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2018 has been a pivotal year for women's wrestling in WWE. Three years after the women's revolution officially began in summer 2015, 2018 has taken the female division to new heights, never seen before in the company.
Following the #GiveDivasAChance movement on Twitter which began when WWE contracted talent, AJ Lee called WWE Head Writer, Stephanie McMahon out on Twitter when McMahon had voiced her approval for Patricia Arquette who had spoken out at The Oscars ceremony about female actors not receiving the same opportunities and pay as their male counterparts.
January 2018 saw the first ever women's Royal Rumble match taking place. In the main event slot, the first ever female Royal Rumble was an unmitigated success and saw the then-unbeaten Asuka take the crown.
In October, the world saw the first ever WWE all female pay per view, Evolution taking place. The event featured perhaps the greatest ever women's match ever contested on main roster WWE television in the Last Woman Standing encounter between Smackdown Women's Champion, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair.
That event was yet again a massive success. Such is the popularity of female wrestling in 2018 that the WWE universe can expect to see many more firsts for the ladies of wrestling in 2019.
The women's revolution has gathered extreme pace and now the female performers in the company are viewed on a par with their male counterparts, routinely main eventing shows and featuring in lots of high rated segments on television.
2018 has been a particularly good year for several of WWE's women who have taken the brass ring and smashed through the glass ceiling to huge success.
In the following slideshow, SK looks at five women who have been the standout performers in the female division in 2018.
#5 Alexa Bliss
Alexa Bliss began 2018 as the Raw Women's Champion; a title she would hold on to until WrestleMania when her reign was terminated by Nia Jax.
Bliss did not stay out of the limelight for long however and soon regained the belt from Jax at July's Money in the Bank pay per view.
Early in the show, Bliss won the Money in the Bank ladder match to win a future title opportunity and cashed in her contract at the earliest opportunity to regain the strap when she interrupted the Nia Jax versus Ronda Rousey Championship match.
Bliss would lose the belt to Rousey at Summerslam and in a rematch at Hell in a Cell but has remained a relevant part of WWE television with her hugely entertaining "A Moment of Bliss" talking head segments and continues to be a focal part of the Raw brand.
#4 Nia Jax
2018 has been the best year of Nia Jax's WWE career.
She began the year eliminating four women from the inaugural women's Royal Rumble match before being eliminated from the contest by six women.
In March, Jax turned face after she finally snapped after weeks of abuse from Alexa Bliss and turned on her friend and challenged her for the Raw Women's Championship at Wrestlemania 34.
Jax was successful in her title match with Bliss and won her first Women's Championship in WWE. She held on to that belt until July, when she dropped back to an opportunistic Bliss who cashed in her Money in the Bank contract versus Jax's title defence versus Ronda Rousey.
Jax missed several weeks of action due to injury before returning to action in September to plant the seeds for a feud with Ember Moon. Escalating hostilities, Jax ejected Moon to win the Women's Battle Royal at Evolution in which she also earned a future Championship opportunity.
Jax's stellar 2018 is set to continue.
#3 Charlotte Flair
Charlotte Flair has been the most successful female performer in WWE ever since she was called up to the main roster in July 2015 and began 2018 as the Smackdown Women's Champion.
She defended that title successfully versus Ruby Riott at Fastlane before shocking the world at Wrestlemania 34 when she ended Asuka's three-year undefeated streak to retain her title once more.
Her reign would last just two more nights, however. After an assault by the debuting IIconics team of Billie Kay and Peyton Royce, Carmella cashed in her Money in the Bank contract to become the new Champion.
Soon after, Flair took a hiatus before returning in time for Summerslam where she became Champion for the sixth time.
Flair's title reign would last a month before she lost to friend turned foe, Becky Lynch at Hell in a Cell, however, her unsuccessful title shot at Evolution was the finest Women's match of all time.
Flair is still one of the premier performers in the company and her 2018, while not one of her best has still been a successful calendar year thus far.
#2 Becky Lynch
After an entirely forgettable 2017, Becky Lynch entered 2018 with so little momentum that there wasn't a gauge on which it could be measured. Fast-forward 10 months however and Lynch is the hottest act in the female division if not the entire WWE roster.
Lynch thought she had earned a one on one contest with then Smackdown Women's Champion Carmella at Summerslam only for her good friend, Charlotte Flair to be inserted into the contest when she defeated Carmella in a non-title match on Smackdown.
Flair then won the strap at Summerslam causing Lynch to snap and beat up her now former best friend. Lynch would go on to defeat Flair for the title in an excellent match at Hell in a Cell and then contested the greatest main roster women's match in WWE history opposite Flair again at Evolution under Last Woman Standing rules.
Lynch's new dynamic heel persona is so powerful and entertaining that the fans refuse to boo her.
Lynch is now referring to herself as "The Man" in reference to Ric Flair. It is hard to argue with her.
#1 Ronda Rousey
Ronda Rousey debuted in WWE as a contracted performer at the conclusion of January's Royal Rumble pay per view event. The "Rowdy One" hasn't looked back from there.
She entered one of the finest in-ring debut performances ever at Wrestlemania 34, partnering with Kurt Angle opposite Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. Her dynamic, crisp performance captured the imagination of the WWE Universe.
She captured her first WWE gold at Summerslam, upending Alexa Bliss in dominant fashion to win the Raw Women's Championship. Rousey successfully defended the strap in a rematch at Hell in a Cell.
In her biggest test to date, Rousey faced and beat long retired Nikki Bella in the main event of WWE's first ever all-female pay per view.
Rousey is set to compete in a mouth-watering clash with Becky Lynch at Survivor Series and has upcoming clashes with Nia Jax and Natalya scheduled and possibly a Wrestlemania main event with Charlotte Flair in April 2019.
There is every chance that 2019 could surpass an excellent 2018 for the former UFC superstar.
