Ronda Rousey inspired Jake Paul to promote women’s boxing

A former Olympic medalist and UFC Hall of Famer, Ronda Rousey, parted ways with the MMA promotion and joined WWE in 2017. Shortly after, Rousey became one of the biggest names in the promotion and even main-evented WrestleMania 35. After a brief stint at WWE, Rousey parted ways with the promotion in 2023, following which she wrestled a few times in ROH.

Not having taken part in any in-ring competition, Rousey is now all set to make her MMA comeback against Gina Carano in the next few weeks. Promoted by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian’s MVP (Most Valuable Promotions), Rousey will put on her gloves again.

Recently speaking with TalkSport, Bidarian opened up in detail about Jake Paul’s interest in women’s boxing, and Rousey served as a crucial factor in inspiring Paul. Bidarian revealed that it was Rousey’s achievements that helped motivate Paul to promote women’s boxing through MVP.

“Look, when we [Nakisa Bidarian and Jake Paul] started MVP, we had three core priorities. One was to be fighter first, which we’re very proud of. Everything we do puts the fighters first. Two was to give young boxers and boxing fans a product. And three was to focus on women’s boxing. So, this is not by accident. It’s been a main focus of ours since we started the company in August of 2021,” Bidarian said.

The number one reason was I was at the UFC when we brought women’s MMA to the organization. I was there for Ronda Rousey’s first fight, and in 2015, Ronda Rousey was the biggest athlete in the UFC, male or female. I was the CFO, bigger than Conor McGregor. Unequivocally bigger than Conor McGregor in 2015. So I saw that a woman in combat sports could garner as much, and in her case, even more attention than her male counterparts,” Bidarian said while emphasizing Rousey’s influence on them both for focusing on women’s boxing.

Ronda Rousey’s rise in UFC

As the winner of the very first women’s UFC bout in 2013 against Liz Carmouche, Rousey is recognized as a pioneer in women’s combat sports. She achieved instant stardom by becoming the promotion’s inaugural women’s MMA champion, subsequently defending her title successfully five times.

Her achievements paved the way for numerous other women’s MMA stars to rise, such as Holly Holm and the legendary Amanda Nunes, who defeated her in their last two fights. Rousey retired in 2016 after suffering from concussions.

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