Ronda Rousey has never been one to mince words. It never mattered if those words were controversial, offensive, or spot on - Rousey is going to say what's on her mind. Well, that happened once again as Rousey gave thoughts about the business and her place within it. Speaking on The Lapsed Fan podcast, Rousey told the world that she's "practically retired" from wrestling, while making many more statements that had the world talking.
One of the statements Rousey made that caught the most attention was in reference to her feud with Alexa Bliss. Bliss is one of the more popular women's wrestlers on the WWE roster, and a multiple-time champion. However, Rousey felt it didn't make sense that she was competing against Bliss.
"The fact that they had me fighting Alexa Bliss at all was [expletive] ridiculous, and you wanna know why they had me against Alexa Bliss? Because she had the most merch sales at the time," Rousey said during the podcast. "Like what the [expletive]! That's your decision-making process?"
Yes, that's exactly how things work and have always worked in professional wrestling Rousey. The performers who are most popular with fans typically become champions. Merch sales is one metric that WWE uses to measure who is popular or not, and Bliss has long been one of the best sellers amongst the roster. Does it always equate to success? No, but this is a tried and true method that professional wrestling has used to put the best names at the top of the card. Unfortunately, this is yet another statement Rousey has made over the years that shined a light on how inept her mind was for the business of professional wrestling.
However, there are times when Rousey is spot on with using her voice and platform. For example, she used her time on the podcast to deliver some harsh words about Vince McMahon. While she didn't speak directly to the accusations he's facing in the Janel Grant lawsuit, she has spoken about that openly. Plus, she called out Drew Gulak for an innapropriate moment he had with her backstage that led to his release from the company.
Ronda Rousey is always going to be a controversial figure. From her questioning the Sandy Hook shooting years ago (which she's apologized for), to her comments about professional wrestling; she's going to be someone that divides fans either way. If her career is as over as she claims, thats the best move for everyone involved.