One of the biggest attractions for Wrestlemania 34 on Sunday is the in-ring debut of “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey.
It’s the culmination of a multi-year dance between WWE and the former UFC star that began in 2015 Â when Rousey aided Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson against Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. Fans knew that Rousey, an admitted life-long wrestling fan, would one day step out of the octagon and into the squared circle. Three years later, Ronda’s officially stepping into the ring as a WWE Superstar as an active competitor.
And boy, does WWE need her in-ring debut to be a home run.
The signing of Ronda Rousey is one of the most unique signings in professional wrestling history. She is one of the first legitimate stars from another sport to make the transition to a full-time in-ring performer.
We’ve seen celebrities and athletes step into the ring before, and a few have had multiple matches like Mr. T, Dennis Rodman, Kevin Greene, and yes, even David Arquette. We’ve seen former NFL players make the full-time transition from the gridiron to the ring like Goldberg, Ernie Ladd, Wahoo McDaniel, and even going as far back as Bronko Nagurski.
However, none of them had/have the magnitude of Ronda Rousey. She is undoubtedly the most high profile signing in the history of WWE dating back to its inception as the WWWF. There is not one signing — wrestler, celebrity, or athlete — that could mean as much to WWE than Ronda Rousey.
If Ronda Rousey has a successful in-ring debut, the sky is the limit for the WWE on so many levels. Here’s why:
1. The WWE Needs a Box Office Attraction: The knock on WWE, particularly around Wrestlemania season, is that they have done a terrible job creating new stars. They are far too reliant on part-timers like Brock Lesnar and to some extent John Cena, and legends like The Undertaker, and Triple H. If Ronda can prove she’s good in the ring, you’ve got a guaranteed draw.
2. A Crossover Star: The WWE desperately needs a new crossover star. John Cena has been it, especially in the past few years, but let’s face it…he might not be in WWE for much longer, especially if Blockers is a hit comedy. The WWE needs someone to make the rounds on the late night talk shows, the Nickelodeon award shows, movie premieres, etc. Ronda already does this, and if she’s a bonafide WWE star, it helps WWE get more of a mainstream appeal.
3. The First Female Attraction: They say the future is female, and if Ronda can kill it in the ring, she becomes the first female in WWE history to be a box office draw. Yes, the women in WWE right now are amazing, but none of them have that track record of arena sell-outs, and being a media darling (debatable now, we know) like Ronda.
4. The Women’s Division is at the Forefront:Â This would change everything we know about WWE. The women would be the draw for the first time in company history. This opens up not only a new fanbase, but a new side for storytelling, merchandising, and more.
Also, going back to the original point, the WWE has not developed an heir apparent to John Cena. I know they love Roman Reigns, but he just doesn’t have that charisma of Big Match John. If the women are at the forefront of the show, it gives the men’s division time to properly build stars instead of rocketing them to the top of the card before they’re ready.
5. Money, Money, Money: Ronda already has that money making cache. With her in tow, the WWE is now in a position of power when it comes to negotiations for television around the world. They also have a slew of new licensing deals they can sign, and network subscriptions to sell.
6. Legitimacy: Listen, wrestling will never be fully accepted by the mainstream. However, having a proven combat sports icon make a successful transition to the ring will silence a lot of the haters, and possibly convert a few to fandom.
7. A Female Headlined Wrestlemania: Think about this fantasy booking scenario. Ronda has a successful debut. Eventually, Asuka (if she defeats Charlotte), challenges Ronda for a match because she’s steamrolled every female competitor in WWE. They meet at Summerslam, and Ronda wins. Ronda now has the streak and the title in hand, and they build to the ultimate clash at Wrestlemania — Charlotte Flair vs. Ronda Rousey. It would do huge business.
If this all happened, it would be the greatest and best thing ever. I want wrestling to ascend to great heights. I want more men and women getting opportunities in the ring, and for more people to enjoy what I love — pro wrestling.
That’s why this match is so important. It could be a game changing moment for WWE, just like Wrestlemania I.
However, if you’ve been watching WWE for the past few months you probably aren’t feeling all that good about this Sunday’s match.
From the jump, Ronda’s debut has been surrounded by controversy, and bad luck. Her theme music washed out the crowd reaction at The Royal Rumble. For those at home it seemed like people didn’t care, while live reports said the pop was deafening. People also criticized her appearance as cutting the knees out from under the women who had just competed in the first ever Women’s Royal Rumble.
The build to Ronda’s in-ring debut has been a roller coaster. At times Ronda has shined — putting Triple H through a table, intimidating Stephanie McMahon, and the promo videos they’ve done on her have been incredible.
At times she’s been pretty terrible. Too much smiling. Not remembering her lines in a promo. Not knowing how to deliver the lines in her promo. Being “sloppy” in the ring (which is a matter of opinion).
Not helping the situation is Kurt Angle who constantly fumbles his way through every single promo he does with her. Triple H and Stephanie McMahon have done their best, but again, they haven’t hit it out of the park either.
Go on the comments section of any WWE social media post involving Rousey. People have already turned against her. “Ronda sucks” chants have started. People already want her gone.
Some of this is just wrestling fans being wrestling fans, and people on social media being people media. Listen, Yankees fans booed Giancarlo Stanton after four games. People are dumb sometimes. However, if Ronda has a bad in-ring debut, this is only going to intensify. The fans will turn on this signing, and it’s going to take a lot of work, and money to course correct. (Read between the lines: They better throw a boatload of money at Paul Heyman to be her advocate).
If Ronda stumbles out of the gate, and is not able to be the superstar they hoped for — it would be the most disastrous move in WWE history. Yes, even worse than the original XFL. Okay, maybe not, but you get my point. All the positives that a successful debut would bring, would immediately be washed away. The mainstream media would torch Rousey, and the WWE. The company would be scrambling to correct their mistakes, and when WWE tries too hard, the results are never good.
In short, it’d be a disaster.
WWE needs Ronda Rousey to succeed. Is it fair that one person’s debut has so much riding on it? No, but then again no one like Ronda has ever done this before. She’s a star, and she has to show up, and be one on Sunday.
Does she need to be the second coming of Lou Thesz in the ring? No. Does she need to do more than throw one suplex, and slap on an arm bar? Absolutely. She needs to show everyone she can wrestle, and that there is potential for greatness in her.
Do I believe Ronda Rousey can do this? I really want to, but so far, I have concerns.
