Ronda Rousey is set to make her WWE debut at WrestleMania 34 on Sunday, but it's no kept secret that a number of the female superstars aren't so thrilled about the former UFC star stealing much of the spotlight.
Rousey appeared at the end of the Royal Rumble pay-per-view, after Asuka had outlasted all the other women. A handful of talents like Nia Jax and Nikki Bella expressed their discontent on Twitter:
On top of that, former Raw Women's Champion Bayley told Newshub that Rousey "isn't taking her spot," while Sasha Banks told Busted Open that she had "nothing nice to say," about Ronda joining WWE.
But Monday Night Raw commentator Jonathan Coachman is warning other WWE superstars about how they feel about Rousey. Speaking to TMZ Sports, 'Coach' explained why the female talents shouldn't be against her.
“Trust me when I say that there are a long line of females that would love nothing better – I don’t care what they tell you – than to run a program with Ronda Rousey.
When she comes out to the arena – I’m there – she’s gets as big a pop, if not the biggest pop of anybody on the show, but that’s only going to last for so long until she starts working matches. If the girls are smart, they don’t complain about Ronda Rousey, they embrace her and say, ‘Let me help you, because that is what’s good for business, and what’s good for business is good for me.'"
Now, it's easy to understand why a handful of the female talents aren't thrilled about Rousey joining the WWE. While many of these superstars have worked their whole life to be atop the WWE, Rousey was given a main event push right after she joined.
But that's the business in the WWE. Brock Lesnar only fights a handful of matches a year, but he's been the guy getting the main events. So Coachman has a strong point in why the female stars should try to work closely with Rousey and learn from her, rather than be sour about it.
After WrestleMania, Rousey may be moving onto a new feud with other female wrestlers. That may finally provide the opportunity for her to win over their respect more as she begins working with the other talents who helped revolutionize the women's division.