Ronda Rousey is stepping to the forefront to defend the WWE despite recent criticism over its decision to not to cancel the upcoming ‘Crown Jewel’ event following the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Saudi Arabia.
TMZ caught up with Rousey in New York City, where she was promoting the upcoming all-women pay-per-view event Evolution, to discuss the decision to move forward. A decision she fully supports because of the bridge building that could result from it.
“I’m a 2-time Olympian, so I’m an idealist when it comes to sports,” Ronda says … while explaining how she bonded with a boxer from Iraq while the U.S. was at war with his country.
“Nowhere else in the world would some man from Iraq and a little girl from Venice Beach be respecting each other and sharing space. And, I think that sports is where we really find that common ground with each other.”
“And, I think that pulling out of the ‘Crown Jewel’ would be the wrong move because I think that this is an opportunity to be able to share our cultures, and to define what we have in common and in times especially when, you know, times of adversity between two countries that’s the absolute wrong time to be able to pull away.”
“I think that’s the time for us to be able to find what we have in common and be able to understand each other more.”
Rousey goes on to say she hopes that ‘Crown Jewel’ will lead to events in the future where the people of Saudi Arabia will demand to see WWE’s female athletes compete alongside the men.
To see her full comments, flip the page.