Old North Banter: Pre-Survior Series Smackdown Amazes

Smackdown Women’s Championship: Charlotte Flair vs. Natalya

Natalya and Charlotte Flair previously fought for the Smackdown Women’s Championship at October’s “Hell in a Cell” pay-per-view, but since the title couldn’t change hands with a disqualification, Natalya purposefully disqualified herself to retain the title by beating Charlotte with a chair, further injuring Flair’s leg. However, on last week’s Smackdown, McMahon announced the pair would fight for the title at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte’s hometown.

Highlights from the match include Natalya slamming Charlotte onto the mat then bouncing off the ropes and putting a boot into the seated Flair’s neck before Charlotte got up on Natalya’s return from the opposite ropes to spear Natalya.  Another notable moment came when Charlotte attempted to climb the barricade outside the ring to flip onto Natalya. However, the latter wrestler recovered from the previous kick from Charlotte to pick her up and throw her against the turnbuckle.

Everything picked up the next time the pair re-entered the ring as Natalya put Charlotte into the “Sharpshooter” submission hold. Flair attempted to reach for the bottom rope to force a break on the hold, but the tension built when Natalya forced her to the center of the ring. The entire crowd was electric as Charlotte crawled back to the ropes before finally grasping the rope.

Livid from her opponent breaking her submission, Natalya fired off punches at Charlotte until the challenger forced her out off the ring. Once the champion re-entered the ring, Charlotte booted Natalya’s face to put her down. Then, the moment came for Charlotte to seal the match with a “Figure Eight” submission, forcing Natalya to tap out and cede her title to “The Queen.”

The match itself could have very easily been another basic face-versus-heel setup, but so much more was surrounding it. For starters, the Spectrum Center crowd came alive as soon as Charlotte’s entrance music hit. Plus, another loud pop came just from the ringside announcer’s introduction of the challenger: “From the Queen City…Charlotte…Flair!” Though Charlotte escaping the “Sharpshooter” managed to excite the crowd, the best pop of the match came once Natalya finally tapped with Charlotte ecstatic.

Once the match concluded, Charlotte addressed the fans to say that winning in her hometown meant everything. She continued with a mini-promo of her match at Survivor Series with Raw Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss. Finally, she ended her post-match speech with a tribute to her father, “Nature Boy” Ric Flair. She said she knew that he wasn’t able to make it to tonight’s match, but she dedicated her championship win to him. Then, this happened:

With Charlotte exiting the ring to her music, all of a sudden, Ric Flair’s music hits, and the Spectrum Center erupts. The “Nature Boy” emerged from the back, and in a genuinely emotional moment, Charlotte ran to her father and embraced him. Ric bowed at her, raised her arm with the title, and the pair strutted together before hugging once more.