over the years rousey has shown she is not shy of speaking her mind like when she talked earlier this year on showtime with jim rome. i mean, for a girl, it raises your testosterone. i try to have as much sex as possible before i fight, actually. referee: i want a clean fight. touch gloves. make it official. i wanted to know how that is working for you so far? not fantastic. ever since i said that, i jinxed myself. i haven t been able to have sex right before a fight. reporter: we spent time with rousey in las vegas where she is shooting a reality tv show, the ultimate fighter. why are you so good at it? just the way i was brought up doing judo. my mom brought me to four, five different clubs a week. so i would always get to try different styles. reporter: it has been a long journey to the top. rousey s father took his own life when rhonda was only 8 years old. under a watchful eye from her mother, rowsey used her own judo training to help cope with the loss of her dad.
do you want to do this judo thing? yes, i want to be the first american to win the olympics. reporter: rousydidn t win gold but did win a bronze in the 2008 olympic games becoming the first american to medal in judo. but she needed more and wanted to fight professionally. rousey not only became the first to sign a contract with ultimate fight championship, she was crowned the world s first female champion. just because women can fight, should they? i think sports are a metaphor for life. i am not scared of anything. and i think a lot of women spend their lives fearful when they shouldn t. reporter: for nightline, i m julie foudy tapping out in las vegas. i think i would be scared to death to date that woman. don t make her mad. that might be why she jinxed herself. i don t think it had anything to do with the comment because i think guys would be lining up. i think it has everything to do with her performance in the ring.
do, the judo thing? yes, i want to be the first american to win the olympics. reporter: rowsey didn t win gold but did win a bronze in the 2008 olympic games becoming the first american to medal in judo. but she needed more and wanted to fight professionally. rousey not only to sign a contract with ultimate fighting championship and crowned the world s first female champion. just because women can fight, should say? i think sports are a metaphor for life. i am not scared of anything. and i think a lot of women spend their lives fearful when they shouldn t. reporter: for nightline, i m julie foudy tapping out in las vegas. i think i could be scared to death to date that woman. don t make her mad. that might be why she jinxed herself. i don t think it had anything to be doing with the combat. i think guys would be lining up. i think it has everything to do with her performance in the ring. human cage fighting. men don t want anything to do
mama said knock you out all right, the sport of mixed martial arts is no less than full combat, and it s only for really the toughest of the tough. punching, kicking, kneeing, elbowing, takedowns, throws, wrestling. i m like, ah, i m hurting now. so may or may not come as a surprise one of the most well known athletes in the sport is a woman. we are aup we are up all nightline with abc s julie foudy. rowdy ronda rousey is no ordinary woman. in fact rousey is the hottest fighter in this often bloodsport. one of the most vicious sports in the word. mixed martial arts. where fighters get to punch, kick, and knock out their opponents. but it is out of the ring where she s attracted the most attention recently. that s her on the cover of espn the magazine s body issue and
and she is this month s maxim cover girl. over the years rousey has shown she is not shy of speaking her mind when she talked earlier this year on showtime with jim rome. i mean, for a girl, it raises your testosterone. i try to have as much sex as possible before i fight, actually. i wanted to know how that is working for you so far? not fantastic. ever since i said that, i jinxed myself. i haven t been able to have sex right before a fight. reporter: we spent time with rousey in las vegas where she is shooting a reality tv show, the ultimate fighter. why are you so good at it? just the way i was brought up doing judo. my mom brought me to four, five clubs a week so i would always get to try different styles. reporter: it has been a long journey to the top. rousey s father took his own life when ronda was 8 years old. under a watchful eye from her mother, rowsey used her own judo training to help cope with the loss of her dad. is this something you want to