Former WWE Women's champion rules out return

We haven't seen Ronda Rousey in a WWE ring since SummerSlam 2023. The former UFC women's champion lost to Shayna Baszler in an MMA rules match, meaning she left the company on a low note.

However, in recent months, Rousey has made no secret of her frustrations with the WWE and how her time with the company played out. Therefore, it's hard to envision her making a return to WWE's roster any time soon, if ever at all. 

In a recent conversation with Raj Prashad of Yahoo's "Uncrowned," Rousey shot down talk of following in AJ Lee's footsteps and making a return to the company.

“It was a lot of needless anxiety and things like that. And the whole company was just a chaotic s--- show on the inside, and then they ended up dropping all my friends,” Rousey said. (h/t to Fightful for the transcription.) “So I really have no reason to go back. I wanted to do a run with the Four Horsewomen and I never got to do that. And now I feel like I’ve already accomplished everything that I wanted to in WWE and all that’s really left for me is to go there and have fun with my friends, and none of my friends are there anymore.”

Rousey was a huge draw for WWE's women's division. Her status as a genuine MMA star helped add credibility to her matches and explained her position within the women's rotation. Of course, it was easy to understand why she was a RAW Women's Champion and a two-time SmackDown Women's Champion. 

Rousey is leaving wrestling in her past

In a September 2 interview with "The Lapsed Fan," Rousey admitted that wrestling was "pretty much" in her rearview. Therefore, fans shouldn't expect her to become the next shock return in an upcoming Premium Live Event.

Rousey joined to work with "The MMA Four Horsewomen," consisting of Baszler, Rousey, Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir. Unfortunately, WWE never made that faction into anything more than a name. Clearly, that didn't sit well with Rousey and was likely a key reason why she left the company. 

It should be no surprise that after leaving WWE, Rousey made an appearance on Ring of Honor to partner with Shafir.

Rousey praises Jon Moxley 

Since Shafir left WWE, she's slowly begun to get a foothold in the wrestling world. Former AEW champion Jon Moxley has been working with her, both on television and behind the scenes. During the same interview with Prashad, Rousey praised Moxley for taking Shafir under his wing and helping build her brand in the wrestling world.

“Going from being like, ‘How do I do an arm drag,’ to being part of five-star matches and stuff like that, it’s really great to see her (Shafir) just having so much joy with it and rising to the top level of the industry. I think so much has to do with Jon Moxley being the most incredible human being ever. He is just so supportive and so kind and so passionate.”

So, while Rousey is unlikely to return to the wrestling world, it's clear she's still keeping tabs on the happenings within it. Moreover, she's certainly following Shafir's career due to their friendship. 

Yet, on a weekend when AJ Lee's return dominated headlines, it was interesting to see Rousey distancing herself from the company. Of course, her stance could soften in the years to come. After all, we never would have envisioned CM Punk and Lee back with the company either.