Charlotte Flair first entered the wrestling business in 2012 and would quickly become one of "WWE NXT's" top stars, but despite many believing her father, Ric Flair, was the sole reason she joined the industry, there's one performer who influenced "The Queen" to step inside the squared circle on a full-time basis. Last week, Flair wrote in "The Players' Tribune" that former WWE star Paige inspired her to become a professional wrestler and named a specific match that the two-time Divas Champion had in "NXT" that motivated her to begin training.
"Paige was the first wrestler who I was truly enamored with. Not even kidding, I literally dressed as Paige for Halloween one year. And when I saw her wrestle Emma (at NXT Arrival in 2014), that was such a huge deal. That was the moment I realized, OK wrestling isn't something I want to do. It's something I have to do."
In addition to Paige being her role model, the 15-time WWE Women's Champion also started a career in the wrestling business following the death of her younger brother Reid, who sadly passed away in 2013 due to a drug overdose. Reid had always encouraged Flair to follow her in father's footsteps, and also had a passion for the sport but unfortunately was unable to pursue his dream. Therefore, in order to honor her brother, Charlotte was determined to land herself a spot on WWE's roster, and has always maintained that she laces up her boots for both of them.
