Ex-UFC champion Ronda Rousey goes to sleep in MMA Rules Match at WWE Summerslam
Women’s MMA pioneer Ronda Rousey and Ultimate Fighter alumnus Shayna Baszler are no strangers to one another, having come up in the world of mixed martial arts together. But that didn’t stop two of the baddest women on the planet from strapping on the four-ounce gloves for an MMA Rules match at WWE Summerslam this weekend.
The 36th annual summertime spectacular emanated from Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan, and delivered another star-studded event with the biggest names in sports entertainment, including former UFC bantamweight world champion, ‘Rowdy’ Ronda Rousey. Competing in what many speculate to be her final WWE match, Rousey went toe-to-toe with another familiar face from combat sports, ‘The Queen of Spades’ Shayna Baszler.
Most fight fans will remember Baszler from her 2013 stint on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rousey vs. Team Tate. Baszler competed as part of Rousey’s team, scoring a win over Colleen Schneider before suffering a second-round submission loss in the quarter-final round to Julianna Pena.
After Baszler exited MMA in 2017 following a lackluster run in Invicta FC and the UFC, she shifted careers and began training to be a professional wrestler. After a run in the indie circuit, Baszler signed with the WWE 2017 as part of the black and gold brand, NXT. ‘The Queen of Spades’ quickly rose through the ranks, eventually capturing the NXT women’s championship before being moved to the main roster where she would meet up with her former teammate and close friend, Ronda Rousey.
Of course, friends in WWE are few and far between. Before long, their love turned to vitriol leading to their clash at Summerslam on August 5.
