Shayna Baszler has made it clear that neither she nor Ronda Rousey will hold anything back at SummerSlam.
The two mixed martial arts specialists will collide at the upcoming Premium Live Event in a MMA rules match, a contest specifically designed to determine who is the best fighter once and for all.
To prepare for the encounter, Baszler has gone back to her Ultimate Fighter routes, preparing to step into the ring the same way she would prepare to step inside the octagon.
Speaking exclusively with Inside The Ropes, Baszler is pleased with how the upcoming match has been presented, especially as there are no clearly defined babyfaces or heels:
I liked it because it has been important since the beginning that we want this to have a very fight feel. This has come from a real place. You know, when you tune into the UFC, you don’t go who’s the heel here? I don’t know who to cheer for. So you just cheer for who you like. It’s been important for us to not have this black-and-white good guy, bad guy, it’s just going to be a fight. And people just happen to like me, I don’t know, maybe my charm is starting to get through.
But I think it has been important to do that, and I think that the thing that has been easy is that the fans, pro-wrestling fans especially, can tell when you are faking the funk. And this has been real, and we are not faking anything, and I think that has really helped us resonate.
The Submission Magician then discussed the video packages used to hype the match on the go-home episode of WWE Raw. Baszler revealed that there was no script going into the production, and the two fighters were told to just be themselves and speak their minds:
So when you can sit us down in the chair and you are like, you can be real, just start talking, go. And we just start talking, and it is all very real. So we have been set up, as far as the promo packages, to showcase what we are able to bring, and that is a lot of realism.
The MMA rules match could be Rousey’s final appearance in WWE for the foreseeable future, as the former Women’s Champion is reportedly leaving the company soon.
Why Is Shayna Baszler Fighting Ronda Rousey At WWE SummerSlam?
Baszler would suddenly attack Rousey at the Money in the Bank PLE, causing the duo to lose the Women’s Tag Team Championships. On the following episode of Raw, Baszler expressed her anger at how easy Rousey’s WWE path was, debuting at WrestleMania 34 while Baszler had to pay her dues to get to the big time.
In a more recent interview, Shayna Baszler revealed the story behind an infamous WWE angle.
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