In-ring rivalry doesn’t always mean bringing each other down. No one knows it better than the current SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair. With the biggest wrestling event a few days away, the Queen is all ready to head into her 7th WrestleMania match against 2023′ Women’s Royal Rumble winner Rhea Ripley. Ahead of the big bout, she had a few prizing words for her rival.

Rhea Ripley has been a mainstay at the red brand since her transition from NXT to Raw in 2021. The Eradicator has undoubtedly come a long way since losing her short-lived Raw Women’s Championship title reign to Charlotte Flair at Money in the Bank of 2021. The Nightmare is currently striving hard for having a dominant championship reign, which she never got to experience on the main roster. She brought out her upgraded version, clinching an impressive win at Women’s Royal Rumble 2023.

Charlotte Flair acknowledges her opponent’s potential going beyond her character

This transformation and up-gradation of Ripley as a wrestler didn’t go unnoticed by Charlotte Flair. The 14-time WWE Champion didn’t hesitate to heap praise on her opponent for that. During a recent interview with theathletic.com, Flair has been asked how she feels watching Rhea Ripley’s growth over the years. The Queen noted, ‘Rhea has grown leaps and bounds. She’s grown into a more comfortable position. Having been on the road for a couple of years, in and out of storylines, teaches you a lot.’

Read more: “I’ve Always Wanted…” – Charlotte Flair Reveals Her “Most Important” Desire After Being a 14-Time World Champion in WWE

Flair is also well aware of her rival’s mental tenacity and recognizes it as well. Reflecting on her firm faith in Ripley, she further added, ‘I think she knows now mentally what she’s capable of, and nothing’s gonna stop her.’

Needless to say that the Nightmare definitely knows that and hence, looks pretty confident before facing off against the current SmackDown Champion. However, Ripley recently admitted that she also used to look up to Flair for her impressive physique.

Rhea Ripley sounds confident before the big bout against Charlotte Flair

Despite both having pretty good impressions of each other, Rhea Ripley and Charlotte Flair have a long history as rivals. The highly hyped-up duo first collided heads during WrestleMania 36, which didn’t come out well for Ripley, as she had to give up on her NXT Women’s Championship title, receiving a blow from Flair. Referring to their continuous rivalry, during another recent interview with Yahoo news, Ripley noted, ‘Charlotte and I, we’ve got our history together. She beat me at my first WrestleMania for my NXT Women’s Championship. She’s taken my RAW Women’s Championship away from me. She’s sort’ve been the speed bump in my career. But I’m a different Rhea Ripley now. Going into this match, I don’t care what she or anyone else thinks about me, I’m going in there for one thing and one thing only: to absolutely destroy Charlotte Flair.’

On the other hand, Flair being one step ahead of Ripley with a tremendous WrestleMania record in her bucket, also seemed equally confident (if not more) as her opponent. While she is well aware of Ripley’s potential, The Queen is confident about herself as well.

However, it’s largely expected that the 2023 Women’s Royal Rumble winner will finally take away Charlotte Flair’s crown to announce the new generation’s taking over in WWE. But, it’s also pertinent to note that the Queen has Gold in her blood and blood won’t betray.

The rest is still a mystery unless and until WrestleMania weekend knocks on the door.

Watch the story: 5 Best Trios In WWE Ever

Do you think Rhea Ripley can take down Charlotte Flair to be the new SmackDown Women’s Champion? Let us know in the comments.