Stephanie McMahon recently sat down with “Variety” for an interview. During the chat, she discussed the decision to sign Ronda Rousey and the state of women’s wrestling in general. Here are the highlights:
On The Breakthrough Of Women Wrestling In Abu Dhabi:
Ronda wanted to be a part of this change, and it happened actually before she came on board. Which was something that disappointed her to a certain level, and on the other level, she was excited to come be a part of it, and she certainly helped raise the bar. But there’s a really important story that I think needs to be told, and that is just the power of this movement and what it really means, and the power of digital and social media, and the power of your voices; The power of all our voices.
So, just over a year ago, in Abu Dhabi, our women were allowed to perform for the first time. And they had to be completely covered except for their heads and their hands. And during the match, a chant broke out, both men and women, chanting this is hope. This is hope in Abu Dhabi during a WWE women’s championship match. And our performers in the ring said they saw tears in the eyes of little girls in the front row. And that’s what this movement is really about. It’s about giving that share of voice and making change.
On The Popularity Of The Women’s Division:
We did sign Ronda Rousey and then we, also, in October, had our first-ever all-women’s PPV live streaming event called, Evolution. Just to give you some perspective, it was available on WWE Network, which as of Q3 had over 1.6 million, and it trended #1 world-wide for over 2 hours during the last game of the World Series and NFL Sunday Night Football, and that’s because of our fan base and our women that kill it, by the way! And it’s not giving them this opportunity because they’re women, it’s giving them this opportunity because they’re the best and they deserve this spot.
You can listen to the full interview below:
WWE CEO Stephanie McMahon talks signing Ronda Rousey #CES pic.twitter.com/HvVuoKnBt4
— Variety (@Variety) January 9, 2019
Credit: Variety. H/T WrestlingInc.
