Andrade Says He Was Intimidated To First Meet Ric Flair After He Started Dating Charlotte
One of WWE's fastest rising stars and a former NXT Champion, Andrade, recently spoke with Digital Spy about his relationship with girlfriend, Charlotte Flair, and her father, "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair. Andrade admitted that his nerves were extremely high when first meeting the 16-time World Champion, however, they have since become good friends.
"When we first met I was seriously so, so nervous," Andrade said. "Now I'm so happy. I love Ric Flair. He's a great person with me, he talks, texts me, sometimes we have dinner. He's great with me now. When we first started [dating] I asked Charlotte, 'Please don't say nothing to your dad', and she said, 'No it's my dad, he won't care.'"
Andrade recognizes the impact that Ric had on the industry during the heydays of his career.
"I have so much respect for her dad and professional respect for what he did in this business, he's a legend," Andrade said.
Andrade thinks that there is definitely an opportunity down the road for audiences to see him and Charlotte join forces inside the ring, possibly for the Mixed-Match Challenge that WWE holds annually. For now, the two superstars look to continue establishing themselves as dominant singles performers.
"Now she is focusing on her career and I am focusing on my career," Andrade said. "But in the future maybe we'll be a Mixed Match Challenge team; I know it's a great idea. Maybe not now, maybe in a year or two years. I like this idea because I have a great connection with her outside the ring and inside the ring. Sometimes we work out together and when we train in the ring and talk in the ring, I feel the same connection to her as we have outside the ring."
As seen above, Ric recently spoke to Wrestling Inc. on our own WINCLY Podcast and during the interview, he took some time to praise Andrade for his abilities inside the ring and his kindness outside of it.
"I think [Andrade] is fantastic. He is unique in how he can be a heavyweight but he can also work with Rey Mysterio," Flair explained. "He is a phenomenal athlete, and not only that, he's a very nice person #1, and a very classy guy. I've talked to Michael Hayes, I've talked to Hunter – they get how good he is... I think in terms of in-ring work, he's one of the top two, or three, or four guys in the company. Because when I factor that, I take size into consideration. There's nothing Rey can't do that Andrade can't do, and Andrade is 220 lbs."