Ric Flair Says WWE Talent Is Not Barred From Attending His Last Match
At 73-years-old, Ric Flair will be coming out of retirement to wrestle his last match as a part of Starrcast V this summer in Nashville.
Speaking about the match on the latest episode of his podcast, To Be The Man, Flair talked about his level of excitement and shot down people who think he's putting his life on the line by stepping in the ring again.
"I'm over the top excited about it," Flair said. "I just want to address a few things. I would say it's 70% positive but for the 30% of people that are worried about me getting in the ring and wrestling again, first of all, I assure you that I've been in a ring a lot more than I've shown on social media. I have to get quicker, I have to get faster, I've got two months to do that. I'm in better shape now because I train with John Cena's personal trainer than I've ever been in my life in terms of cardio. I've never been a cosmetic wonderboy so I am going to wear a shirt. I can assure you that in two and a half months I will put on a clinic on what real wrestling and what wrestling should be about. I'm never going to be able to do a moonsault and god bless those people that can, I'll never be able to do a lot of stuff but work, punch, kick, fundamentals, cheat?
"A lot of people are going to say holy shit and those that were doubters are going to say holy shit and shame on you. I'm saying it loud and clear, shame on you if you think I would put myself in a position [like this without being sure]. For the other people to understand, you want me to tell you how much money I make on Cameo? That alone I can live on for the rest of my life. My life is good, I don't need the money but baby I like the glory. I'm never going to walk away from it if I have a chance to get myself over it, I'm going to do it. I've been doing it my whole life.
"You know how many times I've been written off, sh*t on by promoters? You don't understand, if I can crash in an airplane with two pilots killed and the other guys paralyzed and get back on another plane and fly six months later, you can do anything. I almost died four years ago, I've got a pacemaker, almost died of a blood clot, four heart operations in seven weeks, and I'm good to go. I'm going to decide how I want to go. It's not for the money guys, I have the money. Everything Conrad touches makes money and I'm glad to be a part of it but this is about me doing what I've been doing my whole life."
Although Flair is no longer with the WWE, The Nature Boy also revealed that he will have some WWE guests on location for his last match.
"I'm honored to say and I don't want to give their names out but 10 people from the WWE are coming, for sure," Flair said. "They've all called me and said they wouldn't miss it. It's not like it's off-limits to the kids if they want to come, I still have a lot of friends there. I'm excited about that, not trying to prove a point to anybody else but myself."
Along with Flair's last match, Starrcast also will include The Four Horsemen's final time together and The Roast of Ric Flair. The event will take place during SummerSlam weekend, coinciding with the event in Nashville on July 30th.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit To Be The Man with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.