WrestleMania 35: What if Ronda Rousey wins?

If WWE were to follow its traditional route of a hero prevailing in the main event of WrestleMania, in particular after having won the Royal Rumble, we could reasonably expect for Becky Lynch to emerge victorious this Sunday. However, the insertion of Charlotte Flair into the match, and particularly with the SmackDown Women’s Championship, has introduced real doubt as to whether WWE might swerve things and position Flair as the winner.

Another possibility which it seems almost absurd that hardly anyone is talking about: what if Ronda Rousey wins?

Rousey has yet to lose a match in WWE. While the Triple Threat format sets her up to drop her title without having to be pinned or tapped out, she’s nonetheless a credible enough star, both in terms of her real-life talent and how she’s been built in WWE that it’s not unreasonable to think she would win. This article considers what a win for Rousey might mean.

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#4. Becky Lynch isn’t the chosen one after all

It's possible Becky Lynch isn't going to be the face of the women's division after all.

Becky Lynch is generally considered the favorite to win at WrestleMania on account of how over she has gotten with WWE fans since summer, and the journey that she has been on since January. The conclusion that she’ll win is contingent on the core concept that WWE sees her as the face of at least the women’s division, if not the whole company moving forward.

It’s possible that that’s not how WWE feels, though. After all, there’s little denying that Ronda Rousey is the bigger name among a more casual audience. Additionally, Charlotte Flair is the longstanding presumptive female face of WWE. Lynch is the only one involved in the match who wasn’t marked for greatness, and it’s conceivable that at this stage WWE will turn around, and decide to not push her on top at all.

#3. Ronda Rousey is sticking around

There are very real questions as to Ronda Rousey’s future with WWE, ranging from the idea that she will be wrapping up with the company shortly, to that she will stick around full time, to that she will become more of a Brock Lesnar-style part-time talent looming over the women’s division. Rousey dropping the title at WrestleMania would quite reasonably set her up to disappear for a while.

However, if Rousey retains, it means she isn’t going away.

Lesnar himself has demonstrated that a part-time championship reign is viable in the eyes of WWE management, but given Rousey has been a full-time presence up to this point, it stands to reason that she will see through this title reign as such. So, if she wins at WrestleMania, we can expect to see her remain a regular presence for at least a little while to come.

#2. A longer story for The Man

Becky Lynch's journey to the title might be longer than most expected.

It’s possible that if Becky Lynch loses at WrestleMania, it’s the end of the road for her as a character. Indeed, with the push of a Royal Rumble victory and having feuded with the McMahons in recent months, it certainly feels like now or never in terms of going all the way with The Man. However, there is another possibility.

Just as Roman Reigns fell to Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 34, it’s possible that WWE could feel the time isn’t right, or there’s still more heat to be gathered around Lynch chasing the title.

Particularly if Ronda Rousey pins or submits Charlotte Flair, thus protecting Lynch from directly absorbing a loss, we can expect that Lynch might still get hers down the line. Maybe that goes down in Saudi Arabia at show rumored for May that is, further, rumored to feature women in wrestling in Saudi Arabia for the first time. Otherwise, SummerSlam is just four months down the road, and could see Lynch go after Rousey one on one.

#1. A new challenger on the way for Rousey

If Ronda Rousey wins, she won't have very many credible challengers left.

One of the tricky things about the idea of Ronda Rousey winning at WrestleMania is that there emerges a very real question as to who challengers her next. Rousey has worked her way through every viable challenger on the Raw brand, and though becoming the champion for SmackDown, too, opens some possibilities like facing Asuka, there’s still a limited number of women whom WWE could legitimately book opposite the Baddest Woman on the Planet.

More likely, we’d be looking at some fresh challengers coming for Rousey, and particularly ones who don’t carry the stigmas of high profile losses or being treated like an afterthought leading up to this point. Lacey Evans has been positioned as a big deal and could get slid into that challenger role. All the more intriguing, Rousey’s real-life friend Shayna Baszler would make sense as a foil coming off of her largely dominant run in NXT.