10 Second Generation Wrestlers That Should Have Known Better

4. Charlotte Flair

David Benoit Chris Benoit
WWE.com

Ashley Fliehr was a championship-winning volleyball player before ever entertaining the prospect of 'walking that aisle' as her father had done better than nearly anybody to ever lace boots.

After always showing a keen eye for physical activities, she signed a developmental deal with the company in 2012 shortly after operations had moved from Florida Championship Wrestling to the Full Sail NXT model that would revolutionise the process for a generation of talent.

Her stock rose rapidly with a fabulous run on the show warranting a main roster spot in late 2015 to coincide with the company's renewed emphasis on women's wrestling. It's a movement she's been at the forefront of since arriving, and remains one of the most important figures in ensuring the league continues to thrive.

However, professional wrestling has been as cruel to her as it has kind.

Her father Ric was absent for much of her childhood thanks to the ridiculously demanding schedule he kept as World Champion and a wild lifestyle he had become accustomed to outside of the ring. That contributed to the breakdown of relations between her mother Elizabeth, as it had done with his first, third and fourth wives.

'The Queen' has shown flashes of her father's tendencies, having previously been arrested for assaulting a police officer during a family fight, and divorced twice before the age of 30.

A roaring success in every metric so far though, Charlotte has the opportunity to skirt near her father's glowing legacy within the industry, but is all too aware of the crushing pitfalls. Her older brother David had failed to make a big impression in the business when he accidentally broke in WCW's chaotic latter days, but younger sibling Reid's similar struggles had fatal consequences. He had accidentally overdosed on a cocktail of drugs (including heroin), after struggling with addictions dating back over several years.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett