WWE News: Shayna Baszler attacks NXT rookie at the WWE Performance Center
What’s the story?
Shayna Baszler has taken to social media so as to post a video wherein she’s seen attacking an NXT rookie.
Baszler put Jessie Elaban in a chokehold and left the latter writhing in pain. Baszler captioned the video, with the analogy that if someone can't take the heat, they ought to get out of the kitchen. Fans can watch the video footage below—
In case you didn’t know…
Shayna Baszler is a Women’s MMA veteran, who has now transitioned to the sport of professional wrestling after losing by way of TKO to reigning UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Amanda Nunes.
Baszler has previously competed at NXT house shows in 2017 and also made her TV debut for NXT by attacking Kairi Sane on the December 27th edition of the show.
The heart of the matter
Shayna Baszler is close friends with WMMA pioneer and former UFC Women’s Bantamweight titlist ‘Rowdy’ Ronda Rousey; with the latter also rumored to be debuting in the WWE as an official member of the roster very soon. Baszler is known for her grappling skills in MMA, and in the video, she posted on her official Twitter account, the Queen Of Spades was seen mocking the submission skills of a few women training inside a ring at the WWE Performance Center.
Baszler approached them and stated that she’d like to show Jessie Elaban how a submission hold really feels; following which the former handed the camera to someone else and began grappling with Elaban.
Furthermore, the grappling session quickly turned violent, as Baszler viciously choked Elaban, with the latter tapping out multiple times and Baszler refusing to let go. A couple of people present at the scene had to intervene in order to break up the melee.
What’s next?
Shayna Baszler is set to have her first televised match on NXT against Dakota Kai next Wednesday.
Author’s take
Shayna Baszler is a dangerous grappler and has trained under the likes of former UFC Heavyweight Champion Josh Barnett, the former UFC fighter goes all-out during a fight.
It’ll be interesting to see how the WWE books Baszler, especially considering her MMA gimmick is presently being used by Sonya Deville to considerable success on RAW right now. 2018 shall answer a lot of questions surrounding Baszler’s WWE career, and whether or not she’ll be able to replicate her MMA success in the sport of professional wrestling.