As with the 1980s boom and Hulk Hogan, the Attitude Era and Stone Cold Steve Austin, the rise of women's wrestling within WWE simply couldn't have occurred without talismanic figures providing the solid foundation.
Divas first became "Women" again on NXT, and that vital shift was forced through by the dynamic and dependable work of this era-defining quartet.
Earning their stripes on developmental brand, Becky Lynch, Bayley, Sasha Banks and Charlotte Flair became even more than the sum of their parts on the main roster in spite of booking that forced them to start from scratch at best and threatened to marginalise them at worst. Collectively and individually the four most well-rounded stars when they're given creative to support their gifts, they remain vital to the respective divisions nearly five years after they were first called up.
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
