What’s the story?
In an interview with Hindustan Times, Becky Lynch spoke about several WWE-related topics and revealed that former UFC fighter Shayna Baszler would be a part of the Mae Young Classic Tournament.
In case you didn’t know...
The Mae Young Classic is a women’s tournament that is being organised by the WWE. It will feature 32 competitors from all over the world, some of whom have already been officially revealed by the company.
The tournament is being held along the lines of WWE’s Cruiserweight Classic tournament, which received rave reviews for its execution. The Mae Young Classic is going to be held on 13th and 14th of July at Full Sail University, Florida and will be broadcast on the WWE Network.
Shayna Baszler, who Becky Lynch has all but confirmed for the tournament, is a former UFC fighter with an MMA record of 15 wins and 11 losses. Baszler was a Bantamweight fighter who also competed for the likes of Elite XC, Strikeforce and Invicta Fighting Championship before joining the UFC.
Working as a professional wrestler since her UFC release, Baszler has worked with Ring of Honor and Shimmer promotions. Baszler had her first WWE tryout in 2016 and also helped Nikki Bella develop a new finisher.
The heart of the matter
In the interview, Becky Lynch spoke about WWE’s women’s revolution and recalled the times when women’s wrestling was not taken very seriously by the WWE audiences. Lynch added that it all changed after WWE started approaching things differently.
Lynch stated that the popularity of the women’s division has “barely scratched the surface” of possibilities and that there was a bright future for it in the WWE. Lynch also said that the first ever women’s Money In The Bank Ladder match was an important landmark for the women’s division and that all the participants worked hard for it.
Also read: 5 famous UFC fighters that would fail miserably in the WWE
Lynch then confirmed that she would be in attendance at the Mae Young Classic and thoroughly praised the concept of the tournament. Lynch stated that the tournament could potentially “change the entire scene of women’s wrestling” in the WWE.
On the subject of participants that she was looking forward to, Becky Lynch effectively confirmed that former UFC fighter Shayna Baszler was going to be one of the competitors in the tournament. She was quoted as saying:
“I am excited to see Shayna Baszler in the tournament. It is true that she does not have much experience in pro-wrestling, but her UFC background will give her a huge advantage.”
What’s next?
The Mae Young Classic women’s tournament will be held over two days on the 13th and 14th July 2017. The names of several participants have been doing the rounds on the rumour mill, with the WWE only having officially revealed four so far.
Author’s take
Shayna Baszler has had an extensive MMA career. She is an MMA veteran at the age of 36, but being the athlete that she is, she certainly has many good years to give to the WWE, should they end up crowning her the winner of the tournament or bringing her into the company in some other way.
Baszler being the WWE would also open the doors for several MMA ladies to possibly come to the WWE as no former UFC women’s competitors have been a part of the WWE yet.
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