As the daughter of the man considered by many to be the greatest professional wrestler in history, there are many qualities about "genetically superior" WWE superstar Charlotte Flair that have been passed down from 16-time world champion Ric Flair.
From her swagger and poise to her commitment to flaunting elegant robes as part of her character's elaborate ring entrances, the younger Flair is a virtual chip off the old block. And considering the speed in which she has evolved since her 2012 debut with NXT, the 32-year-old has also been WWE's closest thing to a natural in years.
But for all of the knowledge and wisdom Charlotte Flair, who was born Ashley Fliehr, has acquired from her two-time WWE Hall of Fame father and the impact he has had on her life and career, not much is spoken about the reverse equation.
Charlotte, who recently co-authored an autobiography with her father titled "Second Nature: The Legacy of Ric Flair and the Rise of Charlotte," was a guest on Wednesday's edition of the CBS Sports "In This Corner" podcast. In a candid and emotional interview, Charlotte touched on the impact of her brother Reid Flair's death and how she dealt with her father's much-publicized health scare in recent weeks.
"I don't know if me and my dad have necessarily touched on this because we talk about Reid but not a lot," she told CBS Sports. "But me wrestling, I think, ultimately saved my dad's career and not only saved my life but definitely put a whole other chapter that no one saw coming because it could've been rock bottom after my brother passed away."
Reid Flair, an aspiring pro wrestler and the youngest of Ric's four children, died in 2013 following a drug overdose. Although Charlotte, a former NCAA Division I volleyball player, had previously entered WWE's developmental system, she had yet to appear on television and wasn't convinced she had made the right decision.
"Then that's when I decided," she continued. "I showed back up a week later at FCW, which is now NXT, because Dusty Rhodes said, 'We want you back, we need you back.' And from that point on decided that I was going to make it in this industry. Because I worked so hard there, that gave my dad more reason to be active in the wrestling community and I think that helped him a lot with his later on career and life after just besides the ring."
The past month has been among the most challenging times in Charlotte's life. Ric Flair, 68, checked himself into an Atlanta hospital in August with stomach pain. Three days later, he entered a medically induced coma in the early stages of kidney and congestive heart failure.
Charlotte left her WWE schedule to be by her father's side and was instructed by doctors to say goodbye. Given only a 20 percent chance to live, Ric Flair had portions of his bowel removed and had a pacemaker inserted. And while not yet out of the woods, Flair's recovery has been called miraculous.
Flair was sent home for the first time last Friday, Charlotte told CBS Sports. And the four-time Raw women's champion admits that her father's health scare forced the entire family to deal with the unresolved pain of Reid's death.
"This is a very complicated answer but nothing will be harder than losing my brother," Charlotte said. "Solely because he was my other half and to see the hurt in my mom and dad and my siblings. I feel like my dad having to slow down from being sick, this was like the first time since my brother passing that it was kind of a regrouping for the entire family.
"I don't know if my dad has ever dealt with losing his son. I don't know how you lose a child and ever deal with it and move on but this was also eye opening for my dad to realize he has to take care of himself too. I need him around, his fiancé needs him, his other two kids -- my sister Megan and my brother David -- we all need him.
"It was a bunch of different things, but in the end, I think my dad and the family are going to come out stronger from this and it has opened my dad's eyes to that it's OK not to be the man at all times."
