Charlotte Flair on ‘WWE 2K20’ Featuring the 4 Horsewomen, Finding Love in WWE
It’s a family affair at the WWE 2K20 launch event in Las Vegas as Charlotte Flair stands alongside her Hall of Fame father “Nature Boy” Ric Flair. For the record-breaking 10-time women’s champion, the release of the video game is a reminder of her evolution working for the sports entertainment juggernaut.
“I think every year you see how much better the graphics and the gear get,” she said. “The little things they make to the characters get added to the game. When my peacock feathers got added and watching it in the game, that’s really cool. The little things.”
This year women’s wrestling takes center stage with Becky Lynch sharing the cover with Roman Reigns. Bayley, Sasha Banks, Flair and Lynch’s trailblazing ascension in WWE is chronicled in 2K’s Showcase mode.
“Having Becky on the cover couldn’t be any more fitting with the year she has had. With the Showcase mode, fans have the opportunity to go back to see what matches helped define us,” Flair said. “They get to see how far we have come as talent, which I think is really exciting. Knowing for me Natalya and I was the first match in that mode, I wouldn’t be where I’m at today had it not been for that match. It’s so important to my history.”
Flair attributes the “Four Horsewomen” label they organically received after a stellar fatal 4-way in NXT.
“These were just four women who were so passionate and from different backgrounds that fed off each other,” she said. “It was like, ‘I want to be better than you,’ and ‘No, I want to be better than you.’ It just clicked. It was lightning in a bottle. I don’t think this will ever happen again. You have someone who never wanted to wrestle, but whose dad was a wrestler.
“Becky had taken time away from the business and came back. This was Sasha’s dream. Bayley also, who got hired. This will never happen again and it’s very fitting for the four of us to have a Showcase mode together. Becky and I in the main event of WrestleMania would have not taken place had it not been for the other two as well. We are very much a part of each one’s journey. It has taken all four of us to get to these places.”
The trip down memory lane gets her reminiscing about career highlights. Among them is having Flair walk down the aisle of WrestleMania 32 with dad.
“To be at a WrestleMania together, here he is the manager of his daughter and debuting the new championship title. I don’t think it gets any bigger than that,” she said. “The book we did, the video game we are in, signings together are all really cool. But that WrestleMania 32, he never thought in a million years he would be part of another WrestleMania since he had already retired. That is a moment in time where you are like, ‘Wow, this is happening.’”
For Ric Flair, the most rewarding thing in the world is seeing a Charlotte follow in his footsteps. He can’t help but speak like any proud pop.
“To see her at the level she is at, which is better than I was ever was, means so much to me,” he added. “Her skills speak for itself. She is arguably the greatest worker and best performer, man or woman, in the company.”
Somehow through all the major career milestones and hectic schedule the superstar found romance in Andrade. Flair traces their connection back to a tour in November. Their shared passion for wrestling and training in the gym brought them closer together.
“There was this undeniable chemistry. I just wanted to learn from him,” she said. “In this business, he is one of the smartest guys I know. He came from Mexico, a completely different style. Comes here, he understands the WWE style and has taught me so much. I feel the reason I’ve continued to get better the last eight months is because of what he has taught me.
“…Sometimes I forget I’m a superstar. That’s something you can’t forget. It’s not necessarily about the moves. It’s how you make people feel. It’s never losing who ‘The Queen’ is. Who Charlotte Flair is, regardless of the situation. A confidence. Not that I’ve lost my confidence, but he has definitely instilled new confidence in me or a new swag that I never knew I had before. I feel like he is the love of my life.”
Flair’s dad “Naitch” knew she was seeing somebody. He didn’t know who.
“When I told him he was like, ‘Oh, he is a hell of a worker,” she remembered.
The 33-year-old doesn’t hide her affection for Andrade on social media. However, don’t expect that to be a sign we’re going to see the happy couple on Total Divas any time soon.
“I think Total Divas is great for the brand and the company to bring in a new demographic,” she said. “But I feel like what I’ve created with Charlotte Flair, I’d rather take the longer path to get where I want to be inside this little bubble of our entertainment world. I’m still so focused on the wrestling. I don’t know if I would fit in the reality scene.”
A franchise player within WWE, she feels honored to be trusted to talk to advertisers and executives. Flair takes her role of ambassador seriously.
“I think it sends the message,” she said. “Along with Becky on the cover of WWE 2K20, sending me to the upfronts versus one of the guys. It’s a huge message from what was once a male-dominated world. I love doing it.”
WWE 2K20 is available now
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