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Charlotte Flair Takes Major Step Towards 15th World Title On WWE SmackDown

By Ahmed Hamdy • Published Jun 12, 2026 20:36 EDT
charlotte flair wwe
Charlotte Flair on SmackDown, June 5, 2026 - Source: WWE.com

Charlotte Flair is one step closer to winning her 15th world championship in WWE.

WWE recently kicked off the 2026 Queen of the Ring tournament, with the winner earning a world championship shot at SummerSlam. Raquel Rodriguez, IYO SKY, and the Women’s World Champion Liv Morgan qualified for the semi-finals after winning their first-round Fatal 4-Way matches.

In the final first round match, Charlotte Flair, Lyra Valkyria, Jade Cargill, and the Women’s Intercontinental Champion, Sol Ruca, battled on tonight’s SmackDown.

While Valkyria and Ruca have never held a world title in WWE, The Queen is a 14-time world champion. The Storm is also a former WWE Women’s Champion. After she recently failed to recapture the title from Rhea Ripley, The Eradicator revealed that Cargill is barred from challenging her and has to go to the back of the line.

Tonight, The Storm lost her opportunity to receive another shot at Ripley’s title as Flair emerged victorious to book her spot in the semi-finals. The Queen will now square off with Morgan this Monday on RAW.

WWE Confirms Rhea Ripley’s Injury

Earlier tonight on SmackDown, Wade Barrett and Joe Tessitore provided an update on the WWE Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley, confirming that she had suffered a knee injury in Italy during the recent European tour.

The announcers added that The Eradicator’s injury is currently being evaluated to determine how long she will be out of action.

Also read: Charlotte Flair Breaks Silence After Injuring WWE Star On SmackDown

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