In an episode of the podcast “Talk Is Jericho,” Marina Shafir shared the intriguing story of Ronda Rousey’s unexpected involvement in Ring of Honor. Shafir recalled with a hint of enthusiasm,
“She calls me up, she called me up a couple of months beforehand, or maybe like a month beforehand. She’s like ‘I got to wrestle with Shayna [Baszler] and then I got to Shayna. I really want to wrestle with you. This needs to happen.’ I’m like ‘no st Sherlock, let’s make this happen.”
Before stepping into Ring of Honor, Rousey and Shafir collaborated for a Wrestling REVOLVER event. For Shafir, this was a necessary step. She went on to say,
“I walk out, I’m in the ring, Ronda’s music hits, as she’s walking out, I’m watching her walk in and she’s like looking at me taking off her belt and her Gi and she’s like ‘Marina, we’re about to fk st up,’ and I’m like ‘oh God yes.'”
Rousey’s stint in ROH was brief and she has yet to make an appearance in Tony Khan’s other wrestling promotion, AEW.
As for Shafir, she has now carved out a prominent role for herself as part of the Death Riders faction, featuring members such as Pac, Wheeler Yuta, Claudio Castagnoli, and Jon Moxley.