Paige made a shocking debut on Monday Night Raw nearly two months ago. The inaugural NXT Womens Champion, in her main roster debut, defeated AJ Lee to become the new Divas Champion. As such, NXT General Manager, John Bradshaw Layfield stripped her of the Womens title and thusly set up a tournament to crown a new champ. At Takeover, the final of said tournament was contested and it would be quite the family affair. Charlotte, with her father Ric Flair in her corner, faced off with Natalya, who had her uncle Bret Hart by her side. Would Charlotte show she had a Flair for the gold, or would Natalya add to the prestige of the Hart dynasty? When push came to shove, Nattie and Charlotte put on one of the most thrilling womens matches in recent memory. The action went back and forth, as the competitors traded offensive maneuvers and submission holds. Charlotte employed a rougher style of attack, as Natalya attempted to use her technical wrestling expertise to put her opponent away. After a devastating onslaught from Natalya -- that consisted of a beautifully executed butterfly suplex and a running stomp/diving dropkick combination -- Charlotte regained the upper hand by yanking the Total Divas star off the apron with a modified leg whip. Despite missing a high-risk moonsault, Charlotte reversed a Sharpshooter, locking her opponent in the dreaded Figure-four leglock. As Natalya attempted to escape the hold by rolling to the ropes, Charlotte dropped to the floor, still locked in the hold. The competitors re-entered the ring and again traded submissions, this time a pair of Sharpshooters, before Charlotte delivered a somersault cutter -- dubbed Bow Down to the Queen -- for the victory. At the matchs conclusion, both competitors and their family members showed a great deal of respect by embracing the middle of the ring. Natalya was gracious in her defeat, as Charlotte and her father were ecstatic with her victory. Both combatants deserve a standing ovation for delivering easily the best womens match of the year, and possibly even an overall match of the year contender.
Douglas Scarpa is a freelance writer, independent filmmaker, art school graduate, and pro wrestling aficionado -- all of which mean he is in financial ruin. He has no backup plan to speak of, yet maintains his abnormally high spirits. If he had only listened to the scorn of his childhood teachers, he wouldn't be in this situation.
