Ronda Rousey delivered one of the biggest surprises of AEW Revolution 2026 when she appeared during the show, and now Tony Khan has explained how the moment came together.
Rousey appeared at Crypto.com Arena on March 15 shortly after Toni Storm defeated Marina Shafir. Storm was celebrating her victory when Rousey suddenly entered the ring and confronted her face-to-face before security rushed in to separate them.
The segment escalated further when Shafir blindsided Storm from behind, dropping the AEW Women’s Champion before leaving through the crowd alongside Rousey while fans reacted loudly inside the arena.
Khan addressed the moment during the Revolution post-show media scrum when asked about Rousey’s involvement. He explained that the appearance came from Rousey’s friendship with Shafir and that she was brought in as backup since everyone had been banned from ringside during the match.
“Rhonda is a really good friend of Marina Shafir and Marina brought her in as backup. You know everyone was banned from ringside so that match was a great wrestling match. I thought Toni and Marina Shafir was a great wrestling match. They’re gonna have a no holds barred fight on Wednesday night.”
Khan also mentioned that AEW maintains a positive relationship with Rousey and made it clear she is always welcome in the promotion.
“Ronda has wrestled for us before and we have a great relationship with her and she’s always welcomed here.”
He added another interesting detail during the scrum, revealing that Rousey has invited AEW talent to attend her upcoming mixed martial arts return fight.
“If anyone from AEW wants to be at her fight, they are welcome to be there. She invited me and it sounds like we are going to be there.”
Rousey is currently preparing for her MMA return against Gina Carano in May 2026 under Jake Paul’s MVP promotion. The fight is expected to stream on Netflix. With Khan confirming AEW’s relationship with Rousey and the possibility of AEW talent attending her fight, the crossover between the former UFC champion and the wrestling promotion may continue beyond her surprise Revolution appearance.
Do you think Ronda Rousey should appear more regularly in AEW moving forward, or should her involvement stay limited to moments like this? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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