Trish Stratus was recently named number one on a list of the top 50 greatest female Superstars in modern WWE. However, the former Women’s Champion believes Charlotte Flair is the one worthy of the title.
WWE recently released the list as part of their new affiliation with Peacock. The 50 names included the likes of AJ Lee, Sable, Lita, and Gail Kim. Although Trish Stratus took the top spot, she recently told Busted Open Radio that Charlotte Flair, who came in second, is her true number one:
“It’s a bold thing for them to put out. Lists are subjective. I don’t know who was behind the list. Did my mom vote? Internally, with me and my team, I knew there was the top five and I was grateful to be in the top five. I for sure thought Charlotte was going to be number one. That’s where I put her. It was crazy when they put that video package together and you get emotional looking back on that ride and they position you the way they did. I was lucky, I say all the time that I only got any accolades that I got because of the people that surrounded me.
I was green and a lot of things we did was a team effort and we got to conquer these things together. In a way, we were lucky that we had a crappy landscape at the time and had these obstacles we had to overcome. By doing that, we were able to tackle barriers. It was the timing of my career. I didn’t get a prize yet. I don’t know what they’re going to send me. I’m still waiting.”
A lifelong wrestling fan, Trish Stratus would make her WWF debut on a March 2000 episode of Sunday Night Heat. Initially portraying a valet, Stratus would soon find herself in the ring, winning the Women’s Championship in 2001. During this time, Status would square off with Lita, in one of the most memorable feuds of that era.
Trish Stratus would step away from full-time action in 2006. She would be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2013. Her last match took place at 2019’s SummerSlam, where she faced Charlotte Flair in a losing effort. Following the match, Charlotte Flair would praise Stratus for paving the way for women in WWE:
“It doesn’t get any bigger than that. I mean women today, of my generation, grew up wanting to become Trish Stratus and Lita and what they did, because they main evented Raw. But the real hero tonight was the mom with two kids at home with a full career who has been gone for what, 10 years? No, she’s the real winner and the hero.”
Many credit Trish Stratus, as well as Lita and Chyna, as pioneers of the WWE women’s division. During a heavily male-dominated era, they would lay the groundwork for what would become the Women’s Evolution.
h/t for transcription: Fightful