Shayna Baszler Will Outshine Ronda Rousey as a WWE Star

Ronda Rousey's march into the WWE ring will get all the hype, but Shayna Baszler will make more of a lasting impact on the business.

The first UFC women's bantamweight champion has long been vocal about her passion for pro wrestling. Rousey is a world-class judoka, a captivating athlete and a crossover star. But the woman she coached during The Ultimate Fighter in 2013 has the better WWE career ahead of her.

Rousey coming to WWE isn't a done deal, but it remains a move everyone expects to happen. 

Rumors refuse to die down, and she keeps popping up in proximity to that world. The latest case of that came when Rousey and her agent sat down for dinner with WWE Superstar and executive Triple H, per TMZ Sports. 

Should Rousey follow her MMA career with a stint in WWE, she'll be a rookie trying to learn the nuances of the game.

One of her fellow Four Horsewomen of MMA will have had a hell of a head start on her. Baszler, a lightweight with 14 submission wins, made her pro wrestling debut in 2015. She has wrestled 94 matches, as seen on CageMatch.net. Rousey is still at zero in that department.

Baszler's in-ring resume provides her with a sturdy foundation to build on. She competed in Japan, at NXT and at the Mae Young Classic. She has also had the opportunity for on-the-job training in bouts against Kairi Sane, Mia Yim, Candice LeRae, Madison Eagles and others.

The Queen of Spades has caught on quickly, too.

She has shown herself to be a natural heel, a compelling predator in the pro wrestling realm. She showcased that a great deal during her run through the Mae Young tournament. And more recently, she shined in her NXT debut against Dakota Kai.

Her MMA skills clearly translate, but there's more to it than that. Baszler has embraced the acting side of the gig. Her facial expressions, presence and gloating all scream WWE star.  

Denny Burkholder of CBSSports.com had high praise for her:

Could Rousey be as good at those elements? Maybe. The only guarantees with her are star power and athletic skill. Questions remain about the rest of the pro wrestling package.

How will she look in worked matches? Will she be able to deliver WWE-level showmanship? What will she look like personalitywise in promos and backstage segments?

When Rousey and her crew confronted Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch and Bayley during the Mae Young Classic last summer, The Furious 7 star looked awkward. She underwhelmed. Her "it" factor was muffled.

The bulldog bruiser that is Baszler, meanwhile, has already shown she has acclimated to WWE from MMA.

Baszler will also get more opportunities. If Rousey signs with WWE, she's probably going to show up at the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania and have an appearance on Raw here and there. 

The Queen of Spades will have 100 times the at-bats, so to speak, as Rousey.

She's poised to be a workhorse who will be able to clash with NXT's best before moving on to Raw and SmackDown. It's easy to imagine her reigning as NXT or Raw champion for months. She'll have a shot to stay atop the women's division for a long time, becoming a key figure on WWE programming for four, five, six years.

Credit: WWE.com

Rousey will be long gone by then.

She will have brought a big number of eyes to the product during her time with WWE. She will have had the biggest women's match in WWE history. But Baszler will have created more memories, thrived in more matches and connected more to the fanbase over time.

Rousey is set to be a shooting star; Baszler will be a raging sun that hangs in the sky for far longer.