The Problem with the Greatest Royal Rumble in the Era of the Women’s Evolution

Women’s wrestling has made leaps and bounds in the last year and a half. There certainly has been a resurgence and evolution of the former Divas division. Women superstars have participated in the first ever Women’s Hell in a Cell, Money in the Bank ladder match, Royal Rumble, and Wrestlemania Battle Royale. Last summer saw a women’s tournament which led to the addition of more women competitors to the NXT roster. The women are certainly getting their due.

I would even argue that the storylines for women have improved. There is still obviously room to grow, but we are getting better after the Women’s Revolution storylines that centered around Ric Flair and other male competitors. Of course, there is still some hold over of previous issues. Many of the storylines still tend towards the “women all secretly hate one another” or a Mean Girls style angle, but we are seeing a wider variety of women in prominent roles. Women like Nia Jax and Ember Moon show girls and women that all body types can be successful in the WWE.

I am excited to see where the women’s division goes in terms of talent and storylines. I, sometimes, wonder if some of the changes that I would like to see in the division would happen if there were more women on the creative teams. I honestly don’t know if there are any women who really have the power to shape the stories that the WWE tells with this division. Surely, Stephanie McMahon has some influence, but ultimately, the final call lies with Vince McMahon, a 72 year old man who still relies on old tropes and ideas about how women interact with one another. It is getting better, but there is still a long way to go.

As a global entity, the WWE has fans all over the world. This can require a certain balancing act as not every society is the same in regards to the rights of women. Yet, WWE had a milestone match when Sasha Banks and Alexa Bliss competed in United Arab Emirates in a first ever match of its kind. Now, their usual ring attire was exchanged for full body suits that covered their arms and legs completely, but this was a step in the right direction.

This brings me to the current issue of the Greatest Royal Rumble. The event will take place in Saudi Arabia, a country that has even more restrictions when it comes to the rights of women. Not only will women superstars not be allowed to compete at this event, Saudi women cannot even attend unless they are in the company of a male family member. This is problematic for a company who is trying to promote the evolution of women’s professional wrestling as being on par with the men.

WWE has tried to skirt around this issue as much as possible by hyping up the men’s matches on the card, but it hasn’t escaped the notice of many fans, particularly female fans. I know that this decision is ultimately Vince McMahon’s, and he is a businessman. There is a lot of potential money to be made in Saudi Arabia. It’s the same reason that US government continually looks the other way when it comes to the rights of women there. The belief that men and women should have equal rights only go as far as their pocketbook. The WWE certainly had an opportunity to take a stand and practice what they are preaching in terms of female empowerment and failed miserably.

Despite being a fan and wondering if WWE will finally take the Universal title off of Brock Lesnar (like they should have done forever ago), I will not be watching the Greatest Royal Rumble event. I feel like it is a slap in the face to the women’s division. It certainly makes the Women’s Evolution seem disingenuous and that female fans are not as important to the company as the almighty dollar. If the powers that be at the WWE truly believe in evolution of women's wrestling, they should have put their money where their mouth is and made the decision not to perform in a country that would not afford their female fans and performers the same rights as their male talent and fans.

Women Empowering Women: Beth Phoenix's WWE Hall of Fame Induction

So as I was trying to figure out what to write for today’s post, I was of two minds about it. Being April Fool’s Day and all, I really considered writing a post as a prank. I had it all planned out; I was going to write a full-on pro-Trump post. Then I thought about it a little more and thought about how it might look later without the context of the day. So I decided to do what I normally do and write a regular blog, but I wasn’t sure what to write about. Then I watched the WWE Hall of Fame induction of Beth Phoenix, and I had my topic.

For my readers who may not know, Beth Phoenix was a wrestler in the early 2000s. She retired from wrestling in 2012. Phoenix was known as the Glamazon. She was tall, strong, and beautiful. Beth was not afraid to mix it up with the guys as one of only three women ever to compete in the Royal Rumble. Her storylines with Santino challenged the gender roles in which she was the more dominant person in the pairing, taking on the more masculine traits. Her rivalries with Melina and Eve Torres was just as good as any storyline for the men. I could go on and on about Beth Phoenix and highly suggest if you aren’t familiar with her work, do yourself a favor and YouTube whatever you can.

Yet, it’s not Phoenix’s body of work that had me most impressed with this amazing woman. It is her kind and empowering spirit that has inspired me. In a moment where she could have just thanked those who inspired and helped her and reflected on her career, she took the time to talk about the women who are making waves as part of the Women’s Revolution. Phoenix showed that empowering and uplifting other women was important. She talked about the camaraderie of the women’s locker room in her time and how she was so proud to see how far women’s wrestling has come. It was a moment that moved beyond the accolades of her career and looked at how women can build each other up. 

Why does all of this matter? Often in society at large and professional wrestling in general, women are pitted against each other as competition. There is this idea that women cannot be friends, that they all hate each other. It was powerful to see this idea torn down for the falsehood that it is. In her induction speech, Beth showed that this was not the case.  She talked about how an established wrestler, Nora Greenwald, better known as Molly Holly anonymously paid for her wrestling training at OVW because she believed in Beth so much. Beth talked about her close friendship with Nattie Neidhart, WWE’s Natalya. It was a moment where you saw her love for Nattie as a person and a performer. This women were as close as sisters. 

Then Beth talked about her two young daughters as her greatest accomplishment. This does not mean that women’s greatest role is as a mother only, but she seemed to emphasize the importance of raising strong, independent women and how that begins as children. You could see the love she has for her family come out in the smile on her face.

If I didn’t respect Beth Phoenix so much already, her Hall of Fame induction speech would have sold me. She is an example that all women can look up to as both a wrestler and a person. Beth Phoenix is one of the gold standards for women’s wrestling and feminism.