Before They Were WWE Superstars: The Four Horsewomen at SummerSlam 2014

Long before Ronda Rousey was RAW Women’s Champion, Shayna Baszler was NXT Women’s Champion, and Marina Sharif and Jessamyn Duke had reported to the WWE Performance Center, all four friends were just members of the WWE Universe watching from the crowd.

In 2014, Ronda and her fellow Four Horsewomen decided to attend SummerSlam and catch a glimpse at what WWE life was like both inside the ring and behind the curtain. As you can see above, Ronda showed up to the event wearing a “Rowdy” Roddy Piper t-shirt, while the other Horsewomen opted for matching “I’m a Paul Heyman Girl” shirts.

While making the rounds backstage and meeting WWE Superstars at Staples Center, Ronda talked to WWE.com about what brought her and her crew to SummerSlam:

“I’m a huge fan and this is the one day of the year I happen to be able to go walk around and meet people,” she said. “[I’ve been a fan] ever since I was a little kid, but more so within the last year or so. It’s become our house activity to sit down and watch wrestling. It’s been such a crazy year with all the fights and the movies. It’s really rare for us all to have time to go do something together.”

At the time, seeing Ronda inside of a WWE ring was a dream for many pro wrestling fans, and few could’ve guessed that she’d be where she is today. But even in 2014, Ronda was open to a future in the WWE and didn’t rule out the possibility of pursuing a career in sports entertainment:

“You never know. I have a lot of crazy opportunities on my plate right now,” she told WWE.com. “I’m going to try to do as many as possible at the right time or at the best time. Tonight, I’m just here as a fan.”

From fans to champions (and champions-in-training) in just four years…