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Did Becky Get Ronda to Break Character? Does it Matter?

By chris   Posted in Blog Opinion
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Over the past 24 hours, the internet wrestling community has been buzzing about Becky Lynch and Ronda Rousey. Was it a development on the latest episode of RAW that got the pro wrestling world riled up into a storm of debate, commentary, and rumors? Nope, it was the latest Twitter exchange between Lynch and Rousey that has everyone talking.

Now, if you’ve followed Becky Lynch online for any amount of time, you’ll probably know she is has quite a good Twitter game. And if you’ve followed Ronda Rousey online for any amount of time, you’ll probably know that she often struggles to play on the same Twitter level as Becky. That was no more evident than in their exchange that started on Tuesday and fizzled out on Friday.

The Exchange

Things start off simple enough. Becky makes an in-character tweet that follows up on events that took place on TV. She’s furthering the feud and maintaining interest in her and Ronda as characters. Ronda responds with cutting words such as “ginger crutch ninja” and calls out Becky for posting fake prison photos.

Clearly Becky’s photos aren’t from prison (not to mention the fact that if Becky had actually been hauled in, she would have been at a jail and not a prison). Despite the clear disparity in quality between Becky and Ronda’s posts, there’s not a lot here that I would consider making a big deal about. It could be argued that Ronda’s response is completely in-character since the photos Becky posted were never meant to look like she was actually in jail. She’s just making a point as The Man would. Things quickly change though.

Becky tells Ronda to “get the F out,” so Ronda doubles down and removes all doubt as to whether or not she’s breaking character.

Downplaying a fellow wrestler’s move set is one thing, but straight up calling it fake while posting a picture herself selling it is pretty dumb. Becky urged Ronda not to put herself above the business, but that’s exactly what Ronda is doing when she says wrestling is fake.

Also, Ronda once again seems oblivious to what Becky calling herself The Man is really all about. But to be fair, a lot of people, even people in WWE, are still unsure of what to think about that. Those people aren’t too bright.

Since Ronda opened the “F’ing” door, Becky decides to get personal (that’s Ronda Rousey’s husband’s head photoshopped in if you were unaware). Clearly Becky knows how to push buttons.

Then Ronda again doubles down, using Becky’s real last name and talking about going off script. Is this good for business?

Then this is pretty much how it ended. There were a few more words and videos exchanged, but these are the tweets that people are really talking about. The exchange has led to articles like this on various “news” sites:

 

So what can we take away from all of this? Well, I have a few thoughts I’d like to share. I saw these tweets more or less as they were being posted, and my view on them had gone in a few different directions since I’ve had time to think about them.

 

It’s A Shoot

First, let’s say all of these tweets are real and should be taken at face value. If that’s the case, then Ronda seems to still have a lot to learn about pro wrestling. Talking about going off script and assaulting someone in real life to the extent of needing a lawyer isn’t good pro wrestling. Calling a move fake isn’t good pro wrestling. Yes, I know people have essentially called moves fake even on WWE TV before (the first that springs to mind is Mick Foley saying he wouldn’t sell the People’s Elbow in a promo leading up to a match with The Rock), but that’s never been a good thing. As Becky wrote, that’s Russo level stuff. That’s bad. So if this exchange between Becky and Ronda is 100% real, then Ronda needs to stay off of Twitter until she learns how to control her emotions and her typing/texting fingers.

 

It’s A Work

But maybe this isn’t all as it seems. Maybe this is exchange has been sanctioned (though probably not written) by the WWE in an effort to build more interest in Becky and Ronda’s feud. It certainly has people talking, so mission accomplished I guess.

People have pointed out that some of the language used by Rousey isn’t PG, and they’re using that as evidence that WWE couldn’t have approved of the tweets and are probably mad at Ronda for writing them. But this isn’t WWE TV, this is the internet. It’s entirely possible that WWE is fine with breaking the family-friendly mandate of television if it serves their best interests. Plus, even their TV shows have been dabbling with some less than family-friendly segments such as a topless (but covered) Alexa Bliss and a half-lingerie cat fight in a hotel room with Mandy Rose and Naomi. So I don’t think it’s completely out of the question that WWE is perfectly fine with what’s going on.

If you read the article posted above, then you’ll see that “sources” claim that Ronda “worked herself into a shoot.” I trust unnamed “sources” in pro wrestling about zero percent of the time though, so who knows if Ronda was really getting angry. Maybe she was just playing along and attempting to one-up Becky in the only way she knows how.

 

Is It Any Good?

Ultimately, whether the anger is real or not matters less than what this Twitter exchange does to the complexion of Ronda and Becky’s feud. Breaking character like this injects a sense of realism into the feud. It builds interest by getting people to want to watch just to see if Ronda is really going to no-sell Becky’s moves and try to fight her for real on live TV. While this might seem like a good idea, because again, it’s getting people talking, this approach to garnering interest (if that’s indeed what this is) is a short-term solution that can only end poorly.

Ronda called the Disarm Her fake, so now if Ronda sells it on TV then she looks dumb. At best, her words would mean nothing. At worst, she would seem like a hothead who probably needs a Twitter handler. And as for beating up Becky “for real?” If she did that, then she’s unprofessional and shouldn’t be in a WWE ring. If she doesn’t, then there’s no point in following her on Twitter. That is, unless you just like seeing Becky Lynch repeatedly KO Ronda Rousey with her words.

The bottom line should be this: don’t break character like this, even online. It disrespects the fans who watch. I already roll my eyes when WWE commentators talk about how “legit” someone is when they come to pro wrestling via MMA. It’s like even WWE sometimes holds MMA in higher regard than its own product. Even though this all happened on Twitter, these are essentially promos for the feud. Talking about going off script in a situation like this isn’t edgy or clever. It’s a crutch for people who can’t come up with anything better. Plus, I don’t need wrestlers telling me that wrestling is fake.

Look, I like Ronda Rousey. I want her to succeed, but she needs someone to help her with her words, both on TV and online.

I do like one thing about this whole situation though. It helps put the focus of the feud onto Ronda and Becky. Charlotte has been left out of this for the moment, and that’s good. The Wrestlemania match should just be Becky versus Ronda. One on one. That’s it. No triple threat. Charlotte should face Asuka in a Wrestlemania rematch for the SmackDown title. That’s how it should be, and if stuff like this gains traction online (since I’m sure we’ll never hear about any of this on TV), then maybe that’s what will happen in April. We’ll see.

 

All that said, I’ll leave you with this. It’s just some friendly advice for Ronda Rousey and any other wrestlers who feel the urge to use the “F” word:

 

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