Rumor: Flair Went Off Script Voting For Silva

[DangerousDave]

According to WrestleZone.com, a major issue which lead to tension between Ric Flair and TNA, and could potentially be one reason why Flair left the company, was the handling of the Gut Check segment on Impact featuring Alex Silva. WrestleZone has learned that Ric Flair went off the script when he chose Silva as the winner, which is now causing issues for TNA as not only did Flair go into business for himself, but Alex Silva is from Quebec, requiring TNA to spend more time and money getting him a U.S. Visa if they want to use him with any amount of regularity.

This put TNA in a tough position, they could have changed it because it was a taped show. The problem is that there were 1,100 witnesses that Silva won the Gut Check. If they redid the segment it would be reported all over the internet.

I was surprised when Flair changed his mind at the last minute on the decision to hire Silva, and apparently TNA was too. I wasn't impressed with Silva's match or his "dead dad" promo and either was the audience in the Impact Zone (I was there) which was basically indifferent. I noticed on the TV show that the noise during that segment was different than it actually was in the IZ. Why did he go off script? Because hes Ric Flair and he can do what he wants? More likely, he knew it would generate enough heat with management to get him out of TNA so he could go to the WWE.

 

[ヒュー　G.　レックション]

WOW. If this is true I'm shocked. You know I was also surprised at Flair changing his mind. In the little segment before when the three judges were sitting around the table, Flair was criticising the guy a lot (and I agreed with everything he said). Then for him to change his mind after that promo, did feel a little off.

But I don't think Flair went against the script, because of the simple fact he voted first. If you remember, Bruce said he "didn't know" to let Silva in or not, and he voted after Flair. If the intention was to refuse Silva, wouldn't Bruce and Snow have said no?

Also, that's cool you go to the tapings. Out of interest did they play that uber dramatic background music during the segment at the taping? Or was it added post production? Because I imagine it would've been pretty goofy lol

 

[Rayne]

Mr. Hugh G. Rection has it right. If Ric Flair went off-script, there were two people there who were in the position to put everything back on-script. Someone going into business for themselves (or, really, just plain going off-message in this instance) is hardly new to the professional wrestling industry before, and it's often handled invisibly.

This looks like a shameful case of shots being fired at Ric as he's on his way out the door. No one needs to ask why Ric Flair is leaving TNA/IW, even without all these dirt sheet reports of his I.O.U. carousing. No one appears to be holding this against TNA/IW; there has been no backlash from the fan base. If he goes to the WWE, he isn't going to draw one dime for them that they aren't getting already; we are not yet ready to remember the good old days of remembering when we remembered that Ric Flair was a legendary wrestler.

Someone's got an axe to grind here. As a calculated corporate move, discussing Ric Flair makes no sense for TNA/IW, leading me to believe it's an individual action. Poor Alex Silva.

 

[thebarber]

Flair has been a disgrace for years now, TNA saved his career when nobody wanted him, and repays them by being a prick, be it on overseas tours and not paying bar tabs, borrowing money and crying when his slush fund gets halted. Flair was great, now he is as sad as Hogan. Vince will re-sign Flair to a legends deal, and Flair wont be able to be a 63year old fucken moron.Then again, Vince let him go last time because he was a drunk and a fool

 

[akrassikauda]

When I read this article the first thing that went through my head was HUH!(Botchamania) I know I'm not losing it but didn't Flair go first, so how is that going off script and why does this sound like it came from the three stooges (Hogan,Bischoff and Pritchard) because Pritchard and Al Snow did go after Flair and it looked like to me at the time that Flair shouldn't have gone first but second from his actions in the previous segment leaving Snow or Pritchard with the dramatic final vote being that Flair is the heel it would've made more sence for him not to go first.

It just comes off as a cheap shot at Flair hey lets not kid ourselves the reports of Flairs IOU's is classic Flair always has been always will be.This is just a smear campaign that is badly done how badly done is it, is there something NEW about Flair that we didn't know about in that report. If it was anyone else then maybe then it would have been a shock say James Storm that would have came from left feild but Ric Flair. This so called leakage of information looks like smells like BULLSHIT! He's had enough of them and they have had enough of him so why don't they just part ways without the bullshit.

 

[sTyLnK]

Most of the stuff wrestling sites post are either false or vaguely correct. Or they're wrong, but change things around so they "seemed" right. It's pathetic. This is not an exception. I'm taking it with a grain of salt because it sounds like BS as usual. Prove me wrong.

 

[DarkFlame]

because Pritchard and Al Snow did go after Flair

Indeed they did! Just think though, Snow & Pritchard have been around long enough to have seen what Flair was doing & surely would have figured it out between themselves & countered Flair on the spot but did they? No? Sure as hell looks promising for the live Impact! shows doesn't it. Their going to be such a huge clusterfu*k, I'll watch them just to see how many times an episode everything goes wrong

Back to Flair though, and Flair is Flair. The 3 stooges are more than aware of this so why put him in a position where he could possibly pull a stunt like this? Oh yea, so they can try and make him look bad when reality is they just come off looking like the ignorant morons they are!

 

[Big Nick Dudley]

Of course he did. He was shitfaced.

Fired, quit, whatever, it doesn't matter. This is hilarious. And no, this isn't some crippling move. He left TNA with a guy no one cares about. If they want to cut him, they will. It's not like they haven't dropped a storyline out of nowhere before. This would mean even less.

Obviously Flair can cause problems, so it's best to just let him go. He wants to be back with WWE, that much has been clear since the Hall of Fame (watch his full speech if you don't believe me). Doesn't really hurt either side.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

I'm not even all that concerned with what Flair did or did not do here, or even if he was fired or quit or whatever. I'm much more concerned with what this'll do for the Gut Check competition judging panel, which Flair was JUST invited to become the third judge for.

If he's out, who is fixed in his place next to Bruce Prichard and Al Snow?

 

[shattered dreams]

If he's out, who is fixed in his place next to Bruce Prichard and Al Snow?

Here is my list:

1)Vince Russo - unlikely but would be awesome
2)Kevin Nash - downright plausible
3)Bischoff - most likely
4)Jeff Jarrett
5)Sting
6)Hogan
7)Goldberg
8)Raven
9)Konnan
10)Edge?

As far as this story goes. Other than the fact that they almost assuredly went out there to tell Silva no, I don't put much stock in this story. The idea that Flair did this as a calculated move to get out of the company I find to be especially absurd.

 

[klunderbunker]

This is on TNA, not Flair, for two reasons.

1. It's a taped show. "But there are 1,100 witnesses!" So what? Smackdown and Impact both have to retape things on a regular basis. If they had to retape it and change the ending, does it really matter if it's seen? It would cause a minor uproar for about a day and then no one would remember it five minutes after that. Nothing would have been hurt by retaping the segment.

2. Hulk Hogan/Bruce Pritchard. If I remember right, the rules said that Hogan AND three judges had to approve of the competitor. I don't remember hearing Hogan's answer, so couldn't he have said no? Well to be fair, he's a good guy, so we might not want to do that. There's still Pritchard who has no affiliation to anyone so have him say no. There, problem solved.

Flair may have gone off script, but to blame this on him is ridiculous. There were multiple ways out of it for TNA. If nothing else, have Snow change him mind. Flair originally voted no I believe, so if he can change his mind, Snow should be able to also right?

 

[Skairipa Matrix]

Mr. Hugh G. Rection has it right. If Ric Flair went off-script, there were two people there who were in the position to put everything back on-script. Someone going into business for themselves (or, really, just plain going off-message in this instance) is hardly new to the professional wrestling industry before, and it's often handled invisibly

if i rember right didnt snow vote first? and he said yes so when flair said yes he already won nothing bruce could have done 2 out of 3 means contract doesnt it? but i think that this might be true i mean he gets signed then hasnt been seen yet? wouldnt make sense if he was planned to be signed.

 

[closet_fan]

This is on TNA, not Flair, for two reasons.

1. It's a taped show. "But there are 1,100 witnesses!" So what? Smackdown and Impact both have to retape things on a regular basis. If they had to retape it and change the ending, does it really matter if it's seen? It would cause a minor uproar for about a day and then no one would remember it five minutes after that. Nothing would have been hurt by retaping the segment.

This is the part I didn't get. Smackdown has their workers redo things all the time since it can be edited. And they do this in front of a much bigger audience.

Wrestling's motto has always been: If it didn't happen on TV, it didn't happen PERIOD.

If true, the fact that TNA still aired it makes them look like bigger idiots.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Dang...if this is true, then it's certainly among the most unprofessional things I've heard of a wrestler doing in quite some time. We've all known Flair has an ego, justifiably so in some ways, but, again if this is true, just unacceptable. I think it shows a good deal of contempt for TNA because Flair would have never done this in WWE.

Like BND said, however, this is hardly something that's going to be a big deal. It's true that nobody really has cared about Flair's presence in TNA for some time, so I don't see this as being any sort of problem in regards to the Gut Check concept. The concept is still brand new and it didn't exactly start off with a bang in the first place. If push comes to shove, I can see TNA just simply putting Hulk Hogan in Flair's place as the "judge" if they're strategy was putting a big league name in those segments to draw attention to them in the first place.

 

[MrMojoRisin]

This is on TNA, not Flair, for two reasons.

1. It's a taped show. "But there are 1,100 witnesses!" So what? Smackdown and Impact both have to retape things on a regular basis. If they had to retape it and change the ending, does it really matter if it's seen? It would cause a minor uproar for about a day and then no one would remember it five minutes after that. Nothing would have been hurt by retaping the segment.

You beat me too it. Taped show. That's all there is to it. So what if Flair went off script. You just reshoot it.

There was literally no reason to actually show that segment, and if TNA is in any type of bind now with a new guy they didn't plan on having under contract (and the work visa issues he has), then it's entirely on them.

There is obviously a smear job on Flair coming out of TNA right now, which is pretty funny considering that Flair these days doesn't need help smearing his reputation. He does a pretty good job of that on his own.

 

[cult_of_icecream_bar]

KB hit the spot,it was taped show,why not retape it?There have been reports that although flair quit the TNA,they are trying to make it look like they got rid of them.So it might be possible that he might be framed.Then again if they reports were true,TNA has permanently placed 'em selves as the biggest idiots in the business.They should've fired him right on the spot and retaped the segment,so yeah,there's plenty of dust in it.

 

[Reflection]

That's the problem with former WWE old guys a.k.a legends in other companies- they act like they are above the company. And not just Ric Flair, there are many guys that were employed by TNA and the other 'minor leagues' when the WWE would not take them, but they criticized and back-bited the same companies in every way possible, once their contract was over. Wasn't Ric Flair in a similar incident 6 months ago, when he refused to go out there and greet the fans? I know he is above 60 and people start to get really short-tempered and easily-irritated at that age, but Would he dare to do that if it was WWE? I say TNA should make it clear to all of the wrestlers that nobody is above the company.
They should be more strict with their rules and take proper action against those who fail to follow them. As far as Flair is concerned, I don't think his departure will harm TNA in any way. I, or any person I know, never tuned in so that we could see Ric busted open in red tights saying "come on!" So long, nature boy!