Ronda Rousey slams former WWE CEO Vince McMahon and the company’s history with women in new book

Ronda Rousey has a scathing take on Vince McMahon. Rousey acknowledged existing sexual misconduct allegations against the disgraced former WWE chairman in her new book.

Rousey, who was signed full-time with WWE between 2017 and 2023, criticized McMahon and the company for its historically poor treatment of women in her new autobiography, Our Fight. The former UFC champion and multi-time WWE titleholder compared McMahon’s grip on WWE to the sinister Emperor Palentine’s tyranny in the “Star Wars” franchise.

“It’s hard sometimes to know where the evil, unethical, slimeball character of Vince McMahon played out for the cameras ends and the actual questionably ethical, many times sued, and multiple times accused of sexual misconduct Vince McMahon begins,” Rousey writes in an excerpt of her book published by Inside the Ropes ahead of its April 4 release.

Rousey criticized the company’s history of holding “Bra and Panties” matches in which a winner was declared by stripping her opponent down to her underwear. The last Bra and Panties match took place on a 2007 episode of WWE Raw.

“Even after that gimmick was retired by WWE executives — I’m sure very reluctantly and with a lot of lamenting about political correctness — it was still clear that the organization placed more value on a woman’s physical appearance than her physical ability,” Rousey writes.

Women are featured far more prominently in today’s WWE and in a manner more closely reflecting their male counterparts. Rousey, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair were the first women to headline WrestleMania in 2019. Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair main evented Night 1 of WrestleMania 37 two years later, marking the first time two Black superstars top-billed the annual showcase. The company has come a long way from its “Bra and Panties” days, but Rousey credits fan feedback for the company’s culture shift.

“It was only after WWE was basically arm-barred into it, following a global social media backlash to #givedivasachance after Divas were given a total of thirty seconds — less time than it takes most people to read this paragraph — for a nationally televised tag match,” Rousey writes. “Four women were given less time to collectively wrestle than every single man on the roster got for his intro music alone. 

“Presented this information as a person outside of the wrestling world you might draw the conclusion that there is a troubling foundational sexist, patriarchal culture within the WWE. You would be right. I have nothing but respect for the female wrestlers who paved the way for women wrestlers today. And nothing but disgust for the amount of sexist, degrading bullsh*t they were put through.”

McMahon resigned from TKO Group Holdings, WWE and UFC’s parent company, amid sexual assault and trafficking allegations. McMahon is under federal investigation and a civil lawsuit over the sexual abuse accusations.