In 2008, Ronda Rousey became the first American female to earn an Olympic medal in judo. In 2011 she began fighting in MMA; by 2013 she was the UFC women’s bantamweight champion, and became by far the most famous figure in the sport at the time. Today, “Rowdy” is reportedly the biggest draw in the WWE.
During her peak in the UFC, Rousey engaged in a long spat with the biggest draw in boxing, Floyd Mayweather, Jr. During an appearance on Power 106 FM, Ronda was asked by the host if she could beat Mayweather in a fight.
Ronda Rousey: I could beat Floyd Mayweather, Jr In A Real Fight
Radio Host: Ronda Rousey, Keep it real with me. In the UFC octagon, if you were to fight Floyd Mayweather, would he stand a chance? In your discipline. If he came in, no gloves on, just in karate shorts, could he stand a chance?
Ronda Rousey: I’ll tell you what I’d do. You ready? I would drop down to the ground and crawl over to him as fast I as I can and then I’d grab him by…I would even stand up. I wouldn’t be anywhere near him. I would just do a little army crawl over there. He’d have to run away and I’d be skittering after him, like the one dude in Bloodsport who was doing the whole monkey crawl fight system. I would do that. I would just bear crawl over there, just too low for him to hit me and tackle him down.
Radio Host: So once you get him to the ground, then that could be it?
Ronda Rousey: Well I spend a lot of time there. I doubt that he does.
Did She Mean It?
Rousey appeared light-hearted in the above interview, but during a Reddit AMA when she was at the height of her powers, Ronda indicated that she was serious about beating the greatest defensive boxer of all time, and a candidate for G.O.A.T. Rousey was coming off a successful title defense vs Bethe Correia. It was her sixth successful title defense, and she had defended the previous four times in a combined 2:10; that’s a record of dominance that will never be equaled.
Redditor Knuckledork asked if she thought she could legitimately beat Floyd Mayweather in a no-rules fight.
Do I think I would legit beat Mayweather in a ruleless fight? Floyd is one of the best boxers of all time. He would definitely beat me in a boxing match,” she replies. “I unfortunately don’t get into ‘matches.’ I fight for a living. In a no-rules fight, I believe I can beat anyone on this planet.
Boxing is a sweet science with strict rules that I respect very much and aspire every day to improve at. But you said ruleless fight, and that’s my honest answer.
Mayweather Asked Same Question
After Ronda’s radio interview took place, Floyd Mayweather was asked the same question, by USA Today’s Bob Velin.
I don’t even know who she is,” replied Mayweather.
Who do you think would win a streetfight or MMA fight between Ronda Rousey and Floyd Mayweather?
