Mixed martial arts trailblazer Ronda Rousey forced a change in attire during her time in the UFC but the improvements could not prevent a major mishap at UFC Vegas 69
Ronda Rousey was a trailblazer for women in the UFC (Image: ESPN/Youtube)
WWE superstar Ronda Rousey’s fear of “high-def camel toe” forced upgrades in UFC attire – but the changes could not prevent a major wardrobe malfunction for one unfortunate fighter last month.
Trailblazer Rousey was the first woman to sign for the UFC in 2012 and certainly made her mark in the promotion. She became known as the “baddest woman on the planet” for her brutal submissions in the octagon before crossing over into the WWE universe.
The American megastar paved the way for a host of female MMA fighters – but should also be remembered as a key influence in the adaptation of their fight clothing.
Important changes were made when Rousey raised fears of a ‘camel toe’ after her first fight against fierce former UFC rival Miesha Tate.
“The first Miesha fight, she got her hooks in from behind, and I was like, ‘oh, I can get out of here easy’,” Rousey recalled in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine. “But if I did, I would flash everyone, so I had to figure out a way to pull her feet out where my business was facing down, not facing the world.
“And then I have a phobia about camel toe. I swear to God, every time after I win, even before I take my mouth guard out, I pull my shorts down. It’s because I have a phobia of high-def camel toe, people zooming in on the Internet and everything. It’s always, first thing, fix the camel toe!”
Rousey inspired change in more practical UFC attire after sharing her fear of ‘camel toe’ (Image: Getty Images)
Prominent voice Rousey eventually had her concerns listened to and sports clothing giants Reeboks sought a more practical solution for female MMA stars. At UFC 189 in Las Vegas in 2015, ‘Reebok fight kits’ were debuted and the fight attire has been adapted to suit the needs of competitors to this day.
“I went over to their campus and tried on a whole bunch of different stuff, and told them the kind of things that bother me,” Rousey later told USA Today via ForTheWin.
“Women that fight have bigger lats, and having your lats come out over the bra is annoying, and it needs to be really rigid around the neck, but really flexible.”
Andrade blamed her boob ‘slipping out’ of her bra for her shock defeat in Las Vegas (Image: UFC)
The changes influenced by Rousey have not completely stopped problems reoccurring, however, and there are now calls for the attire to evolve once more. Brazilian Jessica Andrade partly blamed a “breast slip” for her shock second round defeat to rising star Erin Blanchfield at UFC Vegas 69 last month.
“This is not an excuse, but when she came for the takedown, I lost focus,” Andrade claimed. “Because when she moved in, she put her shoulder just under my top and my breast completely slipped out. I lost focus and forgot to counter.”
UFC flyweight Montana De La Rosa almost had a similar mishap a week later in her UFC 70 defeat to Tatiana Suarez and urged outfitting partner Venum to take action. “This is definitely a wardrobe issue,” she said on Instagram. “Hopefully, UFC and Venum Women / Venum will fix this.”
