What happened to Ronda Rousey in WWE? Why wrestling didn't work out

It was the signing that was supposed to change WWE.

After the historic first Women’s Royal Rumble in 2018, “Bad Reputation” blared through the speakers of Wells Fargo Center, and emerged one of the biggest names in combat sports: Ronda Rousey.

It had been more than a year since her last UFC fight, but Rousey was still a box office attraction. It was a monumental addition to the WWE roster, altering the landscape with one of the best fighters of all time. There were high expectations for the potential of Rousey and WWE, starting with her debut match at WrestleMania 34.

Instead, it ended in what could’ve been.

A wrestling career that started off hot ended with a bad taste. There was so much potential, but it ended in few people satisfied, including Rousey herself.

Ronda Rousey during the 2022 Royal Rumble The Dome at America's Center.

Ronda Rousey and WWE: What went wrong?

What went wrong? It’s a tale of two stories.

The start of Rousey’s WWE career couldn’t have been better. She impressed. Yes, it helped being an MMA star, but it’s a huge adjustment going from the octagon to the ring. You could tell she put in the work to not just be a name, but a legit talent. Rousey did house shows to perfect her craft.

That first year was so good. She built incredible storylines while becoming the Raw Women's Champion. It all led to the first women’s WrestleMania main event with Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair. All stars were at the top of their game, and cemented Rousey's impact with a match critical in the evolution of women’s wrestling.

"She caught onto it very quickly,” her partner in her first match Kurt Angle told USA TODAY Sports. “She just blew everybody's mind.''

That ended her first run. A successful start that showed what could be an epic wrestling career – until that second run.

After becoming a mom, Rousey returned by winning the 2022 Royal Rumble, trying to build upon that hot start. But it never lived up to the standard, making for a frustrating final years in the ring.

There were so many things that derailed it. Rousey has been open about what happened with her wrestling career, recently telling Complex there were creative issues with Vince McMahon.

“I felt like I was doing somebody else’s impression of myself. You can tell when I was allowed to write my own promos and when I wasn’t, I learned a lot from it and I really enjoyed my time in the ring. I didn’t really enjoy being under the death throes of Vince McMahon’s reign, but there were a lot of great experiences in there.”

She’s not wrong. The character they were trying to portray was not well-thought-out, and it didn’t help that she continued to be pushed heavily in the process. WWE thought it was what people wanted, but it was severely miscalculated, considering the women’s division continued to make great strides. Fans weren’t connecting with it, and that’s why they turned on her.

But there were some faults on her side. Rousey didn’t adjust to the reactions. Not everyone in the business gets what they want, and instead of trying to pivot to make it work, she stuck to her guns. The clear rift made for an incredibly boring product.

The match quality didn’t improve, with Rousey looking like she didn’t want to be there and regressing instead of improving, all while still winning. That all happened while her appearances dwindled, and everyone knows the part-timer status is hard to win over fans.

Ronda Rousey grabs Shotzi during Wrestlemania 39 night 2 at SoFi Stadium.

Rousey’s WWE career ended about the only way it could at that point: a really hard-to-watch bout with Shayna Baszler. There was no excitement for it, far off from the must-see star she was in her first year, and it’s one of the most forgettable matches of recent years.

It’s a shame it had an unceremonious end, and it makes sense why both sides finished their relationship, unlikely to ever reunite again. Now, Rousey will go back to where she started her career, fighting Gina Carano in familiar territory, one that made her a household name, the “baddest woman on the planet” and one of the best fighters in MMA history.

Had her WWE run gone as it started, she could’ve gone down as a legend there too.

“If she would've went full-time and really progressed and became a seasoned pro wrestler, I think that she would've done a lot better. I think she would've had a lot more success. The thing is, she did limited dates and she was there and then not there, there and not there,” Angle said. “If she would've done it full-time, I think she would've been one of the greatest pro wrestlers of all time.”

Contributing: Josh Peter

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why didn't Ronda Rousey work in WWE? Looking back on wrestling career