With Ronda Rousey’s signing a WWE contract all but guaranteed, it got me thinking. Does this help the WWE? Do they even need her? I don’t think so. If we take the speculation as to who are her potential opponents once she arrives, it looks all bad to this writer. Let’s talk.
The WWE is no stranger to the idea of bringing in stars from other sports to compete in matches. Most times it was a one off side show. Lawrence Taylor fighting Bam Bam Bigelow still haunts my mind. Shaq and Dennis Rodman were even worse in the WCW. However, when Ken Shamrock made his debut in the WWE it was different. Here was a legit Hall of Fame UFC superstar trying his luck outside of the octagon. The most important difference was the landscape of professional wrestling at the time. Kayfabe was all but gone, but there was still enough residual belief that it was easy to enjoy the matches, and forget the fact that in real life he could absolutely destroy most of his opponents.
The problem is that so much time has passed, and the WWE Universe has changed. This change does not bode well for the potential WWE career of Ronda Rousey. There are a few factors that comprise my overall negativity of this move by the WWE, but let’s just go over the big ones.
Potential Opponents/Bookings
As technology has become much more advanced since the time of Ken Shamrock, online rumors and dirt sheets are much more accessible to the fans. A few of the ideas that have been floating around about who Ronda Rousey will feud with when she arrives is concerning. The main ones I have seen are Charlotte Flair and Asuka. There were also early reports and rumblings of Ronda’s MMA version of the Four Horsewomen competing with the Four Horsewomen of the WWE. Those being Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, Bayley and Sasha Banks. That last one would be my pick for the match that would do the least amount of damage to the image of the WWE superstars involved in the match. The singles matches are more problematic.
Charlotte Flair is arguably the best female superstar in the WWE. Having her feud with Ronda right off the bat would be just plain bad. I know that Ronda has probably been training for her potential career change, but training and actually competing on the main shows are completely different. Charlotte is elite, she would expose Ronda as the amateur she is. It would also make Charlotte look bad, because as good as she is she would still have to slow down and not give it her all in those matches.
Asuka worries me the most because of what she has to lose in a program with Rousey. Asuka is still on her undefeated streak, and knowing what I know about Vince McMahon, I would not put it past him to end that streak at a huge event like Wrestlemania to make news in the sports world. I can’t predict the length of Rousey’s contract with the WWE if it gets signed. If I were to make a guess though I can’t imagine it’s going to be lengthy. That would make Asuka losing that much more disappointing.
She’s Not At The Peak Of Popularity
Let’s be honest. This would have been a much bigger story if she had done this while she was still seen as unstoppable. Those two devastating losses and how she handled them afterwards certainly hurt her “credibility” as a “threat”. Don’t get me wrong, she is still considered one of the best, but the timing isn’t ideal.
MMA Doesn’t Always Translate Into Being Good At Choreography
Being a professional martial artist is probably the best sport you can come from transitioning into the WWE. Being that type of athlete certainly lends itself to being in prime shape to learn the movements and have the endurance to keep pace in the ring. It isn’t a guarantee though. I’m hoping that if she does sign that she takes it as seriously as the people in the ring with her. That also goes for her mic work. Regardless of the show she get’s placed in, the top of the mountain on either show has some great talkers, Charlotte and Alexa Bliss come to mind.
Conclusion
I know it sounds like I’m overthinking this whole thing, but I just don’t think that Ronda Rousey will be a good fit in the WWE. We’ve seen what it looks like when Ronda has both won and lost in actual combat. Whether or not she can convincingly mimic that in the WWE will be the true test. She will also have to be great right off the bat. If she doesn’t look as polished as the people the WWE will probably pit her against, the fans will see it and turn on her.
The people who know her the most are adults. Those adults that are true fans are so much more knowledgeable that the fans when Ken Shamrock was a WWE superstar. I just see her being rushed to the top and not being able to hold her own. I really hope I’m wrong and will have to eat my words come Wrestlemania time, it just not likely I will have to break out the silverware.
