Payback 2016 Charlotte v Natalya

If you come at the Queen, you best not miss. And with a make-or-break opportunity for Charlotte’s WWE Women’s Championship staring her in the face, Natalya will do the one thing a challenger does to ensure she doesn’t miss her shot: She’s bringing in backup.

Having been thwarted by Charlotte’s valet/manager/stage daddy/partner-in-crime Ric Flair on numerous occasions — The Nature Boy’s presence decided the pair’s Divas Title Match at WWE Roadblock and a recent rumble for the Women’s Championship on Raw — The Queen of Harts has conscripted her uncle, WWE Hall of Famer Bret “Hit Man” Hart, to her side to help even the odds against The Dirtiest Players in the Game.

On paper, this was a necessary, bordering on game-changing, move. Charlotte has proven herself to be a champion who will do anything and everything to maintain a hold over WWE’s resurgent Women’s division. The Nature Boy has been the hinge on which many of Charlotte’s signature victories (including the WrestleMania Triple Threat that landed her the new title in the first place) have swung.

Natalya has attempted to prove in recent weeks that heart and skill are the true marks of a champion, but she hasn’t much to show for walking the high road: only a disqualification defeat of Charlotte on Raw, thanks to Flair, and a tapout of the champion in an eight-woman affair that had already softened Charlotte up for the Sharpshooter. Having Uncle Bret on her side could truly even out the contest into the one-on-one bout The Queen of Harts has claimed from the start she can’t be beaten in.

But to beat the woman at WWE Payback, Natalya doesn’t just have to make history, she has to overcome history. Perhaps adding Bret to the equation is just what she needs. Flair isn’t everything, after all. Sometimes, all it takes to win the big one is a little more Hart than your opponent. If nothing else, Natalya definitely has that now.