A blooded and beaten Ronda Rousey walked up the ramp under her own power after after match attack by Charlotte Flair. It was a match that resembled more of a shoot fight. Not so much conventional wrestling moves, but hard strikes and grappling. While Ronda went to her Judo prowess, Charlotte seemed more than ready for it.
Charlotte countered Ronda every time she went for the arm bar. She broke out of the triangle choke hold. The usual “fired up Ronda” got her nailed with a spear. Ronda even resorted to doing things outside of her usual arsenal like going to the top rope. There was something different about this week. Ronda came into the WWE with a cloak of invincibility to her. (This was the baddest woman on the planet, at one point.) That mystique was ever so clear on January 30th at the Royal Rumble when she put the stamp on her arrival, with ironically, Charlotte holding the Smackdown Women’s Championship in the middle of the ring.
Ronda always had a target on her back from being “the outsider.” Boy, what a difference a few months can make. Becky Lynch is presumably the top wrestler in the WWE. Charlotte had lost her spark a bit. The three match series between her “former” best friend had broken her confidence. She lost a lot more than her belt.
See, it made total sense for Becky to choose Charlotte to take her place. Charlotte took her to the brink during those matches. While their friendship is still on the frosty side, there is still mutual respect and one common thread – Ronda Rousey. Remember this from 2017? How about Jessamyn Duke’s comments from May? The horsewomen bond is still there. It’s the ladies of NXT who rose up the ranks together to ingrain themselves in the women’s revolution vs the “outsiders.” The ladies from mixed martial arts have come to have a say in that as well.
Shayna Baszler has made her mark in NXT as the bully. Ronda has done something similar on RAW, but with a smile. Reaching out to slap fans hands during her entrance. Doing the smile and wave even. There’s a hint of that killer instinct during her matches with the trademark “smacking arms” before her puts her opponent away. However, with how the women’s division is going; you need to sustain that edge longer than ever.
Whether right or wrong, the Becky and Charlotte feud lead them to grow on another level. Becky was already made – with a collision course for Ronda looking closer to Wrestlemania. However, Charlotte and Ronda both needed this match in different ways. Charlotte needed to get her fire back. The initial talks were for Charlotte and Ronda to headline the upcoming Wrestlemania in New York. She had all but lost that due to Becky’s rebirth.
Charlotte’s manhandling of Ronda post-match put that on notice. The match was a moot point towards the end. She had proven that she could all but negate Ronda’s ground game. Beating her was worth it more than a win. Charlotte is saving that for Becky. A nod to the bond of the original horsewomen. The next man up mentality. “I got her.”
For the first time in her short WWE career, Ronda got outmatched and didn’t get the win via tap out. It was a DQ. A consolation prize. In previous matches with Nia Jax, Alexa Bliss, or Nikki Bella, she always found a way. As the talent level increases, it takes a little piece from Ronda. In the week leading up to Survivor Series, Ronda’s promo was peppered with Becky chants.
Post match, the crowd shouted, “Thank you, Charlotte.” Even with the last promo, Ronda cut a heel-ish promo. (Although the millennial angle is weird. Becky and Ronda are the same age and Becky had to work her way back). The cracks in Ronda’s temperament started to show before the invasion.
So, within a week, Ronda has been attacked by Becky Lynch on Raw and beaten down by Charlotte on Survivor Series. Ronda Rousey is vulnerable and Charlotte Flair has turned it on into another gear. Becky and Charlotte has found a tenacity within themselves with one common thread. As Ronda’s stare into the crowd turned from shock to resentment, it will be interesting to see if she can capture this for herself. Maybe with some help from three friends.
