10 WWE Extreme Rules 2018 Impulse Reactions

3. Leave It To The Professionals

Bobby Lashley
WWE

Vince McMahon loves alliteration, but if Roman Reigns' position as abject failure isn't quite the bandwagon you want to hop on to, there's still ample space on Ronda Rousey's. You'll just have to catch it before it speeds off into the stratosphere like the Rowdy former UFC Champion herself charging into battle.

Alexa Bliss and Nia Jax were sleepwalking through their usual before Rousey hopped the rail in defence of her friend and human plot device Natalya. The WWE ring might be the biggest of its kind, but performers have to jog along at a rather indifferent clip in order to make the 20 feet feel longer. Not Rousey; she sprinted at the villains with such force and fire that she nearly lost Mickie James before hurling her hard into a barrier. She radiates excitement, intensity and action in a way her new colleagues cannot.

She is at an advantage of course - Rousey's star power was forged outside of WWE's walls, but in this new era it is no longer used as a stick to beat her with. Vince McMahon presumably swoons with the same affection that remains for Brock Lesnar, though Ronda thankfully actually offers his audience something real to cling on to.

Give her the belt, and let her beat everybody. She's everything Hardcore Holly pretended to be and then some, the decision is thankfully already overdue.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett