AEW's Thunder Rosa could have been a WWE referee: Why did she reject the offer?
On the March 16 episode of Dynamite, Thunder Rosa defeated Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D., to become the AEW Women's World Champion for the first time in her career.
Both Rosa and Baker took each other to the limit during a hellacious and barbaric Steel Cage Match. In the end, it was the Mexican-born star who delivered the final blow to capture the title.
Following the merciless bout, the new champion tweeted:
"I have no words to describe how I feel. The love, the energy, the results of yesterday’s match. Im blessed and I’m thankful. I just know there is a lot of work to be done. Gracias a mi gente por este momento tan especial. Your NEW @AEW women’s champion #ThunderRosa."
Thunder has been performing for All Elite Wrestling since August 2020 and has quickly become one of the most adored wrestlers on the roster. Besides regularly appearing for Tony Khan's company, she also appears for other independent promotions, including her own, Mission Pro Wrestling.
In spite of now finding enormous success and paving her own path, there was a time when she tried to secure work with WWE in 2019. However, the deal was not for the former NWA World Women's Champion to be a wrestler but instead, a referee.
Thunder Rosa spoke about the presented opportunity on the Talk is Jericho podcast in September 2020:
"I was getting tired of just like doing the indies and just grinding because it gets tiring, very very tiring because you have to constantly be traveling. Some of the matches don’t make sense and you’re doing it because that’s how you make a living, and I call one of my referee friends like, ‘hey, are they hiring like refs? I’ll ref. I don’t care. I just need a job,’ and then he was like, ‘yeah, let me ask them.’" (h/t Wrestling Inc.)
When all was said and done, despite being offered the opportunity to try out for Vince McMahon's company, Thunder could not attend the event. Hurricane Dorian affected her travel plans to meet with the company, and she ultimately sought out a career with the MMA promotion Combate Global.
Has Thunder Rosa ever competed in a WWE ring?
#ANDNEW @thunderrosa22 is the 5th AEW Women’s World Champion!
Tenemos nueva campeona 🏆 #ANDNEW @thunderrosa22 is the 5th AEW Women’s World Champion! https://t.co/EJLpGw64Jc
Despite competing for a plethora of promotions, Thunder Rosa has never competed inside a WWE ring.
However, La Mera Mera has tested herself against many former WWE names recently, including the likes of Mercedes Martinez, Athena (formerly known as Ember Moon) and Taya Valkyrie, known as Franky Monet in NXT.
Rosa has come a long way since she made the call to try out for Vince McMahon's company and is now set to become one of the biggest stars on the planet if she continues to follow her current trajectory.
What are your opinions on Thunder Rosa? Let us know in the comments section below!