5 mistakes WWE made with Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania events

Charlotte Flair returned to WWE at the Royal Rumble 2025 after being away from the ring for over a year after suffering a knee injury where she tore her ACL, MCL, and meniscus.

The Queen won the 30-woman match at the Royal Rumble and earned the opportunity to challenge a champion of her choice. She chose to pursue the WWE Women's Championship by challenging Tiffany Stratton. However, fans believe that there were others on the roster who deserved a shot at the title rather than a superstar who was away for such a prolonged period.

In this regard, we will look at five mistakes that the wrestling juggernaut has made with Charlotte Flair over various WrestleMania events:

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#5. Booking a victory against former superstar Sasha Banks

The Queen was booked in a match against Sasha Banks (Mercedes Mone) and Becky Lynch at WrestleMania 32 for the inaugural WWE Women's Championship. Charlotte Flair won the match, but the victory came with much criticism from the fans.

In 2016, Banks was at the peak of her career, and fans believe she should have been the one to win the match. She had massive momentum heading into the bout, especially with 'The Boss' persona and undeniable in-ring talent. The WWE Universe believed she was the natural choice for the title, which was replacing the Divas Championship.

Meanwhile, Flair entered the match as the Divas Champion and, in the eyes of many fans, already received the push she needed. Ideally, it would have been better to have a fresh face become the inaugural WWE Women's Champion instead of crowning The Queen.

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#4. Failing to put over Asuka at WrestleMania 34

At WrestleMania 34, The Empress of Tomorrow entered the match with an undefeated streak that dated back to her NXT debut in 2015. The WWE Universe was in awe of her skills and uniqueness, and did not expect the streak to end on The Grandest Stage of Them All in 2018.

Further, Asuka earned the title opportunity at The Show of Shows by becoming the first-ever Women's Royal Rumble winner. Hence, fans were hoping to see her being pushed as the next unstoppable force.

When Charlotte Flair retained the SmackDown Women's Championship, especially with a clean win, WWE fans were left disappointed. Additionally, there was no follow-up to the defeat, and it seemed that Asuka's streak ending was an absolute waste.

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#3. Setting up Charlotte Flair for a win she did not need

In 2020, The Queen won the Women's Royal Rumble Match and earned the opportunity to challenge for a title at The Show of Shows. Then-NXT Women's Champion Rhea Ripley confronted Charlotte Flair and urged her to challenge her for the developmental brand's top prize for female athletes at WrestleMania 36, and the veteran obliged.

Heading into the match, The Eradicator was on fire. She was positioned as the next big thing in the women's division. Unfortunately, Flair dethroned Ripley, causing fans to raise issues with the booking.

First, Flair did not need that victory at all since she had already won multiple Women's Championships on the main roster. Second, it seemed that WWE was constantly running the same formula of having Flair dethrone strong opponents rather than actually building a new legacy.

The loss hurt Rhea Ripley's momentum since it was at WrestleMania, especially since she had everything to gain, and Charlotte Flair had nothing to lose.

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#2. Booking Charlotte Flair in an unimpactful match at WrestleMania 38

The Queen defended the SmackDown Women's Championship against Ronda Rousey at WrestleMania 38 in the penultimate clash of Night One. The WWE Universe was expecting an intense physical brawl, but the bout lacked chemistry. There was barely any energy, and the storytelling arguably wasn't what a SmackDown Women's Championship match deserved.

The Queen retained despite tapping out when Ronda Rousey had her in an Armbar, but the referee did not see it. Flair got the pin after being able to escape the move. The finish did not make Charlotte Flair look strong at all, and downgraded Rousey's no-nonsense fighter personality.

Further, Rousey's return could have been elevated with a championship win at WrestleMania, but the crown stayed with Charlotte Flair. By the time Rousey won the title at Backlash, the excitement of the fans had passed.

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#1. Fans did not want Charlotte Flair in the main event at WrestleMania 35

The first time ever when women main-evented WrestleMania was the 2019 edition of The Show of Shows. It was supposed to be Becky Lynch vs. Ronda Rousey, but WWE added Charlotte Flair, which the fans did not like.

The feud between Lynch and Rousey was organic, intense, and personal. The WWE Universe was looking forward to the one-on-one match between the two, but the wrestling juggernaut forcibly adding Charlotte Flair seemed as though the company did not have enough trust in The Man.

Finally, by the time WrestleMania 35 came around, Flair had already headlined major premium live events, beaten almost the entire roster, and was a multi-time champion. At this point, fans were suffering from Charlotte fatigue, with the overdose of her being felt significantly.

Fans didn't have an issue with Flair as a talent, but it was with the company using her to take the spotlight away from anyone else who was becoming a hot asset.