"The greatest female match I've ever seen" – Charlotte Flair vs. Rhea Ripley receives huge praise from WWE veteran
Rhea Ripley's match against Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 39 was well received by most wrestling fans and legends, including former WWE personality Dutch Mantell.
Ripley defeated Flair on the first night of WrestleMania 39 to capture the SmackDown Women's Championship. The 23-minute bout was widely viewed as one of the best from the two-night event.
Mantell, fka Zeb Colter in WWE, discussed the impressive match on his Story Time with Dutch Mantell podcast:
"Going into the match, I didn't have high expectations for it, but they surprised me, and at the end I had to admit that was hands down the greatest female match, or ladies match, I've ever seen. They picked the right stage to do it on, and it was the right time to switch the belt from Charlotte to Rhea." [1:25 – 1:50]
Flair vs. Ripley was positioned sixth on the eight-match card. Many expected the SmackDown Women's Championship encounter to headline WrestleMania Saturday. However, that honor went to The Usos vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn instead.
Dutch Mantell compares Rhea Ripley to Gunther and Roman Reigns
Although she occasionally receives positive reactions from fans, Rhea Ripley is still presented as a top heel alongside Dominik Mysterio and The Judgment Day.
We have a NEW #SmackDown Women's Champion at #WrestleMania!
Congratulations to @RheaRipley_WWE! https://t.co/Mr0udhoYJP
Mantell believes WWE should build events around the main villains in the company:
"Roman is hot, Gunther is hot, Rhea and Dominik's hot. If you've got three hot heels like that, you don't need anybody else. That's your card. If you go into a town with six matches, they'll be in three or four." [3:58 – 4:18]
In a separate interview with Sportskeeda Wrestling, Mantell also gave his thoughts on why Cody Rhodes vs. Roman Reigns might take place again.
Do you think Charlotte Flair vs. Rhea Ripley was the greatest women's match of all time? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Please credit Story Time with Dutch Mantell and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.