UFC president Dana White unsure if Ronda Rousey will fight this year
Get breaking news and SI’s biggest stories instantly. Download the new Sports Illustrated app (iOS or Android) and personalize your experience by following your favorite teams and SI writers.
UFC president Dana White is unsure whether Ronda Rousey will make her return to the octagon this year, but he hopes that she will.
“Ronda’s going to come out and let us know when she’s ready to fight again,” White said on the Dan Patrick Show on Wednesday. “I would really like her to fight this year. I hope she does.”
Rousey was dethroned as women’s bantamweight champion by Holly Holm at UFC 193 in November. There were rumors she would return for UFC 200 in July, but that timeline was pushed back when Miesha Tate beat Holm at UFC 196 to become the latest champion.
• Dana White to Mayweather: Call me if you want to fight McGregor
White said he is not pressuring Rousey to return, and said though her comeback could come in 2017, he “hope[s] that’s not the case.”
“No fighter has worked harder than Ronda Rousey over the last three years, probably other than Conor McGregor,” he said. “So she deserves the time off.”
Rousey’s most recent opponents will continue to fight other challengers until her return with Tate scheduled to fight Amanda Nunes on July 9 and Holm to fight Valentina Shevchenko on July 23.
