Ronda Rousey may be returning to the octagon for one more fight if a former two division UFC title challenger is to be believed. Also of note, it seems like the former UFC 135 pound titleholder has her eyes on the winner of the looming Amanda Nunes vs. Kayla Harrison title fight.
Ronda Rousey is Making a Comeback
On his personal YouTube channel touching on this rumoured return for Rousey, Chael Sonnen said,
Ronda Rousey gonna come back and going to fight the winner of Amanda [Nunes]-Kayla [Harrison], as long as the winner is Kayla. Okay, now this is the story. This is the story and let me tell you what part of this I can confirm. I can confirm the story came from Ronda.”
“The absolute inner circle of Ronda has let it be known that she will take on the winner of Amanda and Kayla, as long as it’s Kayla.”
“So, in other words, I’ll return to fight for the title if Kayla needs an opponent. All right, I’m saying the same thing, but I just want to make it very clear to you because that’s not how comebacks go.”
As ‘The American Gangster’ further expounded upon what he meant by that description of Ronda Rousey and her reported return plan not fitting within how comebacks go, Sonnen quipped,
“If somebody’s coming back, they’re coming back. If they’re coming back for a title, then they’re coming back for whoever has the title. There is nobody that’s ever come back and said so many things have to fall right into the line for my comeback.”
“No, when people come back, it’s an overwhelming urge. It’s a desire and a thought that they had many times for many years and they can no longer control it. That’s what a comeback is, just so you know.”
“So, right out of the gate when we hear, ‘I want to come back. But I don’t want to fight Amanda.’ Well, let me stop you right there. Then you’re not coming back.”
The former two time UFC middleweight title challenger and former UFC light heavyweight title challenger clarified that he wasn’t trying to throw cold water onto the plans of the former octagon standout and former WWE star as Sonnen said,
“Now, I don’t say this at all to pick on Ronda. I’m saying it to get in front of a story. Everybody in our industry is hearing the story and they’re all talking about it, but they don’t have quite the confirmation to come out and bring it to you next.”
“As a matter of fact. it is believed when Dana alluded to this big surprise that none of you will see coming, that that is what he is alluding to—the idea of two Olympic medalists on the White House grounds; they think is a very American [thing] and a very good feel.”
“Ronda never needed to leave. Ronda was about the eighth best girl in the world. Ninth, tenth best girl under contract, and she could have had some more meaning[ful] fights, but to get a meaningful fight when you’re paid her kind of money has to be a main event fight.”
When getting into the specifics of why a comeback from someone who left the sport on their own terms might resonate differently to the public versus Ronda Rousey leaving the sport after being finished twice by Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes, respectively, Sonnen quipped,
It’s very different if Georges St-Pierre said, ‘I’m coming back.’ Or if Khabib said, ‘I’m coming back.’ It’s very different the way that we’d have to look left, look right, shrug our shoulders, and say, ‘Okay, yeah, they’re coming back.’ It’s very different when you get beat up, when it gets taken from you, when you’re shown from a competitive standpoint: ‘I’m not as good as her.’
“Somehow, if that her—if that boogie monster—does get beat, I’m less afraid of this new person and I’m going to come back and compete. Okay, it’s an interesting psychology.”
Ronda Rousey and Kayla Harrison’s prior history
Ronda Rousey and Kayla Harrison have previously tested skills in the world of Judo with the former earning a dominant win over the latter as part of the USA championships in 2005.
That prior history from twenty years ago in another martial arts discipline seems to have little bearing on what a present day clash could look like between the two as Sonnen stated,
“There is nothing from a reasonable standpoint that would make us think somebody got better at something by not doing it.”
“But the idea, the concept, the rub, and the shine that would go to Kayla after destroying Ronda—it would be a nice thing to give up and to give back, but there’s a test. This whole thing’s for attention.”
“Sometimes you got to make that walk to get that proper attention, but this whole thing’s a test.”
“Ronda versus Kayla. Not only will that not happen, Ronda Rousey competing in anything at 135 pounds also not gonna happen.”
The idea of an MMA comeback becomes especially curious too considering the former UFC bantamweight champion herself has mentioned before the myriad of concussion issues she has had in her life and Rousey even used the language of ‘not neurologically fit to compete’ to describe her situation.
While some clips have emerged in recent times of Rousey getting in some martial arts training and visually seeming to be in great shape, it remains to be seen if the decorated judoka brings her ‘Rowdy’ energy back to the octagon in the future.
/SI202601151081.webp?ssl=1 "Racing Bulls showcase 2026 livery at launch event in Detroit")
