It's Going To Hurt, But This Is Why WWE Needs Charlotte Flair To Win

There are many different ways of playing the villain in the WWE landscape, and one of the most popular has always been the fancy living, "born with a silver spoon" stereotype. A famous surname means you get a fast ride to the top, but that becomes an oppressive weight if you're not up to the challenge of living up to that name. And that's without considering the heightened expectations that come with being a legacy star.

There was an ominous certainty about Charlotte Flair coming back to win the Royal Rumble from the second she entered her name into the match. It instantly annoyed the wrestling community, largely because they can see what's on the way (and that's a lot of Charlotte having her hand raised). Ric Flair hung his hat on the phrase "you don't have to like it, but you're going to learn to love it", and his daughter is a living embodiment of that at the minute. In fact, I'm convinced she's going to ram that further down people's throats than ever before.

And yes, this may be a bumpy ride, and it may not be wildly popular, but there are more upsides to her booking than immediately meets the eye. And Charlotte Flair is a once in a generation performer who can overcome these challenges and more, whether you like it or not.

Charlotte Flair's 2025 Return Sets Up Her Year

After the Royal Rumbledebut of Jordynne Grace and a slew of NXT's great women took their shot by joining the likes of Liv Morgan, Iyo Sky, and Nia Jax, it is widely accepted that this year's women's Rumble match was an exciting look at WWE's bright future. During a promo on this week's episode of SmackDown however, Charlotte Flair described her 2025 Royal Rumble opponents as "29 unserious women", and pointed out that "there was no way (she) was going over the top rope". As the bell rang and Charlotte stood tall in Indianapolis, everyone watching along also knew that to be true too.

The key in all of this is to listen when Charlotte Flair speaks. She is not telling the viewer that she is the greatest woman to ever wrestle, she has her sights set even higher. Right now, it feels like Charlotte Flair is aiming for the legacies of Hulk Hogan and Roman Reigns. Watch her SmackDown entrance, as a WWE crew member is caught clear as day on camera opening the ropes for her. That is deliberate. Charlotte is going to be booked and treated as a superior, and that is going to mean Flair is likely to monster every woman she comes into contact with this year.

Charlotte's Booking Is Bigger Than Wrestling

The Women's Division Will Benefit From Charlotte's Dominance

One of the few valid criticisms of the new WWE is that they are yet to address their storytelling in the women's division. The performers and their characters are all on-point, but there is a deep knot that the likes of Paul Levesque are still undoing. This is a WWE landscape where the wrestling talents of women were overlooked by Vince McMahon for decades, and where too many female superstars have been considered somehow perversely taboo through one man's depressingly bleak and out of touch outlook. Things can and will change, and now it's about WWE delivering on that, and how they can.

If the WWE wants to be seen as a better place for women to come and work, where they can create a body of work comparable in legacy to any man on the roster, the women's division needs its golden goose. Roman Reigns held the WWE title forever, and it was infuriating at times, but the WWE Championship is white-hot and can stay that way forever because of that championship reign. The women's division needs its Thanos, and every woman chasing her will benefit from "will they be the superstar to stop The Big Bad?" stories and moments. Charlotte Flair is the only choice for that role.

Why Charlotte Flair Is Vital To WWE's Future, No Matter How Much She's Booed

TKO's Business Blueprint Understands Charlotte's Necessary Domination

Screenshot-Charlotte-Flair-press-conference

The UFC is a fascinating landscape to behold. It can be difficult to explain to folks that the violent world of MMA is one of the few places where women regularly headline events with male athletes on the card. It is a positive sea change in sports, dovetailed by more fellow US success stories from the likes of A'ja Wilson and Caitlin Clark in the WNBA and the USWNT. The UFC's second most popular exponent is Ronda Rousey, and while that experiment largely failed for WWE, the merger of UFC and WWE will mean TKO demand better for women.

The WWE is a family-friendly product that is finally in the hands of people who seem to care about their audience, and how welcoming their shows are to the full kaleidoscope of human existence. There is a long way to go, but everyone watching at home wants a WWE where women headline WrestleMania and the other banner shows on a regular basis.

For that to happen, the WWE Women's Championship needs to be given the prestige of the men's belt. A stronger women's title scene will help all of this, because even this move around Charlotte is about the village and not its leader, but every great story still needs its villain. Simply put, the boos that rain upon Charlotte will fuel the whole women's division.