Julie Kedzie on Ronda Rousey hate: 'We owe her a huge debt of gratitude'

Few women can rile up MMA fans like Ronda Rousey, but for all the drama and boastful claims and callouts, former UFC fighter and current Invicta FC matchmaker Julie Kedzie says women’s MMA owes “Rowdy” a debt of gratitude.

Kedzie, who first fought professionally in 2004, had a long and fruitful fighting career, even when there wasn’t much of a women’s MMA scene to be found. She won three fights in one night to claim a HOOKnSHOOT title in 2005, she fought Gina Carano in the first Showtime-televised women’s MMA fight in 2007, and she was among the first wave of female fighters to compete under the UFC banner in 2013.

In other words, she’s been around. And if there’s anything Kedzie’s learned during that time, it’s that an advancement for one female fighter usually means advancement for all.

“I’ve just had a little more experience with watching people jump the line,” Kedzie recently told MAMjunkie.com. “When the spotlight falls on one of the women, it’s something for all of us to celebrate, especially when we weren’t allowed in the UFC, especially when EliteXC was making us fight three-minute rounds.

” … Ronda Rousey got us into the UFC. If nobody likes her attitude, if no nobody likes how she fights or anything about her, we owe her a huge debt of gratitude for that.”

Check out the full conversation above.

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