15 Must-Watch Charlotte Flair Matches, According to the Wrestling Classic

NXT Women's Championship

Charlotte Flair vs. Sasha Banks (C) - NXT 03/04/15

Divas Championship

Charlotte Flair  vs. Nikki Bella (C) - Night of Champions 09/20/15

Raw Women's Championship

Charlotte Flair (C) vs. Sasha Banks - RAW 07/25/16

Raw Women's Championship

Charlotte Flair (C) vs. Sasha Banks vs. Bayley - Clash of Champions 09/25/16

30 Minute Iron Woman Match - Raw Women's Championship

Charlotte Flair vs. Sasha Banks (C) - Roadblock 12/18/16

Raw Women's Championship

Charlotte Flair (C) vs. Bayley - Royal Rumble 01/29/17

Singles Match

Charlotte Flair vs. Alexa Bliss - Survivor Series 11/19/17

Triple Threat - Smackdown Women's Championship 

Charlotte Flair vs. Carmella (C) vs. Becky Lynch - Summerslam 08/19/18

Triple Threat

Charlotte Flair vs. Sasha Banks vs. Rhea Rhipley - Smackdown 11/22/19

Singles Match

Charlotte Flair vs. Bianca Belair - NXT 02/26/20

NXT Women's Championship

NXT Takeover: In Your House - 06/07/20

It was the return of the "In Your House" event on the NXT brand. Charlotte Flair was defending the NXT Women's Championship against Rhea Ripley and Io Shirai in an anticipated triple threat match. It was a seasoned WWE/NXT veteran facing off against two of NXT's hottest young stars. Flair was positioned to play her role as the bar of WWE's women's division. Charlotte Flair had beaten Rhea Ripley to win the NXT Women's Championship for a second time earlier in the year at Wrestlemania. This match featured Rhea trying to redeem herself for that loss while Io Shirai was trying to win that championship for the first time.

This was a great match with a ton of great spots, such as Shirai's dive off the top of the house which was part of the entrance set. The match even felt like a brawl at times with weapons like kendo sticks being used. There were believable near falls and it legit felt like any woman could win at any time. Io picked up the victory and the NXT Women's Championship by pinning Rhea following a Moonsault on her simultaneously with Charlotte having Rhea in the Figure Eight submission. It was the last time we would see Charlotte in NXT for now. That being said, I'm still waiting for the Shirai versus Flair singles match that we never got.

Raw Women's Championship

RAW - 02/13/17

Charlotte spent most of the second half of 2016 feuding with Sasha Banks, but when 2017 came around, another one of the Four Horsewomen became a thorn in her side. It was none other than Sasha Banks' best friend Bayley. The Hugger had been trying to challenge Charlotte for the championship since her main roster debut. Bayley unsuccessfully challenged for the championship at Clash of Champions and at the Royal Rumble. Charlotte had no interest in giving Bayley another championship title shot, but Bayley earned another one after pinning "The Queen" in a six-person tag match. The two would have their championship match in the main event of Raw. The live crowd was there for this match and strongly behind Bayley, but a confident Charlotte Flair brought the fight to Bayley. There were a ton of near falls and Bayley wouldn't give up. Charlotte's protege and one of Bayley's old rivals, Dana Brooke, made her presence known by interfering on Charlotte's behalf. This eventually brought Sasha Banks out to even the odds, thus helping Bayley win the championship from Charlotte Flair, but using one of her crutches. The atmosphere for this match made it because of the hot crowd that was immensely invested.

NXT Women's Championship

NXT Takeover R Evolution - 12/11/14

There was instant chemistry from the first moment Charlotte Flair and Sasha Banks touched. They were friends in real life, but the competitiveness between the two was real. Sasha felt like she had to prove herself because she didn't have the advantage of her last name being Flair while Charlotte has consistently been on the path of proving that she is more than just her last name. These two were previously partners and friends in a group called BFFs.

However, after Charlotte won the Women's Championship and started showing empathy towards Bayley, Sasha Banks wasn't having any of it. This was during the time when wrestling fans began noticing that the presentation of women's wrestling on NXT was night and day compared to the main roster. It was big matches such as this that showcased that dynamic. Charlotte was the defending champion while Sasha played her role as an entitled and arrogant challenger. The match was just a taste of what we would get from these two in the future as they worked really hard to try to steal the show. This was a back and forth match where both women shined, even though Charlotte picked up the victory. It was matches such as this one that were pivotal to the women's revolution.

NXT Women's Championship

Wrestlemania 36 - 04/05/20

Charlotte Flair had won the 2020 Royal Rumble, which meant she was entitled to a Women's Championship match at Wrestlemania. The two reigning champions were superstars that Charlotte had crossed paths with in the past time and time again. Becky Lynch was the Raw Women's Champion and Bayley was the Smackdown Women's Champion. Charlotte was looking for new challenges and something fresh to sink her teeth into. It was just then that Rhea Ripley made a surprise appearance on Raw to make the suggestion that the Queen should use her opportunity to challenge her for the NXT Women's Championship. This had never been done before, which was appealing to Charlotte and Rhea, who would get to defend her championship against an established megastar at Wrestlemania. It was a win-win situation.

The match was awesome as these two women were more similar in size, taking away Charlotte's regular size advantage in most matches. There were a lot of shocking near falls, aggressiveness, and a ton of trash-talking—moreso from Flair. In the end, Charlotte won after making Rhea tap to the Figure Eight which made sense due to Flair working on Rhea's left leg for a strong portion of the match. Considering where you stand with Charlotte Flair, this decision was shocking. Personally, I'm just waiting for the long-overdue singles rematch between the two in front of some sort of audience because I believe this was just part one of a bigger story.

NXT Women's Championship

NXT Takeover Rival - 02/11/15

This was the only time we actually saw the Four Horsewomen of the Women's Revolution all go at it in a Fatal Four Way. To be honest, I'm glad it happened at an NXT Takeover, because it's where all four women really cut their teeth to become the superstars they are today. It's also fitting that four of the most important pillars of the women's revolution had their first match against each other for the championship title, as you really believed any one of them could walk out as champion. Bayley was the ultimate underdog that the fans wanted to see overcome the odds. Becky Lynch had recently ended her alliance with Sasha Banks after some competitive tension arose between the two and felt like she deserved a title shot. Sasha Banks was entitled and determined to prove why she was the best by any means necessary. Charlotte Flair walked in the reigning and defending Women's Champion with a huge target on her back and had her own unique history with Banks, Becky and Bayley. All four women brought their A-Game to this match.

In the end, it was Sasha Banks stealing the momentum from Bayley to pin Charlotte Flair by transitioning from a Bank Statement into a crucifix pin. Definitely check out this match if you have never seen it. It shows all four women exceeding expectations, and also serves as a nice reminder of how far they have come now as talents. I definitely hope we get another Fatal Four-Way between the Four Horsewomen soon again.

Summerslam - 08/11/19

This was one of those matches that we never thought we were going to see, but when the rumors started swirling that it was going to happen, we got excited. Trish Stratus is a legend in the wrestling business who made her mark in the 2000s. Stratus is a seven-time Women's Champion and WWE Hall of Famer. Trish Stratus retired in late 2006 to pursue other things but made random returns throughout the years. Stratus would make sporadic returns to the ring or make random appearances for the years to follow.

In 2018, Stratus entered the inaugural women's Royal Rumble at number 30 and we got to see Trish go toe to toe with a few of today's popular women's wrestlers, such as Sasha Banks. The dream match scenarios started playing out in our heads from this point forward. Trish made more in-ring appearances later in the year at Evolution and the following Raw but we weren't sure when we were going to see her again.

In late July 2019, Trish Stratus returned as a special guest for Jerry Lawler's "King's Court" segment and was confronted by a returning Charlotte Flair. Charlotte was calling herself the greatest female superstar of all time and challenged Trish Stratus to a match at Summerslam, which Stratus accepted. The match was awesome, with Trish getting a lot of her signature offense in while looking tremendous doing so with her hometown crowd strongly behind her. Charlotte played the more tactical and smart heel here. They told a great story with near falls, but in the end, Charlotte picked up the victory, making Trish tap out to the Figure Eight. Trish passed the torch to Charlotte in what she is calling her retirement match, but a lot of us hope to see Trish in action again.

WWE Raw Women's Championship

RAW - 11/28/16

It is one of the most memorable women's feuds of the last decade. As I mentioned before, these two had amazing chemistry with one another, and their feud in 2016 during the new era of Raw proved that to be even more true. The Raw Women's Championship changed hands between the two six times. Every other match was history-making in its own way, and this one was too by being the first-ever women's Falls Count Anywhere Match to main event Monday Night Raw. As the feud carried on, it continued to get more personal and aggressive between the two. The two had just beat the hell out of each other in a Hell in a Cell match, so the next match couldn't just go back to being a regular singles match. Instead, it was booked to be a Falls Count Anywhere match. These two women wrestled all around the arena with it feeling like either one of them could win at any point. Charlotte hit a moonsault off of the announcers' table to awe the crowd.

They eventually brawled into the crowd where Banks locked in a Bank Statement on Charlotte in a position that had Charlotte locked in the metal guard rail, causing more pain than Charlotte could take, forcing her to quit. Flair had turned on her father earlier in the year in May, and they were in Charlotte, North Carolina for this Raw, which is considered "Flair Country,'' so it was truly a slap in Charlotte's face when Ric came out to congratulate Sasha Banks by raising her hand in victory. This was an awesome match; check it out.

Raw & Smackdown Women's Championship

Wrestlemania 35 - 04/07/19

This match will always be historic as it was the first time that women's wrestling was the main event of the grandest stage of them all, Wrestlemania. Wrestlemania is the Super Bowl of professional wrestling, and it has never had the women's main event in its 35-year history. Women's wrestling has increasingly been getting more popular over the past 20 years and has been going through a revolution for the last decade, so it was inevitable to happen. Additionally, the women involved in the match were all necessary to make it happen. Charlotte Flair is one of the most decorated, dominant, and successful superstars in the division. Becky Lynch was on the run of her career with this newfound confidence, personality, and gimmick of being "The Man." Ronda Rousey is one of the biggest globally known names due to her MMA career and everything she stood for when it came to women's empowerment by becoming a star in a male-dominated industry proving that women could draw in mixed martial arts just as much as the men. It was the perfect storm to have all three involved with each other for this historic match. Becky Lynch won the Royal Rumble to challenge the Raw Women's Champion Ronda Rousey. The authority replaced Becky with Charlotte when they suspended Becky for being volatile towards them. Becky was eventually reinstated, and the match was made into a triple threat match. Charlotte won the Smackdown Women's Championship from Asuka to make the match a winner takes all match. Charlotte had this grand entrance with a helicopter and all. The match was a solid triple threat with nonstop action, with all three women looking strong. Becky Lynch won with a controversial pin on Ronda Rousey, but it still doesn't take away from this match's significance.

Smackdown Women's Championship

TLC - 12/16/18

Charlotte has had the privilege to wrestle in a lot of first-ever matches and that included the first-ever women's TLC match against Becky Lynch and Asuka. It was also the first time the Smackdown Women's Championship was defended in the main event of a PPV. Becky Lynch and Charlotte were two former best friends that had been entangled in a rivalry since Summerslam. During that time, Becky Lynch had defeated Charlotte Flair for the Women's Championship at Hell in a Cell and defended it against her successfully a handful of times following that. The two seemed to have been on the same page again when Becky Lynch chose Charlotte Flair to replace her in the brand supremacy champion versus champion Survivors Series match against Raw Women's Champion Ronda Rousey. Lynch had suffered a concussion and had her nose broken when the Smackdown superstars invaded Raw. However, following Survivor Series, that was not the case and Smackdown General Manager Paige announced it would be Charlotte versus Becky Lynch at TLC for the Smackdown Women's Championship in a TLC match. This didn't sit well with the other women superstars on Smackdown who claimed they were sick of Charlotte getting all the opportunities against Becky Lynch. This led to a battle royal which Asuka ended up winning thus inserting her as the third competitor in the match.

The match was incredible. These women went all out and took wild risks to come up with creative spots to prove that the women could deliver in a tables, ladders, and chairs match. Ronda Rousey interfered, knocking both Charlotte and Becky off a ladder, allowing Asuka to capitalize and win her first Smackdown Women's Championship. All three women took some major bumps and delivered a great first-time-ever match.

Survivor Series - 11/18/18

I personally credit Ronda Rousey as one of the major influences on the WWE having a Women's Revolution due to her impact outside of wrestling. Therefore when she made her debut after the inaugural women's Royal Rumble match, it was a big deal. For the first time, WWE's biggest mainstream star was a woman. Ronda went on to dominate the Raw women's division in 2018. Ronda Rousey was unstoppable and became the Raw Women's Champion by SummerSlam.

When Survivor Series came around, it was time for the brand warfare between the rosters of Raw and Smackdown. It became a Survivor Series tradition that the major champions would face off against each other. Therefore, the Raw Women's Champion and the Smackdown Women's Champion would go to battle. It was originally supposed to be Smackdown Women's Champion Becky Lynch facing off against Ronda Rousey but Becky Lynch was injured by Nia Jax during a segment where the Smackdown superstars invaded Raw. Becky chose Charlotte Flair to replace her and we were set to have a match between two of WWE's most dominant women. I recall thinking Charlotte versus Ronda Rousey was a Wrestlemania 35-worthy encounter but we were getting it early due to the circumstances. This was Rousey's best match in the company up to this point and it wasn't a surprise since it was against Charlotte Flair. This match had a big fight feel even though the fans were still hoping to see Becky Lynch make an appearance which didn't happen. These two treated this more like a fight rather than a wrestling match and it was intense from bell to bell. The story of the match was that Charlotte Flair was frustrated that she couldn't find a way to beat Ronda so she caused a DQ finish by wailing Rousey with a kendo stick. Charlotte continued to use kendo sticks and a chair from ringside to brutalize Rousey after the match as we had never seen before. The fans were strongly behind Flair's actions too, which was surprising.

Raw Women's Championship

Hell in a Cell - 10/30/16

There are so many reasons this match will go down in history as a significant encounter for the Women's Revolution. It was the first time the women were the main event of a main roster PPV, the Women's Championship was the main event of a PPV and it was the first-ever time the women entered the Hell in a Cell. Of course, the two women involved in this match were none other than Sasha Banks and Charlotte Flair. These two had a competitive feud throughout 2016 and every match was bigger than the last when it came to stipulations.

Therefore, it was inevitable when Hell in a Cell was coming around that these two were destined for the devil's structure. Sasha Banks had won the championship back on an episode of Raw after losing the title to Charlotte at SummerSlam. Charlotte was entitled to a rematch for the opportunity to regain the championship. Sasha Banks went on to challenge Charlotte Flair to a Hell in a Cell match and General Manager Mick Foley confirmed it. The fans were strongly behind Sasha Banks as this was taking place in her hometown. However, The Queen was not going to let this phase her.

Before the match could even start, the women brawled outside the cell, where Charlotte power bombed Sasha Banks through a table off the side of the cell. It also seemed as if the match was over before it started, but the Legit Boss would not stay down without a fight. These women used the cell and various weapons to set the vibe to prove that the women could successfully have a Hell in a Cell match. This match was really good and set the bar for what every women's Hell in a Cell had to be or exceed moving forward. Charlotte Flair walked out victorious after a Natural Selection, but both women are cemented in history for this match.

NXT Women's Championship

NXT Takeover - 05/29/14

This was the match that made me believe in Charlotte Flair. The match was the finals of the NXT Women's Championship tournament for the vacated title. Both second-generation superstars in Charlotte Flair and Natalya made it to the finals. Natalya, at this point, was already a seasoned veteran, whereas Charlotte was finding her stride. It was one of the earlier Charlotte Flair matches I remember watching and the one where she captured my attention as a fan. Although she wasn't as confident as a wrestler or as a character yet, she showcased her potential to be a future top star of the women's division. This was the inaugural NXT Takeover special for the WWE Network, so to increase the appeal, they had a couple of legends appear for this match. Natalya's uncle Bret "The Hitman" Hart appeared to be in her corner while Charlotte's father "Nature Boy" Ric Flair was set to be in his daughter's corner. The pre-match promos really played up the history between the two families, which gave this match an even bigger feeling. These two put on a technical wrestling match, telling a great story. Natalya sold the knee while Charlotte played into her heel role by doing things such as taunting Bret Hart while trying to beat Natalya with a sharpshooter. Charlotte picked up the victory after the Natural Selection. Bret and Flair showed some respect for each other after the match. It was also cool that Ric got to celebrate with his daughter during her first breakthrough achievement. It was the first of many we'd soon find out.

Smackdown's Women's Championship

Evolution - 03/28/18

It's a feud between two real-life friends who became enemies for the sake of competition to be the best. Becky Lynch was on a winning streak that led to her being the number one contender for the Smackdown Women's Championship. Charlotte made her return to Smackdown, saving Lynch from an attack by Carmella. Charlotte then defeated Carmella to get herself inserted in the Women's Championship match, thus making it a triple threat. This was where the tension began between the two because Becky felt like Charlotte was interfering with her opportunity, but they remained cordial. At Summerslam, Charlotte Flair won the championship after hitting a Natural Selection on Becky Lynch while she had Carmella close to tapping out in a Disarmher. This infuriated Becky Lynch, who turned heel attacking Charlotte Flair after the match. The only issue with this attempted heel turn was that the fans remained on Lynch's side, making her the ultimate anti-hero. The two wrestled at the following Hell in a Cell PPV, where Becky Lynch was able to defeat Flair for the women's championship. They had two more matches following Hell in a Cell that ended in DQ or double count-out, so the solution was the Last Woman Standing match to settle the score. This would be another history-making match as it was the first-ever Last Woman Standing Match on the first-ever and only all-women's PPV event, Evolution. This was an absolute slobber-knocker - these women went all out by beating the heck out of each other to try to keep their opponent down for a ten count. There were weapons galore and a ton of unforgettable high spots involving a ladder. In the end, it was a powerbomb through a table from the middle rope to the floor on Charlotte Flair that allowed Becky Lynch to retain the championship. This felt like a fight, and I personally thought this match should have been the show's main event.

Smackdown Women's Championship

Wrestlemania 34 - 04/08/18

Charlotte Flair had been dominating the WWE's women's division and continued to get increasingly better since her days starting out in NXT. Asuka came to the WWE as someone who already cut her teeth in the business all around the world before debuting on NXT. By Wrestlemania 34, Charlotte Flair had already become a decorated champion involved with the first-time ever matches. Asuka came into Wrestlemania 34 with an undefeated streak that had lasted nearly two and half years, and she was the winner of the first-ever women's Royal Rumble match. When it came down to Asuka choosing which champion she wanted to face at Wrestlemania, it was a no-brainer that she would pick The Queen. The Empress of Tomorrow didn't only want to win the championship, but she wanted to beat the best wrestler on the main roster, and in her mind, that was Charlotte Flair. However, the real question was if Charlotte Flair was ready for Asuka. This match was highly anticipated as two of the most dominant women in the WWE were going to face off on the grandest stage of them all. It definitely had a big match feel. Asuka had never lost, and Charlotte won more often than she lost. People couldn't imagine Asuka not winning here to continue her dominance, but then again, it was against Charlotte Flair, so anything was possible. Charlotte had a grand Wrestlemania-worthy entrance reminiscent of the one she was involved in for Triple H at Wrestlemania 30. It was really symbolic to showcase just how far Flair had come since 2014. The match was evenly contested between the two, and they had great psychology with one another. There were some cool spots here, such as the Spanish Fly from Charlotte to Asuka. Asuka worked Charlotte's left arm throughout the match, and she sold it till the very end. Shockingly to many, Charlotte Flair ended up making Asuka tap to the figure eight, thus ending Asuka's 914-day undefeated streak. This was the best pure wrestling match on this Wrestlemania card, in my opinion.

Women's Championship

Wrestlemania 32 - 04/03/16

This match will always be special to me, considering that it was the first Wrestlemania I went to after 13 years and my first one as an adult. This women's match was front and center for a lot of the marketing and even the main attraction on the side of AT&T Stadium. It was personally one of the matches I was looking forward to the most myself. I recall sending Charlotte a message earlier that day wishing her luck, and she actually responded by saying thank you. I won't ever forget that.

The women's revolution was in full gear, partially to the work these three women put in when they were on NXT by having great matches and getting their personalities over. When they came to the main roster in mid-2015, it left me curious to see where all three would be by the upcoming Wrestlemania. I had no idea that it would be in a triple threat match for the newly announced Women's Championship. WWE had decided to finally retire the Divas Championship, which didn't coincide with their ongoing revolution. Charlotte Flair had defeated Nikki Bella for the Divas Championship innate 2015 and eventually aligned herself with her father full-time, officially turning heel. Becky Lynch faced off against Charlotte multiple times but would come up on the short end due to Ric Flair's inference. Sasha Banks made her big return at the Royal Rumble after a brief hiatus to a ton of fanfare and set her eyes on becoming the champion. After a few controversial finishes to the number one contender's matches between Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch, it was concluded that Wrestlemania 32 would be a triple threat match between three of the Four Horsewomen of the women's Revolution.

All three of these women had extravagant entrances looking ready to steal the show, and they did just that. The fans bought into all the near falls, and it really did feel like any one of these women could win. There were a ton of great spots in this match as these three women were trying to usher in a new era of women's wrestling on the biggest show of the year. They wanted to prove that the women's matches on the Wrestlemania card are just as good as any of the men's matches and no longer a great time in the show to hit concessions. Charlotte hit a moonsault on both women that connected perfectly at one point during the match. It was truly a thing of beauty and flawless.

In the end, Charlotte Flair picked up the victory when she was able to make Becky tap out to the Figure Eight while Ric Flair made sure Sasha wasn't able to get back into the ring to break the submission. The last ever Divas Champion walked out the first-ever Women's Champion for this new lineage. It was the beginning of a whole new era and what an outstanding way to get it started. This match set the tone for years to come when it came to the presentation of women’s wrestling on the main roster.