When Ric Flair left the WWE in the 1990’s, fans were uncertain if Flair would ever return to the company. The famous saying in wrestling, “never say never,” came to fruition when Flair came back to WWE in 2001. Flair’s return exceeded expectations as he went beyond an on-screen authority figure.
Only mere months later, Flair was already wrestling the likes of The Undertaker, Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Triple H, and many more. When he was paired with Triple H to form Evolution, it felt as if “The Nature Boy” never lost his touch. Throughout this run, he captured Tag Team and Intercontinental gold. While being there to elevate younger stars such as Randy Orton and Edge, it was obvious that he would eventually retire.
“The Start of Career-Threatening Matches”
When Ric Flair returned from a hiatus at the end of 2007, he revealed to the fans that he would never retire from wrestling. This led to a frustrated Mr. McMahon coming down to the ring and berating Flair. McMahon angrily stated to Flair that every match of his will affect his future as an in-ring performer. If Flair were to lose another match, his career would be over.
This test started with Flair going against the then-WWE Champion, Randy Orton. Where it seemed that Orton was going to gain the victory, his rival, Chris Jericho, cost Orton the match, leading to Flair hitting a distracted Orton with a low-blow and rolling up to pick up the win.
Unfortunately for Flair, his win over the champion was not enough to solidify himself. Flair was then ordered to wrestle one of his closest friends in wrestling, Triple H. This time, it was more than Flair’s career on the line. If Triple H lost to Flair, then he would be out of the Royal Rumble Match.
When it came to Triple H nearing a win on Flair, RAW General Manager William Regal pulled Flair to the apron and knocked him out with brass knuckles. This infuriated Triple H, as this meant Flair won via disqualification.
Ric Flair’s Road to WrestleMania
At the start of 2008, Flair was facing challengers all across RAW and SmackDown. From beating talent such as William Regal, MVP, and Mr. Kennedy, it was inevitable that he would face someone who was at his level in wrestling. WrestleMania 24 was coming closer and closer, and Flair may have met his competition. Flair believed that Shawn Michaels would be a great opponent for him at WrestleMania.
On the other side, Michaels refused Flair’s WrestleMania challenge. Michaels didn’t want to wrestle Flair at WrestleMania because he felt that he would be responsible for ending the careers of someone he idolized.
