Former England Cricket Captain Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff once rejected an “obscene” contract offer from the WWE to perform at WrestleMania.
The British icon, who has recovered from a horrific car accident in 2022 that left him with brutal injuries, has recently returned to the limelight. He was a guest on the “Stick to Cricket” podcast, where he told the story of how close he was to joining Vince McMahon’s promotion.
“I got an email from the WWE… We want to put you on a three-year contract. We’ll fast-track you. In 18 months, you’ll be at WrestleMania, and you’ll be at the Royal Rumble. I’m thinking, what do you want? And the money was obscene.”
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How it Almost Happened
Flintoff, who had retired from cricket, revealed that he had an idea to wrestle The Undertaker in Manchester, England, which he then proposed to British broadcaster Sky.
The broadcast company was the official UK rights holder of the WWE at the time, and the former cricket star was a regular on their popular panel show, “A League of Their Own.”
Sky connected Flintoff with the WWE, who offered him a tryout in Tampa, Florida. The three-day tryout took place at Florida Championship Wrestling. The WWE Performance Center did not exist at the time.
Whilst the 47-year-old did not reveal the timing of the offer, this would probably have happened in 2012. Flintoff explained that he wanted to wrestle rather than have a boxing match. His only boxing match took place in November 2012.
Depending on the timing of the email, Flintoff could have performed at either WrestleMania 29 or 30. Meaning that one of The Undertaker’s bouts with either CM Punk or Brock Lesnar could have been scrapped for “Big Fred”.
Why It Didn’t Happen
Flintoff rejected the offer primarily due to his family’s desire not to move to America. He was living in Dubai at that point and was looking to move back to England. His children also wanted to play cricket, something that was not possible in the United States.
Flintoff instead had a one-off boxing match with Richard Dawson at Manchester Arena, which he won on a points decision.
The cricket legend would become a staple of British television following his decision to forgo a career in WWE. He participated in numerous popular shows, eventually landing a role as a presenter on Top Gear.
WWE is no stranger to having celebrities enter their world. Social media sensation Logan Paul has had numerous WrestleMania matches and won the United States Championship. Athletes such as Shaquille O’Neal, Lawrence Taylor and Floyd Mayweather have all competed at the Grandest Stage of Them All.
Cricket is one of the most watched sports in the world, and the global reach of hiring Flintoff was definitely appealing to them. Had things been different, “Big Fred” could have been the one in twenty-one and one, instead of Brock Lesnar.
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