Ric Flair was at NXT this week to watch Charlotte Flair in the main event of the show and he made an appearance for the live audience before the episode went on air.

The 16-time world champion came out right before the show went on air and he interacted with the Godfather of the Black And Yellow brand Triple H during his appearance.

Flair first said that the guys at NXT work really hard and Ric Flair then also teased a knee drop on his jacket but ultimately decided against it. You can check out some photos and a video of Flair’s appearance below.

Charlotte Flair On Why She Attacked Bianca Belair

Charlotte Flair defeated Bianca Belair in the main event of this week’s episode of NXT but she didn’t stop there and the Queen attacked Belair with a chair after the match was over.

Flair was interviewed backstage after the show. When asked why she attacked the NXT star after winning the bout, Charlotte simply replied with ‘because I can’.

The former Women’s Champion then explained her actions saying that when she was in NXT she had more respect for the performers on Raw and SmackDown. You can check out her interview in the video below:

WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair caught up with Chris Jericho for an episode of Talk is Jericho. The two sat down with each other during Chris Jericho’s Rock’ N’ Rager At Sea: Part Deux cruise. One of the topics that were broached during their conversation was Flair’s decision to leave WCW for the the-WWF in 1991. 

Flair shared how WCW had plans in place to repackage him. This gimmick change would have included a hair cut and a name change to ‘Spartacus’, an idea he attributed to Jim Herd.

“He wanted me to… the worst thing I ever did was cut my hair. Like, I remember walking through the airport. Nobody knew me,” Flair divulged. “I mean, I was frightened because he wanted to call me ‘Spartacus’. They wanted me to change my name and put in an earring. You know that story, Chris. They wanted to call me ‘Spartacus’. You saw that haircut. What other explanation could there be? I looked like a 12 year old kid with a surfboard shoved up my butt. It was that bad.”

Ric Flair On Turning Down WWE In 1988

Ric Flair also talked about turning down the chance to compete against the late ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage at SummerSlam 1988. He shared how WWE wanted him to come in for the match, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave his friends, including Tully Blanchard, Barry Windham and Arn Anderson. They were “selling out everywhere” and Flair couldn’t have been happier, so had no real interest in dropping that to wrestle Savage.

“I just had a deposit on the belt and I was with Arn [Anderson] and Tully [Blanchard] and Barry [Windham] and we were selling out everywhere and I was happy. It was never about not going up there [to WWE] and having fun,” he said. “A lot of guys that I was friends with were there. I just couldn’t bring myself to leave that circle of friends that I was with.”

He continued, “And then, we had talks again and that didn’t do anything, so when I quit, I just called them and I said, ‘I’m here and by the way, I’ve got the belt.’ I tried to give it back. [WCW] said they wouldn’t take it. That’s the truth. I said, ‘take it’ and he said, ‘shove it up your ass.'”

H/T to Talk is Jericho for the transcription.

Starrcade 93 was arguably one of the more memorable shows in the event’s history. The main event of the card was Ric Flair challenging Big Van Vader for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. Flair’s career was on the line in the match as well.

Flair vs Vader was not supposed to be the main event, however. The match between the two was only booked after Sid Vicious was fired from the promotion stemming from his infamous backstage fight with Arn Anderson. Vader was originally supposed to defend his title against Sid in the main event of Starrcade that year.

Bischoff stressed that while he was in WCW at the time, he was not yet running creative. He offered some insight as to why Flair was chosen to replace Sid, however.

“(Flair) was always the go-to guy. If plan A doesn’t work, plan B will,” Bischoff said. “While Ric Flair was often Plan A and for many, many years throughout WCW’s existence, Ric was always the Plan A guy because he drew money and he drew ratings and everyone knew it.”

Bischoff would continue to say, however, that in this case, Flair was Plan B.

“When the building is starting to burn and you can’t put it out with the kitchen sink, what do you do? You break the glass, pull the fire alarm and in comes Ric Flair.”

Bischoff would then say Flair as Plan B, in this case, worked out quite well.

“Plan B worked out phenomenally well. Probably, possibly, not even possibly, quite likely worked out to be much better than Plan A.”

Bischoff’s comments about Starrcade 93 can be heard in the player below:

Ric Flair has issued some high-rise upon his soon-to-be son-in-law, Andrade. The WWE Hall of Famer took to Twitter to share his thoughts on the WWE United States Champion. He declared that after this past Monday’s episode of RAW, the Superstar has “Moved Into The Elite Class Of Being One Of The Top 5 Performers In The WWE!”

Ric Flair’s Elite Class

Flair shared how the other four Superstars already “Know Who They Are.” He revealed he has already spoken to them. For “The Nature Boy,” his top five rankings aren’t simply speculation, they’re fact. Ric Flair accompanied his thoughts with a picture of Andrade looking lovingly at his WWE US Championship. In the image, he is flanked by his manager, Zelina Vega.

“After Last Night’s RAW, In My Opinion, The Great @AndradeCienWWE Has Moved Into The Elite Class Of Being One Of The Top 5 Performers In The WWE! The Other 4 Know Who They Are Because I Have Already Told Them. This Isn’t Up For Speculation. This Is A Fact!”

Andrade’s Ambitions

Andrade recently shared his intentions to becomes the “new face” of Latinos. He noted how he is working towards securing his own personal legacy—one that respects and acknowledges those notable Latino Superstars before him but is distinctly his own. He proposed over the holidays to his now-fiancee, Charlotte Flair.

WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair has given his reaction to the big news over the last 24 hours, which is Charlotte Flair and WWE United States Champion Andrade getting engaged as they are set to be married. 

The happy couple has yet to announce when they plan to get married but it was Andrade who asked the big question on New Year’s Eve and The Queen said yes.

Ric Flair Reacts To Their Engagement

The legendary pro wrestler took to his official Twitter account where he reacted and congratulated the happy couple by writing the following: 

“Congratulations To My Beautiful Daughter @MsCharlotteWWE And An Awesome Young Man @AndradeCienWWE On Their Engagement! So Happy, So Proud! What A Way To Start 2020!”

Flair has since noted in a post on Twitter that back in 2018 during a dinner on New Year’s Eve she and Andrade had to use Google Translate to interact. She also called Andrade the love of her life in a hashtag.

Inside of the ring, Andrade has been in a feud with Rey Mysterio on television. In fact, Andrade beat Mysterio to win the United States Title last Thursday night at a house show at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

WWE has already confirmed that Andrade will make his next title defense against Mysterio on next week’s episode of RAW in Oklahoma City, OK at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on the USA Network.

Charlotte just finished up a feud with WWE Women’s Champions Asuka and Kairi Sane as she teamed up with RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch. 

WWE is moving away from that feud as Flair doesn’t have her next program lined up yet. What we do know is that she’ll be competing in the Women’s Royal Rumble Match at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view event.

• Ric Flair Agrees Corey Graves’ Gripes Over Charlotte’s Booking

WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair agrees with Corey Graves’ belief that WWE is dropping the ball with his daughter Charlotte.

Earlier this month, Graves commented on the situation on WWE’s After The Bell podcast. He believes Charlotte is “going through the motions” because she is disengaged with WWE’s lackluster storytelling.

Ric Flair’s Agreement

Ric Flair was a recent guest on the WINCLY podcast. When asked about Graves’ remarks about Charlotte, he did not pull any punches.

“I am not happy with the way [WWE] are doing it; I guess she’s been put in that role. Number one, I need to be left out of the equation because she has surpassed me in talent,” admitted Flair. 

“She’s never gonna be around for 40 years which is why I’m still a household name. I think they look at it and say, ‘Well, she’s like her dad. She’ll do anything we want her to do because she’s a pro.’

Ric Flair continued by noting that he doesn’t think she’ll ever be bored with her storylines and not participate at its fullest, which he thinks where Graves is wrong. 

He did also agree that Flair is the best athlete in the company, a Hall of Famer already and being the biggest star of the women’s division.

As of late, Flair has been paired with RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch on television in a feud with WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Asuka and Kairi Sane. 

• Corey Graves Says Charlotte Flair Is Not Feeling Her Current Storyline, Flair Responds

Ric Flair’s contract with WWE is reportedly set to expire in the coming days. According to a recent report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Flair’s WWE deal expires around the end of the year.

“Flair’s WWE deal expires right around the end of the year,” wrote Dave Meltzer. “He is friends with Tony Khan, to the degree that Khan was an invited guest to his wedding.”

The 70-year-old Flair has been with WWE since he left TNA Wrestling in 2012.

“I would expect WWE to make a good offer to keep him given they wouldn’t want him on the AEW television show,” Meltzer continued.

Ric Flair and WWE “The Man” Trademark Conflict

Back in September, Flair went public stating WWE needed to pay him to use “the Man” in reference to Becky Lynch’s character. He spoke to TMZ about the situation.

• Ric Flair Says WWE Needs To Pay Him To Use “The Man” Trademark (Video)

“I’m glad I’m having this opportunity to clear the air,” Flair says in the video. “When I first saw this go down in August of 2018, I thought ‘cool, the Man’ my gimmick versus my daughter, Charlotte. Ok, they started right after SummerSlam, I thought ‘cool’. I said ‘I’m going to make some money, it’s my trademark, they have it to use.’”

“I got my royalty statement, I sent them a text and their lawyer, who just has no respect for me whatsoever which is something I’m not going to deal with much longer, he said ‘you’re wrong, not even close,’” Flair continued. 

WWE teased a physical confrontation between Ric Flair and Hulk Hogan before October’s Crown Jewel pay-per-view. The angle never took place, presumably because WWE wanted to play it safe as it relates to the health of the two legends.

However, during a recent interview with WrestlingInc, Ric Flair revealed that he was in fact cleared for physical activity at the event, but the angle was nixed.

The 16 Time World Champion claimed that it was Vince McMahon who nixed the angle and explained that sometimes if you are not physically involved, you feel like you are not giving everything you have:

“I got cleared medically to do something in Saudi and then Vince nixed it,” Ric Flair revealed. “If I would have fed Roman in that huge comeback he made, or tapped Hogan, that would have been the coup de gras.”

You just wanna give them everything they paid for and sometimes if you’re not physically involved, you feel like you’re not giving everything you had if you’re not physical.”

After this revelation, Ric Flair was asked if getting cleared means that he can actually wrestle a match. Flair said yes, but said his days in the ring are over. Due to his age, and health complications, it would take him a long time to get in ring shape. At this stage, he would be happy to simply take a bump or two.

Ric Flair recently had an interview with WrestlingInc, where he talked about Batista and the nWo headlining the WWE Hall Of Fame’s Class of 2020.

Flair has a relationship with all five of the announced names for the Hall Of Fame class of 2020, but one guy he knows up and close is Batista who he worked with during their time as part of the Evolution.

When asked about the Animal’s induction into the Hall Of Fame, the first two time WWE Hall Of Famer revealed that he texted him after learning about the news and he then went on to joke about a third induction for himself:

“I texted him and I think it’s great. Now we just have to get Hunter going and get Randy [Orton] who’s making too much money to get out of it so I can get my third [induction as a part of Evolution].

Certainly Dave made an impact, not only with us but as a singles and is a huge star in Hollywood. I’m happy for all of these guys that were during my career that I had the pleasure to work with.”

The former World Champion also mentioned the announced induction of nWo. He said Kevin Nash and Scott Hall revolutionized the business when they jumped to WCW.

Ric Flair On AEW Allowing Non-Scripted Promos

AEW has tried to build themselves as an alternative to WWE, and one thing they have been doing differently than the E is allowing talents to cut long, unscripted promos.

When asked about this change, Ric Flair, who is considered to be one of the best promo guys in the history of wrestling business, spoke positively about the company, mentioning Cody Rhodes’ recent promo on Dynamite:

“That’s a very positive part of their promotion. I think Jericho’s done a hell of a job. The piece they did for Cody getting ready for the championship match I thought was great. It was very true and heartfelt,”

The Dirtiest Player In The Game went on to compare Cody’s promo to the one where Roman Reigns announced his leukemia diagnosis and revealed that Reigns had learned about the same on Tuesday only 6 days prior.

The big match between Team Hogan and Team Flair is in the books. 

As seen at Thursday’s (October 31, 2019) WWE Crown Jewel pay-per-view event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia at the King Fahd International Stadium on the WWE Network, Team Hogan went over Team Flair. 

Roman Reigns, Rusev, Ricochet, Ali, and Chad Gable representing WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan beat Randy Orton, Baron Corbin, Bobby Lashley, Shinsuke Nakamura, Drew McIntyre, who represented pro wrestling legend Ric Flair. 

The two former WWE Champions were ringside for this contest, which was a Traditional 5-on-5 Tag Team Match. 

WWE set this match up back on the September 30th episode of Monday Night RAW when Hogan and Flair appeared on Miz TV. They cut promos on each other and eventually teased one last showdown. 

This led to the announcement of WWE Universal Champion Seth Rollins serving as the captain of Team Hogan while Orton would serve as the captain of Team Flair. 

WWE would later change the match as Rollins was pulled and replaced by Reigns. The reason for that is due to Rollins also working a Falls Count Anywhere Match against Bray Wyatt where he put his title on the line at Crown Jewel. 

WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair was a guest on WWE’s newly launched podcast, After The Bell. During the conversation with host Corey Graves, Flair confessed that he had been medically cleared by WWE officials. His comments suggested that he could be involved in a physical spot during WWE’s Crown Jewel event in Saudi Arabia. 

“I’ve been cleared, by the way, Corey,” Flair said. “That’s a secret, I’ve been cleared. I’ve got a medical release. So, never, ever forget who the dirtiest player in the game is, man. I’ll be equipped and ready, in the words of Pedro Morales, for any kind of action!”

WWE has been teasing a physical confrontation between Flair and Hulk Hogan for the past few weeks. In a recent interview with Bryon Saxton uploaded to WWE’s YouTube channel, Flair once again teased things getting physical between himself and Hogan. 

The two are managing their teams in a 10-man tag team match at Crown Jewel. Team Flair is comprised of Randy Orton, King Corbin, Bobby Lashley, Shinsuke Nakamura and Drew McIntyre. Team Hogan features Roman Reigns, Ricochet, Rusev, Shorty G and Ali.

WWE Crown Jewel takes place later today from the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. WWE’s Kickoff show will start at 12PM ET.

H/T to WrestlingNews for the transcription. 

WWE Hall of Famers Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair are slated to make another WWE television appearance. 

The two legendary pro wrestlers will be appearing on Monday Night RAW on October 28th. This is the go-home show for WWE Crown Jewel. 

Their last appearance on WWE television together came earlier this month on RAW to do a MizTV segment. This is where they set up a 5-on-5 Elimination Tag Team Match that will take place at the upcoming Crown Jewel pay-per-view event. 

Team Flair consists of Randy Orton, King Baron Corbin, Bobby Lashley, WWE Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura and another to be announced star while Team Hogan will see WWE Universal Champion Seth Rollins, Rusev, Ricochet and two other members to be announced.

Hulk Hogan Reveals He Talked To Vince McMahon About A Possible Retirement Match

As noted, with Rollins also slated to defend his title in a rematch against Bray Wyatt in a Falls Count Anywhere Match at this show.

It’s been reported that Rollins won’t pull a double duty at this show but instead will be removed from Team Hogan vs. Team Flair and replaced with another star. 

WWE holds the Crown Jewel pay-per-view event on Thursday, October 31, 2019 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia at the King Fahd International Stadium and will air on the WWE Network.

While it’s been a while since either Ric Flair or Hulk Hogan stepped foot inside a ring to compete, the two can still be considered one of the biggest wrestling stars and this is evident from the viewership numbers of the latest episode of Raw.

This week’s episode of Monday Night Raw saw the return of Hogan and Flair and the two were featured in a special edition of the Miz TV.

Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Radio revealed that over 500,000 fans tuned in for this segment on Raw and they tuned out after the angle featuring the two WWE Hall of Famers was over.

While the nostalgia segments on WWE Programming are known to do good numbers, it was noted that the segment setting up the first Crown Jewel match did even better than the usual segments featuring legends.

The show overall did better than usual numbers as well and this week’s episode of Raw drew an average of 2.571 million viewers which is a 16% increase from last week’s 2.210 million viewers. 

Both Ric Flair and Hulk Hogan were guests on Miz TV on this week’s season premiere episode of Raw and the two wrestling legends teased tension with each other during the angle on the show.

Their confrontation ultimately led to the announcement of a Team Flair vs. Team Hogan match for the next Saudi Arabian PPV dubbed Crown Jewel 2019 which will take place at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on October 31.

WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan continues to try to get fans excited for a potential physical encounter with fellow pro wrestling legend Ric Flair. 

This past Monday on RAW saw Flair and Hogan tease one final showdown but eventually announced that they would have two teams square off at the upcoming WWE Crown Jewel PPV as a 5-on-5 tag team match took place. 

Hogan took to his official Twitter account where he teased mixing it up with Flair and potentially changing the match to a 6-on-6 tag team match. 

“I can guarantee I will get my hands on Flair one more time at Crown Jewel even if I have to make it a 6 on 6 match brother, by the way I still have one more leg drop left in me brother HH #Ricflair #WWERaw #Crownjewel.”

WWE Universal Champion Seth Rollins will serve as the captain of Team Hogan while Randy Orton will serve as the captain of Team Flair. 

Rusev will also be on Team Hogan while Baron Corbin will be on the opposite team. More stars for the teams will be announced in the coming weeks. 

Hulk Hogan Discusses Never Being Able To Wrestle Again

Hogan and Flair never wrestled against each other under the WWE banner in a singles match but did for WCW and even TNA Wrestling. They also headlined a pair of shows in Australia. 

It will be interesting to see how far WWE lets Hogan and Flair go at this show. 

WWE continues to load up next week’s episode of RAW, which will mark the season premiere of the flagship show of the company. 

This show takes place at the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. The official Twitter account of the arena has announced that WWE Hall of Famers Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair will make an appearance on the show. 

This is where it was revealed that they will appear on Miz TV, which is the talk show of The Miz. You can see the advertisement here: 

This comes after last week it was revealed that former WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar would also appear on the show. 

Police Officer Under Investigation For Driving Hulk Hogan Onto Airport Tarmac

The following matches, which will likely be dark matches for the live crowd in attendance, are being advertised to take place: 

• Universal Champion Seth Rollins vs “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt
• RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair vs SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley and Sasha Banks

It should be noted that Rollins will defend his title on the show by facing the winner of a Fatal 5-Way #1 Contender’s match on Monday’s RAW. 

This comes at an interesting time for Hogan and Flair as the two stars are slated to appear just days later on the first episode of SmackDown on FOX.

WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair will be backstage at Tuesday’s SmackDown Live TV event in Atlanta, Georgia at the State Farm Arena. 

He’ll be there in order to take part in a Q&A for WWE sponsor Cricket Wireless alongside his daughter, Charlotte Flair. The session will stream live on Cricket Wireless’ Facebook page and other social media platforms at 12 PM Eastern.

As of this writing, there’s no word yet on if he’ll appear on the show.

This comes at a time where Flair has been going up against WWE over the moniker, ‘The Man.’ The former WWE Champion feels that he should receive a royalty from the company because WWE RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch has been using it on television for a while now.

Flair has made it known that he doesn’t have anything against Lynch for doing so as she’s been using it on television since her feud with his daughter last year. The legendary pro wrestler has tried to trademark the term. 

Becky Lynch Comments On Ric Flair “The Man” Controversy

Flair is also slated to appear on SmackDown 20th Anniversary show on October 4th that will serve as the premiere show on FOX.

Speaking of Flair, he made an appearance in the “Laundry on Sundays” campaign for Tide. SNL’s Kenan Thompson was the featured star of the two-minute spot. You can see that here: 

Ric Flair has revealed who he believes to be the top three performers of all time. He shared his views during a recent appearance on SiriusXM’s Busted Open Radio, where he was discussing this week’s episode of Monday Night RAW which saw “Stone Cold” Steve Austin returning to Madison Square Garden. 

“The only problem with bringing Steve out there, who will always, in my estimation, be the biggest star in the history of the business,” Flair said. “The three biggest […] in my estimation are Hulk, Steve, and ‘Taker. They’re just three names that are gonna be synonymous, they’ve drawn huge amounts of money. But when you send Steve out there, just like they did at the RAW reunion, man, it’s just…what are you going to do? He’s unbelievable.”

He added that, if Austin hadn’t gotten injured, forcing him to retire “ten years too early,” “Stone Cold” would probably still be performing today. 

Flair has previously stated that if he and Austin were able to feud with each other during their prime, he has no doubt they would have set box office records everywhere.

Austin was involved in a contract signing segment on Monday between WWE Universal Champion Seth Rollins and his opponent at Clash of Champions, Braun Strowman.

“Stone Cold” Steve Austin recently had WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair join him on his podcast, The Steve Austin Show. The two reminisced on their time together on WWE’s recent RAW Reunion show. They also spoke about what could have happened had they feuded while in their prime.

Austin explained that he and Flair were drinking, hanging out, and sharing stories in the run-up to RAW Reunion. He added that, once Flair started telling stories, he wouldn’t want to “tap out” from hearing one of the greats.

“I Don’t Care What The Doctors Say”

“Yeah, I was talking about the RAW reunion a little bit, and I said, ‘Man, I was down there at the bar with Flair and Flair was telling stories, so if Flair’s telling stories, I’m not going to tap out. I’m going to keep drinking!’ And then, people started jumping on [Flair’s] ass saying, ‘Well, Ric Flair’s not supposed to be drinking.’ I saw [Flair] nurse about two or three Bud Lights and Bud Light is about as light as you can get in the alcohol category, and [Flair] nursed them all night long.” Austin explained. 

“Well, let me tell you something about the next day. I was kind of hungover the next day because I always pace myself here at the house, but [Flair was] telling stories all night long. [Flair] was kind of holding court. I was like a parrot. I was right behind [Flair], damn near on [Flair’s] right shoulder laughing my ass off. And every time I would give the guy the signal to bring me another margarita or another Jack and Coke or another beer – he didn’t make a margarita worth a s**t – so anyway, I kept rotating all my different alcohols.” 

Flair added that anytime he gets to see Austin, he’s going to “jump at it.” 

“I don’t care what the doctors say – I’m going to have some drinks!” Flair said. “What a way to go! Hey listen, my motto was that I want to die either on top of Wendy or in the ring. Now it’s with the boys or doing [Austin’s] podcast!”

The two discussed what might have been had they been able to feud against each other. Austin recalled he worked with Flair a bit near the end of his career, but was frazzled and burned out. He’s confident, however, that the two would have set box office records. 

Flair agreed wholeheartedly, stating that they would have set records everywhere.

H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

“The Nature Boy” Ric Flair has reportedly filed to trademark “The Man.” The term has been one often associated with Flair over his decades’ long career, but has been adopted within WWE by current Superstar, and RAW Women’s Champion, Becky Lynch.

In a recent tweet, the “Nature Boy” seemed to take open issue with both Becky Lynch and Taylor Swift. He purposely tagged them in the message, seemingly, to grab their attention.

“I Hate To Break It To You Both @BeckyLynchWWE And @taylorswift13, But I’m THE MAN!!! And To Be THE MAN, You Gotta Beat THE MAN! WOOOOO! #theman”

Lynch not only uses the nickname “The Man,” she also has the phrase on multiple pieces of WWE merchandise. Taylor Swift, meanwhile, recently released a new song entitled “The Man.”

The trademark filing will allegedly cover purposes intended for entertainment services—with wrestling exhibitions and appearances being purposefully stated. If successful, Flair would also own the right to use “The Man” on clothing, footwear, and headwear.

With Becky Lynch as popular as she is right now, she is commonly referenced to as “The Man” across all of WWE’s output. With that in mind, it will be interesting to see how the promotion reacts to Flair’s attempts to lock down the rights to own it.

Ric Flair believes that now is the greatest time in the past 20 years to be a professional wrestler. 

“The Nature Boy” shared his thoughts on the state of modern pro wrestling during an interview with The Houston Chronicle. He claimed that the Khan family’s willingness to spend money to elevate All Elite Wrestling (AEW) will undoubtedly provide younger talent with career alternatives to WWE.

“This is the greatest time in the last 20 years to be a pro wrestler,” Flair declared. “Tony and the Khan family have a lot of money, and they’re going to spend the money to get good. For the young guys coming along, it provides an alternative way. The WWE can pay only so many guys and feature only so many guys. They do a great job of it, but a lot of guys who do have talent never get an opportunity.”

He added that there is a lot of pressure on future talent to stand out, but reiterated that “it’s a good time to be a wrestler.”

WWE will be debuting NXT on USA Network on September 18th, lengthening their show to two hours. AEW will air their first show on TNT a few weeks later on October 2nd. 

WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair knows what it’s like to be a top guy in a company. Many people think Flair should be considered the greatest of all time [GOAT] in the world of pro wrestling.

The legendary pro wrestler was recently interviewed by Wrestling INC where he spoke about a wide range of topics. During the interview, he talked about who can be ‘The Guy’ in WWE. 

Flair started out by stating that WWE thought that Roman Reigns would be the next megastar but he was set back due to his battle with leukemia. Flair believes that the company is finding it hard to figure out who should be the next big star due to them getting crossed with mixed feelings and emotions from different people.

He would praise the phenomenal talent that WWE has under contract right now. “You’ve got Roman [Reigns], you’ve got Seth [Rollins], you’ve got AJ Styles, all three tremendous.

“Randy Orton: there isn’t a better worker in the business, when he wants to work, than Randy Orton. But Randy has been there. When he does those interviews where he says he’s been here for fifteen years and done it all, that’s the truth! That’s how fast time has gone by. “

Flair ended by saying that it’s hard not to say that Orton isn’t the man due to size and look. 

All Elite Wrestling has become the most trending commodity in the world of professional wrestling and everyone has thoughts about it. A particular event made more waves during the company’s Double or Nothing show during which Cody Rhodes smashed Triple H’s throne while making his entrance.

WWE Hall of Famer and Legend Ric Flair who is close friends with AEW President Tony Khan, spoke to WrestlingInc. on their WINCLY Podcast and gave his opinion on Cody smashing the throne with a sledgehammer.

Flair believes that Cody went straight for Triple H because The Game is a top guy. “If you are going to make a statement, Hunter’s a top guy,” said Flair.

“Hunter is a disciple of the business and could not have come along at a better time in wrestling than he did. Then of course marrying Stephanie and he’s got a work ethic just like Vince has. In my mind, if something ever happens to Vince, God forbid, Hunter will be the one running the company.”

And that is how a statement is made, according to The Nature Boy. “So, that’s how you get someone’s attention. You jump on a guy. When they are talking about you, you’re doing something good. That’s a good saying in this business.”

Following a health scare which caused him to miss Starrcast II last month, Ric Flair released several videos on his official YouTube account. A recently deleted video took aim at his former manager and a previous video made negative comments about Shawn Michaels.

• Ric Flair Calls Out Shawn Michaels For “30 For 30” Comments

Flair took the time to apologize to Michaels today in a newly released video from his Twitter account:

“I want to take one moment to apologize to Shawn Michaels,” Flair said. “Shawn, I got excited, I was upset about some stuff, I took it out on you. I apologize. You and Ricky Steamboat will forever be the greatest wrestlers I’ve ever been in the ring with. Leave it at that.”

Ric Flair Comments on Shawn Michaels

Flair was recently upset over comments Michaels made on a 30 for 30 documentary dedicated to the Nature Boy.

“Ric doesn’t love Richard Fliehr,” HBK said in the film. “I don’t know that (Ric’s) ever taken the time to get to know him or to find out who in the world he is.”

Flair responded in a video published on May 31st.

“Shawn Michaels, I’m sorry but you’re not in a position to judge me,” Flair said in the video. “Telling me I’ll never know who Richard Fliehr is, really?”

“Richard Fliehr – like I said before was an irresponsible kid who was blessed with the greatest parents in the world, did everything wrong,” Flair continued. “By the way, who are you to judge me? I mean, really? Come on man, let’s get serious. You’ve opened the door, so I’m giving it back to you. Who are you to judge me? I mean, are you kidding me?”

Ric On Charlotte Flair

Flair sent out another video with 2 important messages: Charlotte Flair is the greatest female wrestler in the history of wrestling and also that tomorrow is not guaranteed.

WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair has sounded off on the match between Goldberg and The Undertaker at the WWE Super ShowDown pay-per-view event that has received a ton of criticism from fans.

The match was not what fans had hoped for due to Goldberg being busted open and suffering a concussion during the match. The pro wrestling legend gave his take when he spoke with Bully Ray and Dave LaGreca on Sirius XM Busted Open Radio.

Flair started out by stating that they opened up hot and loved the match until the last minute. He would then praise Taker and Goldberg for their accomplishments in the business.

Flair also ruled out the problems with the match due to the age of the stars. It’s the fact that it’s hard to work two or three times a year with long stretches of downtime. He would note that training for a match in the gym is not the answer to getting in the ring and going full speed. He questions how Triple H is able to do it.

“I don’t like it, but that doesn’t mean that they cannot have an opinion,” said Flair. “I don’t have an agenda here. I cannot let a minute or two of fatigue define anybody. It’s funny, had they gone on one more minute perfect and hit it, everyone would have been like ‘Oh my god that was perfect.’”

Flair would bring up how he thought the match was planned just like Goldberg beating Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series in quick fashion when Goldberg hit his signature moves in the opening minutes and thinks fans would’ve praised it if it ended then. But once they moved forward with the match then fans criticized it.

H/T to Wrestling Inc for the transcription

Ric Flair has divulged the wrestlers that would feature on his personal Mount Rushmore of professional wrestling.

In an interview with Wrestling Travel, the wrestling legend and WWE Hall Of Famer revealed the names that would adorn the mountainside, as well as naming the one talent he would consider coming out of retirement for.

“I’d love to wrestle Roman Reigns,” revealed Flair. “I’d like to be a bad guy against Roman if I was 35 or 40 years old. Yeah, I’d love that. They couldn’t afford to pay me,” he said, laughing.

Insofar as who would be on his Rushmore, Flair admits that he would probably be a part of it, flanked by luminary talent and Hulk Hogan, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin to name but a few.

“Well, I think because of time put in, I’m in that category,” he said. “But I’d have to go with Hulk, Stone Cold and The Undertaker. I know everyone’s gonna say I should put Andre the Giant in, but I actually think The Undertaker has had as big a run and as big an impact on the business without having to be the champion and just being the character.”

“No. 1 he’s a great guy,” he explained. “No. 2 it’s the most unique and greatest gimmick in the history of our business. He’s gotten sick of it a couple of times and changed it around but at the end of the day, whether it’s riding a motorcycle or getting out of a coffin, it’s the greatest gimmick I’ve ever seen.”

Flair was recently in the news following complications for scheduled heart surgery. The 16-time world champion has since undergone successful surgery and has returned home to recover, though he has unfortunately had to withdraw from his Starrcast II appearance.