Ronda Rousey vs. Raquel Rodriguez was a classic battle on WWE Smackdown

WWE Smackdown featured some great action this week, but perhaps one match stuck out the most during the latest broadcast.

Ronda Rousey came out - fresh off her WWE Smackdown Women's Title victory at WrestleMania Backlash - to issue an open challenge for the championship. Fans may have anticipated a return from Bayley or possibly another former champion. However, they were thrown a bit of a curve.

Raquel Rodriguez emerged from the back to accept Ronda's invitation for action. With that, the relative newcomer essentially walked into the biggest match of her life. On national television, no less.

It was a massive step for Rodriguez, who just joined the main roster about a month ago. But that wasn't the story. The moral of this match is that the young star may have just put herself on the map with her performance.

Raquel Rodriguez looked absolutely dominant, despite a losing effort against WWE Smackdown Women's Champion Ronda Rousey

Rousey definitely gave Rodriguez most of the match, selling all of her power moves and making herself look very vulnerable. The challenger dazzled against The Baddest Woman on the Planet and made a statement that she should be considered a serious contender.

The match itself was constructed perfectly. Rodriguez kept laying in high-impact maneuvers, and Rousey reacted perfectly. Whenever the latter was in trouble in the bout, she would punch her way out of the predicament as if she was going back to her MMA instincts. Ronda looked desperate and confused at times. Several near falls had the viewers believing that there could be an astounding upset on the horizon.

It was a dose of reality in a match that could have easily been a simple, 'throw away' segment of the show. Instead, Rousey, Rodriguez, and the creative team turned it into an entertaining segment with a shot at making a new star.

While it was very far-fetched to think Rousey would drop the belt to a relatively unknown face, the way the two performers staged the match helped blur the lines of reality.

Despite coming up short in her quest, Rodriguez was a huge winner on this night in the eyes of the WWE Universe. She took a huge step forward, and Rousey should be commended for helping her along the way.

After this epic clash, there's no doubt we will see some more high-profile matches from Raquel Rodriguez. She looked like a million bucks on Smackdown this week, and she's only going to get better as time goes on.

Someday, when she is a WWE Women's Champion herself, we will be able to look back at this match as one of the defining moments of her career. Rousey gave her the chance to shine like a star, and Rodriguez came through in a terrific encounter.

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What did you think of the WWE Smackdown Women's Championship match between Ronda Rousey and challenger Raquel Rodriguez? Please share your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below.