A new match is official for the next Bloodsport card.
It was confirmed on Friday that Nattie would face former WWE wrestler Shayna Baszler on April 17. On social media, Nattie asked Baszler to bring the version of herself that was feared in the WWE locker room.
“I want you to bring me the killing machine Shayna,” Nattie wrote. “Bring me the most feared woman ever in the WWE locker room. Bring me the MMA pioneer who men and women knew to avoid. I know I’m on borrowed time, if I don’t deliver, then back comes the sparkles, back comes the Bimbo. I’m marching into your match, in your world, Shayna. And I’m coming to f*** you up.”
Nattie previously competed at last year’s Bloodsport that took place during WrestleMania weekend, where she defeated Miyu Yamashita.
Baszler was released from her WWE contract last year, but continues to make appearances on their television and has worked at the WWE Performance Center. Most recently, she was seen training Kelani Jordan in her match against Lola Vice that took place at NXT Vengeance Day earlier this month.
Shayna Baszler and Asuka have each published statements regarding the dental injury Asuka suffered in 2021.
During a recent interview with Chris Van Vliet, Baszler discussed the incident, which happened on the February 22, 2021 episode of WWE Raw. Baszler kicked Asuka in the face during a tag match, knocking a tooth loose. Asuka needed dental surgery and missed three weeks of action.
Baszler said in the interview:
“It was terrible. And she’s so badass, she came to the back afterwards and was kind of covering her mouth cause you know whatever, but she was like, ‘No pain. I don’t know why.'”
“Just soccer kicked her in the face and she was like, ‘Yeah, it’s fine. Doesn’t even hurt.'”
Early Wednesday morning, Asuka released the following statement in response to a clip of the interview:
“My tooth was fractured due to a mistake by Shayna Baszler. At the time I told her I was okay because I did not want her to carry the guilt. But I ended up needing surgery and of course I was not okay. I just did not want her to feel responsible knowing that these things happen in our line of work. I thought that if I just endured it then everything would be fine. Seeing people mocking me in the comments makes me realize once again how cruel the world is.”
“But I blame no one. I do not even wish misfortune upon those who lack kindness. In fact I am more cruel than these cruel people because I will be far happier than they are. While people spend their time mocking me I am savoring and embracing every bit of my happiness. My ideal life is already nearing its completion.”
“Thank you 🫰🤡”
An earlier version of Asuka’s post was published on Reddit. In that version she seems to express a belief that Baszler was making fun of her reaction to the incident. It contains the below two paragraphs not in the currently published version:
“I simply didn’t want her to feel responsible, knowing that these things happen in our line of work. Yet, she now mocks me by imitating my reaction from that moment, turning it into a joke. Is that what passes for common sense? Those who laugh along with her are just as cruel.”
“I still like her, but I’ve realized that’s just the kind of person she is.”
Baszler has since responded to Asuka’s post as well, writing:
“I told the story to illustrate how effing badass Asuka is. If anyone in the comments is making fun of her, they are stupid and should have their social media time monitored.”
Asuka’s injury occurred during the build up to WrestleMania 37. While she underwent surgery, she was back in time to drop the Raw Women’s Championship to Rhea Ripley on April 11.
Baszler and Asuka’s social media posts are below:
I told the story to illustrate how effing badass Asuka is. If anyone in the comments is making fun of her, they are stupid and should have their social media time monitored https://t.co/74B5JNEBwj
A couple of years ago, in 2023, Ronda Rousey wrestled her last WWE match against Shayna Baszler in an MMA Rules match at that year’s SummerSlam. However, since her departure, Rousey has not been very positive while reflecting on her WWE run, although Baszler believes an in-ring return could be in the cards for Rousey.
Recently speaking to Chris Van Vliet on Insight, Baszler addressed the chances of Rousey’s return while comparing it to CM Punk’s long-awaited pro-wrestling comeback.
“I never think Ronda [Rousey] is done. She’s a crazy person,” she added. “I don’t know. She loves being a mom. It would take a bit, but CM Punk came back. Ronda Rousey can come back.”
Rousey was an active part of the WWE roster from 2018 to 2019 before going on a hiatus. She later returned at the 2022 Women’s Royal Rumble and stayed at the Stamford-based promotion till 2023. Following a brief comeback from retirement in 2023, Rousey wrestled at a few indie and ROH shows before going on a long hiatus again.
Shayna Baszler opens up about Ronda Rousey’s last WWE match
In the same interview on Insight, Baszler reflected on Rousey’s last WWE match in 2023. Claiming that she knew about it being Rousey’s final bout, Baszler said,
“So I knew, because I’m very close with her. That was the last date on her contract, because she had planned to have another baby, and that was the plan. I mean, Ronda loves nothing more now than being a mom, and so I knew for a while, for so long we wanted to start that story,” she continued. “I think if we would have had longer, I think that would have benefited us a lot, because I think we did a great job with the time that we had.”
One of the most dominant female stars during her time in the WWE roster, Shayna Baszler, has now opened up about being known as the female Brock Lesnar. Getting honest about the comparisons, the former NXT Women’s Champion made it clear that she does agree with the label.
Speaking to Chris Van Vliet on Insight, Baszler addressed her comparisons to Lesnar and claimed that she had ‘issues’ with it.
“Yeah, so I had some issue with this, because I don’t think even black and gold, I don’t think I was female Brock Lesnar ever. I think that’s a bad analogy. I think it’s an easy comparison to make, because oh, this bada**. And also MMA.”
Following her transition from MMA to pro-wrestling, Baszler soon found herself as an important part of the WWE NXT roster. Following one of the most dominant runs in the brand’s history in 2019 and a title run of over 500-days, she appeared in the 2020 Women’s Royal Rumble and eliminated eight women.
Throughout her time in WWE, Baszler enjoyed one of the most celebrated and successful runs, which naturally led fans to compare her to Lesnar. However, from Baszler’s own words, it’s clear that she wasn’t trying to become WWE’s “female Brock Lesnar,” but was instead focused on building her own legacy.
Shayna Baszler is no longer officially with WWE, but she still has a great relationship with the company and could potentially return with a full-time role working backstage in NXT.
Since her release from WWE in May, Baszler has stayed busy by taking indie dates and holding seminars. She also has made regular visits to NXT to guest coach and shadow producers. Whenever she’s not on the road, Baszler is at the WWE Performance Center helping out younger talent.
“Strangely enough, I feel like I’m busier and away from home more than I was before, just by the nature of taking every available opportunity there is to just do everything that I want to do,” she said on a new episode of Insight with Chris Van Vliet. “I’m still taking indie dates and doing stuff like that. I’ve been doing a lot of guest coaching and shadowing producing at NXT. So, pretty much, if I’m not on the road, I’m helping out there, if I can.
“I’m not like officially hired, but I have a good relationship with them. So, you know, I’m officially guest coaching when I can or when the opportunity comes.”
Baszler said she likes this behind-the-scenes position a lot more than she thought she would — and she would like for it to become a full-time role.
“I’m hoping,” Baszler responded when asked if this could become a full-time job. “If I don’t suck too bad at the guest part of it, then…”
Baszler had already been been helping out in this capacity before her WWE release. Admittedly, she was a little “salty” when asked if she would like to continue doing it during her 90-day no compete clause. But Baszler has found the role to be very rewarding.
“I got emotionally invested in the athletes that are there that I’m working with,” she said. “Some of the girls, even some of the guys, like, seeing their growth and seeing collaboration ideas. I’ve been a talent, right? So I know how to go from creative to the talent and kind of bridge the gap of what creative is looking for and what the talent wants to do.
“I don’t know, I got emotionally invested in everything. So they kind of got me coming back. But, yeah, it’s been a lot more rewarding. I’ve enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would, to be honest.”
Baszler said WWE has been very supportive of her continuing to wrestle on the indies while guest coaching. There have been no ultimatums so far. She wouldn’t be against working more WWE matches if they asked. But at this stage of her in-ring career, Baszler isn’t too concerned with personal accomplishments. She’s more interested in whetting her creative appetite and helping to keep her style of wrestling alive.
The 45-year-old Baszler is a former NXT Women’s Champion and WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion. Along with helping behind the scenes, Baszler made an on-camera appearance at NXT Homecoming this September.
Part of The Death Riders faction in AEW, Marina Shafir has been on a dominant run since last year. Although without a mainstream title for some time now, former WWE star Shayna Baszler thinks it’s finally time for Shafir to win a championship.
While Baszler failed to mention the title she wants to see Shafir win, the Moldovan wrestler is eligible to go for both the TBS and Women’s World Championships, currently held by Mercedes Mone and Kris Statlander.
Shafir had also recently teamed up with Megan Bayne to go after the Women’s Tag-Team titles. Following her loss against Storm and Shirakawa, she is currently involved in a feud with the duo on television.
Interestingly, Shafir is also the current DEFY Women’s Champion for 594 days, following her title win on May 10th, 2024. Shafir last defended the title against Su Yung on October 24th, 2025.
A full-time coaching role could be in the cards for Shayna Baszler down the line, but her focus right now remains on competing in the ring.
Following her release from WWE in May, Baszler picked up some experience working behind the scenes in NXT while waiting for her 90-day clause to run out. Dave Meltzer later reported that WWE is interested in hiring Baszler as a producer or coach. Nothing is in place for that at the moment, though, and Baszler continues to wrestle on the indies in her post-WWE career.
Baszler recently spoke with Catch Club and was asked if working behind the scenes in WWE is something she’d like to do in the future.
“Yeah, I mean, it’s something that’s very fulfilling to me, coaching, helping people learn about wrestling. So I think I have a lot to give in the ring still, so I want to concentrate on that and get that out of my system,” she responded.
“But I think obviously the natural progression would be to coach. You know, I always say, people sometimes go to school, they go to college, university for 10 years to become a doctor or a professor or something like that. I spent all my time learning combat arts, so my university was in the martial arts gym, learning how to submit people. So I think the natural progression, that’s where my level of expertise is. So it just makes sense to pass that on. I had really good coaches, as you mentioned, that did that for me, so I think I’d like to pass that on too.”
Catch Club’s interview with Baszler was conducted earlier this month while she was overseas to compete at an indie show in France. This past weekend, the 45-year-old Baszler made her House of Glory debut in New York with a victory over Maki Itoh.
Shayna Baszler is set to compete for indie promotion House of Glory Wrestling next month.
It’s been announced that Baszler will make her House of Glory debut at Superclash on Saturday, November 15. The event is being held in Long Island, New York in collaboration with the Big Event Entertainment and Sports Expo convention. Suffolk Credit Union Arena in Brentwood will be the location for the show.
🚨 LONG ISLAND, GET READY 🚨
The Queen of Spades herself, SHAYNA BASZLER, makes her House of Glory debut on Saturday, Nov 15th at the Suffolk Credit Union Arena!@QoSBaszler
Released by WWE in May, the 45-year-old Baszler is returning to the ring this weekend for her first match in nearly six months. She will face off against Dani Luna at Prestige Wrestling’s show in Portland, Oregon on October 5.
Baszler did make an appearance at WWE NXT’s recent Homecoming special, which took place at Full Sail University and celebrated the history of NXT. Though WWE has hopes of bringing Baszler back in a coaching or producing role, there is nothing in place for that at the moment.
As of now, Shayna Baszler’s appearance at NXT Homecoming was a one-off and not a full-time return to WWE.
Baszler — who was released from her WWE contract in May — made an on-screen appearance during Tuesday’s Homecoming special, giving advice to Sol Ruca and Zaria in a backstage segment. Dave Meltzer reports in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that, while there is hope within WWE that Baszler will take a coaching or producing position with the company, that is not in place at this point.
“Regarding Baszler those in the company said that they expect and hope she take a coaching or producing position,” Meltzer wrote. “At this point nothing is in place and it was just a one-off thing this week.”
The 45-year-old Baszler indicated during an appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show in August that she could be interested in signing with AEW if that opportunity presented itself.
“I said almost exactly this statement when people were talking about my UFC to WWE transition: I don’t care as much of the letters behind it, I just want to practice my craft,” she said. “And if I can do that alongside my friends, that’s always a great place to be. So, I’m not going to say a hard no to any of that.”
The NXT Homecoming special took place at Full Sail University and celebrated the brand’s past and present. Baszler was a two-time NXT Women’s Champion during her time on the brand.
It was a homecoming for many NXT stars of the past.
During Tuesday’s show at Full Sail University, multiple former NXT stars made an appearance. The first surprise was after the WWE Women’s Tag Team title match. Zol Ruca and Zaria were arguing about the finish of last week’s number one contender’s match when Laney Reid and Candace LeRae interrupted. Shayna Baszler then showed up and said she made history in NXT by being the longest-reigning champion. She told Sol and Zaria to fix it and apologize as they’ll get everything they want if they do.
Later, The Miz made a surprise appearance. He attacked Johnny Gargano on the outside giving him the skull crashing finale. He then threw him into the ring and helped Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams score the victory over DIY, continuing his SmackDown storyline with Hayes.
Other NXT stars from the past including Damien Priest, Sami Zayn, Montez Ford, Bobby Roode, and Finn Balor all made appearances. Priest and Zayn gave pep talks to Tavion Heights and Je’Von Evans respectively, while Montez Ford met with Darkstate. Bobby Roode meanwhile had an encounter with Joe Hendry.
Damian Priest just gave an all-time pump-up speech to @TavionHeights and let him know he's got a North American Title Match at No Mercy!! pic.twitter.com/dGLNmJFte7
After Lexis King gave a speech running down the old era of NXT and Myles Borne, he was met by a returning Finn Balor, who came out to his old theme and entrance. Borne entered the ring and took out King while Balor delivered the coup de gras.
Shayna Baszler is getting back in the ring following her WWE release.
In what is the first indie booking she’s been announced for since being let go by WWE, Baszler will debut for Prestige Wrestling on Sunday, October 5. She’s set to face TNA star Masha Slamovich at the event, which is being held in Portland, Oregon at the Roseland Theater.
🚨 BREAKING NEWS 🚨
Shayna Baszler debuts against Masha Slamovich at #PrestigeRoseland XII!
+ Judas Icarus, Danhausen, Trish Adora, Good Brothers, Kevin Blackwood & more
October 5th, 2025 Portland, Oregon Roseland Theater All Ages (bar with ID)
Baszler was released from her WWE contract this May in a round of roster cuts that also included Braun Strowman, Dakota Kai, and several others. While waiting for her non-compete clause to expire, Baszler did some work behind the scenes in a producer-type role for NXT.
That 90-day clause expired on August 2. During an appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show this month, Baszler indicated that she would be open to joining AEW, where some of her friends like Marina Shafir work.
“I said almost exactly this statement when people were talking about my UFC to WWE transition: I don’t care as much of the letters behind it, I just want to practice my craft,” she said. “And if I can do that alongside my friends, that’s always a great place to be. So, I’m not going to say a hard no to any of that.”
Baszler’s most recent match was against Stardom wrestler Konami this April at a Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport event.
In 2024, Baszler and Slamovich faced off on a Bloodsport card with Baszler getting the victory.
Shayna Baszler sounds interested in joining her friends in AEW.
Baszler was part of WWE roster cuts revealed on May 2 after having been with the company since 2017. On Wednesday, Baszler was a guest on The Ariel Helwani Show and spoke about what’s next for her career. When asked about possibly signing with AEW, Baszler said she wouldn’t give a “hard no to any of that.”
“It’s not a secret, I’m really good friends with Marina (Shafir), I have a lot of good friends there,” she said. “So there’s been some discussion as to what the future could hold, for sure.”
When asked specifically if she would like to sign with AEW, Baszler responded:
“I said almost exactly this statement when people were talking about my UFC to WWE transition: I don’t care as much of the letters behind it, I just want to practice my craft. And if I can do that alongside my friends, that’s always a great place to be. So, I’m not going to say a hard no to any of that.”
When asked about reports that she was working as a producer in NXT, Baszler said she was just at the Performance Center helping some of her friends that day.
“I happened to be in to help some friends of mine work on some submission transition stuff,” she said. “And it happened to be on a Tuesday.”
Baszler said she put on a headset to listen to the producer’s calls during the show that night, as Bryan Danielson had once recommended that to her as a way to learn.
“But I wasn’t like standing there putting this match together, writing down the notes and on a mic to the truck being like, all right, we’re gonna need a floor camera.”
“As far as that whole thing sitting on a headset on NXT, I’ve been doing that forever.”
Earlier in the conversation, Baszler confirmed that she was released from her contract, rather than it having expired. She noted that she had three years remaining on her deal at the time. She is believed to have re-signed with the company in June 2024.
Baszler’s full appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show is available below:
On Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer provided an update on Shayna Baszler’s status with WWE.
News got out yesterday that Baszler — who was released from her WWE contract in May — worked as a producer for the Kelani Jordan vs. Lainey Reid match that took place on Tuesday night’s NXT episode. Meltzer confirmed that this is not the first match Baszler has produced for NXT, but she is not back with WWE in a full-time role. Producing is something that she’s doing while waiting for her 90-day non-compete clause to expire.
“The story on Shayna Baszler is this — she’s right now on her, I think she’s got another month, I think the date is August 2 when her 90 days is up,” Meltzer said. “She can’t wrestle anywhere until August 2. So for now — it came out that she was one of the agents [for] the Kelani Jordan match from [Tuesday] night. The story was made out to be bigger than it was. She has been at NXT tapings. She has agented other matches, but this is the first one to come out. But it’s not like she has taken a job as an agent. She is doing it since she’s around and they’ve asked her.”
The two producers listed for the Jordan vs. Reid match were Baszler and Oney Lorcan. Lorcan (Chris Gerard) has been working behind the scenes in NXT full-time since the end of his in-ring career in 2022.
Baszler’s release happened on May 2 as part of a round of cuts where Cora Jade, Braun Strowman, Dakota Kai, Katana Chance, and Kayden Carter were also among those let go.
Baszler was part of WWE’s roster cuts revealed on May 2. However, Cory Hays of Bodyslam.net reported on Wednesday that Baszler was listed as the producer of a match on WWE NXT on Tuesday night.
“BodySlam.net has learned that Shayna Baszler was listed as a producer for last night’s episode of #WWENXT. More details available on the Bodyslam Patreon,” Hays wrote.
According to the report, Baszler was listed alongside Oney Lorcan as the producer of the Kelani Jordan vs. Lainey Reid match on the show.
Baszler’s release came 11 months after she signed a new multi-year contract with WWE in June 2024. Assuming she has a standard 90-day no-compete clause, Baszler would not be eligible to perform elsewhere until August. Her last match took place at GCW Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport XIII at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas over WrestleMania week.
The 44-year-old debuted with WWE in the 2017 Mae Young Classic. She’s a former two-time NXT Women’s Champion and three-time WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion.
15 years hard work and true sacrifice to make it to WWE. Always gave it my 110% and put my whole passion and body into the artform of pro-wrestling. Thank you for all the support! love y‘all ✌🏾 pic.twitter.com/tlTgRdLceL
Multiple sources are reporting cuts are currently taking place both on the WWE main roster and NXT. Sean Ross Sapp is reporting that Dakota Kai, Shayna Baszler, Braun Strowman, Katana Chance, and Kayden Carter have all been released from their contracts. Bryan Alvarez has also confirmed these names.
For NXT, PWInsider has confirmed that Cora Jade, Jakara Jackson, and Eddy Thorpe have been released, while Sean Ross Sapp has confirmed Gigi Dolin and Riley Osborne. Alvarez believes there are at least 10 NXT releases.
Soon after word got out about the latest round of releases, Baszler, Kai, and Jade confirmed they were no longer with the company.
“No one can offer what I have to offer. Reality. Let the Galaxy burn,” Baszler wrote.
“Thankful for all the childhood dreams I got to live out! I have a lot to say in due time. Stay tuned,” Jade wrote.
No one can offer what I have to offer. Reality. Let the Galaxy burn.
News of cuts across WWE started on Thursday night when it was reported that several in corporate were let go including Christine Lubrano, the Senior Vice President of Creative Writing Operations. It was reported on Friday morning that Ryan Pappola, who was a former co-host of WWE’s talk show The Bump, was also let go.
NXT releases have a 30-day no compete clause while WWE main roster releases have a 90-day no compete.
