Charlotte Flair returned from hiatus and defeated Ronda Rousey to capture the Smackdown women’s title on December 30th, 2022, right after Rousey successfully defended her title against Raquel Rodriguez.
According to reports, Charlotte’s victory was a “late decision,” and she revealed in an interview with Ryan Satin that she didn’t find out about it until she arrived at the arena.
“I didn’t find out I was winning the title until I got there. I didn’t have gear with me. My amazing cleaning lady brought me my gear. I should have known better. I’m coming to a wrestling show, I just brought my outfit. I thought it was just going to be a walkout surprise because I had been gone for so long, I really didn’t need to be any major fireworks, but when I got there they were like, ‘You need your gear.’ I got the call at maybe 5ish that I needed gear, right before I got to the arena. She got to the arena around 7, 7:15.”
You can watch the complete interview below:
(h/t to Jeremy Lambert for the transcription)