WWE has been a patriarchal playground since its inception back in the WWWF days of ’63. The ring was deemed no place for a woman. It was years of bravery, courage and unsettling perseverance that buried that belief. A monumental last 8 years has seen the birth and rise of the Women’s Evolution. Friday the 8th of November, history was made, and the Women’s United States Championship was unveiled. Tyler Hinton discusses the painful journey the women of WWE have travelled to get to where they are today.
It’s no secret that WWE hasn’t always been the safest place for a woman, especially with Vince McMahon in charge. Sickening rumours and current court cases have cast shadow upon Vince’s legacy. A legacy that once gleamed with prestige, is now an uncomfortable memory. When considering recent reports and the disturbing truth uncovered during the “Mr McMahon” Netflix documentary, it is clear to see that Vince was a huge advocator in the sexualisation and objectification of women in the WWE.
It also becomes obvious he was stubborn in the progression of women’s wrestling. McMahon subjected women to “bra and panty matches”. He wrote storylines whereby female talent would be made to touch him inappropriately, made to kiss him and even kiss him on the buttocks. His seedy misogyny is most likely the reason behind decades of feet dragging. Coincidentally, any sign of progression wasn’t seen until Paul “Triple H” Levesque entered his first backstage role as Executive Senior Advisor in 2010.
The Women’s Evolution began in 2016, after WWE formally ditched the past moniker “diva” of which they referred to female wrestlers with. The fact it has only been 8 years since that disgusting, demeaning label was lifted is baffling. Despite, its late arrival, the Women’s Evolution really got the proverbial wheels rolling.
Raw and Smackdown were given dedicated women’s championships, in replacement of the tacky, bejewelled Diva’s Championship.
Legitimised moves were being made in presenting women in the same vein as male superstars. A real noticeable effort was present in accurately conveying female stars as seriously talented athletes. Management was slowly giving women more time on the card, and the women’s division was becoming one of the biggest draws of the company, not because of their “sexiness” or their promiscuous portrayal like the past, but because of their wrestling ability.
In 2018, WWE Evolution was announced, the first and only, to date, all women pay per view.
The event was a huge success and a highlight in the women’s evolution. 3 out of the 4 women’s championships in all of WWE were defended.
The final of the Mae Young Classic Tournament took place, which in it’s own right was hugely influential in producing future female stars of the business. Legends of women’s wrestling appeared on the card such as Lita, Micky James and Trish Stratus along with many others. The main event featured UFC legend turned WWE superstar Ronda Rousey, but it was the penultimate match that stole all the plaudits.
The first ever Last Woman Standing match between Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch for the Smackdown Women’s Championship. The match was a masterpiece, it had everything. Violence, brutality, innovation, with a super strong storyline just to top it off.
Rated 4.75/5 by critic Dave Meltzer and ranked the best match of 2018 by IGN and WWE themselves. This event truly cemented and justified the elevation and (excuse the pun) evolution of the women’s division.
This upwards trajectory continued thanks to 3 trailblazers. Becky Lynch, Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey. These 3 women made not just WWE history, but professional wrestling history, becoming the first women to main event a WrestleMania. WrestleMania 35’s historic main event saw the three women battle it out in a triple threat for both the Raw and Smackdown women’s titles, in a double jeopardy clash to close out the show of the immortals.
The Queen Charlotte Flair, reigning Smackdown champ, entered the arena via helicopter, yes helicopter. The one and only Joan Jett sang the reigning Raw champ, Ronda Rousey to the ring, with an epic rendition of “Bad Reputation”. Yet, it was ultimate underdog and fan favourite Becky Lynch who made her exit with both belts.
The main event was groundbreaking and arguably the peak of women’s wrestling. Despite a memorable main event, the women’s division entered a state of stagnation, how can you possibly top main eventing a WrestleMania.
It quickly became clear that what first appeared as stagnation was just consistency. It is impossible to top main eventing a Mania, because that is the highest honour in WWE for any wrestler. The real aim of the women’s evolution wasn’t to take over, it wasn’t to replace male superstars, but it was to be considered alongside them.
Women continued to share a proportionate amount of the card with their male counterparts. They began appearing more frequently on Premium Live Events. The women also entered what I like to acknowledge as the unofficial part 2 of the Women’s Evolution, which saw rookies become bonified stars.
Rhea Ripley, Iyo Sky, Liv Morgan, Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill to name but a few, have all become top talents, but some were only beginning their WWE journey, and some hadn’t even started it when the Women’s Evolution began.
A path had been carved, whereby WWE was finally not just a safe place for women to wrestle, but the place for women to wrestle.
In 2024, the WWE women’s division is firing on all cylinders. Shawn Michaels is building a generationally talented women’s division down in NXT, recruiting global phenomena like Giulia and Stephanie Vaquer, whilst continuing to develop home grown talent like Roxanne Perez.
Raw is excellently featuring main eventers like Ripley and Morgan on a weekly basis. Smackdown is running some really scintillating storyline’s involving Nia Jax, Bayley, Naomi and the omnipresent Miss Money in the Bank Tiffany Stratton. However, certain wrestlers, whilst being utilised, felt futile. Something was missing, matches were happening every week, but they felt empty, tokenistic even. Women would fight, one would win, one would lose, but nothing really changed. They weren’t working towards anything; they were mile’s out of the title picture and seemed stuck at a loose end with nothing to work towards. If only there was a mid-card championship they could work towards.
A historic announcement was set to take place at WWE Bad Blood. Fans were mentally prepared for a women’s mid card title, but the “historic” announcement was quite the opposite. Paul “Triple H” Levesque entered the ring where two titles were displayed under satin covers. Through gritted teeth, Hunter revealed new Saudi Arabia Crown Jewel Titles. A flat, uninspired murmuring rustled through the crowd in attendance.
Rather ironic, and a commentary on society, that what fans thought was to be a major move in the women’s evolution, was the complete opposite. The Saudi shows tend to be glorified house shows, with nothing eventful taking place. Female stars are forced to cover up in line with cultural standards. It was a deal unsurprisingly initiated and signed by Vince McMahon. All hope felt lost, as fans dreams of a women’s mid card belt shattered into a million tiny pieces, with millions of dollars landing in the feds back pocket.
Despite what felt like a cruel, unwanted backwards step, the social media outrage roared so loud WWE couldn’t ignore it.
Friday the 8th of November, Smackdown’s general manager Nick Aldis revealed the WWE Women’s United States Championship.
The words “resilience” left Aldis’ mouth during the historic unveiling, which resonates so deeply with the journey the women of WWE have embarked on. Decades of mistreatment, years of being patronised and belittled have shaped the current landscape.
“Legacy” was another word quick to be declared by Aldis. The legacy of the women of WWE had been tarnished, minimalised to Vince McMahon’s fantasies, but those dark days are gone.
A bright light is being shone on the women of WWE and with the new US Title and the newfound respect they have earnt, nothing can stop these incredible women from accomplishing more incredible things.
