Ronda Rousey Opens Up About Kurt Angle's Influence On Her WWE Career

Ronda Rousey recently spoke to the Wives Of Wrestling Podcast about the importance of Kurt Angle in her life and career.

She admitted the Hall Of Famer influenced her due to her background in the Olympics.

"Kurt was an influence on me before I even met him, as an aspiring Olympian," she said. "I wanted to be an Olympic Gold medalist, the first American to win an Olympic Gold medal in Judo. I mean, Kurt was that hero that I had of, 'oh, one day you could have people look up to you, and talk about you with that kind of reverence that people talk about Kurt with wrestling.'

"In wrestling, people are all like, 'oh, Kurt Angle, you know?' So, I wanted to be the Kurt Angle of Judo. Then when I came into WWE and they partnered us up, it was like he's the only other person who has been in a similar situation like that. Coming from the outside, from other successes, starting your rookie year under a microscope, and the spotlight."

Ronda Rousey then went on to discuss the impact Angle had on her with professional wrestling. The former Raw Women's Champion conceded that he showed her that she could actually do this.

"Having him to guide me in the beginning, and not like roll his eyes at me, and all the kind of stuff that I would say or do or whatever. It's just my inexperience and stuff like that. He was an awesome guide and a teacher," Ronda said. "I just kind of felt like I was in good hands, and that anything I aspire to is possible. Because Kurt has already done it, and if Kurt could do it, I could do it, kind of a thing. He's not an alien, I could do it because he did, and maybe I could do more."

While Rousey has thrived in the ring since joining the company, she originally was unsure if that's something she could do.

"When I first came into wrestling, I didn't think that I'd even be able to have a match. It's just so complicated, and I didn't think I'd be able to have a singles run," she said. "I thought I might be able to be like a periphery-like helper character, like to Kurt, and be able to be in a tag and stuff like that. After I worked with him, I was kind of like, 'you know what, maybe I can actually do this and not just be somebody's whatever.'"

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit the Wives Of Wrestling podcast with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.