The big news coming out of Sunday night’s Survivor Series was the vicious turn by Charlotte Flair on Ronda Rousey.
Their gripping bout ended when Flair assaulted Rousey with kendo sticks and a chair.
Flair even wrapped the steel chair around Rousey’s neck and stomped on it – a dangerous-looking spot that WWE reserves for especially brutal occasions.
Flair snapping had shades of Becky Lynch, who was originally set to face Rousey and had turned on Flair herself with similar ferocity months ago.
As Flair mercilessly beat down Rousey, fans at Los Angeles’ Staples Center chanted “Becky” and “Thank you Charlotte.”
They booed the bloodied Rousey when she hobbled away from the beating – the most devastating assault she’s suffered in WWE yet.
There was genuine heartbreak etched on Rousey’s face.
The whole scene brought to mind the infamous Bret Hart-Steve Austin double-turn from WrestleMania 13, when babyface Bret walked out as heel as heel Austin walked out as babyface.
Are the fans about to turn on Rousey? And would that be a bad thing?
To call what happened at Survivor Series a “double-turn” is confusing in 2018. The roles of pure babyfaces and heels are so different. Lynch turned heel at SummerSlam and it’s made her arguably the most popular wrestler in WWE. Similarly, Flair’s heel turn was cheered – and she’ll no doubt continue to be cheered on TV this week.
But it’s not about cheering villainy for the sake of it, but cheering what these heel turns represent: a change of character, a new direction, or – especially in the case of Lynch – a fan favorite finally getting their moment.
Real heel heat does still exist though – just listen to the drubbing Nia Jax received last night for breaking Becky’s face. The fans absolutely hated her.
Similarly, the role of babyfaces in modern WWE are different.
John Cena was booed heavily for almost all of his run as a main eventer. Roman Reigns got the same treatment from fans – with even more venom, arguably – also because of what they represent: the WWE suits pushing a wrestler because of their marketability, not because the fans want them as champ.
Former UFC champ Rousey – the biggest crossover star the women’s division has ever had – was always going to get the mega-push. But thanks to the legitimacy she brings and her natural talent for wrestling, Rousey has come out relatively unscathed by fans so far. Her matches are too good and commitment to the business is obvious. Rousey deserves her place and fans know it.
But putting the 31-year-old against the wildly popular Lynch was always a risk. And having Flair turn on her when Becky got injured was a case of doubling-down.
The fans booed Rousey but not because she represents an undeserved push, but because Lynch – as channelled through the actions of Flair last night – represents the exact opposite: the most deserved push in WWE.
Let’s not forget, it was only weeks ago that Flair was being booed as a babyface against Lynch. So when Flair turned the fans immediately knew it meant something big for the women’s division.
Rousey came out on Raw on Monday and demanded a challenger for her title, eventually getting served up Mickie James, who she quickly tapped out with an arm bar. She also called out Flair and was met with “Becky” chants.
If Rousey turns the fans’ scorn back onto them it could cement her as an entitled villain – which in the long run is only going to make her more popular.
But if WWE continues to push Rousey as a pure babyface regardless of how fans react, she could end up getting the Cena and Reigns treatment after all.
The real question is what this all means for WrestleMania.
It’s long been rumored that WWE was working toward Rousey vs. Flair at Mania next year.
Plans seemed to change as Sunday’s match was hastily cobbled together when Becky got injured and rumors circulated that it would now be Rousey vs. Lynch at Mania.
But Flair’s attack suggests that she’ll join forces with Becky or that WWE could now be looking at a triple-threat match between the three women at WrestleMania.
Whatever WWE has planned, Rousey, Flair and Lynch – as heels or babyfaces – have changed the landscape of WWE’s women’s division.
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