Ever since Ronda Rousey's surprise appearance at WrestleMania 31 last year -- where "The Rock" brought her into the ring and she tossed Triple H before shoving Stephanie McMahon to the mat -- fans are of the opinion that it's only a matter of time until the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) women's bantamweight champion steps back into the squared circle for WWE.
Rousey has transcended the sport of MMA into mainstream acceptance like no other athlete in the sport's short history. The UFC champion is 12-0 and obliterating all her competition. She is appearing as a regular guest on the morning and late-night talk show circuit, scoring major movie roles like Entourage and Furious 7 and the upcoming Mile 22 with Mark Wahlberg, staring in the remake of Road House, and hosting ESPN SportsCenter, among countless other things.
It's no secret Rousey is a huge fan of WWE and earlier this week during a media day at the Glendale Fighting Club in Glendale, Calif., to promote her upcoming UFC 193 title bout against Holly Holm, Rousey discussed winning the WWE Divas championship as one of the goals she set out for herself along with retiring as "one of the greatest of all time" in MMA.
One of the most knowledgeable professional wrestling personalities on the planet, WWE hall of fame inductee and legendary announcer Jim Ross, spoke to MMAmania.com about Rousey's comments.
"Ronda Rousey is becoming a great marketer as is her team that is influenced by 'The Rock,'" Ross said. "She knows where the cash is and that she can't maintain what she is in the Octagon forever. She's a smart, strategic woman who has surrounded herself with smart people."
After catching Rousey's words, the current WWE Divas champion, Charlotte, took to Twitter and extended a challenge to the UFC women's bantamweight champion:
Anytime you wanna go sister, I'll teach you the Figure-8! https://t.co/mYB0n9rOyC
— Charlotte (@MsCharlotteWWE) October 28, 2015
Don't get your hopes set on seeing a Charlotte vs. Rousey match in the near future, says Ross.
"I think Charlotte is just being topical and somewhat timely in responding to Rousey," he said. "I'd doubt if anything is wet up at this time and it would take her [Rousey] some ring time to put her pro mat game together."
That being said, "Good Ol' JR" -- who told MMAmania.com back in April that "cross promotion is good for any entity like the WWE and WWE" -- isn't really sold on a title match, as much as he is seeing Rousey go against the biggest female heel among the present-day WWE roster.
"I would rather see her go against a heel and save the title thing for later," Ross said. "Ronda vs. Stephanie [McMahon] is my personal dream match for the WWE women at Wrestlemania 32."