When Charlotte and Sasha Banks main evented an NXT live event in Philadelphia, it got some major acclaim on social media. It was promoted by WWE as a landmark in women’s wrestling.
There was one tweet that stood out amidst WWE’s promotion of this moment and the fans celebrating it. Lance Storm tweeted-
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Storm’s tweet was accurate but still a bit too idealistic. Charlotte and Banks main evented a live non- televised event in Philadelphia for their developmental promotion. While NXT is a great platform when it comes to women’s wrestling, the main roster, which has the most audience, is nowhere near that sort of discussion.
The Rousey(ing) Phenomenon
But, in the past one week, the major talking points for the WWE have been discussions around a few female performers.
For one, Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch are still soaking in the adulation from their match at Unstoppable. NXT has more women performing in their one hour show than Raw has in its three- hour format. Lana’s popularity is on the rise.
And then there is Ronda Rousey.
Ronda Rousey is the woman who made an appearance at Wrestlemania to provide some assistance to The Rock. She gave a judo drop to Triple H and then almost clinched Stephanie’s arm. She is also a rare phenomenon in the world of combat sports today. She’s one of the global faces of the UFC and is one of their biggest draws.
When Dana White, the UFC President, says, “She just doesn’t wanna win, she wants to destroy you”, you have to believe that it’s legit. She’s broken arms on live television and dominated her opponents till date. When Stephanie McMahon described her in that Wrestlemania segment as ‘the most dangerous unarmed woman in the world’, you don’t raise eyebrows. You believe it.
If Rousey ever comes to the WWE she will be the female equivalent to what Brock Lesnar has become. She’s merciless, she’s powerful, she’s a beast. And there is no way not to believe that she can actually main event a PPV in the WWE.
Women and Main Events
Speaking of women main eventing a Pay Per View (PPV) in the WWE- how many times has that happened? No tag matches don’t count. Neither does being present as a manager.
How many times have they main evented as singles performers in a singles match?
Never.
The problem may be that there is no good writing involved, firstly, and secondly, Vince McMahon may or may not think that there is a woman with that ‘main event’ kind of aura.
In my opinion, the WWE hasn’t been looking at the right performers. Stephanie McMahon can main event a PPV. She’s a heel magnet, she’s one of the most memorable characters in the WWE and even if not technically superior, she can deliver a great match just by her theatrics and by her mere presence. Brie Bella and McMahon had a feud last summer which saw them getting a substantial amount of screen time and some great moments. Their match was one of the best at Summerslam and in the past year. It was quite well-written.
But the greatest moments of that feud were provided by Stephanie McMahon. In terms of acting, Bella couldn’t equal her. Her nastiness, arrogance and snobbishness created a monster heel out of her- the likes of Joffrey in Game of Thrones. Her getting arrested was one of the most overwhelmingly great moments of Raw. She sold it like a boss.
That Wrestlemania Moment
So when she came face to face with Ronda Rousey at Wrestlemania- it was pure gold! The way WWE executed it was pure gold.
Rousey had that instant aura of a woman not to be messed with. She was unmoved, she remained still and her eyes pierced through McMahon, not even blinking once. She showed not a shred of doubt. And when the audience chanted ‘Ronda’s gonna kill you’, you knew that there is a legit possibility that she can.
The one shot remains. Stephanie McMahon is livid at Rousey being in the same ring with her and defying her orders to get out of ‘her’ ring. She’s oscillating around and Roussey, on the other hand, is as still as death. She’s unperturbed, she’s unaffected. In that moment, it was clear this segment was convincingly taken over by these two women despite the presence of main event stars like Triple H and The Rock.
These two women stood in the ring with those two and took away all the attention and made the segment so memorable that it will stand the test of time. If there is a storyline in the works and if these two ever cross paths, it’ll be spectacular.
Can any other women main event PPVs?
Yes.
WWE needs to do this with other women. And they sure have that talent in their company. Charlotte, has the presence, the charisma possessed by the likes of her father. Paige has got the presence and the aggression. These two can surely main event PPV’s, main roster shows and live events convincingly. Charlotte has her famous father and Paige comes from a famous wrestling family in England. Charlotte’s rise has been meteoric. It took Paige ten years of blood, sweat and tears to make it this far. There is a real blood feud in the making here. Utilize this, please.
In WWE, where theatrics count more than legit combat moves, what is required for women is not their build or their wrestling skills per se but the aura around them and how good are they at displaying that aura.
That precisely requires good writing and good acting. WWE can have a woman like Rousey, who can be one of the biggest draws of the company.
And that’s the bottom line.
