While many wonder if Ronda Rousey could fight a man, the more realistic question is if any woman could challenge her.
Rousey, a 2008 Olympic judo bronze medalist, improved to 11-0 in mixed martial arts Saturday, submitting Cat Zingano in a UFC Championship bout record 14 seconds in Los Angeles.
A fancied potential opponent for fans is Cris “Cyborg” Justino, a 29-year-old Brazilian featherweight (145 pounds) who was banned for one year after testing positive for a steroid three years ago and is not currently under UFC contract. Justino is 13-0 since her debut loss in 2005 and has challenged Rousey to a fight.
Rousey, the UFC bantamweight (135 pounds) champion, dismissed an option of moving up in weight to take on Justino, should she sign with UFC.
“It doesn’t make any sense at all for me to come up in weight class, especially because since she’s already been popped for steroids and is a known fraud,” she said on The Dan Patrick Show on Thursday. “It’s setting the wrong example to be making exceptions and making things easier for somebody like that.”
Rousey has said she would welcome a fight with Justino in UFC at 135 pounds.
Also Thursday, Rousey said she preferred to spend just 14 seconds in the octagon Saturday.
“I want to win with maximum efficiency and minimum effort,” Rousey said. “People forget that the [shorter] the fights are, the more fights that I can have. I feel like I’m actually making my career longer. ... I was happy to come out unscathed and not let anyone hit me in front of my mother [a former World judo champion and the author of the tweet reply below].”
Missy Franklin’s dream to become most decorated female swimmer ever
@criscyborg @MMARoasted @RondaRousey I'll give you a number - 135
— Dr. AnnMaria De Mars @drannmaria@mastodon.social (@DrAnnMaria) March 2, 2015
