Seth Rollins Not Surprised Ronda Rousey’s WWE Run Was Short-Lived

Seth Rollins isn’t shocked one bit that Ronda Rousey walked away from WWE — and he says the writing was on the wall.

While speaking on Club Shay Shay on February 18, 2026, Rollins was asked about Rousey’s WWE run and whether he was surprised it didn’t last longer. His answer was straightforward.

“I’m not surprised at all. What they were asking Ronda to do was very hard. The schedule was crazy back then—this was pre-COVID when she came in around 2018.”

Rollins broke down how Rousey’s initial presentation in WWE was very different from the weekly grind most wrestlers endure.

“At first, everything was easy and curated for her. It was all choreographed. She had maybe one match every six months. It was well rehearsed, and that can be fun. Wrestling that way can be enjoyable and e.ven addictive.”

But he stressed that WWE isn’t built around occasional, carefully rehearsed appearances. Rollins contrasted that with his own path through the business.

“But that’s not really what wrestling is. Wrestling is a grind. It used to be five times a week. You have to learn your craft. If you’re not used to that and you come in with everything built around you, and then you have to work backwards, that’s tough. That’s the opposite of how I did it. I came up doing all the grinding first, and then I got to do the fun stuff later. That’s easier, because when someone tells you that you only have to wrestle 50 times a year, it feels easy if you used to do 250. Going the other way is really hard.”

He also acknowledged that Rousey had goals beyond wrestling—particularly motherhood—and made it clear that balancing WWE’s travel demands with raising multiple children isn’t easy.

“She also had other aspirations. She wanted to be a mom, and it’s very hard to be a mom and do our job—especially if you want multiple kids. If you’re not having fun and you don’t love it, I’m definitely not surprised she felt like she needed to get away from it. It doesn’t surprise me at all.”

Rousey has previously stated that WWE left the door open for a return, but she doesn’t see herself going back on the road due to family priorities. Rollins’ comments weren’t aimed at her remarks specifically — instead, he offered a broader take on how difficult the WWE schedule can be for someone coming in from outside the traditional wrestling system.

Do you think Ronda Rousey could ever return for one more WWE appearance, or does Seth Rollins have it right about how tough the grind really is? Let us know what you think.

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