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When Michael Cole broke the news that Charlotte Flair, the “Queen of WWE” and 14-time Women's Champion, would be out for at least the next nine months with a combination ACL, MCL, and a meniscus injury that would require surgery, it sent the very future of the WWE woman's division into question.
Despite being without a title at the moment, with IYO SKY holding the top title on SmackDown and Rhea Ripley standing tall as the top performer on RAW with the Woman's World Championship, Flair was expected to be in heavy contention for a permanent spot at WrestleMania 40 all the same, with the potential for multiple interesting angles as a singles or tag team star.
Discussing Flair's forthcoming absence in a special interview with PWInsider, Bianca Belair admitted that losing “The Queen” will be tough to overcome, but she's confident someone will step up to fill her shoes, as someone always seems to do so in WWE.
“It is a huge blow. Charlotte Flair has been such a vital part of our women's roster. She's created so much history. She's a legend. I'm not even gonna say a legend in the making. With the accolades that she has, she's a legend. It's really hard knowing that we've lost someone like Charlotte Flair right now for nine months,” Bianca Belair said via Fightful. “Me selfishly, we all know I've always looked up to Charlotte Flair, I've always wanted to have a dream match against her, with her, it doesn't matter as long as I can be in the ring with her. But it does open up an opportunity for someone else, and that's just the way this business is. I always say, you gotta stay ready so you don't have to get ready. You never know when your opportunity's gonna come, whether it's your time, whether it's another spot that opens up. So we'll have to see who steps up. At the end of the day, we're all fighting for a spot at WrestleMania. So I'm even looking for my path to WrestleMania, ‘Am I gonna be on WrestleMania this year?' So it's very unfortunate, but it's a spot that's opened up for someone to shine.”
Fortunately for Belair, Flair, and the rest of the WWE Universe, there truly is always someone who will step up when another Superstar goes down, as the promotion has built a developmental system that is like a finely-tuned machine for Superstar supplementation. Whether it's a top NXT star like Tiffany Stratton, a free agent signing like Jade Cargill, or a performer who doesn't currently work for the promotion, it's safe to say WWE will find a performer to fill Flair's shoes one way or another.
Lola Vice wants to step up in NXT amid Charlotte Flair uncertainty.
Speaking of WWE Superstars looking to step up in the absence of Charlotte Flair, there isn't a faster riser in the entire NXT system than Lola Vice, the former Bellator fighter who won the 2023 NXT Breakout Tournament at Halloween Havoc on October 31st.
Discussing her whirlwind path to NXT prominence in a special interview with the Miami Herald, Vice credited her work ethic for helping her to get to WWE while appreciating the promotion for giving her a chance to shine.
“I knew I was going up against a tough competitor. Kelani has a very high-level gymnastics background, and I'm more of a shoot-fight style. That's what I came from. So I knew it was gonna be a challenge, and I know that Lola doesn't fear anyone, and Lola never backs down, and I knew I was gonna be able to get the win,” Lola Vice told the Miami Harold via Fightful.
“Ever since I was a little girl, I always had a vision, and I had a dream for myself. I knew it was gonna never with martial arts, and when I started fighting in the cage, I said, ‘This is an opportunity for my family, yo get them out, but also, one day, hopefully the WWE will recognize me.' Every time I was fighting, I wasn't just doing it for myself. I had developed a brand, I showed my character in the ring. I would show them my potential until I finally got this call. So for me to win this breakout tournament, it means everything to me because I proved to myself I'm the superstar I know I can be, and also I was able to represent young Latina women, and all of Miami, and I've always been the Miami fighter in the cage, and now I'm the Miami breakout star for the WWE, and I can't believe it. But I can believe it because my work ethic always prevails, and the world's gonna see, and this is just the beginning.”
Could Vice be the performer who steps up for Flair and challenges a legit top-card star, be that Belair or someone else? I mean, probably not, but who knows, maybe her elevation could allow Paul “Triple H” Levesque to call up someone like Tiffany Stratton without NXT losing a step, with Vice stepping up as the new it heel to watch? Either way, it's safe to say WWE has plenty of interesting options in the chamber, with a wealth of talented young Superstars waiting in the wings for an opportunity to shine.
