The Flair family is wrestling royalty, with Ric Flair's run that will be talked about until the end of time and now his daughter Charlotte with all of the things she's accomplished so far. They joined forces for the new book Second Nature: The Legacy of Ric Flair and The Rise of Charlotte, and it's a great read. You can order the book by clicking here.
I spoke with Charlotte Flair this morning about putting this together, how tough it was for her to open up and let everyone read about these intimate details of her life, about giving wrestling a shot in life when she wasn't even sure that's what she wanted to do, how WWE NXT Coach Sara Del Rey gave her such important advice and being 100 feet tall on the front of AT&T Stadium in Dallas at WrestleMania!
Here's my conversation with Charlotte!
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Thanks for calling, Charlotte!
Some highlights from our conversation:
Being amazed that she has a book out - "I worked on this project for two years, and it's kind of like when you finally debut on the main roster, you're like 'gosh I've been doing this for so long!' Well, I didn't really do it that long but you know what I mean. You work towards a goal and then it's finally accomplished. I just can't believe I have a book. It's crazy!"
Wasn't sure about opening up so much - "When this opportunity first came to me, I was really hesitant. Because for so long, I was so ashamed of my past and embarrassed. I spent the whole time I've been in WWE trying to build this character who is unbreakable, who is not vulnerable and who is not relatable. For me to let down my guard and let people in, I had to make that decision and once I did I had to own it."
Wrestling changed and saved her life - "The message that I really want people to know is that no matter how old you are and no matter how bad it is, you have the choice to change. That's what wrestling did for me. Believe it or not, it was wrestling. If you had asked me in my early 20's or in high school if I was going to wrestle, I would have laughed at you. I found something that I was passionate about and that changed my life."
Her brother Reid motivates her now - "Reid wanted to be Ric Flair. And I think part of what drives my character is my brother struggled so much with being compared to my dad when he was on the independents and it really frustrated me. No one understands what it's like to walk in the shadow of a famous father, let alone Ric Flair, in the wrestling industry."
How instrumental NXT trainer Sara Del Rey has been to her career - "She told me to believe in who you are. She could see the insecurities and because I didn't come from modeling and I was taller, she just knew I wasn't comfortable in my own skin. She was the one that told me to be strong, be athletic, be you. She brought that out of me."
The 100' tall photo of the WWE women on AT&T Stadium for WrestleMania - "I didn't know it was real. I thought, that's cute, look what the fans are making in the middle of the arena. Then Sasha sent me a text of the picture of it because she had a selfie of it. I said, 'oh, that's real! We really are in the middle of the arena, on AT&T Stadium!'"