Rousey’s Rocky Road to WrestleMania
We’re hours away from Ronda Rousey’s pro wrestling debut at WrestleMania 34.
Ronda Rousey had been a potential WWE prospect for over three years.
The rumors began in earnest at WrestleMania 31 in Santa Clara, California, when she showed up and helped The Rock lay the smackdown on Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. Years of anticipation culminated at the Royal Rumble this past January and, like the rest of the world, I was excited to see the immediate impact Rousey would have on the WWE women’s division. Then I had to wait two-and-a-half more months before I got the “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey we should have seen at the start.
Well, today is the big day: WrestleMania 34. What should have been the biggest match of the night will likely be looked back on as one of the worst storylines in recent WrestleMania history.
I’m trying not to dwell on this, but her debut at the Royal Rumble was cheesy, awkward and underwhelming. WWE admitted through outside sources that her debut was completely unrehearsed and that came through loud and clear. It has been hilariously parodied on YouTube and yet, the WWE Universe at large was excited to see what she would do. This was a big moment after all – one of the most dominant UFC stars of all time had come to professional wrestling. That fact alone should establish to the world that the WWE women’s revolution had reached its peak.
Fast forward to Elimination Chamber. It was Rousey’s official on-air contract signing and WWE rolled out the red carpet. It was presented as a big deal with all the big wigs there: Kurt Angle, Stephanie McMahon, and Triple H. Finally, the woman of the hour showed up and it wasn’t long before the wheels fell off. She was presented as this wide eyed fan who was just happy to be there. While parts of her story did strike an emotional chord, especially when she brought up “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, the delivery was awkward and it was clear that she was fed lines. But that was fine, it’s wrestling. We’re willing to look past things like that as fans.
But what was unacceptable was Rousey’s memory loss. For being such a longtime, devoted fan, why would she need Angle to remind her that Triple H and Stephanie are self-serving egomaniacs who just want to ruin her? She beat them both up for that very reason at WrestleMania 31. The segment picked up as soon the physicality began. Rousey sending Triple H through a table was awesome and she put the fear of death into Stephanie. While awesome, it didn’t counteract the underwhelming storytelling or WWE’s continuing habit of treating its fans like idiots.
On the Raw shows that followed, we saw some good shine through the muck. Rousey is still uncomfortable on the mic, but has shown improvement. Stephanie showing some real fear has kept Rousey’s legit fighter background strong in the mind of the fans as well. But then there have been some nonsensical events thrown in; Triple H randomly punching Angle for no reason other than to jumpstart the feud, for instance. Triple H is the cerebral assassin, so why would he be causing undue strife for himself and his wife? It makes no sense. Then, a week later, Rousey reveals that she’ll face Stephanie at WrestleMania, and Angle ups the ante by making it a mixed tag team match with himself and Triple H involved. Rousey finally gets to lay Stephanie out with a Samoan Drop, and though the slam looked awkward, it was still a cool moment.
It’s a well-known fact that she is training as a professional wrestler for the first time, so I accept it as is. I’m not worried about her success in the upcoming match either, or at least I wasn’t. However, my fear of “will she be ready?” has been creeping in more and more. Her interactions with Dana Brooke and Absolution have only served to make her seem green and dangerous in the ring by comparison. I’m really hoping that she tightens up her in-ring skills before bell time.
Finally, a couple weeks ago on Raw, we got the great training montage between Angle and Rousey. Without the pressure of a live crowd, we finally got to see her be authentic. That was the best piece of work they did in the entire build up to this feud. The Coach-led Q&A this past Monday at least gave WWE the reaction that they wanted. The WWE Universe in attendance was firmly behind Rousey and Angle, which was desperately needed so close to the big match. It was a good appetizer for tonight, but perhaps too little too late for many in the wrestling community who have been vocal in their disapproval of how WWE has handled Rousey so far.
So, it’s been an awkward, mishandled, and at times, nonsensical build up to “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey’s debut match, but I’m going to quote Angle from that great training montage, “All eyes are going to be on her in this match, because every fan, whether they love her or hate her, are going to want to see her either succeed or fail.”
So let me leave you with this – I’m not rooting against her success. On the contrary, I want her to succeed, and I agree with Troy Taroff that she will succeed in the long run. What you’ve read today is an indictment on WWE’s booking, not on the athlete. I’m sure the athlete will be prepared for her moment in the spotlight. I just think her moment could have been bigger if the booking had been better.
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