Ronda Rousey’s first WWE appearance is one of the most memorable debuts in recent history.
The closing moments of the 2018 Royal Rumble saw inaugural Women’s Rumble winner Asuka confront champions Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair, debating which title to challenge for at WrestleMania.
Ronda Rousey’s WWE Debut And Return Took Place At Royal Rumble Events
As the Empress of Tomorrow was about to make her decision, the sound of Bad Reputation by Joan Jett rang through the arena. The crowd erupted as Rousey officially debuted for the company, who walked to the ring to come face-to-face with the champions and Asuka.
Rousey would then point at the WrestleMania sign before having a handshake rejected by Asuka. The former SmackDown Women’s Champion pointed at the sign once again before exiting the ring.
While the debut was well received by the fans in attendance, many would note that the point at the sign went on for too long. Road Dogg, who was working backstage in WWE at the time, has revealed that this was a decision made by Ronda Rousey herself, and not one by a producer.
Speaking on the Oh You Didn’t Know podcast, Road Dogg recalls the reaction to the extended point at the WrestleMania sign:
All right. So truth be told, I don’t think anybody I think they said go out there, and when you get out there point to the point to the, or you know, face the hard cam and point to the sign. I remember her pointing at it for an extended period of time. It got a little bit like okay, you can put your arm down now. But nobody told her to do that. Nobody.
The WWE Hall of famer would continue, stating that the talent do have more control over certain aspects than what may be otherwise believed:
That’s one thing I love and I don’t want to take up too much time but people think like that we make the gear for them, and we tell them what to wear and tell them how to act and it’s like, it’s not not the case. We tell them how not to act that only when only when they act out of, you know, out of bounds.
Ronda Rousey has not been seen on TV since losing the title to Charlotte Flair on SmackDown. An update on whether or not Rousey will be returning at the Royal Rumble has been recently reported.
If you use any quotes from this transcription, please credit Oh You Didn’t Know and link back to this article with a h/t to Inside the Ropes.