Combat sports and professional wrestling have long been linked in one form or another for many decades. It makes sense. Both are forms are entertainment, and professional wrestling is at its best when it blends reality with its form of athletic entertainment.
In today’s wrestling landscape, we are seeing those transitions be more prevalent than ever, and on WrestleMania weekend in Orlando, Florida, it was on full display.
If you have watched any professional wrestling show, small or large, in recent years you’ve seen an uptick in submissions and MMA-choreographed sequences. The Undertaker adopted the gogoplata, while Brock Lesnar utilized the kimura time and again. And those are just two high-profile figures adopting MMA into their move set.
Throughout WrestleMania week, the matches on independent cards have been littered with MMA techniques. One of the most promising stars is Zack Sabre Jr. He caught a diving opponent off the top rope in a triangle choke that put the fans on their feet at Evolve 80. Other works used armbars, ground transitions and a plethora of hard-hitting body kicks against their opponents.
Even more than the move set, it has always made sense for MMA athletes to make the transition into the squared circle. In modern times we have seen the likes of Ken Shamrock and Dan Severn enter the ropes into the WWE among many others.
Former UFC stars Matt Riddle and Shayna Baszler have adapted their fighting skills into professional wrestling and become two of the hottest independent talents today.
When Riddle walks out, the crowd becomes entranced and chants of “Bro” echo throughout the small venues. Riddle is now a multiple-organization champion. He holds titles in promotions such as Progress and won the inaugural World Wrestling Network title at their supershow on the Saturday before Mania.
One of the most talked about matches of the weekend was the main event of Joey Janela’s Spring Break, another event that aired on FloSlam during the week: Riddle vs. Severn. Logic would tell you that the 58-year-old couldn’t manage a captivating match in this day and age at 2:30 a.m. ET, but the two used their MMA backgrounds to tell a compelling story with elbows, punches, slams and submissions. Riddle came out on top via the Bromission.
Fans were out and about wearing Riddle’s merchandise all around Orlando.
On the women’s circuit, Baszler has come up as one of the top workers on the planet. She has taken her talents all around the nation and overseas to the hotbed of women’s wrestling: Japan. During the weekend of UFC 203 in Cleveland last September, Baszler defeated Heidi Lovelace (now Ruby Riot in NXT) to become the Absolute Intense Wrestling women’s champion. It’s a title she still holds.
In Shimmer, a leading all-women’s promotion, Baszler has aligned herself with Mercedes Martinez and Nicole Savoy to form The Trifecta. It’s a little different stable than The Four Horsewomen of MMA that included Ronda Rousey.
At the WrestleCon Women’s Supershow, Baszler defeated Joey Ryan to win the DDT Pro Ironman Heavymetalweight championship.
Riddle and Baszler have continued the tradition of adapting MMA skills to pro wrestling, and they are riding high on the independent scene as two of the talents fans most want to see. Both competed multiple times in the span of three days winning belts. And both Riddle and Baszler are on the uptick in their respective circles in the crazy world of sports entertainment.
The WWE always keeps its ear to the ground, and there is little doubt that Matt Riddle’s and Shayna Baszler’s have always been on its radar. Even still, the shockwaves on the independent trail surely will have reached the eardrums of the talent scouts. With a growing need for competitors, including a recently announced 32-women tournament, the sky’s the limit for their incredible talents.
WrestleMania week only helped their cause as they performed to their highest level in front of the most hardcore fans from around the world.
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