Is Serena Williams’ WWE Title An Indication Of Her Future In Wrestling?
Serena Williams’ WWE Championship belt may be a hint at her future away from the tennis court.
WWE awarded Serena Williams with a customized WWE Championship belt after she won her 23 Grand Slam singles title during last month’s Australian Open.
Serena won her No.23 title and is now just one short of Margaret Court’s record of 24 after defeating her sister Venus Williams 6-4, 6-4 in an emotional Australian Open final, the New York Times reported.
“I’ve been chasing it for a really long time,” Serena Williams said. “When it got on my radar, I knew I had an opportunity to get there, and I’m here. It’s a great feeling. No better place to do it than Melbourne.”
WWE congratulated Serena Williams on her achievements shortly after her victory. Triple H sent her a tweet that included an image of a customized Serena Williams WWE Championship belt.
The Serena Williams WWE Championship belt has side-plates which show all four major Grand Slam tournaments she has dominated during her 22-year long tennis career.
On Monday, Serena posted a picture of the WWE Championship belt on Reddit, the social media platform co-founded by her fiancé Alexis Ohanian.
Serena Williams is not the only athlete that WWE has gifted with a customized Championship belt. The wrestling company has made it a hallmark to award WWE Championship belts to athletes who excel in their various sport.
In 2016, several athletes and teams including the Chicago Cubs, Denver Broncos, and the New England Patriots were all awarded custom-made WWE Championship belts.
However, Serena Williams’ WWE Championship belt could also be an indication of her future appearance on WWE. Although it may seem far-fetched, Serena has shown some signs of retiring from tennis. And WWE has a long history of making sports stars and other celebrities appear on their network.
Serena Williams, who has played fewer matches since 2013, may slowly be retiring and health issues may be an influencing factor, according to Bleacher Reports.
“If I’m losing I’m going to figure out a way to win, so I can’t sit here and say that would be it…Health issues can be tough. I have been dealing with a lot of health issues since Wimbledon and that has been really frustrating. I told Venus (Williams) that it ruined my Olympics,” Serena said.
Serena Williams could make an appearance at WWE’s upcoming Wrestlemania 33 scheduled for April like Ronda Rousey did in 2015. But that is pure speculation at the moment as there has been no word from the tennis star or the wrestling company about this possibility. Perhaps, Serena’s WWE appearance would come at a later date.
Former UFC Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey appeared on a WWE stage. However, she did not fight. The MMA star appeared at Wrestlemania 31 along with wrestler and actor, the Rock.
There have been talks that Serena Williams’ WWE appearance could see the tennis great go against WWE women’s star Charlotte Flair, Morning News USA reported. Although it is unlikely that Serena and Charlotte are going to get into a physical fight, they may still be made to compete.
Serena Williams’ WWE appearance on Wrestlemania 33 will be one of the high points of the show if it does happen.
Late last year, Serena Williams took to social media to announce that she is engaged to 33-year-old Alexis. The 35-year-old tennis star used Reddit to announce her engagement with a story of how Alexis proposed.
According to TMZ, Alexis proposed to Serena during a trip to Rome, where the couple first met. Alexis reportedly popped the question to Serena after getting on one knee at the same table where they had their first conversation.
[Featured Image by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images]
