Shayna Baszler describes how she is leaning on legitimacy in her feud with Ronda Rousey.
Baszler turned on Rousey at WWE Money in the Bank during their title match against Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez. Her betrayal cost the duo the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship. On the July 3 episode of WWE RAW, Baszler explained her actions and received a positive response from the crowd.
Speaking on WWE’s The Bump, Baszler shared her thoughts on the positive reaction she got from the crowd during her promo on Rousey. She emphasized that the fans can tell that what she’s saying is legitimate. Baszler noted that they connect to it because it’s real. She also pointed out that she’s saying the same things fans have said about Rousey for years.
“The crowd, as far as me talking, I think one thing I’ve always said about wrestling fans, I guess sports fans in general, is they can smell when you’re faking the funk,” Baszler said. “All this is legit and real talk. So I think they connect to stuff that’s real. I have seen some stuff where people are like, ‘Oh, who am I supposed to be cheering for? Who’s the bad guy?’ It’s not even about that.
“You don’t tune in to watch a big boxing match, and you’re not like, ‘Who’s the bad guy? Who am I supposed to cheer?’ You just cheer for who you like. It just happens to be me because the stuff I’m saying is real. If we’re being honest, the stuff I’m saying is the stuff fans have been saying ever since Ronda got signed. I’m done being quiet about it.”
On the July 17 episode of WWE RAW, Rousey told Baszler she’d get her a spot on the WWE SummerSlam card, as they would have a match. More information is available here.
Shayna Baszler Reflects On Her History With Ronda Rousey
In the same interview, the hosts asked Baszler whether she felt like she was speaking on behalf of more than herself. The former champion stated that she knows others feel the same way. However, Baszler described how she feels it the most, as she has known Rousey for over 10 years.
“Yeah, absolutely. I’m not the only one that feels this way, but I think I’m the one that feels it the most,” she said. “This isn’t just something that happened here. When we were fighting, I’m not gonna deny that Ronda had a much more successful MMA career than me, obviously. But I think she came right time, right place. Because I was fighting 10, 12 years before her.
“Yeah, she was doing her thing in judo and wrecking shop over in that venue, but I don’t think you understand the buildup of the blood and the sweat and the tears that it takes for such little payoff in fight sports. Then to have someone just walk in, okay fine, I can step back. She’s having her success, whatever. But then I find my thing, and she’s gotta do the same exact thing here? It’s the straw that broke the camel’s back. I can’t. I’ve worked too hard.”
Baszler previously stated that she’s not opposed to doing card tricks on WWE TV. Check out her comments here.
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