WWE Officials Reportedly Spoke With Ronda Rousey After Her Awkward WWE Raw Promo
Ronda Rousey arrived on the Jan. 31 episode of Monday Night Raw to tease who she would be challenging at WrestleMania 38 this coming April. But many fans were quick to point out how something felt off about Rousey's demeanor throughout her segment. She stomped down the ring, barely acknowledged the fans and had a consistent scowl on her face. The UFC Hall of Famer had been vocal during her hiatus about how much she resented fans for turning on her during her first run with the company and, despite being positioned as a babyface upon her return, was seemingly still angry at them.
"There was quite a reaction tonight. And you can expect me not to fall for it this time," Rousey said in her post-match interview after winning the 2022 Women's Royal Rumble. She concluded her promo on Raw by telling Becky Lynch that she'd have an answer on Friday's edition of SmackDown, which led to the announcement that she'd be facing Charlotte Flair for the SmackDown Women's Championship at WrestleMania.
Rousey's demeanor on SmackDown was a complete reversal compared to Raw. According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer, there's a reason for that.
"I believe that people were talking to her about Monday. She acknowledged the fans. She was very very bitter coming back, and I think that that was not a good attitude to have, especially since she's being portrayed as a babyface," Meltzer explained this week (h/t Inside The Ropes). "People, when they saw her, go, 'Oh my God, she's being a heel', and it's like, 'No, that's just Ronda', and then they had to talk her out of... basically going, 'These people are cheering you, you have to acknowledge them, you don't mean-mug them'. I know people who talked to her about certain things. It was explained that you have to let that go (the fans turning on her), because if you're gonna be bitter about that, you're not gonna be a very good babyface."
Rousey also explained during a Facebook Gaming stream this week that she took the fans' rejection of her personally. Her first run with the company ended with her losing the Raw Women's Championship to Lynch in the WrestleMania 35 main event. Do you think Rousey will eventually turn heel and direct her frustration at the fans? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!