Adding Charlotte Flair to the RAW women's title match at WrestleMania is the right choice
Charlotte Flair's return to WWE is looming on the horizon, with fans expecting the multi-time women's champion to be added to the Raw title bout at WrestleMania 37. Since her ascension from NXT to the main roster, Flair has been a mainstay in the Raw and SmackDown title pictures, and some fans have thumbed their noses at the idea of Flair returning and immediately getting added to such a high profile match at WrestleMania 37.
However, I'm here to tell you why this is the proper and only rational choice.
When Charlotte Flair and Asuka were teaming as the WWE Women's Tag Team Champions, it was assumed that the two would split-up and face each other at WrestleMania 37. That was always the logical direction.
Instead, Flair was taken off of television and Rhea Ripley was brought up from NXT instead to become Asuka's challenger at WrestleMania. Fans were excited, as you'd expect. Asuka didn't even defend her title for several weeks, now she's been announced to do so against someone entirely new and exciting fter the division has felt stale and directionless for many months.
A main roster push for Ripley is something that fans have been clamoring for ever since her moment was botched last year during WrestleMania season. Ripley inexplicably lost to Flair at WrestleMania 37 when she was in the midst of the hottest run of her career. Ripley entered 2020 as arguably the biggest rising star in the promotion following her NXT Championship victory over Shayna Baszler in December 2019. Charlotte Flair ended that and Ripley ended up having to dig her way back to the top.
Following the loss, Triple H famously said on a conference call that the direction that Ripley's character was taken would make sense down the road. However, her feud with Charlotte was never followed-up on and we're still waiting for that decision to make sense. WrestleMania 37 is an opportunity at a course correction.
That's exactly why Charlotte Flair needs to be added to the Asuka vs. Rhea Ripley match at WrestleMania 37.
Everything about the match would lead you to believe that Ripley will walk out the champion at WrestleMania. After the ball was dropped last year, they can't possibly have Ripley lose. Right? And there's no better person to take the fall than Charlotte Flair, who would be returning the favor in Ripley's direction from last year.
Plus, let's not forget that Asuka has unfinished WrestleMania business with Charlotte as well. Charlotte ended Asuka's undefeated streak at WrestleMania 34 back in 2018, a shocking result at the time and one that many took issue with.
The reigning Raw Women's Champion could bring up that history with Charlotte if she is added to the bout, in addition to their recent tag team success and subsequent split. Asuka is out for WrestleMania revenge. Again, Flair's addition to the match is entirely logical.
While it's understandable that some fans are burned out of Flair's constant presence in WrestleMania championship matches (there was a lot of criticism when she was added to the Becky Lynch vs. Ronda Rousey match in 2019), the fact remains that she's the most successful performer in the division. This means that Ripley can gain a lot by defeating her at WrestleMania. It would mean more than beating Asuka at this point and go a long way toward righting the wrongs from one year ago.
While Charlotte Flair is still at the top of her game, she's been on top of the women's division for many years now. Flair came up to the main roster in the summer of 2015, close to six years ago. Since that time, she's been a fixture of the title picture. Historically speaking, the length of time she has spent in the world title picture is longer than many of the biggest names in WWE history.
Starting with the years that they first won the title, Flair's run at the top is longer than Bret Hart (1992-1997), Shawn Michaels (1996-1998, 2002), and Randy Savage (1988-1992). When Hulk Hogan lost the world title to the Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania VI, he was six years into his reign atop the company (1984-1990). WWE planned at the time to transition toward Warrior as the top star (though it didn't work out that way).
Charlotte Flair can and should continue to compete for world championships, but she's at a stage in her career where she should also be transitioning into putting over the next generation of women's stars. She's still at a level where taking the fall for a rising star means a lot. That should start with Rhea Ripley at WrestleMania 37. In order to do so, Flair needs to be added to the match. And, most importantly, she needs to be the one who takes the fall.
Now, if Charlotte Flair walks out the Raw Women's Champion somehow in just over one week at WrestleMania, then this becomes a different conversation entirely. That should not happen, and one would think, won't happen. At least not if logic and an eye toward the future has anything to do with it.