Not sure this thread goes here being 'sports entertainment' but what the heck anyway . . .

Ric Flair lost a retirement match to Shawn Michaels at WWE's Wrestlemania XXIV after a sweet chin music. Now I have mixed feelings, part of me thinks this is the end for 59 year old Flair yet part of me thinks the WWE will bring him back from the dead one more time.

Past records show there has been at least 2 WWE wrestlers declaring they will be leaving wrestling for good after Wrestlemania (Roddy Piper at Wrestlemania 3 and Hulk Hogan at Wrestlemania 8 ) and 2 'loser leaves/retirement matches' in the WWE (one involving Ultimate Warrior and 'Machoman' Randy Savage and the other one, yet again, involving Flair against Mr Perfect). All of them came back (Roddy Piper came back 2 years later, 'Machoman' Randy Savage came back 6 months later, Hulk Hogan came back a year later and Ric Flair came back about 10 years later).

Just wondered if you folks have any opinions on the subject. :)

Not sure this thread goes here being 'sports entertainment' but what the heck anyway . . .

Ric Flair lost a retirement match to Shawn Michaels at WWE's Wrestlemania XXIV after a sweet chin music. Now I have mixed feelings, part of me thinks this is the end for 59 year old Flair yet part of me thinks the WWE will bring him back from the dead one more time.

Past records show there has been at least 2 WWE wrestlers declaring they will be leaving wrestling for good after Wrestlemania (Roddy Piper at Wrestlemania 3 and Hulk Hogan at Wrestlemania 8 ) and 2 'loser leaves/retirement matches' in the WWE (one involving Ultimate Warrior and 'Machoman' Randy Savage and the other one, yet again, involving Flair against Mr Perfect). All of them came back (Roddy Piper came back 2 years later, 'Machoman' Randy Savage came back 6 months later, Hulk Hogan came back a year later and Ric Flair came back about 10 years later).

Just wondered if you folks have any opinions on the subject. :)

I haven't watched wrestling in a few years now,but I remember watching him in the early 1980's,he's had a long career,but I think he's come to the end of his wrestling career,he's already been inducted to their hall of fame,I'm not sure if there's anything left he has to prove.

I watched it for the first time in yonks.

I didn't think it was very good.  Although the Ric Flair retirement was a bit sad.

I heard people also got hit in the crowd with fireworks.

I haven't watched wrestling in a few years now,but I remember watching him in the early 1980's,he's had a long career,but I think he's come to the end of his wrestling career,he's already been inducted to their hall of fame,I'm not sure if there's anything left he has to prove.


That is quite true. The weird thing about wrestlers is, for the most part, wrestling is their lives and all they know. I honestly can't imagine Flair taking up golf in his retirement.  ;D

I watched it for the first time in yonks.

I didn't think it was very good.  Although the Ric Flair retirement was a bit sad.

I only saw that match on Youtube (the only match I was really interested in on paper). I know Flair is cracking on a bit but I wanted him to go out having a match like he did with Ricky Steamboat almost twenty years ago just to say to everyone; 'I may be 59 years old but they still call me the sixty minute man'. Oh well . . . :)

I heard people also got hit in the crowd with fireworks.


I heard that too. I reckon it was because the Citrus Bowl was outdoor and the fireworks were launched higher into the air than they usually do in indoor arenas. The crowd could probably claim a pretty penny in compensation.

I liked the tribute. It was sad yet heartwarming. It also made me sad knowing I've watched him for almost as long as he has been wrestling.

I am still shocked that he wrestled for as long as he did.  He always wore those robes with all the feathers.  I guess he rustled a few feathers of his own during his long career in wrestling lol

Recently he was on a celebrity edition of 'Family Feud' with a bunch of other WWE superstars competing against the WWE Divas

Flair's a great wrestler but I think Bruno Samartino and Harley race should make a geriatric comeback...... ;D

Flair had some great matches with Race....in them good old days........

Flair's retirement may be emotional to some, but the man has been going since the early 70s and deserves to retire and enjoy the money he has earned over the years. The retirement though was probably one of the worst kept secrets since back in the days that Liberace didn't want fans to know he was gay. There were rumors flying ever since this push came along that it was going to lead to his gold watch at Wreslemania. I can understand the philosophy behind doing the time honored tradition and help put the other guy over when you're on your way out the door, but I think old Vinnie Mac should've gave him a better send off than that. If he was going to be retired with a losing match, it should have been with an opponent that is on the rise, like CM Punk, MVP, even Umaga, or maybe the Great Khali, but how much milage are they gonna get out of Shawn Michaels in the future. I just think that Flair's last match would have been far better if he helped put over one of the future superstars, instead of someone who has nothing left to prove. If Michaels was the best opponent that McMahon could find for Flair, then Flair should have retired with a win at Wrestlemania, in my opinion.

I didn't really start watching wrestling until the mid '90s, but I remember seeing Flair for a couple of years when he was in WCW, and then for a couple more years in the WWF/WWE. I always liked him, though.

I liked the tribute. It was sad yet heartwarming. It also made me sad knowing I've watched him for almost as long as he has been wrestling.


Yes, I saw that. Not even Hulk Hogan got that kind of fan-fare the RAW after Wrestlemania XVIII when he lost to The Rock (though I think he got more crowd response).

It's weird to realise that his career nearly ended as soon as it started after his plane crash.

I am still shocked that he wrestled for as long as he did.  He always wore those robes with all the feathers.  I guess he rustled a few feathers of his own during his long career in wrestling lol

Recently he was on a celebrity edition of 'Family Feud' with a bunch of other WWE superstars competing against the WWE Divas


That's the interesting thing about Ric Flair, he rarely changed his image and I think that was what made him memorable. He really did add flair to wrestling.

Flair's a great wrestler but I think Bruno Samartino and Harley race should make a geriatric comeback...... ;D

Flair had some great matches with Race....in them good old days........


It's bad enough seeing Roddy Piper flaunt his gut at this year's Royal Rumble, lol.

I would love to see a match with Flair vs Race. I might check Youtube to see what it has to offer.

Flair's retirement may be emotional to some, but the man has been going since the early 70s and deserves to retire and enjoy the money he has earned over the years. The retirement though was probably one of the worst kept secrets since back in the days that Liberace didn't want fans to know he was gay. There were rumors flying ever since this push came along that it was going to lead to his gold watch at Wreslemania. I can understand the philosophy behind doing the time honored tradition and help put the other guy over when you're on your way out the door, but I think old Vinnie Mac should've gave him a better send off than that. If he was going to be retired with a losing match, it should have been with an opponent that is on the rise, like CM Punk, MVP, even Umaga, or maybe the Great Khali, but how much milage are they gonna get out of Shawn Michaels in the future. I just think that Flair's last match would have been far better if he helped put over one of the future superstars, instead of someone who has nothing left to prove. If Michaels was the best opponent that McMahon could find for Flair, then Flair should have retired with a win at Wrestlemania, in my opinion.


I agree with pretty much everything what you wrote here. As much as I love watching Shawn Michaels wrestle, I think he had to slow things down for Ric (apart from an incredible missed asai moonsault onto the announcers table) but Michaels is really good with the emotional psychology in matches.

What probably would have been better is if Ric Flair had a one time only match with Ricky 'The Dragon' Steamboat (in fact, Steamboat wanted to come out of retirement to wrestle Flair at Wrestlemania 22 but the idea was axed). Considering the amazing matches they had during the 80s, it would have been a fitting end and could still do the 'one man respects another' angle with the same credibility.

Hell, you wanted Steamboat - Flair.. I want the Funker to come back, one last time Terry!

But in all seriousness, HBK was the right man to end Flair. I have all the respect in the world for Flair, although there are certain aspects of his character that I find disingenuous and certain issues I have in regard to his time in WCW (Ric, you were the booker, being the world heavyweight champ at the same time is far too much a conflict of interests). That being said, the man sacrificed a great deal to entertain millions and millions around the world and for that he has my love and respect.

However, Flair had not just begun to embarrass himself, he'd been embarrassing himself for several years, he had probably a grand total of 10 good matches in the past 6-7 years. His match against McMahon was intense, his match against The Undertaker was brutal and emotional, his matches with Triple H were technically brilliant, but for the most part he wasn't just a shadow of his former self, he was a small heat wave on the horizon.

HBK bought out the best in him and Flair gave everything he had. I don't think anybody else would have been able to make Flair look as good as he did and the fact of the matter is this, Triple H is as over as anybody could ever be, Batista is simply not cut out to be a top level player, sure he's good but he's never going to be great, Orton had the history with Flair and was already involved with the Title match.. Umaga and Khali are two of the worst to ever enter the ring, MVP is a talent for sure but again, there's no way he could make the match look that good and Punk would make no sense.

It was necessary for HBK to finish off Flair once and for all, because of a simple Naitch rule.. to be the man, you've gotta beat the man.. and HBK is the f**kin man!

When I was a kid, I never watched Flair wrestle cause in the 80s, he wrestled with the NWA and for some reason, I never watched that.  It was all about the WWF

When he came into the WWF in the 90s, I used to get a kick out of his pink shorts ;D

Quite possibly one of the greatest matches ever -

Terry Funk vs Ric Flair at Clash of the Champions '89

http://video.aol.com/video-detail/ric-flair-vs-terry-funk-i-quit-match-part-1-of-2/2679858852

Hell, you wanted Steamboat - Flair.. I want the Funker to come back, one last time Terry!

Ha ha, I reckon Funk and Flair could turn it up a notch or three. If Flair can fall off the top of a ladder in his mid 50s, he can handle multiple chairshots and tables from 'middle aged and crazy' Terry Funk.

I also thought about one end match between him and his fellow 'Horseman' mate Arn Anderson but Anderson has major problems with his neck and shoulders (reason he retired in the mid/late 90s). I would doubt whether he could last the match nevermind put the pin over on Flair.

But in all seriousness, HBK was the right man to end Flair. I have all the respect in the world for Flair, although there are certain aspects of his character that I find disingenuous and certain issues I have in regard to his time in WCW (Ric, you were the booker, being the world heavyweight champ at the same time is far too much a conflict of interests). That being said, the man sacrificed a great deal to entertain millions and millions around the world and for that he has my love and respect.

Yes, Ric Flair was booker of WCW while holding the WCW heavyweight title (hmmmmm . . . lol) for a year or two in 1989-1990 - though personally I think he did a better job than Virgil 'Dusty Rhodes' Runnells. I find it strange really that Flair was always main-event status but only turned legendary when he lasted an hour at Royal Rumble 1992 to gain the WWF title.

However, Flair had not just begun to embarrass himself, he'd been embarrassing himself for several years, he had probably a grand total of 10 good matches in the past 6-7 years. His match against McMahon was intense, his match against The Undertaker was brutal and emotional, his matches with Triple H were technically brilliant, but for the most part he wasn't just a shadow of his former self, he was a small heat wave on the horizon.

I personally think his embarrassment started towards the end of WCW when he had a psychopathic angle where he would remove his clothes and act mad (WCW loved using the nutjob angle) culminating in a trip to the mental hospital. In my opinion, I thought the angle suited Flair to a tee but it could have been executed much better and revolve around a temporary nervous breakdown or something based on certain events previously.

HBK bought out the best in him and Flair gave everything he had. I don't think anybody else would have been able to make Flair look as good as he did and the fact of the matter is this, Triple H is as over as anybody could ever be, Batista is simply not cut out to be a top level player, sure he's good but he's never going to be great, Orton had the history with Flair and was already involved with the Title match.. Umaga and Khali are two of the worst to ever enter the ring, MVP is a talent for sure but again, there's no way he could make the match look that good and Punk would make no sense.

I agree. It's weird because I want to like Batista but I always classed him as substandard (even though he did impress me at this year's Royal Rumble). Randy Orton would have been good given his 'legend killer' status but there would be no emotional connection and, as you said, he had a title match anyway. Umaga and Khali are awful - since Hulk Hogan, McMahon always thought big men with very little talent were big money drawers . . .

It was necessary for HBK to finish off Flair once and for all, because of a simple Naitch rule.. to be the man, you've gotta beat the man.. and HBK is the f**kin man!


HBK is as close to being the man in the WWE right now though I still think the match would have been that much special if he had a one-off retirement bout with a legend like Steamboat/Terry Funk or even Sting (though getting Sting near a WWE arena is like getting Yokozuna to stay away from the food cupboard, lol).

When I was a kid, I never watched Flair wrestle cause in the 80s, he wrestled with the NWA and for some reason, I never watched that.  It was all about the WWF

When he came into the WWF in the 90s, I used to get a kick out of his pink shorts ;D


Did Flair used to wear pink then? I remember him wearing red a lot, lol.

There did seem to be a huge WWF/WCW divide in the 80s but when I first started watching around 1990/1991, I liked watching it all (I could only get WCW Worldwide at the time and that was late in the early morning so I had to watch it taped the next day) though WWF were a polished product by that time. Still, WCW turned it up around 1996/1997 with the advent of Nitro and had ratings victories over WWF for about 2 years.

Quite possibly one of the greatest matches ever -

Terry Funk vs Ric Flair at Clash of the Champions '89

http://video.aol.com/video-detail/ric-flair-vs-terry-funk-i-quit-match-part-1-of-2/2679858852


Nice one, Andy!



k.

I thought that it was really time for Flair to be finished with wrestling for good.  I am not sure if Shawn was the right guy for the job or not.  I mean if you want to see two old guys wrestle one last match then why not Hogan vs. Flair.  Then retire both of them for good.  I though Hulk deserved the fan fare as much as Flair or even more for that matter.  The word is Flairs son will be wrestling soon and I expect to see Flair involved in his career.

The word is Flairs son will be wrestling soon and I expect to see Flair involved in his career.


It would be great if Flair still kept a foothold in wrestling, if not as a wrestler, but a manager or commentator.  Kinda like in the 90s with Bobby Heenan and Gorilla Monsoon

I know he is still making appearances on behalf of WWE.

He is now in TNA.