Ronda Rousey defends WWE's decision to keep Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia.
TMZ Sports caught up with Rousey and asked her about WWE going to Saudi Arabia on Nov. 2 for the Crown Jewel event.
"I’m a 2-time Olympian, so I’m an idealist when it comes to sports. One of my favorite memories at the Olympics is, I was in the gym and I was running. Right next to me was a boxer from Iraq. It was the beginning of the Iraq war. Nowhere else in the world would some man from Iraq and a little girl from Venice Beach be respecting each other and sharing space," said Rousey. "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 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 is just the latest superstar to defend WWE's decision to remain in Saudi Arabia. John Bradshaw Layfield was the first wrestler to speak out on the situation. Randy Orton also believed staying in Saudi Arabia was the right move. Earlier this week, Alexa Bliss and Natalya Neidhart stated that WWE going to Saudi Arabia would help bring change to the country.
The current Raw Women's Champion also believes that WWE going to Saudi Arabia will lead to change.
"If WWE become big in Saudi Arabia and WWE is the company having all-women's pay-per-views, then if you have the WWE Network, you can see Evolution and Crown Jewel," said Rousey. "Exposing people to all the different things that our culture has to offer, those are just baby steps to how you get people to demanding those kind of things. Women can't compete in Saudi Arabia right now, but if Crown Jewel is a huge success and WWE takes off in Saudi Arabia, they are going to be demanding to see women soon."
On Thursday morning, WWE made the decision to keep Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia, feeling it was best to honor the contract they have with the General Sports Authority. While some wrestlers are publicly defending the decision, there are reports that others are unhappy behind the scenes. Robbie Fox of Barstool Sports was the first to report that John Cena and Daniel Bryan are both refusing to work the event. As of now, both are still advertised to compete.
You can listen to the full interview with Rousey in the video above.
