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The two women who had the most hype around them coming out of WrestleMania last year were undoubtedly Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey. Both women were involved in arguably the two best matches on the entire card with Flair finally breaking Asuka’s undefeated streak by tapping her out and Rousey handing over what’s widely considered to be one of the greatest debut performances of all time.
And with that, rumours involving the two possibly colliding in the main event of WrestleMania 35 begun rapidly circulating the wrestling world. All signs pointed to Flair and Rousey closing out WrestleMania as well, considering how adamantly WWE started pushing its women’s division with PPV main events, gimmick matches and extended TV time.
It made all the sense as well. WWE wanted to promote its women’s division, and Rousey had to be the front runner in it due to her mainstream star power, and they chose Flair because of how she’s been positioned as the face of WWE’s women’s division ever since making the jump from development to the main roster.
However on a fateful night on RAW, everything changed. Becky Lynch - who had not-so-subtly been building momentum for herself post her supposed heel turn at Summerslam in August 2018 - invaded RAW, ambushed the female talent and single-handedly (in quite literal terms) became the biggest star in the company.
A single botched punch by Nia Jax became the catalyst for the mega-stardom Lynch enjoys today. Her Survivor Series match against The Baddest Woman on the Planet - which was quite evidently planned to work as a preliminary stop for Rousey before she goes on to challenge Flair at WrestleMania - had to be shelved due to the injuries Lynch sustained taking that punch.
What WWE had not planned however was how big the supposed "preliminary" match between Rousey and Lynch would become. Thanks in large part to The Man shtick Lynch had latched on to, the match was undoubtedly the most anticipated on the card and arguably on the verge of main eventing Survivor Series PPV before the incident on RAW happened.
In a sudden turn of events, fans witnessed Lynch step down from her spot in the match only for Flair to take it in the match against Rousey, bringing forward the long rumoured WrestleMania main event and giving room for speculation that it may be Lynch who will now end up in Flair's spot at WrestleMania, given her unprecedented popularity.
Fast forward a few months, while Lynch has only seen her star risen by the day, the more we get close to The Show of Shows, it appears as though WWE may very well opt to book a three way involving all the aforementioned competitors in the main event of WrestleMania.
Flair was not decisively defeated by Rousey at Survivor Series, leaving room for continuation of their program, and both Lynch and Flair were costed the win at TLC PPV by Rousey. Even on social media, this all looks to be building towards a Triple Threat match at Mania.
This is an idea WWE will need to drop if it wants to succeed in making its women's division stand out, and here are the reasons why.
#2 Lynch vs. Rousey Is The Money Feud
While three-way feuds have their distinct advantages, like fast-paced in-ring action, more characters to work with and less reliance on two names to carry the feud, Lynch vs. Rousey is the last program that needs any support from a third person.
The Man and The Baddest Woman on the Planet have managed to create one of the biggest women's feuds in wrestling history without ever officially stepping in the ring together. Their cancelled match, which was already one of the most anticipated WWE bouts in recent years, got even bigger with time, with both women doing all they can to take shots at each other in promos, interviews, social media and what not.
Fans are clamouring for the two to collide in a one-on-one setting to finally see who is the biggest star in the company. If anything, adding a third person to the mix in their first ever encounter only takes away from the impact of the bout.
Besides, this is the same company which did not let CM Punk be a part of their Cena vs. Rock main event at WrestleMania 29 for the same reasons.
#1 Charlotte Pales In Comparison
Sure, she has been the front and center of the women's division in WWE for the past four years, and yes, if there's one woman the company can depend on to perform big time on a grand stage, it's Charlotte. With all that said, the truth is that the hype around her today does not even come close to what Lynch and Rousey have going for them individually.
It was the aftermath of Flair's Survivor Series match against Rousey that WWE started giving her character a similar edge that Lynch had excelled in, and they did succeed to some extent as well, but then Lynch returned and blatantly called Flair out on being a cheap ripoff of hers.
It was hard for fans to argue against Lynch's remarks since they could see right through WWE's efforts in making Charlotte come across as a dangerous, no-nonsense tweener, much like Lynch.
The company however, failed to realize that it wasn't her persona that alone got Lynch over with the fans to superhuman levels, but her underdog story that had spanned over four years on the main roster.
Fans roared in support for Lynch and Charlotte sadly ended up becoming a casualty in their extended feud with fans booing The Queen out of each arena on a regular basis. Simply put, with Rousey locked to main event WrestleMania due to her star power outside of the wrestling world, Lynch is the only person fans want to see on the other side of the squared circle staring at The Baddest Woman on the Planet before the bell rings.
Adding Charlotte to the mix screams WWE's lack of confidence, firstly in the talent involved to produce something special when it matters most, and secondly in themselves for booking women to main event WrestleMania ever again.
If the idea is to have their biggest pet project - Charlotte, be a part of possibly the only women's main event, then the management has it all fundamentally wrong - as Becky mentioned in a recent interview on WWE Now that she wants to main event every WrestleMania after this.
