7 Reasons Ronda Rousey Could Become the Next WWE Women’s Champion at ‘Money in the Bank’

Success in other sports is no free pass to wrestling superstardom. Rousey’s 12-2 career in MMA combat has been seriously dominant, but shining as a top-level performer with WWE takes a special kind of character.

In her much-hyped WrestleMania debut, Ronda showed the heart and fire that earned her an Olympic bronze judo medal and a UFC bantamweight championship. More importantly, she displayed a ton of charisma. Rousey impressed a packed stadium in New Orleans, and millions of pro wrestling fans around the world, as her electric chemistry with Kurt Angle took her team to an exciting victory. The WWE Women’s Championship belt could prove to be a natural fit for “Rowdy” Rousey.

With her size advantage, Nia Jax often beats her foes mentally before the bell even rings—but that likely won’t happen at Money in the Bank. (Who can forget the icy-cold staredowns Rousey dished out to her opponents during pre-match UFC press conferences?)

For most mere mortals, the reality of making your singles debut in a World Championship match—at one of WWE’s most high-profile events—would turn legs to jelly. Factor in Jax as an opponent, and it’s even more understandable.

But Rousey thrives on the big stage. Rousey even had a smile for her taller, larger opponent when the two got into a confrontation at a red-carpet event. In the weeks that have followed, the grapplers have faced off numerous times, and Ronda has refused to back down.

Rousey understands that purely focusing on the prize can be a trap—one that often makes lesser competitors miss important steps to success along the way.

“People love the idea of winning an Olympic medal or a world title,” Rousey wrote in her 2015 autobiography My Fight Your Fight. “But what few people realize is that pretty much every second leading up to the actual win is uncomfortable, painful, and impossibly daunting—physically and mentally. Most people focus on the wrong thing: They focus on the result, not the process. The process is the sacrifice; it is all the hard parts—the sweat, the pain, the tears, the losses. You make the sacrifices anyway. You learn to enjoy them, or at least embrace them.”

Ronda has loved WWE since childhood, and her passion for wrestling entertainment has brought out the more positive side of her character after high-profile defeats brought the curtain down on her UFC career. (Monday Night RAW viewers have even witnessed Rousey crack the odd smile.)

But don’t forget that “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey breaks bones… in seconds.

Rousey broke Miesha Tate’s arm in UFC. She dislocated Julia Budd’s arm during a Strikeforce match. Rousey defeated nine of her MMA opponents by arm bar in the first round.

Now that she’s in WWE, numerous women (including Stephanie McMahon) have already felt the wrath of Rousey’s submission skills. Applying the arm-bar on Jax will be quite a challenge, but not impossible.

There’s no doubting Ronda’s dedication to learning the craft of pro wrestling—including putting in the hours at the gym. Rousey has been a regular at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, where she trains on sparring, drills, and grappling technique.

Rousey approached her WrestleMania debut with the same gusto that took her to the top of UFC, and those countless hours of training certainly paid off. With the WWE RAW Women’s Championship now firmly in sight, Ronda has been on the road with WWE in the last couple of weeks—wrestling before live crowds and earning vital ring experience ahead of the big showdown with Nia Jax at Money in the Bank.

When questioned in the commentary booth during Monday Night RAW, on how Ronda would deal with the size and power of Nia Jax, the challenger replied: “I come from judo, and the principle is maximum efficiency over minimum effort. It’s using your opponent’s strength and momentum against them… and she gives me a lot to use against her.”

There’s an old adage: To be the best, you need to surround yourself with the best. In WWE, Rousey has done exactly that.

First, there’s Kurt Angle—her WrestleMania tag-team partner, fellow Olympic medallist, and former WWE champion—who’s provided Rousey with valuable insight to transition from Olympic athletics to WWE.

Then there’s Natalya Hart. As the daughter of Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart and niece of Bret “Hitman” Hart, Natalya has proved to be an important training partner for Ronda, passing on the tricks of the trade and moulding Rousey into a future WWE mega-star. This valuable insight from some of WWE’s most respected stars could give Ronda an edge over Nia Jax at Money in the Bank.

Whether it’s on a judo mat, in the Octagon, or now in the squared circle, Ronda Rousey is all about leaving a legacy. She is also serious about furthering the legacy of her child-hood hero. During Ronda’s triumphant appearance at January’s Royal Rumble, the sporting sensation officially embraced her pro-wrestling persona, “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey, which this came with the full blessing of the family of the late “Rowdy” Roddy Piper.

Piper had been a hero to Rousey growing up, and her name and ring gear acts as a fitting tribute to one of the greatest WWE Superstars of all time. While “Hot Rod” won many Titles in his illustrious career, he never held a World Championship in WWE. Rousey intends to take the World Title, and Piper’s legacy, to new heights. Is Rousey capable? We think so—and you can take that to the Bank.

As Rousey wrote in her autobiography: “Someone has to be the best in the world. Why not you?”