That could have gone better. There have been all kinds of wrestlers throughout WWE’s history and some of them have become major stars. At the same time, there are some who were stars when they came into the company. That does not mean things went well for them while they were around though and now we are hearing some less than positive thoughts from a former WWE Superstar.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Farewell: Another Longtime WWE Employee Departs Company
Ronda Rousey will be releasing a new book, titled “Our Fight” in April. According to Inside The Ropes, the book includes a variety of shots at former WWE owner Vince McMahon. This comes as McMahon has recently departed WWE following a string of allegations against him. Here are some highlights from the book’s excerpts:
On McMahon
“NXT was founded by and under the control of Triple H, real name Paul Levesque. In addition to being my in-ring WrestleMania nemesis, he is arguably one of the best professional wrestlers in history and one of the better people on the business side. He is married to Stephanie McMahon, who is the daughter of WWE’s Emperor Palpatine, Vince McMahon. Vince took over the company from his father in the early 1980s and spent the better part of forty years playing a real-world pro-wrestling version of Monopoly, buying up and absorbing smaller promotions until he basically owned them all. It’s hard sometimes to know where the evil, unethical, slimeball character of Vince McMahon played out for the cameras ends and the actual questionably ethical, many times sued, and multiple times accused of sexual misconduct Vince McMahon begins. That blurred line between character and reality is a recurring theme within the WWE Universe.”
On WWE In Saudi Arabia
“[Pay-per-views are] held in major cities like New York, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia, as well as now twice a year in Saudi Arabia, a nation that restricts the rights of women in a way that I’m certain Vince McMahon wishes he could.”
On WWE’s “Casting Couch”
“WWE loves to do well-produced video segments about the legacy of women within the organization, but the truth is women have largely been footnotes. For the longest time, they were relegated to serving male characters in a valet role, an overly sexualized supporting character that takes cheap shots when the ref isn’t looking. Over time, as the level of female talent grew and society as a whole started to shift, the organization gradually expanded the role of female wrestlers. WWE bills itself as a sports entertainment organization, and just like in the mainstream entertainment industry, there was, by all accounts, a casting couch culture where men backstage in powerful positions pressured female talent for sexual favors in return for airtime. There were so many public accusations and scandals it’s hard to keep track, and more that I’m sure the WWE managed to sweep under the ring.
And On Women Being Treated Better In WWE
“And it was only after WWE was basically armbarred into it, following a global social media backlash to #givedivasachance after Divas were given a total of thirty seconds— less time than it takes most people to read this paragraph—for a nationally televised tag match. Four women were given less time to collectively wrestle than every single man on the roster got for his intro music alone. Presented this information as a person outside of the wrestling world you might draw the conclusion that there is a troubling foundational sexist, patriarchal culture within the WWE. You would be right. I have nothing but respect for the female wrestlers who paved the way for women wrestlers today. And nothing but disgust for the amount of sexist, degrading bullshit they were put through.”
Rousey has also said that she never plans to go back to WWE.
She had quite the run. Check out Rousey’s time in WWE:
Opinion: I’m not sure I can imagine Rousey ever coming back to WWE and she certainly seems intent on not making people happy now that she is gone. Rousey had a big run in WWE over two different parts though it is clear that she is not pleased with some of the things that happened while she is there. It is always interesting to see what happens when people walk away from WWE and have this kind of response, which Rousey is certainly doing again.
What do you think of Rousey’s comments? What was her best time in WWE? Let us know in the comments below.
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You can find more from Thomas Hall at kbwrestlingreviews.com, or check out his- Amazon author page with 30 wrestling books.
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