Total Garbage: Dana White Rips Into Ronda Rousey’s Comeback
Dana White has officially killed the rumor mill surrounding a boxing match between Ronda Rousey and Katie Taylor. The UFC boss took aim at the speculation during the UFC 323 post-fight press conference, calling the whole thing “total bullsh*t”.
Dana White Kills Ronda Rousey Comeback Talk
When reporters asked White about the report suggesting Rousey could face the Irish boxing champion in 2026, he didn’t hold back. “That whole thing is total bullsh*t. People just make stuff up and run with it. There are no talks, there’s no secret deal for Ronda Rousey to box Katie Taylor in the summer or whatever the story was. None of that is real”. White went on to clarify that this isn’t about Rousey personally.
“Ronda can do whatever she wants with her life and her career, and I’ll always support her, but this idea that we’re out here putting together a Ronda vs. Katie Taylor boxing match is just not true. It’s made-up nonsense. I can’t say enough good things about Ronda and what she did for this sport, but that story is garbage.”
Ronda Rousey vs. Katie Taylor
The rumor started when BoxingScene reported in early December that the two combat sports icons were in talks for a Las Vegas bout in 2026, with Netflix showing interest. The timing seemed to add up too, since Rousey had been posting training videos on social media throughout 2025, sparking comeback chatter. She even said she was “falling back in love” with MMA after giving birth to her second daughter in January 2025.
Taylor herself added fuel to the fire when she told reporters at the WBC convention in Thailand that she was “very, very open” to the fight. The Irish boxer called Rousey “an iconic figure in female sport” and said the matchup would “capture the imagination of the fans.” Taylor suggested it could even surpass her trilogy with Amanda Serrano, which drew six million viewers on Netflix in July 2025.
But the matchup never made sense on paper. Rousey hasn’t fought since Amanda Nunes knocked her out in 48 seconds at UFC 207 in December 2016. That loss came 13 months after Holly Holm kicked her face off at UFC 193. Both defeats exposed her lack of striking skills, particularly her boxing. Rousey built her career on judo and grappling, not punching.
Cris Cyborg was among those who laughed at the idea of Rousey boxing anyone, writing on social media: “I once saw Ronda Rousey shadow boxing and her shadow won! Zero chance she fights boxing.” The comment referenced a viral clip of Rousey’s shadow boxing that got torn apart by fans and fighters for her head movement and technique.
There’s also the small matter of Rousey’s brain. In her 2024 autobiography “Our Fight,” she revealed she dealt with concussions for most of her career and admitted they played a major role in her retirement. She said she continued to train and fight while concussed, which led to symptoms lasting weeks or months instead of days. Rousey has two young daughters now and worries about her future brain health, especially since her family has a history of Alzheimer’s and dementia.
Taylor, on the other hand, is 39 years old and holds the undisputed super lightweight title with a 25-1 record. She’s one of only eight boxers in history to hold all four major titles at once. Her only loss came against Chantelle Cameron in 2023, which she avenged six months later. She beat Amanda Serrano again in July 2025 to sweep their trilogy 3-0.
When asked if Rousey is in talks to return to UFC competition, White simply said “no.” He praised Rousey for her pioneering role in women’s MMA and said he told WWE she’d be “the greatest athlete you ever worked with over there” when she made the jump to wrestling in 2017. Rousey was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2018 as the first woman to receive the honor. Her UFC record was 6-2 with an average fight time of three minutes and six seconds.
White’s response made it clear that whatever comeback Rousey might be planning, it won’t be against Katie Taylor in a boxing ring. The UFC CEO wasn’t buying it, and neither should anyone else.
