Though Ric Flair may have wrestled his final match in a surprisingly vital fight with Andrade El Idolo, Jeff Jarrett, and Jay Lethal, the WWE Hall of Famer will forever be a professional wrestler. When he's not stylin' and profilin', hawking all sorts of goods from insurance to, um, enhancement products, and collaborating with everyone from Damian Lillard to Migos, he's still walking his daughter Charlotte or his son-in-law, Andrade, down to the ring for a match in WWC and Lucha Libre AAA or podcasting about his experience on the “WOOOOO! Nation” and “To Be The Man” podcasts.
Fortunately, Flair is just as incendiary on the mic as he is in the ring, and he's given fans more than a few flaming hot takes that have set the wrestling world on fire.
From discussing his feelings on the CM Punk-Elite feud, to his fighting words with Jeff Jarrett that set up his final match, Flair has a way with words that gets folks talking, but his latest round of comments may be the most interesting of all, as it maybe, just maybe, hints at his future.
Ric Flair is inspired by his fellow WWE Hall of Famer.
Speaking with his other son-in-law, Conrad Thompson, Flair was asked if he has any desire to return to the ring after watching his long-time WCW rival, Steamboat, announce his first match in over a decade, Flair gave one heck of a quote that you can read below via a Fightful transcription.
“None,” Flair asserted. “When I say that it inspires me to want to do it again [they think I'm doing it]. I'll stand by this, I wish I hadn't said it was my last match. I don't want to disappoint a bunch of fans by doing it again but I got myself in good shape and made one drastic mistake by not hydrating. I feel great. I feel like as long as you're healthy and you want to do it than you should do what you want to do when you get to my age. I feel like we limit ourselves to what people think we should be doing sometimes as opposed to what we're doing. I think maybe me wrestling in Nashville inspired Ricky to do it. He said, ‘What the h*ll, I can do that.' And probably better. And he probably will. He'll look better. He always has and always will,” Flair said.
So Flair doesn't want to wrestle again but wishes that he hadn't called it his last match so he could try it again at some point in the future? Oh no, “Ric Flair's Final Match 2: Double or Nothing” is coming soon, isn't it? If so, it might actually feature Steamboat, who was less than enthused to wrestle Flair the first time around.
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat turned down a match with Ric Flair.
Speaking at a Highspots Superstore signing event, Steamboat explained why he didn't take part in Flair's final match, as passed along by Fightful.
“Well, I was approached and given it really some serious thought,” Steamboat responded. “A lot of respect to the guy in the ring. You know, both of us are night and day when it comes to stuff out of the ring. Flair wouldn’t be Flair without it. I thought about it for a week and just recently just declined on it. I know when I wrestled Jericho at WrestleMania 25, then we had the return match at Backlash in a singles, but at 69, and I know it's a six-man tag and I could get a little this and that in, but with all due respect to our fans, I want them to remember me that last time I was in there with Jericho when they chanted, ‘You still got it.’ I don't want to scar that phrase. Even that night with Jericho, you know, I was working for the WWE. I was one of the trainers at the school and was pretty active in the ring, so I had a lot of confidence in myself. But knowing Ricky now and not being in the ring for a number of years, I don't want to tarnish the memory that the fans have of me. It'd be a good payday, sure, but I don't want them thinking, ‘Maybe he should have stayed retired.’ You know, and I could get out there and maybe pull it off and say, ‘Well, you know, for a guy who’s 69 years old, he sure did pretty good,’ but that's the double-edged sword right? So, you know, The Dragon does have a lot of pride in his work and the way the fans remember me in the ring, and I want that lasting impression. I know my physical capabilities right now. I would love to be able to go out there and perform like I did with Jericho. I was 56 or 57 years old, but I think I want my fans to remember me as that guy and not have a chance of disappointing. That's how much I love my fans.”
Later in the signing, Steamboat commented on remarks made by Jake Roberts earlier in the year about his health issues, again, per Fightful.
“You know, I've been getting – Thanks to all the fans,” Steam said. “A big question that's been out there, and I’ve been getting hundreds, and it's fans and relatives. They're asking, are you okay? Have you got health issues? I know, maybe going back a couple of weeks ago, [Jake] Roberts getting up there and talking about, he said that Steamboat’s got health issues. I just want to assure everybody that I don't. I'm 69. Probably have the normal stuff. Little arthritis in the shoulders and knees, you know, years of wrestling. But I get a physical every six months. Blood tests every six months. My doctor is surprised at how well everything – cholesterol, blood pressure, liver, all the stuff that on the inside that you can't see. He says, ‘Ricky,’ he said, ‘You're like you're 35 years old.’ So just want to make make it clear to all the fans out there that the Dragon is fine. Train still three times a week. Got my bike out and my wife and I bike three times a week. So I'm good. I really am.”
Well, as long as Steamboat remembers to hydrate before his match with FTR versus Brock Anderson, “Black Machismo” Jay Lethal, and a third star, he should be just fine.
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