Second String: Why Ronda Rousey could be the greatest women’s pro wrestler of all-time
“You need to understand something, Steph; any ring I step into, is mine.” – Ronda Rousey at Wrestlemania 31
Whether you call it professional wrestling or sports entertainment, it’s alive and well.
But the heyday of the business it is not. Hardcore fans click away on the internet, voicing their displeasure about the current World Wrestling Entertainment product.
But at Wrestlemania 31, the internet was abuzz and mainstream media joined in as Ronda Rousey jumped in the ring, made a Wrestlemania moment and had every WWE and Ultimate Fighting Championship fan thinking in unison: what’s next?
Perhaps the best guess is that Rousey will make another appearance here or there down the road. Maybe, just maybe she’ll even work a match — perhaps at next year’s Wrestlemania 32. It will take place in Dallas and, as the WWE promo hyped up, everything’s bigger in Texas. Perhaps it was no accident that one of the preceding adjectives used in the promo was “rowdier.”
No matter what happens, there should be no doubt that Rousey, who’s improved her overall game in mixed martial arts as quickly as her stardom’s grown across all mediums, could be as popular and as talented in the realm of sports entertainment that she wants to be. No woman had ever fought inside the UFC before her, much less become the company’s biggest name. Why couldn’t she be the first woman to headline wrestling’s biggest event?
Heck, Rousey might be the one who’s able to make wrestling cool again.
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When little Ronda Rousey was still decades from being Rowdy, one of her more arduous battles was waged with a speech impediment after she was born with the umbilical cord around her neck.
In every child’s dreamland – Toys R Us – she frustratingly tried to explain to her dad just what toy she wanted. It was her sister who was finally able to surmise that little Ronda wanted a Hulk Hogan “Wrestling Buddy.”
Little Ronda would very quickly go on to pulverize her buddy into oblivion. Perhaps it was just a little kid being rough-and-tumble. Or perhaps it was a bit of foreshadowing in an early chapter of the story that has been the remarkable ascent of the first and only UFC women’s bantamweight champion, who has now become the most talked-about name in the world of professional wrestling and could go down as the greatest female performer in the industry’s history – if she wanted to.
Either way, all these years later in Santa Clara, California’s Levi Stadium upon the grandest stage that professional wrestling knows – Wrestlemania – Hulk Hogan was making his now seemingly annual cameo. Sting was there for the first time. The Undertaker returned. Daniel Bryan was there, too, albeit far lower on the card than he should have been. John Cena was doing his best Rocky IV. Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar, they were there, as well. And so too was the Rock.
Upon this parade of champions, among a seemingly never-ending cavalcade of stars, it was who the Rock had standing beside him that had the world abuzz, however.
“Rowdy” Ronda Rousey – former US Olympic bronze medal judoka, undefeated UFC champion and former pulverizer of wrestling buddies – took center stage in the squared circle.
Rousey joined the Rock to go nose-to-nose, word-for-word with real-life and storyline World Wrestling Entertainment power couple Stephanie McMahon and husband HHH. She talked a bit – she’s always been very good in that regard. And then she got physical – she’s always been great at that.
She tossed former world champion HHH on to his back and then precariously grabbed McMahon’s right arm as McMahon, perhaps the greatest heel in wrestling today whether she gets the credit or not, wailed in fear.
On the most magnificent night on the pro wrestling – or sports entertainment, if you will – calendar, Wrestlemania 31 came off brilliantly despite one of the worst build-ups in event history according to many fans and pundits. But, despite the surprising magic of the card, all the stars, the twists and turns and swerves and phenomenal in-ring work, it was Rousey’s appearance that drew the biggest buzz.
In the days following Rousey’s appearance, speculation as to what’s next for her in wrestling – despite having a UFC title defense against Bethe Correia on Aug. 1 in Brazil already on the docket – has been the hottest of topics. She teased fans with a cryptic tweet that concluded with, “We’re just getting’ started …” Her agent went on record saying nothing else was planned. Then another report surfaced saying something could be in the works for WWE’s next major event in Southern California – Hell in the Cell on Oct. 25 at the Staples Center.
Call it a gut feeling, but it feels like a safe bet that Rousey will find her way to the WWE again and not just as a fan in the front row. How substantial and lasting her role is could well be the most interesting question.
Make no mistake, though, if Ronda Rousey wanted to be the greatest women’s professional wrestler in the history of the business, whether you gauge that by in-ring work, microphone skills or putting asses in seats, she could be.
In the world of mixed martial arts, Rousey is the complete package. She is a beautiful savage who is the perfect equation of charisma, world-class athleticism and ability, astounding intelligence and downright nastiness.
Such a complete package would bode well in WWE, also.
Chances are she would never become a roster regular, because, with her star status there would be no need for her to take on the WWE’s daunting travel schedule and the physical toll of doing multiple matches per week.
But if there’s a shred of doubt that she could learn very quickly how to work a pro wrestling match, just look at how quickly her striking has adapted in the world of MMA and search the net for some clips of her and Shayna Baszler putting on their own matches in the Glendale Fighting Club ring.
Not to mention, Rousey doesn’t look down on pro wrestling. She doesn’t snub her nose at its predetermined world. No, she’s a huge fan and one who respects the sacrifices the performers make with their bodies and applauds their abilities to put on an entertaining show.
Perhaps that’s why, above all else, with the proper involvement and storyline, Rousey might well be the person who could make wrestling cool again.
Many look down on wrestling. It’s for kids. It’s fake. It’s embarrassing.
During two of pro wrestling’s most lucrative periods – the 1980s rock-and-wrestling boom and the late 1990s-early 2000s span known as the “Attitude Era” – wrestling was cool in the sense that it had casual fans, it had mainstream mention and above all else, people, not just wrestling fans, but regular people from 18-49 were talking about it. Guys could talk about it at parties. Guys could talk about it in front of women. Hell, guys that watched wrestling actually had women to go home with.
During its most popular days, pro wrestling became a part of pop culture; it was buzzing, it was can’t-miss television.
Nobody creates a buzz like Rousey. She has become a mainstream star who is viewed as a gorgeous woman who happens to be an undefeated badass of a champion. Her tireless media appearances and budding movie career have grown her popularity. Her amazing 14-second title defense in February at Staples Center was contested in front of a crowd as star-studded as any Los Angeles Lakers game of the ‘80s.
And, at Wrestlemania 31, fans were chanting her name before she even got in the ring.
It was a Wrestlemania headlined by Brock Lesnar, a former UFC heavyweight champion. Lesnar has and will always be a legitimate badass. It’s a chief reason as to why his popularity is soaring despite working a part-time WWE schedule.
Then again, Rousey’s still very much the UFC champion and she’s never hesitated to point out that her reign in the octagon is priority No. 1. Not to mention, it’s highly unfathomable that the UFC would allow their brightest star to put herself at risk at all, but certainly not on any kind of recurring basis.
Still, though, it’s rather fun to just think, what if …
In reality, it’s a small world that was travailed for Rousey to get to Wrestlemania.
-She shared the ring with The Rock, who she always shares the same agent with. Both are also in “Furious 7.”
-Her “Rowdy” nickname was taken from WWE Hall of Famer “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, one of the greatest behind the mic in the industry’s history. Long ago, Rousey called Piper, who was also at Wrestlemania, and asked for permission to use the nickname.
-”Judo” Gene LeBell, a true icon in the world of combat sports, is “Uncle” Gene to Rousey, having been instrumental in her judo and MMA careers. LeBell, who actually began training catch wrestling at an early age under former Glendale resident Ed “Strangler” Lewis, ran the National Wrestling Alliance’s Los Angeles territory with brother Mike from the late 1960s to the early 1980s.
-Rener Gracie, one of Rousey’s jiu jitsu instructors who is also often in her corner for fights, is married to former WWE Divas champion Eve Torres. Gracie has also personally taught jiu jitsu to HHH and Stephanie McMahon’s children.
-Then there’s the Four Horsewomen. A name that pays homage to the legendary wrestling stable that featured the likes of Ric Flair and Arn Anderson and a quartet of which Rousey and close friends Shayna Baszler, Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir make up. Together they were front row for WWE’s Summer Slam last year in Los Angeles and were all together at Wrestlemania. In actuality, the biggest highlight may well have been the reaction of Rousey’s best friend Shafir, wide-eyed, grinning ear to ear, clapping and jumping and completely marking out with unbridled, genuine enthusiasm as Rousey hopped the guard rail.
They’ve also attended independent wrestling shows, such as Southern California’s Pro Wrestling Guerrilla promotion, together and Baszler actually appeared on a Ring of Honor pay-per-view the day after Rousey’s last bout, seconding the organization’s tag team champions, Red Dragon, and getting physically involved.
Sometimes things are just bound to happen. Sometimes the right person is in the right place at the right time.
It was on March 27, 2011 that Ronda Rousey made her professional MMA debut.
She won in 25 seconds despite competing with stitches in her foot from breaking up a dog fight and facing a 6-1 opponent who had once defeated a man in Brazil.
In four years, this Four Horsewoman went from the center of a cage in Tarzana to the center of the sports entertainment world at Wrestlemania.
Just a few days before her professional debut, I interviewed Rousey for the very first time.
“I don’t think anyone has the right to beat me. I feel I’ve worked too hard and nobody’s worked harder than me,” she said.
I look back and that’s what I remember. That in four years, a young lady who trains day in and day out at the Glendale Fighting Club has become this uber-star because nobody has the right to beat her. And there’s nothing she will not work hard enough to accomplish.
She recently graced the pages of Sports Illustrated’s Swimsuit Issue. Her resume of major motion pictures continues to grow. An autobiography that everyone not shopping at Walmart will surely purchase is due out in May. And she just keeps on dismantling every UFC challenger put before her.
It was just before her third professional bout that Rousey told me she would make UFC President Dana White love her and he would open the doors for women’s fighting in the UFC. It seemed preposterous at the time and now it’s merely a historical footnote.
I’ve told that story before within this forum and will probably tell it again because I find it just that amazing. It’s rare that an exceptional athlete doesn’t proclaim that they will be the next this and the next that. But it’s unheard of for any athlete to carry out everything they’ve predicted, much less taking on a job that never existed before, such as UFC women’s champion.
If Rousey wants, she could be the next Mike Tyson, whose appearance at Wrestlemania XIV and preceding shows drew eyeballs aplenty and made for must-see TV with the likes of “Stonecold” Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels.
If Rousey wants, she could be the next Brock Lesnar, a legit monster of a champion who appears on a limited basis, but is consistently cheered by fans.
That’s all improbable, though. More than likely, she won’t ever be the next anything, but will continue being the first Ronda Rousey.
Whether on the big screen, in bookstores, in the octagon, the squared circle or, in all likelihood, somehow, someway a bit of everything in between, the one certainty is Rousey will continue to do what she sets her mind to. And we’ll continue to watch in amazed entertainment.
That’s just the way I see it, playing second string.