5 Best Ronda Rousey UFC fights

Ronda Rousey was recently inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2018. Although currently a part of WWE, her contributions to the sport of Women's Mixed Martial Arts during her time with UFC is unparalleled. She is now making waves with WWE and has shown once again, that dexterity does not have to be exclusive to any one field.

She is set to take part in her second Women's Title Match in WWE at SummerSlam, on the 19th of August. On the previous occasion, she had been second away from locking the then champion, Nia Jax, into her Armbar. Unfortunately, that time the opportunity was taken away from her when Alexa Bliss interfered to cash in the Money in the Bank contract which she had won earlier in the night. This time, she will look to make the most of her opportunity, as she is facing Alexa Bliss in singles competition, without much of a hint regarding the possibility of outside interference.

Whatever be her future achievements in WWE, her accomplishments in UFC has made sure that she is now a legend. Linking the worlds of UFC and WWE inexorably, her contribution to both worlds is astounding.

In this article, we will take a look at some of her best fights during her time with UFC. Without any further ado, let's get into it.

#5 Ronda Rousey vs Liz Carmouche (UFC 157):

UFC was far from progressive when it came to booking women on their cards. Dana White showed resistance, saying that he did not feel that there was enough depth to have a women's division in UFC. All of that changed with Ronda Rousey.

Seeing Rousey fight outside UFC, and her power and ability, Dana decided that the time had come that women were given a place in the UFC. She was signed as the first-ever woman on UFC and given the UFC Women's Bantamweight Title.

Her first title defence came at UFC 157, where she faced Liz Carmouche. Being the first-ever Women's Champion in UFC meant that she was under a lot of scrutinies. Add to that the fact that it was the first ever Women's Match on UFC, and the hype for the bout was through the roof.

When the time came, Carmouche proved to be much more of an actual opponent for her than had been expected. The fight saw her left with a dislocated jaw, and she was almost caught in a neck crank. She managed to get out of it and used her ability on the ground to win the bout by submission with an Armbar.

There were only eleven seconds left in the first round, but at 4:49 minutes into the match, Carmouche submitted marking the first ever Women's Championship defence in UFC.

#4 Ronda Rousey vs Sara McMann (UFC 170):

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Going into her bout against Sara McMann, there had been discussions among the critics that when it came to her striking game, Rousey was severely lacking. Rousey had won two fights, using the Armbar in both to overpower her opponent.

At UFC 170, Rousey faced off against McMann, who was an Olympic athlete and was being touted as the toughest woman to have ever stepped up to face Ronda. There was widespread belief that with this fight Ronda would finally lose her title, and the 'excessive' hype train which was behind her would come to a grinding halt.

However, once the fight started, it became obvious this was not the case. Rousey fought well and around a minute into the first round, she hit McMann with a knee to the liver. This sent McMann down to the mat, and just like that the fight was over.

She had in one blow, silenced those who had thought her reign would be at an end, while also nullifying the criticism that her striking game was not strong.

#3 Ronda Rousey vs Meisha Tate (UFC 168):

At UFC 168, Meisha Tate and Ronda Rousey faced off for the second time in their careers. Rousey and Tate had faced each other previously on Strikeforce and were familiar with each other. On that occasion, Rousey had come out on top in the last minute of their bout after locking Tate in an Armbar.

However, it looked like it might be a bad night for Rousey, with Tate seemingly prepared for what she brought to the fight. This was not the case. The fight did go on longer than any Rousey fight before it. It went to the second round and then the third.

It remains the longest MMA fight in Rousey's career. However, in the third round with almost a minute gone, Rousey was able to lock in her deadly armbar. This led to Tate submitted, as Rousey won against her for the second time.

#2 Ronda Rousey vs Bethe Correia (UFC 190):

Going into UFC 190, Ronda Rousey was in one of her most heated rivalries with Bethe Correia. The fight was set to take place as the first-ever Women's main event outside the United States. In front of the Rio De Janeiro crowd, Rousey faced down Correia.

Going into the fight, Rousey's ability to grapple was highlighted as the major advantage she had over Bethe. However, once the fight started, it was like looking at a different fighter. At no point did Rousey even look to go for a takedown, as she came at Bethe her arms swinging.

She landed several dangerous combinations, and a shot to Correia's temple saw her go down, and Ronda won in 34 seconds.

#1 Ronda Rousey vs Cat Zingano (UFC 184):

At UFC 184, Rousey faced Cat Zingano in what was the best fight of her MMA career. Rumours had been growing again, that it was now the time for Rousey's reigns as the UFC Women's Bantamweight Champion to come to an end.

As usual, Rousey paid no attention to the criticisers and focused on her fight instead. She approached it with a no-nonsense attitude, and as soon as the fight started, she approached her opponent, who had charged at her. The two locked in a fast headlock, and Zingano tried to take Rousey out with a somersault. Rousey did not release her grip and transitioned from the somersault into the Armbar.

The fight was over in a matter of 14 seconds, leaving no doubt as to Rousey's ability.