At WrestleMania 32, history was made for women’s wrestling. The WWE Divas Championship was retired, and the new WWE Women’s Championship was presented.
As we approach WrestleMania 42, let’s reminisce on the history that this championship has brought to women’s wrestling. It gave women the opportunity to make history, and they took it and ran with it. Many firsts in the company were accomplished by some of your favorite female wrestlers today.
They have proved night after night that they are just as athletic, entertaining, and charismatic as the men, if not more. The fans want to see women’s wrestling and voiced that. They stood by them through this long ride of putting women’s wrestling back on the map.
Let’s look at some of the things that these women accomplished over the last ten years, so we can look forward to the next ten.
Beginning of the WWE Women’s Evolution
Before we get into what the women’s championship has become, let’s discuss what led us to the unforgettable moment at WrestleMania 32, where the championship was unveiled.
What is now known in WWE as the Women’s Evolution was formerly known as the Divas’ Revolution. July 13, 2015, was a pivotal day for women’s wrestling. WWE heard the fans who had #GiveDivasAChance trending on Twitter worldwide for three days straight. This hashtag came about after the Bella Twins had a match against Emma and Paige that lasted only 30 seconds.
Then, on Monday Night Raw, everything changed when Stephanie McMahon decided to start the Divas’ Revolution. From NXT, she debuted Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, and Sasha Banks. They aligned with women on the main roster: Lynch and Flair with Paige (Team P.C.B.), and Banks with Naomi and Tamina Snuka (Team B.A.D.). Team Bella was also in the mix, with the Bella Twins standing alongside Alicia Fox. These women took over for the next few months, feuding with one another.
Not long after, in September, Flair would start one of the many championship reigns she would soon have by becoming Diva’s Champion. Charlotte Flair will go down in history as the final Divas Champion and the first WWE Women’s Champion.
Most Impactful Champions
Over the 10 years that this championship has been active, there have been 31 champions. Every woman that held the title has brought something unique to the championship, making it more prestigious. While every championship reign has been meaningful, there have been a few that stand out. The first woman that comes to my mind is the first Women’s Champion, Charlotte Flair.
Not only was Flair the woman to retire the Diva’s Championship, but she has had the most women’s championship reigns to date. She is a 14x Women’s Champion and will likely catch up to her father’s record (Ric Flair) of being a 16x Champion, if not surpassing it.
Another champion who really brought the women’s championship to the forefront of the division was Rhea Ripley. Her popularity and connection with the fans helped shine a light not just on the championship, but on the women’s division. Ripley is not the typical person you picture when thinking of the image of a WWE Women’s wrestler, but that’s what makes her stand out. She doesn’t apologize for being herself, and that creates a great role model for the audience.
Another woman who came into WWE being unapologetically herself is Becky Lynch. For the longest time, from the start of her career, she was the underdog in the women’s division. Now she is the man of the women’s division. Lynch has the longest collective women’s championship reign. She is a seven-time world champion and has held the titles collectively for over 500 days. Lynch was also the first woman to hold both the Raw and SmackDown women’s championships at the same time, giving her the name Becky Two Belts.
Stand Out Championship Matches/Feuds
There have been many iconic matches for this prestigious championship. Matches and feuds that will go down in the history of the WWE. The first one that comes to my mind is the feud with Charlotte Flair and Sasha Banks. They had many matches against one another around 2016. The women’s title had bounced back and forth between the two women, but with each match, they created more history.
They fought in the first women’s bell in a cell match, which was also the first time the women main evented a PLE. They fought in a street fight match that main-evented Monday Night Raw, when that wasn’t a common occurrence for women. These two helped put the WWE Women’s Division and championship on notice.
Another duo who had a memorable feud is Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch. The two have had an interesting relationship, as they were best friends, then became each other’s biggest rivals. They expressed their desire to be on top of the company in their matches. The story was captivating for the audience, as they had been friends since their NXT days. It was a story that had built up over the years, one no one knew about when it was happening.
The last, most recent feud that comes to my mind is the one between Rhea Ripley, IYO SKY, and Bianca Belair. They had an unforgettable triple-threat match at WrestleMania 41, arguably one of the best matches of the night. IYO SKY pulled off the victory and retained her championship after an incredible battle. Ripley and Belair had been feuding over the championship SKY holds, leading to a triple threat among the three of them.
What Came From the WWE Women’s Championship?
Bringing back a new and improved WWE Women’s Championship was a big step forward for women’s wrestling. While the championship brought many new opportunities and drew attention to the women, it wouldn’t have happened without the women fighting for it.
The women’s division grew from the pink butterfly belt to what it is now, with two Women’s Championships, Women’s Tag Team Championships, and Women’s United States and Intercontinental Championships. It’s amazing to see these women get various opportunities to showcase their talent. They are finally given multiple segments on TV rather than one 5-10-minute segment. Fans love the women performers just as much, if not more, than the male performers.
These updated championships brought more eyes to the women’s division, and the women capitalized on it. They continue to draw fans in with their athleticism and storytelling. The glass ceilings have been broken, but they aren’t stopping there. It is an exciting time to be a woman in wrestling right now. We can only hope that it grows.
