3 lost Ronda Rousey MMA fights

Ronda Rousey will forever be remembered as a trailblazer in mixed martial arts. She was the one responsible for bringing female fighters to the national consciousness, upending Dana White's "promise" that female fighters would never compete in the UFC, and became the sport's first prominent ambassador to pop culture, with movie roles and other media appearances aplenty.

In her more than five years of professional competition, she fought a litany of noteworthy opponents, including former and future champions like Miesha Tate, Holly Holm, and Amanda Nunes.

However, there are three particular fights that the fans wanted to see, and we never got.

3. Ronda Rousey vs. Marloes Coenen

Many people may not know it, but Marloes Coenen is another of the original pioneers of women's MMA. Initially establishing herself in Japan, which was at the time the only place where female fighters could be taken seriously, she eventually came Stateside as Strikeforce was booming.

There, she became the bantamweight champion, making one defense before dropping it to Tate. Elsewhere, Rousey was already generating much hype with four consecutive armbars early in her career. It would have been a great generational clash - the past/present vs. the future.

2. Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano

Before there was Rousey, there was Gina Carano: the female MMA superstar. She had it all: fighting skills, a marketable look, and a willingness to speak her mind. At the time Rousey began establishing herself in MMA, however, she was around two years removed from her last fight - a loss to Cris "Cyborg" Justino.

This fight very nearly happened back in 2014, as recounted by both women at differing points to Joe Rogan. But for whatever reasons, it never materialized, and theymoved on to other ventures, primarily in Hollywood.

1. Ronda Rousey vs. Cris Cyborg

Speaking of Justino, her abortive clash with Rousey may very well be one of the biggest what-ifs in MMA history.

In 2011, both women were in Strikeforce competing as featherweights. Justino was the dominant champion, bludgeoning whichever challenger was unfortunate enough to share the cage with her. Rousey, meanwhile, was the sport's most exciting female prospect, snatching arms along the way.

A clash seemed inevitable, but then Justino failed a drug test. Rousey, on the other hand, went ten pounds south to challenge bantamweight Miesha Tate instead. Yet rumblings of it happening persisted all the way to 2017, when Justino was now a UFC fighter and women's featherweight finally started existing. But Rousey decided to enter professional wrestling, leaving Justino to fight mostly bantamweights before heading for Bellator.