Ronda Rousey's return to MMA fighting after a ten year hiatus will be closely monitored by her medical teams, and the 39-year-old will undergo medical and neurological tests that will be more extensive than usual, because of her long history of concussions, which started back in her judo career, when she won bronze medal in Beijing 2008.
Andy Foster, California State Athletic Commission executive director, told ESPN that Rousey will be put through a lot of neurological and concussion battery testing to make sure she is healthy, more than what is required.
The same additional testings will happen with Carano because of her age (she turns 44 in April) and the fact that she hasn't fought since 2009. California requires that fighters over 40 years old will go through tests including Magnetic resonance angiogram (MRA) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain, electrocardiogram (EKG), cardiac testing, an exercise stress echocardiogram, neurocognitive testing, blood work, metabolic panel and ophthalmologic eye exam.
While Rousey has made a career in wrestling, first in WWE and then in independent circuits (retiring in 2025) since she left MMA in 2016, a mixed martial arts fight is more dangerous. However, "as long as these women pass their medicals and pass all their neurological batteries and do the things they need to do, there's nothing wrong with this fight", said Foster.
Ronday Rousey will fight another MMA icon, Gina Carano, for the first time in their careers (Carano hasn't fought since 2009) in May, in a fight that will be streamed on Netflix.