WWE: What Constitutes A Horsewoman In Wrestling?

There is a lot of excitement about a Four Horsewomen feud in WWE. That’s either a fatal four way between Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, Sasha Banks and Bayley or Flair’s clan versus that of Ronda Rousey.

Either way it’s an exciting concept; there would be a lot of talent in a WWE ring.

In fact, the feud is already building, with Ronda Rousey’s right to the use of the Horsewomen name under constant scrutiny from the likes of Charlotte Flair.

So what makes a Horsewoman? Who does have the right to use the name and who might fly under the Horsewoman banner in future?

The History Of The Four Horsemen

To answer this question we need to start with another question. Where did the Four Horsewomen name originate? It’s an easy question. The Horsewomen name is derived from the Four Horsemen, a truly infamous and heavily celebrated faction that rode in the NWA and WCW for a long time. While the Horsemen never made it to WWE, and the success of the NWO at the peak of wrestling’s popularity obscures them slightly, the longevity and talent base of the Four Horsemen stand out particularly strongly.

Among their number was Ric Flair – their eternal leader. Arn Anderson. Tully Blanchard. Jeff Jarrett. Brian Pillman. Chris Benoit. Mongo. Definitely Mongo. He was there for a long time, actually.

The Four Horsemen were also one of the most autonomous factions in wrestling history, with prominent members such as Ric Flair and Arn Anderson having a very strong level of control over their membership. Admittedly, there would at times be pressure from the companies that they would wrestle for to add, and by extension push, certain talents, but by and large that was not a rule. Ric Flair, in particular, had the greatest say in who would join the group.

Charlotte Flair and Tessa Blanchard

By extension, this has been continued by those that succeeded them. Ric Flair’s daughter, Charlotte Flair, would create a Four Horsewomen faction in NXT in her father’s image. This group would feature some of the most talented wrestlers on the brand at the time. Charlotte would be joined by Sasha Banks, Bayley and Becky Lynch – her chosen three.

However, Charlotte is not the only person with a right to the name. There is one more person who is exactly as much a Horsewoman as Charlotte Flair: Tessa Blanchard.

Tessa has never been in WWE proper. She has appeared for the company in other rosters; primarily as a jobber for NXT and as a premier jobber (someone who could feasibly win only to job) for Kairi Sane in the inaugural Mae Young Classic.

Instead, Blanchard is making a name for herself away from the apparent “big leagues.” As recently as last year, Blanchard was the Impact Knockouts Champion. The Impact Women’s Division is, of course, an extremely strong one that has been making waves for a while. Blanchard also goes beyond Impact, having defeated Britt Baker, Chelsea Green and Madison Rayne at All In. She is unquestionably one of the biggest female names outside of WWE.

More importantly in the context of this debate, she is the daughter of former Four Horsemen original Tully Blanchard; giving her as much right to the Four Horsewomen name as Charlotte Flair.

Tessa Blanchard’s claim to the name is lent extra credibility by the fact that Charlotte Flair openly refers to her as a Horsewoman.

The two women are openly proud to be fellows in this very exclusive club. Undoubtedly based on the time in question, they shared some time under the WWE umbrella, though Charlotte was already wrestling on Raw while Blanchard was spending time in NXT. That said, when Blanchard did spend time there, Charlotte Flair had already built her collective.

The Four Horsewomen of WWE…and of MMA

And so we have two groups of Horsewomen. In one we have Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, Sasha Banks and Bayley. In the other, we have Charlotte Flair and Tessa Blanchard. So you’d assume this article is going to be about those two groups and who has more right, right? Unfortunately, there are pretenders to the throne.

Do a search for the Four Horsewomen and it becomes very clear that there are two groups throwing up the four fingers. The Four Horsewomen of WWE and the Four Horsewomen of the MMA; Ronda Rousey, Shayna Baszler, Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir.

Ronda Rousey – it was a true victory for WWE when they managed to obtain her signature – is currently wrestling on the Raw brand as the Raw Women’s Champion and, a few uneven promos aside, has taken to sports entertainment with relative ease. Even before she officially debuted after the first Women’s Royal Rumble, she had started to make appearances at WrestleManias and at the Mae Young Classic.

Shayna Baszler also carries gold as the current NXT Women’s Champion. In a less prominent position on the WWE spectrum, Baszler has thrived under less scrutiny. Her personality is clear, she speaks calmly and smoothly and her in-ring character is played to perfection in a division lacking in powerhouses.

Duke and Shafir meanwhile are still at an early stage of development and are currently acting as backup more than anything else. That said, with current women’s tag team champions Banks and Bayley eager to defend against all comers, don’t be too surprised to see Duke and Shafir enter the ring with them in the not-too-distant future.

And so we have all of the many players of the Four Horsewomen and, you have to say, all of them are major players wherever they go. Rousey revolutionized the role of women in combat sports as a mainstream star. Meanwhile Flair, Lynch, Banks and Bayley have dominated WWE for years. Lynch and Flair have become main event players in the land of the giants; something no woman before them has managed to accomplish. Blanchard, meanwhile, continues to carry her craft across multiple promotions, delivering reliable excellence across the board.

The Five Horsewomen

The Four Horsewomen are the premier female athletes in professional wrestling. Quality is guaranteed. At some point in the future we may see Flair versus Lynch versus Banks versus Bayley. We may see WWE versus MMA Horsewomen. We may, of course, see Blanchard versus Flair in what could be a tremendous challenge.

However, that’s not the question being asked here. We know what makes a Horsewoman and we know who decides the Horsewomen so it’s actually a very simple question to answer.

Tessa Blanchard has never disputed the role of the current WWE Four Horsewomen, so the Four Horsewomen are truly five: Charlotte Flair, Tessa Blanchard, Becky Lynch, Sasha Banks and Bayley are the Four Horsewomen.

Which makes perfect sense given that in 1985, when the Four Horsemen first founded, there were five of them.