Ronda Rousey may be the Obi-Wan Kenobi of MMA: Strike her down, and she will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.
You thought Rousey was big before she headlined UFC 193 against Holly Holm in Australia in front of a new UFC record of more than 56,000 fans. But after Holm pulled off the sport’s all-time upset, Rousey hasn’t fallen far. She is as big a crossover star as ever.
On Tuesday, it was revealed she will host the Jan. 23 episode of “Saturday Night Live” on NBC – making her the first MMA fighter to host the show, and just the third women’s athlete to host in the program’s more than 40-year history.
And for her next Jedi-like trick, the former women’s bantamweight champion/movie star/talk show favorite/pitchwoman/activist/author/video game cover star/supermodel apparently is headed back to the pages of Sports Illustrated’s famed “Swimsuit Issue” next month … in body paint.
Rousey made waves when she became the first MMA fighter to appear in the magazine’s most celebrated annual issue in 2015. On Tuesday, Sports Illustrated swimsuit editor MJ Day posted a photo on her Instagram account of a body-painted back and bare derrière that, thanks to the inclusion of two fairly famous wrist tattoos in the shot, appears to be that of none other than the “Rowdy” one.
Rousey was not officially announced as appearing in the next Swimsuit Issue, but the wrist tattoos would be hard to duplicate. And in a story at the swimwear section of SI’s official website, the tease that Rousey may be painted up for the next issue continued.
“Thanks to a few inconspicuous tattoos, it looks like our next body-painted beauty may be the one and only Ronda Rousey,” the story said. “We can neither confirm nor deny these rumors, but isn’t the idea of Ronda donning nothing but paint enough to tie (sic) you over until the issue comes out in February?”
Rousey (12-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) was a massive favorite in her UFC 193 headliner against Holm (10-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) in November. But the former pro boxer took it to the champ quickly into their fight, outstriking her at nearly every turn. When Rousey threatened to take her down, Holm avoided the danger to keep the fight on the feet. In the second round, after a clear win in the first, Holm landed a head kick that stunned the world, putting Rousey on the canvas, where she quickly finished her for the upset.
UFC President Dana White said an immediate rematch was in order for Rousey, and Holm agreed. But with Rousey on a short hiatus to film a pair of movies that was planned even before the Holm fight, it is not believed she would be ready to fight until the summer – likely at the historic-by-number UFC 200 in Las Vegas.
Whether or not Holm wants to wait that long before the first defense of her new title – the July 9 date would put her around eight months between fights – remains to be seen. Former Strikeforce champion Miesha Tate, on a four-fight winning streak, has campaigned for a fight with Holm on the platform she had been promised a trilogy fight with Rousey, but had it yanked in favor of Holm without warning.
But regardless of when she gets back to action in the octagon, it looks like she’ll see plenty more action in Sports Illustrated’s yearly page-turner.
For more on the UFC’s upcoming schedule, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.
