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Former UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey recently returned to the public eye after winning the 2022 WWE Women's Royal Rumble. While she is again forging an impressive career in the world of pro-wrestling, her record-breaking MMA run cannot be forgotten.
Rousey's popularity is the reason that the UFC finally allowed women to compete in the promotion and she was named the inaugural bantamweight champion. She more than justified this decision, defending the belt successfully six times and headlining a number of cards that performed very well on PPV.
While her MMA career ultimately appears to have ended on the back of two consecutive losses, her winning run was truly something to behold. She is also a great entertainer, which has been proven by her seamless transition to life in the WWE.
While she only had eight fights inside the octagon, each one felt like a big occasion and she made an enormous impact on the sport. Here are the five biggest UFC fights of Ronda Rousey's career:
#5. Ronda Rousey vs. Cat Zingano - UFC 184
Cat Zingano was Ronda Rousey's fifth opponent inside the octagon and her eleventh professional MMA fight. At the time, Rousey was operating at the height of her powers and had knocked out Alexis Davis in just 16 seconds in her last fight.
Zingano was also undefeated heading into this one and had finished Amanda Nunes in her most recent fight. While this bout seemed evenly-matched on paper, Rousey overwhelmed Zingano and submitted her via armbar in just fourteen seconds.
While the fight may not have been a back-and-forth war, the result only added to the media frenzy surrounding Rousey. The bout also marked the beginning of the end for Zingano's octagon career as she lost three of her next four. She has since signed with Bellator and has rebounded, going 2-0 thus far.
#4. Ronda Rousey vs. Bethe Correia - UFC 190
After making light work of Cat Zingano at UFC 184, next up for Ronda Rousey was one Bethe Correia. Correia looked to be strong competition heading into the bout as she was 9-0 and had beaten two of Rousey's teammates in her last two fights. Her wins over Jessamyn Duke and Shayna Baszler earned her a title opportunity.
Once again, the two fighters appeared to be well-matched on paper, but despite plenty of fiery trash talk beforehand, the fight proved this was not the case. Rousey showcased her improved striking this time, knocking out Correia in a ridiculous 34 seconds. The event also sold a very impressive 900,000 pay-per-views.
Like Zingano, Correia struggled to regain her form following the loss to Rousey. She continues to compete in the UFC but has accrued a mixed record of 2-5-1 since this fight back in 2015.
#3. Ronda Rousey vs. Miesha Tate - UFC 168
Miesha Tate is arguably the biggest rival Ronda Rousey had in her MMA career. The pair fought once in Strikeforce back in 2012 but only competed under the UFC banner once. The first fight saw Rousey win via first-round armbar and a little over a year later they met once again in the octagon.
The rematch was an interesting one in that Meisha Tate was coming off a loss. The pair had a heated rivalry in Strikeforce and so when Cat Zingano was forced to withdraw, Tate was inserted into not just the title bout but also as a coach opposite Rousey on The Ultimate Fighter.
In any case, the bad blood between the pair ensured plenty of people tuned in. Rousey won again with another armbar but this time in the third round, making it the only win of her career that didn't come inside the first round.
Following the bout, Tate went on an impressive five-fight winning streak that saw her win the UFC bantamweight championship at her second attempt. She now appears to be dropping down to the flyweight division and is expected to face former title challenger Lauren Murphy next.
#2. Ronda Rousey vs. Amanda Nunes - UFC 207
Ronda Rousey and Amanda Nunes have been arguably the two biggest names in the UFC women's divisions since their inception. These two all-time greats fought at the end of 2016 in what appears to be the last professional MMA fight in Rousey's illustrious career.
Nunes entered the fight on a four-fight winning streak and had just claimed the bantamweight championship against Meisha Tate last time out. Rousey, on the other hand, was coming off the first loss of her career and was looking to get back on track.
The highly anticipated fight was over very quickly when Nunes secured a TKO victory after just 48 seconds in the first round. She continued to dominate the competition, winning seven more fights before her recent upset loss at the hands of Julianna Peña.
#1. Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm - UFC 193
While both of Ronda Rousey's fights with Amanda Nunes and Holly Holm sold a reported 1,100,000 pay-per-view buys, it is this bout that takes the top spot. Both women came into this one undefeated and Rousey had an enormous following at this point, having secured a first-round finish in each of her last four fights.
Holm was also undefeated but had an admittedly less impressive run of form going into the fight. She had had just two UFC bouts prior to her clash with Rousey and while she had won both, one split decision and one unanimous decision hardly suggested she was about to pull off the unthinkable.
Things got heated prior to the bout when Rousey taunted her opponent and even refused to touch gloves with Holm.
Ultimately, it was Holm that shocked the world with an upset KO victory in the second round. This was one of the biggest upsets in UFC history and, while it was one of the rare occasions that didn't go in her favor, it may have been the biggest fight of Rousey's MMA career.
