Don't be surprised if Ronda Rousey turns up in the upcoming Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue. The magazine's editor posted an Instagram picture that may have given away the identity of a would-be secret model, and it looks like the famous UFC fighter herself.
At first glance, the picture seems both innocuous and anonymous: It's the backside of a model who has been "outfitted" in body paint.
A close look reveals some telling details, though.
First off, it's likely that this is the body of an athlete. It's a much more muscular, fit build than what you typically see from models. At the top of the photo, you can also see hair that looks both the color and length of Rousey's.
But that evidence looks like child's play compared to this iron-clad identifier. An Uproxx editor matched the model's tattoo wrist to an identical one on Rousey:
This is some investigative journalism I did at work this morning. pic.twitter.com/UGKZFuhmQj
— Chris Mottram (@ChrisMottram) January 6, 2016
Seems like an open-and-shut case. Sports Illustrated hasn't confirmed it, though: Despite overwhelming evidence, they've chosen to play it coy:
"Thanks to a few inconspicuous tattoos, it looks like our next body-painted beauty may be the one and only Ronda Rousey," said the magazine in a short post. "We can neither confirm nor deny these rumors, but isn't the idea of Ronda donning nothing but paint enough to tie you over until the issue comes out in February?"
We guess that's the sort of cutesy non-denial you'd expect from a swimsuit magazine.
Rousey appeared in last year's issue, and SI capitalized on her popularity by releasing a video of the outtakes: