12 Ups & 3 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (Feb 12)

4. This Magnificent Bastard

Charlotte Flair is every bit as great at playing a bastard heel as Becky Lynch is at being 'The Man,' and Ronda Rousey's new WrestleMania opponent proved it again last night, opening SmackDown with a promo typical of her work when WWE let her play the best version of herself.

'The Queen' has been in brilliant social media form since taking Lynch's spot in the WrestleMania main event, besting Becky at one of 'The Man's' strongest suits. On SmackDown, she was utterly, utterly detestable. She said that while she'd like to say she felt sorry for Lynch, she doesn't, because she taught Becky better than to be dumb enough to get herself suspended, then stoked the crowd's ire further by suggesting that Lynch's pre-Survivor Series injury was her own fault as well.

The silver spoon narrative came into play, but Charlotte called Vince McMahon's move a smart business decision rather than one driven by personal bias. She is a hall-of-famer, Becky is a flash in the pan, and in the end, they'll all be chanting "this is awesome" when she goes to battle with Ronda Rousey.

Though nothing more than a great heel being a great heel, this was a fantastic way to open SmackDown, and Charlotte announcing she'll be ringside for Ronda Rousey vs. Ruby Riott adds another wrinkle to this Sunday's bout as well.