Has Ric Flair Gone Down for Not Retiring After Wrestlemania XXIV?

[Low_Ki]

Self explainitary here really.

The night after Wrestlemania 24, Ric Flair was given probably the most emotional goodbye/retirement ceremony in wrestling history. Now I knew that he probably wasn't going to stay off TV, but in my honest opinion I really did not expect him to ever wrestle again.

He has obviously now gone to TNA and become the ring leader of Fourtune, and is wrestling on TNA TV on and off.

Has Ric Flair bastardised his retirement, after such an emotionally charged, fantastically presented match with Shawn Michaels only now to go to TNA and wrestle in front of the iMPACT Zone?

Comment.

 

[Kenny Powers]

Well the send off Flair got from WWE probably can never be duplicated from TNA or any other wrestling company. Flair has said he didn't want to disrespect Shawn by wrestling again, but WWE retired Flair on their terms and not his. If a man wants to continue wrestling into his 60's that is up to him. It doesn't change my opinion of him. I do think that TNA has used him too often in matches. The match with Foley and Jay Lethal was fine, but the other countless matches on Impact where Flair bleeds like a pig doesn't really accomplish anything.

Flair can still deliver matches at half speed better than wrestlers at full speed and half his age. I just don't think TNA should treat his matches as a special occasion and keep them few and far between. It doesn't hurt Shawn Michaels feelings that Flair is still wrestling. He still isn't an active full time wrestler like he was in WWE. If you are a legend in the wrestling business and can still go in the ring, its not a big deal to have a few matches here and there.

However, if you are too old and crippled to move than you shouldn't be in a wrestling ring regardless if you are a legend or not.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Not one iota. To borrow from Ric himself, Flair is God. Doesn't matter if he's 26, 48, 96 or 368 years old — he's still one of the most (if not the) most entertaining character behind a microphone in the business. I think TNA rejuvenated him, if anything, despite the fact I don't particularly feel he should be wrestling as often as he has.

Flair lives, breathes and dies wrestling. His "forced" retirement after WrestleMania XXIV may have left a sour taste in the mouths of whatever percentage of fans after he showed up in TNA again a few months afterward, but for those of us who enjoy Ric for who he is, it was a fresh start. He retired from WWE, not from wrestling — that seems to be something a lot of people can't seem to grasp the concept of (which I attribute to mass WWE brainwashing that says if it's not WWE, it doesn't matter).

 

[Con T.]

I'm sorry, were these threads prevelant in 1994, when Ric Flair lost a "career" ending cage match against Hulk Hogan at Halloween Havoc? Or how about the innumerable times Flair probably put his career against Vince Russo, or one of his lackeys.

Look, the nature of wrestling, because of how it becomes the main drawing force of your pay check, and how there is no compensation after retirement, is that you have to live off the money made by your character. Period. You don't get a 401 K, at least not in the same nature you could get in other companies. Of course, one could argue that one should obtain a degree, that being the case, but that's not really the point. The point is, this is Ric Flair's way to make money. Flair's a star in wrestling; to the media's eye, aside from maybe Carolina, Ric Flair can not live off celebrity status like some athletes. That's why he needs to make as much money and milk his Nature Boy character as much as possible. The man needs to make his money, even in old age. With no other source of income, what do you really want the guy to do?

So no, not really angered by Flair at all honestly. Really not. Go make your bread, son. Milk that character, you created it. What right do I have to tell you to stop?

 

[FitFinlay4Life]

Ric Flair is in his 60s, what's he gonna do - labouring? Like it or not, he has lived the Nature Boy lifestyle for 30+ years. He cannot afford to retire and being a manager does not last too long, so some ring time is required to maintain his worthiness to TNA. I have a love/ hate relationship with Slic Ric but I cannot criticise him for doing what he needs to make ends meet - he's relatively injury free; unlike Rey, Undi and until he called it a day - Shawn.

IMO, he isn't stinking up the ring with his performances (although, I'd advise keeping him against ring generals like Kurt) and only wrestles occasionally. I've been watching Ric 20+ years and I'm happy to still see him (I would like him to calm a bit on his promos - nobody is that hyper all the time and he can come across as a crazy old man).

To be the man you gotta beat the man and there still is only one limousine ridin', jet flying, kiss stealin', wheelin' dealin', son of a gun.

 

[Mailman]

Flair is still the man. Whenever I watch Flair's promos since coming to TNA, I've not once got the sense that he's just mailing it in out there simply to earn a pay check. Sure, the man has aged physically, but his promo work is still where it was many years ago. If the man still has a heart for the business, he should be able to go out there and do what he does best. Personally, I think he's done wonders for guys like Styles and Kazarian.

There's only one Nature Boy. Wooooo!

 

[Joe's Gonna Kill You]

I don't think that he has hurt is Legacy coming to TNA and my opinion of him has not changed. I think that Ric Flair has been phenomenal in TNA for many reasons for a guy is age he had some good matches he had one with Jay Lethal and he also had a pretty good hardcore match with Foley. He has also helped alot of the talent including Styles, Kaz, and Matt Morgan. If he wanted to retire he would have but he wanted to continue that was his choice meaning he still wanted to be involved in wrestling Ric Flair is still GOD.

 

[GameOver]

Not really, like Hogan regardless of what they do they will always be intrical players in wrestling history and noone can change that

and it's not the first time he's retired and returned soon after. Sure he did spit on the send off he was given imo but saying that he also has a right to do what he wants (aslong as its legal) to keep up his extravagant lifestyle

He deserves respect for always helping to put others over, which he has done his whole career. and for someone his age he can still cut it better than most of the "Legends"

in TNA however i find him downright awful for the most part, going back to his rediculous WCW style screaming at everything verging on heart attack scenario, making stupid mistakes on mic repeating himself adnauseum, and meant to be god but he's kissing asses of Hogan and Bischoff two guys he's despised all his life.

His legacy is doing nothing there other than temporarily bumping up there exposure, it certainly is not doing anything for his career, aslong as he stays out of the ring other than once in a blue moon matches i certainly don't mind it.

 

[the besmircher]

I personally think that Flair still looks a lot more relevant and has a lot more impact than Hogan and Brett Hart. While the other two should just stay away from ring action all together, Flair is still able to use his charisma and tell a story in the ring. I'd rather not see him busted wide open every week, he doesn't need to bleed to bring intensity to what he does. Wrestling is in his blood and I'm sure that most wrestlers his age would be doing the same if they could.

 

[tripleddd]

When Flair retired from wwe i imagined he would at some point take over as gm for raw or smackdown - i understand why flair went to tna but i just think its a bit sad aman of his age wrestling and bleeding all over the place- weve seen it all before - the occasional match yes . Mind you a great angle for wwe would be Flair in charge of Nexus

 

[MoneyMack]

I really cant say anything more then what has already been said. So i'll keep it short:

Flair is the real "best there is, best there was & best there ever will be" PERIOD!

After VKM retired him- he still wanted to do more. I dont see anything wrong with that. If he couldnt still put on a great show, then I would agree: he should stop. But he can still do it!! Especially on the mic. I think he's fantastic as the Fortune mouthpiece. I LOVE when he gets fired up all the time on the mic!! He's always done that & it shouldnt stop now that he's older. Im still waiting for him to get SO pissed- he strips down to his boxers & black socks & starts droppin elbows on his shoes! HAHA!

I personally dont need to see him wreslte anymore. But I love him in the role he's in rightnow. I think Kaz is the man getting the most out of being close to Flair. He's actually watchable to me rightnow! That right there tells me all I need to know. Cuz I would literally change the channel when I saw Kaz in the past!

Thanks for entertaining me the whole time i've been watching professional wrestling Mr. Flair! I still remember the 6:05pm start times on Saturdays on TBS! You are in fact a Wrestling GOD!

 

[Tougie]

My opinion of Ric has defintely changed. WM24 was such a historic moment and by continuing to wrestle and going to the #2 company for a paycheck is pretty pathetic. Some may say he went to TNA to help it grow and give it more attention, well it gave TNA attention but seriously Ric doesnt care if TNA grows. Neither does Hogan, Bischoff, etc. All about money.

Why he would bother to put if anything else an asterisk on his career by going to TNA is beyond me. Only time competitors go to another company below from where they were is due to an easier schedule, money or their not getting their way and to me Ric is there for the first and second reason.

Like I said he ruined a moment by competing again, but I dont blame the guy. Its all he knows. However, most like myself won't remember Ric Flair's days in TNA unless you grew up with the current product. Thank god.....

 

[WWTNA]

Ric Flair will never be down IMO . He is overall a 26 time champion and has done so much in the business. Him being in TNA and wrestling guys like Abyss is just a complete joke and disrespect to Shawn Michaels not saying that its Flair's fault though. Everybody has to make a living. Shawn Michaels understands that. It may have broken Shawn's heart a little because Michaels was a long time friend and fan of Flair and wanted to have his last match but he isn't bitter about it. I will always respect Ric Flair and will continue to be a fan of his work.

 

[Rckstrtmmy]

I want to know how the hell you people can justify Flair not having enough money to retire. He's been wrestling and making money FOREVER. Plus these guys make enough money to invest well and live comfortably. Flair is not wrestling to make money, thats bullshit.

It seems to me that Flair is still around only for self serving purposes. I think him (as well and Hogan) still think that they are THE major players in the game. They used to be 15-20 years ago. Now? Not even close.

I think it does hurt his stature that he's still around all the time. Once in a while is awesome. I love to see the legends come around and mix it up with current talent every now and then. But Fortune is a main stable and storyline at TNA. Whos right in the middle of it? Flair. Immortal is the other main stable and storyline. Whos right in the middle of it? Hogan. These guys need to stop feeding their egos this horseshit that they should still be the top dogs in any company because they aren't what they used to be. Not even close. And in my opinion it hurts both of their legacies because the longer these geriatric fucks are around, the more likely you are to think of their recent TNA bullshit than their amazing glory days with WWE/WCW.

 

[DeathClutch]

Ric Flair had it all on WRESTLEMANIA 24 weekend. HOF, WRESTLEMANIA QUALITY (and should of been) Main event then a bow out ceremony on RAW. What a 48 hours, EVERY single wrestler wishes and aspires for THAT kind of retirement, jeez go back the whole storyline was laid out fantastically with Flair being put over by TOP talent and up and coming talent to take a 1.5 years away from the ring only to return to wrestling Hogan & TNA very poor let down, Flair would of been a better off heading to Japan and making his money but in fairness to Flair HE DID IN FACT call Shawn and ASK for his premission to return and HBK said how could he stop anyone making money?

Personally I think Flair messed up but it boils down to money if he needs the money you do what makes you the most and wrestling is Ric bread & butter.

 

[UltimateHitman]

I don't mind seeing him around the wrestling biz, quite frankly. He's never been one of my favorites over the years, but damn, I hope I can move around like that when I hit his age. He's still keeping himself in decent shape, too. I went to an autograph signing just a couple months ago and he was sitting there in one of his signature white t's and you could see the veins in his arms and a pretty good sized bicep so you have to commend him on not letting himself totally go.

But did he do a disservice to his send-off in the WWE? Yes, definitely. One would have to surmise, given the short amount of time between his WWE time and appearing on TNA, he already had it in his head he wasn't going to retire. So that kind of blatant b.s. is pretty lame no matter who you are. If you're not going to go away and stay away, don't have a ticker tape parade over your retirement. They could have done a simple WWE career ending match and have him lose. He's out of the "E" (still with a good "Thank you Ric" ceremony) and he's not showing himself to be full of shit.

That being said, it's not wrong of him to want to keep going at his age if he's still capable of it and loves doing it. Again, you have to admire the guy to be able to do the things he does in the ring at his ripe old age. I agree w/the other posters in saying it's pretty ridiculous of him blading and bleeding like a stuck pig every time he gets in the ring and also about the fact he is wrestling more than he should. That much is not necessary, especially when his promos are good enough to satisfy the position he's in.

All in all, did he disrespect his send off? Yes. Is it wrong of him to keep doing what he's doing or to keep wanting to do what he's doing? No. And quite frankly, in all fairness, how many times did Terry Funk actually retire over the years?

 

[Rasha]

He retired from WWE, not from wrestling — that seems to be something a lot of people can't seem to grasp the concept of (which I attribute to mass WWE brainwashing that says if it's not WWE, it doesn't matter).

Damn, took my point! Here are some of Flair's exact words from the retirement speech:

"...my very last match AT WRESTLEMANIA."
"I will never ever wrestler in THIS RINGagain."
"...I'm off, and I'M IN A GOOD PLACE."

Now those could just be pure coincidence, but sounds like the guy knew what he was doing at the time. Painting him as some Brett Favre who faced retirement and couldn't handle it is unfair. Also, whenever I look back on that retirement night I can't shake the thought that the off-air ending with the Undertaker further emphasized that he was retiring from the WWE, not wrestling as a whole. Since when did the Undertaker become the be-all, end-all of wrestling? He sure as hell never passed Flair on the legacy ladder. For him, a guy who's never gotten off Vince's teet, to come out and "close the coffin" on Flair's entire career would have been a slap in the face to Flair's greatness. But if it was just the end of Flair's WWE career, then it was fine.

P.S. Funny how for all the people who've voted "Yes," only a few have actually backed it up with a post. You're welcome to act on blind emotion all you want, but just remember that the key word there is BLIND.

 

[DangerousDave]

IDR hits the nail on the head again. Flair wanted to continue, but Vince wouldn't let him so Vince threw him a big "retirement" party. Flair wasn't emotional because he knew this would be the end of wrestling for him, he was emotional because of the props he got from his fellow wrestlers. The man loves the business and said he would never leave it.

Slick Ric continues to be the best promo guy in the business and without PG language restrictions has become even more entertaining. His position as the leader of Fortune is the perfect role for him in the business. The few times hes wrestled in TNA there was a purpose, for example putting over Lethal and Morgan. The Flair/Foley match was excellent and fit the storyline. I'm not real big on seeing him wrestle, but done in moderation it can be an effective part of the story. Ric IS the man and will always be the man, hes earned the title "wrestling god".

 

[wwenba]

If anything Flair has gone up since moving from WWE to TNA.

His overall legacy is unaffected but it is much better to see him in TNA where he acts and behaves like the Flair we had known and love during his prime.

Flair is bigger than TNA and therefore it seems that creatively he is in complete control of the way he acts and behaves on TNA television.

This is the way I remember Flair and it is much more enjoyable seeing his last days in which he truly is himself rather than his final WWE years where he was known as HHH sidekick, henchman and lacky.

Flair would never take a backseat to anyone but yet in his late WWE run it seemed at times he would be willing to shine HHH shoes and kiss his ass.

Now, in TNA I can get that one last taste of the attitude that only Flair can produce.

 

[Zeven_Zion]

Hurt his legacy by going to TNA? Since when is one's quality measured by where he works not how he works. I apologize for pissing on your bonfire in advance, but Ric Flair has been more entertaining in the past year since he's been in TNA than the majority of his run with WWE. Why? Because he wasn't handcuffed to the chin with rules that make "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair an old legend, a dog that needs to be put down, an old man. Flair ages like fine wine.

He's been nothing but 100% entertainment in TNA. Whether it is wrestling or talking - he does it like only he knows. To me that's not killing your legacy, it's expanding it and making it bigger than it already was. Thinking that Flair has stained his legacy by going to TNA is borderline ignorant. He's mentoring guys backstage, he's putting people over, he's gold on the mic, great in the ring when he has to -- that's what he is.

WWE is not the end all be all of professional wrestling. I am sorry, but it isn't. Personally, the glitz and glam don't fool me. I see through that, and the last thing I saw that, I flushed it.

Flair retired from the WWE, not professional wrestling. I'd be against Flair if he was absolutely terrible on the mic, couldn't wrestle for nothing and was as useless as Tommy Dreamer. But he is not. When I watch a performer, I don't judge him by his personal life, whether he takes drugs, smokes bong or not. I don't judge him by his fuck ups, where he worked before that or his age. Anyone who does judge a performer by those standards and chooses to disrespect his work like that probably has the same IQ as his age. If you're good on the mic and in the ring, if you entertain me, I will watch you. That's what Flair's doing, he's doing it to a lot of people and I don't think there's a person that can say that his work in TNA has been bad. That means that his legacy is alive and well. Maybe more alive than it was in the last decade.

 

[An Angry Blonde]

I think he hurt it a little by going back to televised tv so soon after his huge reitrement send-off(which was bigger than and better quite frankly than HBK's).
Now this may be the true nature boy that we get to see in tna that we couldn't see in the WWE in his last few years, maybe He should of stayed back stage on TNA giving advise to them from behind the scenes, he should of been the puppetmaster hiding in the showdows letting AJ be the field commander of fourtane.

Now don't get me wrong a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do to make ends meet, and if that was the case he is the god of wrestling for a reason....

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Flair did receive a grand send-off during Wrestlemania, and the final farewell on Monday Night Raw was a tear jerking moment.

Flair is going to do what he's going to do, and there's nothing we can do about that. He wanted a more active role. He couldn't get this opportunity in WWE, so he went to TNA. Flair is doing well as the mentor to the men in Immortal, and I always enjoy a Ric Flair promo, but when it comes to Flair wrestling, I have different feelings. Flair is in his sixties. He can wrestle, but I don't think he can put on a good match anymore. It was painful having to watch Flair wrestle Foley a while back on Impact. The match wasn't bad at all, but seeing Flair put his body through all of that punishment was tough to watch. If Flair wrestles occasionally or on a VERY limited basis, then I have no problem with him getting in the ring, because Flair can give a young wrestler on the TNA roster a nice rub.

Ric Flair is one of the most, if not the most legendary pro wrestler of all time. His legacy isn't tarnished, and I don't think it can be.

 

[ablestwin]

Ric Flair is the kind of performer who could have his casket drug out with him inside of it and if you were to duct tape a mic into his hand he would be more entertaining than a number of on camera talent these days.

It's amazing he's that good on the mic. It's only unfortunate he stopped being entertaining in the ring about 12 years ago.

It would be a travesty to forget all the things Ric has done, and an embarrassment to insult him by saying he's not one of the top 5 best the sport has ever seen, BUT it is a DEBACLE every time he has puts on tights in the last decade.

He should always be near a ring, shouting, throwing a punch, even taking or giving a bump now and again, but all he is doing now is reminding us that we don't want to grow old.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Has my overall opinion of him changed? Nah, I can't say that it has. Flair's overall legacy is untouchable at this point. However, I do think that my perception of the guy has changed somewhat because, more often than not, I just find the guy embarassing these days. When Flair goes on one of his fits inside the ring during promos, some see it as Flair just being a great character. Me, I just think Flair comes off looking like a desperate old man that can't stand the thought of being out of the spotlight. I guess, to be fair, there's probably some stuff from column A and column B in there but the bad just outweighs the good with me.

I'm not saying that just because you hit a certain age in life that you should just crawl off into a corner and wait to die. I wouldn't say crap like that at all. However, I can't pretend that Flair's age isn't an issue with me when I see him inside the ring threatening to kick the shit out of guys that are 30+ years younger than he is. It's something that's along the same line as Hulk Hogan trying to act like a badass when we all know that he can barely move and one shove against a wall would send him to the emergency room because his back would be torn all to hell.

 

[jaceynightheat]

I loved the big send off & wish that match at Wm24 was his last match. The only way it could've been better if it were Sting who retired him at WM.

Does it hurt his legacy? No. Does it help his legacy? No. It's great he went to the newer company to help out but I don't think he should've wrestled against after WM24. If he wanted to be an on screen character or manager that'd be awesome.