WWE wants Ronda Rousey for next year’s WrestleMania

MANILA, Philippines – World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is reportedly interested in having Ronda Rousey perform at WrestleMania 33 as part of the concession for allowing Brock Lesnar to compete at the UFC 200 pay-per-view event on July 9.

On the heels of UFC’s announcement that Lesnar ended his retirement from mixed martial arts and will wear his 4-ounce gloves again to face Mark Hunt at UFC 200, speculations have run out of control as to what WWE was getting in return.

According to a report by Forbes, the pro wrestling organization would like to work with the former women’s bantamweight titleholder at next year’s WrestleMania, which will take place at the Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida on April 2, 2017.

Rousey appeared in a well-received segment with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson at WrestleMania 31 in March 2015, taking down Triple H with a Judo hip throw before repressing Stephanie McMahon’s arm.

(READ: Top five surprising moments at WrestleMania 31)

Rousey is projected to return to active competition in early January 2017 after undergoing minor surgery on her knee last week.

Aside from having Rousey at WrestleMania 33, WWE is reportedly looking at the possibility of involving other UFC fighters to appear at SummerSlam on August 21.

Meanwhile, Lesnar is booked for a match at SummarSlam against a yet-to-be-announced opponent.

A few hours after UFC publicly revealed Lesnar’s unexpected return to the Octagon over the weekend, WWE issued a statement that the 38-year-old wrestler remains under contract with the company and described his bout with Hunt as a “one-off” stint. – Rappler.com