Matt Hardy "totally gets" controversial WWE booking decision
Matt Hardy wrestled for WWE between 1994 and 2010 before returning for another run with the company between 2017 and 2020. The current TNA star recently gave his thoughts on Charlotte Flair becoming the first two-time Women's Royal Rumble winner.
On February 1, Flair outlasted 29 other competitors to earn a World Title opportunity at WrestleMania 41 on April 19-20. Two nights later, many fans booed The Queen when she addressed her Royal Rumble victory on RAW.
Hardy understood why the crowd disliked Flair's instant triumph on her return from injury. However, on his Extreme Life of Matt Hardy podcast, the 50-year-old also acknowledged how WWE could benefit from booking the 14-time World Champion in title storylines:
"I'm okay with it," Hardy said. "I mean, Charlotte is a major star, and the fact that she came back and won, it was really interesting. The next night after she won, I know there were some boos. There were some people that maybe rejected that because they wanted to see someone else who hadn't been there for a while doing it, but I totally get why they have Charlotte win." [28:23 – 28:42]
Before the Royal Rumble, Flair had not wrestled since the December 8, 2023, episode of SmackDown. She suffered a torn ACL, MCL, and meniscus in a match against Asuka, ruling her out for over a year.
Matt Hardy on Charlotte Flair's WrestleMania star power
In 2019, Charlotte Flair faced Becky Lynch and Ronda Rousey in the first women's main event in WrestleMania history.
Matt Hardy believes WWE's higher-ups are right to promote megastars like Flair in the build-up to the company's biggest event of the year:
"I think putting Charlotte in a match like that is just great for the equity of the match because it makes it a big, big deal." [28:56 – 29:03]
Flair has already teased the possibility of facing Women's World Champion Rhea Ripley and NXT Women's Champion Giulia at WrestleMania 41. On February 7, she will appear on SmackDown to address WWE Women's Champion Tiffany Stratton before deciding on her WrestleMania 41 opponent.
Do you think Charlotte Flair was the right choice as the Women's Royal Rumble winner? Hit the discuss button and let us know.
Please credit The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.
