Charlotte Flair returned to WWE on December 30th after seven months away to shockingly defeat Ronda Rousey for the SmackDown Women’s Championship.
On the show, Ronda Rousey defended the title against Raquel Rodriguez, the culmination of a feud that had lasted for several weeks. Despite having an injured arm, Rodriguez took the Baddest Woman On The Planet to the limit, but it wasn’t enough as Rousey was able to lock in an Arm Bar for the victory.
Unfortunately, the former UFC star couldn’t celebrate for long as Charlotte Flair made her way to the ring to challenge her for the championship. Although Rousey initially said she would defend it at the Royal Rumble, Flair demanded it happened right then and there.
Rousey reluctantly accepted the challenge but it turned out to be a huge mistake as Charlotte defeated the star in less than a minute by reversing an Arm Bar attempt into a pinfall victory to begin her seventh reign as SmackDown Women’s Champion.
Freddie Prinze Jr defends Charlotte Flair title victory
Since the match aired, a section of WWE’s fanbase has been vocally unhappy with the outcome, but former WWE Writer Freddie Prinze Jr doesn’t think they should be.
Speaking on his Wrestling With Freddie podcast, Prinze Jr. explained that Flair being the Champion will be better for up-and-coming star Raquel Rodriguez, as he thinks the two should face off at WrestleMania 39.
“When Raquel Rodriguez comes in, do you want her to get it off someone that’s legit that the company respects so that it means more, or she’s just going to win it off a part-timer? No, put it on Charlotte, and then let Charlotte and Raquel go to WrestleMania, and it will be an awesome match.”
Prinze Jr. went on to say that, although Flair is a babyface just now, she will soon be booed by the audience and that will help Rodriguez as her opponent.
“They’ll only cheer her about a month and then they’ll all turn to boos on her every single title run. Everybody is happy and everybody wins. You don’t want Ronda still with the title, I promise.”
H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the above transcription.