you didn't know about Ronda Rousey.

20. Olympic Medalist

Rousey won a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics in Judo. She became the first American woman to ever medal in the sport.

19. First Round Dominance

Rousey likes to end her fights in a hurry. Of her 12 victories, 11 have ended in the first round. Her December 2013 rematch against Miesha Tate is the only fight that went on beyond Round 1. Even her loss to Holly Holm was a quick defeat.

18. First Women's UFC Champion

Rousey was the main reason Dana White changed his mind and included female fighters in the UFC. She won her first MMA championship in 2012, defeating Misha Tate for the Strikeforce Bantamweight title. When the UFC purchased Strikeforce, Rousey was declared the UFC champion, making her the first women's champion in UFC history.

17. Sex As a Pre-Fight Ritual?

In an interview with Maxim, Rousey explained how it's simply a fact that a woman should have sex before a fight.

"It's just a medical fact: As a girl, if you have sex before a fight, it raises your testosterone. If it's available to me, then I'm all for it, but otherwise I'm kind of out of luck."

In an interview with Maxim, Rousey explained how it's simply a fact that a woman should have sex before a fight.

"It's just a medical fact: As a girl, if you have sex before a fight, it raises your testosterone. If it's available to me, then I'm all for it, but otherwise I'm kind of out of luck."

16. Insane Trash Talking

Rousey is extremely intimidating to her opponents and her relentless trash talking is a big reason why. Before her fight with Sarah Kaufman, Rousey said she was going to rip off Kaufman's arm, throw it at her corner, and then threatened to pound her face to death.

Wow.

Rousey is extremely intimidating to her opponents and her relentless trash talking is a big reason why. Before her fight with Sarah Kaufman, Rousey said she was going to rip off Kaufman's arm, throw it at her corner, and then threatened to pound her face to death.

Wow.

15. 24 Hour Fitness

After returning from the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Rousey didn't have a job and had nowhere to go. She took up a job at a 24 Hour Fitness in California while she figured out her next step in life. She later quit when she returned to fighting in 2010 at an MMA gym in Los Angeles.

14. Armbar Artist

Nine of her twelve victories have been won by use of an armbar, and she looks to use that to her advantage whenever she can.

13. Once A Vegan

Shortly after her Olympic medal victory in 2008, Rousey was a vegan. She has since switched to a more protein-rich diet and it's safe to say whatever she's doing is definitely working.

12. Pokémon Obsessed

You wouldn't expect it from one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world, but Rousey is a huge gamer and is "obsessed" with Pokémon. Rousey is the best after all, so it makes sense that her favorite Pokemon is Mew.

11. The Expendables 3

Rousey appeared in the 2014 film The Expendables 3. She played a bouncer named Luna, and of course, had a fight scene.

10. The Nickname "Rowdy"

Rousey was given the nickname "Rowdy" by her friends, but opposed the use of the name at first, thinking it would be disrespectful to wrestling legend "Rowdy" Roddy Piper. The recently deceased Piper then gave her personal approval when the two met and she has used the nickname ever since.

9. WWE Superfan

Rousey is a huge fan of the WWE and often tweets about it. She has confessed to having a crush on CM Punk and she's a member of Daniel Bryan's '#YesMovement.'

8. Marine Biologist

You would think one of the all-time greats would have wanted to be a fighter from a fairly young age, but that wasn't the case for Rousey. According to her sister Maria, Rousey always had a fascination for sea life and originally wanted to be a marine biologist.

7. Problems At Birth

Rousey's birth was a terrifying situation. As a result of the umbilical cord being wrapped around her neck when she was in her mother's womb, Rousey was deprived of oxygen.

She couldn't speak clearly as a child and had to go to speech therapy for years as a result.

Rousey's birth was a terrifying situation. As a result of the umbilical cord being wrapped around her neck when she was in her mother's womb, Rousey was deprived of oxygen.

She couldn't speak clearly as a child and had to go to speech therapy for years as a result.

6. Judo Blood

Rousey's mother, AnnMaria De Mars, had a decorated Judo career. In 1984 she became the first U.S Citizen to ever win a World Judo Championship.

5. No Time To Date

As you'd expect, Rousey has an intense training regimen and not much free time. Even when she finds someone she's interested in, Rousey admits, "How am I going to schedule another person in my life? I have one free day this month!"

4. World's Most Dominant Athlete According to S.I.

Sports Illustrated went as faras to say that Rousey is currently the "World's Most Dominant Athlete." It's hard to argue against that claim, considering just how quickly she disposes of each and every opponent.

3. Caffeine Addict

As stated previously, Ronda obviously follows a very strict diet and workout plan. She does have one big weakness though -- caffeine. She loves caffeine so much that she made her nutritionist create a workout and diet plan that allows her to consume plenty of caffeine.

2. Author

Rousey somehow found some time in her busy schedule to write an autobiography. "My Fight/Your Fight" was published earlier this year and is about about Rousey's personal story in addition to offering up advice to the readers.

1. Greatness From the Beginning

Rousey has become famous for just how quickly she wins her fights. Her last four fights have lasted a combined time of just 130 seconds, for an average of 32.5 seconds per victory. She was even quicker in her first ever fight, earning the win in just 25 seconds.