Shayna Baszler opened up about the challenges surrounding her MMA Rules match with Ronda Rousey at SummerSlam 2023, explaining that the setting and timing significantly restricted the creative possibilities of the bout. The match, held at Ford Field stadium, faced logistical obstacles that affected how the event was presented to the wrestling crowd.
Venue Constraints Impacted Match Presentation
During an interview with Ariel Helwani on The Ariel Helwani Show, Baszler noted how the stadium lacked a central jumbotron, which limited visibility for viewers in attendance. This factor, combined with the absence of infrastructure supporting a cage or Fight Pit between matches, meant the bout could not incorporate typical MMA staging elements.
She remarked,
“We were very aware that in a stadium environment, that sort of match to a pro wrestling crowd is going to be hard to see. And we were kind of counting on this jumbotron, but the stadium didn’t have a jumbotron… a lot of people were talking about, like, why wasn’t it a cage match? They didn’t have the structure in a stadium… if we had been like the men’s title picture… they could have built the cage around it. But because we were not the last match, there was no way to quickly cart the pieces of structure out, build it, and then take it back down for the next match.”
—Shayna Baszler
Rousey’s Departure Forced a Condensed Storyline
Another major factor that constrained the match was Ronda Rousey’s forthcoming <a href="https://cynicaltimes.org/category/wrestling-news/wwe/”>WWE exit, which required the storyline to advance rapidly rather than unfold over time. Baszler explained the difficulty of working under those time restrictions.
She said,
“Ronda having a sort of hard out date kind of handcuffed us… we had to do the story now. I think it would have been better served to have that sort of match as a blow off after a longer feud… the handcuffs were not, like, you’re not allowed to do this. It was more just the circumstances of the events, the time, and the venue.”
—Shayna Baszler
Implications for WWE and the Fighters Involved
Baszler was released from WWE earlier this year, while Rousey departed the company shortly after their SummerSlam bout. The circumstances surrounding the match highlight how venue limitations and contractual timelines can influence the presentation and storytelling of high-profile events such as the SummerSlam 2023 MMA Rules match. Fans and insiders alike may reflect on what could have been a more impactful showdown if not for these constraints.
