Ronda Rousey is coming to WWE

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

I think with all the rumors going on in the last 24 hours of Ronda Rousey and WWE that it's safe to say the MMA star is going to be in the WWE in the near future. It's going to bolster whatever show she lands on just with her star power alone. I'm really intrigued to see how WWE will use her. If there is going to be a woman's Royal Rumble then that is the perfect time to debut the female version of Brock Lesnar.

 

[Sai the Uganda Guy]

Was expecting this to be a news announcement, but then I realized it wasn't and that Jack-Hammer wasn't the poster.

I won't be surprised if and practically when the news is made official though. Still unsure how they'll set up Horsewomen vs. Horsewomen though, assuming that rumor has any weight to it.

 

[OYDK]

I'm much less enthused about this than I would have been, say, two years ago, but this is still an extremely nice pick-up if it is indeed true. If Rousey ends up signing a contract, I assume it would look much like Brock Lesnar's in which she works very limited dates for a large amount of money, which is exactly what should happen. Unlike Brock, Rousey is probably going to be extremely green and using her as a special attraction is probably the best way to get the maximum value out of her without exposing how unpolished she really is in the ring and on the mic. Shit, I wouldn't be surprised if they put her with Heyman.

Lot of options here as well now that the women's roster has built up more than a few names that can seemingly compete with her (in a kayfabe sense). Nia Jax, Asuka, Shayna Baszler, and Charlotte are all money-making opponents for Ronda Rousey, not to mention the Horsewomen vs Horsewomen feud that seems to be in the works.

This would be a nice kick in the ass for an increasingly stagnant women's division.

 

[Da Prophet]

The money is in Ronda Rousey running through the other women until Asuka steps up and hands her the very first defeat. Rousey should go undefeated, let her tap them while also having Asuka remain undefeated. Send girls like Banks or anyone else you want to protect from the fire of Rousey over to Smackdown if you really want to. They have enough girls that Rousey can crush without hurting the top female women.

At SummerSlam we get the undefeated Ronda Rousey against undefeated Asuka. Asuka taps her in five minutes, make it for the belt if you want, let Asuka win the title and beat Ronda. I could dig that, Rousey armbars her way to the Raw Women's Championship and holds it for a few months. Meanwhile, Asuka is demanding a shot. Rousey makes it so that Asuka has to go through all the MMA Horsewomen before she gets to Rousey.

I mean, it really does write itself.

 

[d_henderson1810]

If Rousey has signed a long-term contract, then she needs to be the one to finally topple Asuka.

Why not? She is a legit MMA fighter. Does you think Asuka would beat her?

Brock Lesnar, a former UFC, fighter beat the Undertaker's WM winning streak.

To use Rousey right, she must be the most dominant Diva in WWE, so she must be capable of beating all Divas, including your precious Asuka.

 

[Kodo Sawaki]

It's going to bolster whatever show she lands on just with her star power alone.

Whatever show? Unless you are one of those who really, really, really believe in how RAW and Smackdown are equal you know that its gona be RAW.

Which is shame, really wanted Charlotte vs Rousey. Though might be better, we get 4 Horsewoman vs 4 Horsewoman at Mania and get around other matches from there.

Though, in reality, there are only 2 competitors for her and that are Charlotte and Asuka. Everything else is just a filler because I see her as female version of Lesnar. As much as WWE try to build Bliss and others only 2 of women division fill out standard to, maybe, go over something that is maybe closest thing world gets as legitimate female fighter.

 

[stingray11214]

If Rousey has signed a long-term contract, then she needs to be the one to finally topple Asuka.

Why not? She is a legit MMA fighter. Does you think Asuka would beat her?

Brock Lesnar, a former UFC, fighter beat the Undertaker's WM winning streak.

To use Rousey right, she must be the most dominant Diva in WWE, so she must be capable of beating all Divas, including your precious Asuka.

I wish people would stop comparing Rousey to Lesnar. Lesnar has, whether you like it or not, a rich history in Pro Wrestling. He has been WWE Champion before he went to the UFC. He wrestled in New Japan after leaving the WWE. Went to the UFC AFTER his stint in NJPW. He was actually BETTER now than he was in his first stint in the WWE. Couple that with a true amateur wrestling background, and you can see why Lesnar is believable in the ring.

Rousey is an Olympic Gold Medalist in Judo. Yes, she won the UFC strap. Her last two fights Rousey was completely destroyed. Other than that? Nothing. No Pro Wrestling experience whatsoever. This means she needs to learn from scratch. That is the scary part, because I fear they are going to strap a rocket to her back because of her UFC history. That would be a mistake. In reality it would also be an injustice to WWE AND to Rousey. Send her to NXT. Train her right. Let her go under Sara Amato's wing. Let Rousey wrestle people like Aliyah. Let her work her way to the Main Event. If she does well, then the money and effort will be well spent. If she mails it in, then it won't. But, a rocket strapped to her back is NOT the answer.

 

[rmp0012002]

I see Ronda being hotshotted right to Raw or Smackdown with the amount of cash they are likely paying her. Judo is one thing but being a pro wrestler is another world and she should be going to NXT to learn how to perform and do it without hurting people.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

There's still a lot of money to be made with Ronda Rousey. The shine on her has faded significantly, which was bound to happen whenever she lost; I posted something in an MMA thread years back when she was really catching on that she was the golden girl and would continue to be until she suffered her first loss. Despite losing her last 2 MMA fights, Rousey's legacy hasn't been tarnished by her behaving questionably in her personal life, she hasn't failed drug tests, her personal life hasn't been fodder for the tabloids and she hasn't kept coming back to fight long past a time when she shouldn't have. So while she may not be the juggernaut she once was, she's still got a ton of crossover appeal and still has her reputation in tact.

If a plan is to basically do something similar with Rousey as they've done with Brock Lesnar, then I'll pass. As a fan, I don't want Rousey to pop up 4 or 5 times a year, work matches where she basically does one or two moves over and over again that decimates her opponent, etc. I'm just over the Brock Lesnar formula and while I'm glad to see that WWE has been actually having him wrestle actual competitive, entertaining matches during his run as Universal Champion, I personally hope he and WWE part ways after WrestleMania.

If Rousey wants to be a legit wrestler in WWE, and by legit I mean actually doing the work, isn't lazy, is willing to actually work with the wrestlers to set up matches that are mutually beneficial & worth watching, then I'm all for her coming to WWE. However, if Vince is gonna try to make her Brock Lesnar, just with a vagina, then no thank you.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

I'm skeptical. Can she tell a story? Being the Entourage movie doesn't make her an actor. Can she sell? Sure she will dominate a lot but to be interesting she has to at least sell at some point. Brock can sell, yes his dominance makes his selling so much more effective but when he sells, I buy it. I'm still not sure if AJ legit put him out of action.

Can Rousey be a wrestler? How much is she gonna work? Is she going to do her own mic work or have someone talk for her? And what is she? A heel? A face? An automaton? I'm not a UFC fan so maybe I don't know enough about her but I struggle to get too excited. I'm less excited about the horsewomen idea. It reeks of a cash grab stunt. I'd rather have Snooki. But I get it, Rousey is publicity and money.

 

[Kodo Sawaki]

Rousey is an Olympic Gold Medalist in Judo. Yes, she won the UFC strap. Her last two fights Rousey was completely destroyed. Other than that? Nothing. No Pro Wrestling experience whatsoever. This means she needs to learn from scratch. That is the scary part, because I fear they are going to strap a rocket to her back because of her UFC history. That would be a mistake. In reality it would also be an injustice to WWE AND to Rousey. Send her to NXT. Train her right. Let her go under Sara Amato's wing. Let Rousey wrestle people like Aliyah. Let her work her way to the Main Event. If she does well, then the money and effort will be well spent. If she mails it in, then it won't. But, a rocket strapped to her back is NOT the answer.

If you really think they got Rousey to have her in developmental and not in high profile matches at big PPVs, then sorry, you are delusional. Rousey is there to be legit from start, not some nobody who starts at NXT. She is there to be kick ass, and that means to beat some serious competition from start. That is not NXT, more likely that means more like Bliss, Bayley, Sasha and anybody else until you build someone like Asuka or Charlotte to get that rub.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

If you really think they got Rousey to have her in developmental and not in high profile matches at big PPVs, then sorry, you are delusional. Rousey is there to be legit from start, not some nobody who starts at NXT. She is there to be kick ass, and that means to beat some serious competition from start. That is not NXT, more likely that means more like Bliss, Bayley, Sasha and anybody else until you build someone like Asuka or Charlotte to get that rub.

Exactly.

Ronda Rousey is gonna be a big money draw that garners mainstream attention; she knows it, WWE knows it and, as a result, it's really a waste of what'll probably be a huge paycheck to put her in NXT. That's not to put NXT down, I love NXT and there's a lot of great talent in NXT but Ronda Rousey would be one of the highest profile signings in company history, in all of wrestling history if you wanna get right down to it. As a result, you put her against Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, Sasha Banks, Bayley, Alexa Bliss and Asuka because that's where the money's at and not up against Peyton Royce or Billie Kay.

 

[Da Prophet]

I'm skeptical. Can she tell a story? Being the Entourage movie doesn't make her an actor. Can she sell? Sure she will dominate a lot but to be interesting she has to at least sell at some point. Brock can sell, yes his dominance makes his selling so much more effective but when he sells, I buy it. I'm still not sure if AJ legit put him out of action.

Can Rousey be a wrestler? How much is she gonna work? Is she going to do her own mic work or have someone talk for her? And what is she? A heel? A face? An automaton? I'm not a UFC fan so maybe I don't know enough about her but I struggle to get too excited. I'm less excited about the horsewomen idea. It reeks of a cash grab stunt. I'd rather have Snooki. But I get it, Rousey is publicity and money.

Ronda Rousey is better on the microphone than all but two, maybe three, women they have on the roster. This is a woman who walked into Brazil against one of their own and got the crowd to cheer for her. Her promo skills are far and away better than the majority of the women in WWE, it's not even close. That means she can promote, she can hype things up and that's what she is needed for.

She can work if they let her toss people around and showcase her judo. It's why she needs to just rip through people.

As for being a heel or face, the WWE audience are like you, the audience is mostly unaware of just how unpopular Rousey became to the MMA specific audience. That hasn't carried over outside of the niche, she is still amazingly popular with the mass audience and could play a face in WWE. She should be a heel, her personality has her as a heel, she cuts the best promos working as a heel against people she hates (see Rousey vs. Tate I and II). Bring her in as a face, she "breaks the arm" of Bayley, and you have her go heel.

 

[Navi]

Ronda Rousey is better on the microphone than all but two, maybe three, women they have on the roster.

I didn't know that about her. Never really heard her speak on the mic, never watched one of her movies and the only time I've really seen her is at a weigh in or in an actual UFC ring. If she is good on the mic then that raises her stock somewhat as a lot of the others aren't.

As for Rousey coming to the WWE, wasn't that a forgone conclusion? She had said in the past that she is a fan and it's obvious she enjoyed her little foray in the world of the WWE at Mania, when she threw HHH over her hip. It will be interesting what kind of story line they give her and who her first match will be against.

Like JH said earlier, not interested if she's going to be the female Brock Lesnar and just put every other female into an armbar immediately. It has also been mentioned that she doesn't have a huge wrestling background like Lesnar has. Don't think she will go to NXT, but will have to spend time in the performance centre learning the ropes. Her background in judo and MMA gives her an immediate advantage.

She will bring in the money that's pretty much guaranteed. Fans will be interested in seeing what she can do and how she'll be handled. It's true some of the bloom is off the rose somewhat, but did any of us expect her to come to the WWE while she was still undefeated in UFC. I know I didn't, but am looking forward to see how this turns out.

 

[BigDaddyKewl]

If Ronda is ready then they should probably bring her in to work Mania. It's been a tradition with Wrestlemania to bring in outside celebrities and get main stream press. Who cares if she's green all she has to do is squash one of the woman wrestlers in five minutes. I think Stephanie would be the best option for an opponent for Rosey. The groundwork has already been layed with there confrontation at Wrestlemania 31. Stephs well known by the casual and older fans and who doesn't want to see Steph beat up by Rosey?

 

[Psykohurricane55]

I Feel like WWE will want to keep this a secret until mania season. I don't see this being a full time thing since she feel more like a special attraction then a full time wrestler.

Has far as who she should be wrestling, you got a couple of already made program for her. You got the Stephanie McMahon feud That they started a couple of mania ago or you could go with the 4 on 4 tag match which they set up a the May young classic. Personally, I would go with the tag match first before having her in a 1 on 1 match.

The only way I would go to the Stephanie program if the rock can make it and you make this a mixed tag match. In the end, you will need to hide her in the first few matches she has because she still a big name and you can have her look like she's not ready right off the bat which since she will be expose again more seasoned performers,

 

[Big Nick Dudley]

She will be WWE's first legitimate big time female draw. But who does she work with? If she just runs through lots of the women, where's the draw? I think it will be a big deal for a bit, but it won't last. Women's wrestling doesn't matter to most. That's not a sexist statement, it's reality. Hopefully this changes that.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

If Rousey has signed a long-term contract, then she needs to be the one to finally topple Asuka.

Why not? She is a legit MMA fighter. Does you think Asuka would beat her?

Brock Lesnar, a former UFC, fighter beat the Undertaker's WM winning streak.

Then again John Cena beat Brock Lesnar in Lesnar's first match after returning (so did Triple H actually at WM).

I see your point but it would probably be ideal that Askua and Rousey remain in separate brands so they don't get near each other then build that match up for WM35. Of course this depends on how WWE books and we all know WWE's booking has been barley average at best.

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

However she debuts or whenever be it Royal Rumble or Wrestlemania I think we can all agree that there hasn't been a woman performer that had this much hype around her ever, including Asuka. Ronda has it all, she's beautiful, can spout off her mouth with the best of them and is a badass physical threat. She's easily going to take Charlotte off my number one favorite woman's wrestler when she arrives.

 

[kadroan]

The money is in Ronda Rousey running through the other women until Asuka steps up and hands her the very first defeat. Rousey should go undefeated, let her tap them while also having Asuka remain undefeated. Send girls like Banks or anyone else you want to protect from the fire of Rousey over to Smackdown if you really want to. They have enough girls that Rousey can crush without hurting the top female women.

At SummerSlam we get the undefeated Ronda Rousey against undefeated Asuka. Asuka taps her in five minutes, make it for the belt if you want, let Asuka win the title and beat Ronda. I could dig that, Rousey armbars her way to the Raw Women's Championship and holds it for a few months. Meanwhile, Asuka is demanding a shot. Rousey makes it so that Asuka has to go through all the MMA Horsewomen before she gets to Rousey.

I mean, it really does write itself.

I'd give Rousey the win over Asuka. Whoever beats Rousey would get a huge boost from it vs. Asuka who it wouldn't elevate much. Ember Moon would benefit from a win over RR. I could imagine WWE would have Charlotte be the one to beat RR though.

 

[d_henderson1810]

I wish people would stop comparing Rousey to Lesnar. Lesnar has, whether you like it or not, a rich history in Pro Wrestling. He has been WWE Champion before he went to the UFC. He wrestled in New Japan after leaving the WWE. Went to the UFC AFTER his stint in NJPW. He was actually BETTER now than he was in his first stint in the WWE. Couple that with a true amateur wrestling background, and you can see why Lesnar is believable in the ring.

Rousey is an Olympic Gold Medalist in Judo. Yes, she won the UFC strap. Her last two fights Rousey was completely destroyed. Other than that? Nothing. No Pro Wrestling experience whatsoever. This means she needs to learn from scratch. That is the scary part, because I fear they are going to strap a rocket to her back because of her UFC history. That would be a mistake. In reality it would also be an injustice to WWE AND to Rousey. Send her to NXT. Train her right. Let her go under Sara Amato's wing. Let Rousey wrestle people like Aliyah. Let her work her way to the Main Event. If she does well, then the money and effort will be well spent. If she mails it in, then it won't. But, a rocket strapped to her back is NOT the answer.

You NXT fanboys don't want any Diva to ever beat Asuka, do you?

You would be happy if Asuka retired undefeated, no matter how boring that would be.

 

[#hamler]

If she signs, Kurt Angle will no longer be able to call himself the only Olympic gold medalist in WWE history.

If the rumours of a potential women's Royal Rumble are true, I would debut her there and have her win it. Then demolish Alexa Bliss at Mania in record time to finally set up a showdown between her and Asuka at Summerslam or Wrestlemania 35 whatever. Whatever the case, this is huge for the WWE.

There's no doubt about it Rousey transcended women as athletes. You could perhaps even contribute her success to the success of the women's revolution in the WWE. I don't see a problem with her doing a bit of training and going straight to the main roster. The Rousey name is still a big name in pop culture. Her fame has diminished slightly but she's still a draw and I defy you to come up with anyone on the WWE roster who can match even an eighth of her notoriety.

Send her to NXT. Train her right. Let her go under Sara Amato's wing. Let Rousey wrestle people like Aliyah. Let her work her way to the Main Event. If she does well, then the money and effort will be well spent. If she mails it in, then it won't. But, a rocket strapped to her back is NOT the answer.

Gotta disagree with this for the most part.

The transition from mma to wrestling is alot easier than the transition from wrestling to mma so it isn't really a problem for Rousey. For example Matt Riddle was a mma fighter turned wrestler that was paid to hurt people for a living. He did a bit of training and worked for EVOLVE where his work rate was praised for his ability to connect with the crowd. Rousey can do the same. She's managed to be the crowd favorite in just about any of her fights which shows her ability to connect fairly well.

From Riddle:

"I had to learn to ease up. I was used to grappling intensely, using my body weight and holds to exhaust guys. Another big thing was learning to telegraph my moves – in a real fight, obviously you don’t want to show what’s coming, but now it’s all about setups and fakes, cocking your arm back before you throw a punch so the crowd anticipates what you’re doing."

If Riddle can do it, with Rousey's determination to be number one at everything she does, she can too.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

If she signs, Kurt Angle will no longer be able to call himself the only Olympic gold medalist in WWE history.

Sure he can, because he'd still be the only one. Ronda Rousey won a bronze medal in the 70kg weight class at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. She won the gold medal in the same weight class during the Pan America Games a year earlier.

 

[BestSportsEntertainer]

In a perfect world, this is a great idea. Ronda Rousey, who is probably the biggest female draw in all of sports (or at least was), is coming to WWE? That sounds great on paper. She'll make money and can revive her career. WWE will get exposure and make money. What's not to love? Well, a few things actually.

Rousey is not a wrestler. I don't see how you can get around that, and although she was a fighter, that's just not the same. Sasha started training in 2008. Becky started in 2002. Paige started wrestling at 13 years old in 2005. Yes there have been fast learners, most notably Brock Lesnar and Kurt Angle, but they are the exceptions. Training to be a wrestler and actually being good at it are things that take a long time.

And besides how big of a draw is Rousey? She lost a lot of her star power after her last two defeats.

And I don't want to see her squashing everyone. I would much rather see Charlotte vs Becky and Asuka vs Alexa/Bayley/Sasha at Mania instead.

So although this could work out, I think the chances are pretty slim.

 

[Mighty NorCal]

If she comes in with the right mindset and is used properly this could be outstanding, and also mega-bucks.


Two very big "ifs" unfortunately.