Rousey and Baszler — tag team partners-turned enemies — fought in a special “MMA Rules” match at SummerSlam. Check out all the video highlights here.
Ronda Rousey got back to her combat sports roots, kinda, on Sunday night at WWE’s SummerSlam 2023 in an “MMA Rules Match” against her former tag team partner, Shayna Baszler.
Rousey and Baszler have been real-life friends for years and had a solid run as tag team champions. But, with Rousey looking to leave professional wrestling (for good?), it was time for Baszler to pull a classic heel turn and stab “Rowdy” in the back. The two feuded over the past several weeks, culminating in this big bout this weekend.
First off: was this a real MMA fight? Of course not! It was a professional wrestling match with plenty of mixed martial arts (MMA) influence, though. Rousey and Baszler ran through several UFC callbacks, which made the fight worth checking out. Baszler even headkicked Rousey out of the ring in a scene reminiscent of Ronda’s epic knockout loss to Holly Holm.
Not to be outdone, Rousey hit a flying knee on Baszler, and almost landed one of her patented armbars. Baszler managed to pull her limb away though, going on to win the match via a Kirifuda Clutch submission.
Watch the highlights via WWE below:
Shayna Baszler chokes out Ronda Rousey to win the “MMA Rules” match at WWE’s #SummerSlam . #WMMA pic.twitter.com/yU0vJZJfAS
— Women’s MMA Rankings (@WMMARankings) August 6, 2023
Shayna Baszler’s kick to Ronda Rousey
was absolutely BRUTAL to be honest #SummerSlam pic.twitter.com/ujbiKN87xE— Daphne ? (@The_Starstruck) August 6, 2023
It’s deeply personal between @RondaRousey & @QoSBaszler in the #MMARules match at #SummerSlam! pic.twitter.com/LkI1gAkCxu
— WWE (@WWE) August 6, 2023
What’s next for Rousey now that she’s on her way out of WWE? No one knows for sure, but rumors of a return to UFC have been denied by those close to her.
UFC 300 is about one year away … and the promotion needs established stars like Rousey to add cache to the historic event.