American Wrestling Association (1972–1974) A successful
amateur wrestler in his teens, Flair trained as a professional wrestler with
Verne Gagne. He attended Gagne's first wrestling camp with
Greg Gagne,
"Jumpin'" Jim Brunzell,
Iron Sheik and
Ken Patera at Gagne's barn outside Minneapolis in the winter of 1971. On December 10, 1972, he made his debut for Gagne's
American Wrestling Association (AWA) promotion in
Rice Lake, Wisconsin, wrestling
George "Scrap Iron" Gadaski to a 10-minute draw while adopting the ring name Ric Flair. Flair left the AWA in May 1974.
International Wrestling Enterprise (1973) Flair made his first appearances in Japan in 1973 with
International Wrestling Enterprise (IWE) as part of a working agreement between the IWE and AWA promoter Verne Gagne. He competed in IWE's "Big Summer Series" throughout June and July, facing opponents such as
Animal Hamaguchi, Great Kusatsu, Katsuzo Matsumoto,
Mighty Inoue, and
Rusher Kimura. Flair and Valentine lost the Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship to Paul Jones and Ricky Steamboat on August 22. Flair defended the United States Heavyweight Championship against numerous challengers, including Steamboat, whom he wrestled in several matches, such as a title versus title match for Flair's title and Steamboat's Mid-Atlantic Television Championship. On October 30, Flair and Valentine defeated the Andersons to win the
NWA World Tag Team Championship (Mid Atlantic version). On October 20, Flair lost the United States Heavyweight Championship to Ricky Steamboat. On March 30, 1978, Flair and Valentine were stripped of the World Tag Team Championship by NWA management due to continuously ending their matches via disqualification. On April 9, Flair defeated
Mr. Wrestling in a title versus hair match to capture his second United States Heavyweight Championship. On October 30, Flair and
John Studd defeated Paul Jones and Ricky Steamboat to win the Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Championship, but lost the titles back to Jones and Steamboat, five days later on November 5. After retaining the title against several challengers including
Blackjack Mulligan and
Jimmy Snuka, Flair lost the United States Heavyweight Championship to Steamboat on December 17. Flair then came up short against Steamboat in several title challenges, before defeating him in a steel cage match to win his third United States Heavyweight Championship on April 1, 1979. During this time, Flair began feuding with the original "Nature Boy",
Buddy Rogers, due to Flair referring to himself as "The Nature Boy". The rivalry concluded in a match between the two at
Battle of the Nature Boys on July 8, in which Flair defended the United States Heavyweight Championship against Rogers. Rogers put Flair
over in the match, leading to Flair retaining the title and cementing his place as the new "Nature Boy" of professional wrestling. A month later, on August 12, Flair teamed with Blackjack Mulligan to defeat
Baron von Raschke and Paul Jones to win the NWA World Tag Team Championship. Flair and Mulligan lost the titles back to Raschke and Jones on August 22. Flair then began feuding with Jimmy Snuka over the United States Heavyweight Championship, defeating him to win the title for a fourth time on April 20, 1980. Flair lost the title to his former tag team partner Greg Valentine on July 26. Flair defeated Valentine in a
lumberjack match to win his fifth United States Heavyweight Championship on November 24. On January 27, 1981, Flair lost the title to
Roddy Piper in a title versus title match, where Flair's United States Heavyweight Championship and Piper's Television Championship were on the line. Flair faced Piper in various rematches for the title throughout the year but failed to regain the title.
World Heavyweight Champion (1981–1985) in
Memorial Hall,
Kansas City, Kansas to win the
NWA World Heavyweight Championship as
Lou Thesz (left) counts the pinfall, on September 17, 1981. On September 17, 1981 in
Memorial Hall in
Kansas City, Kansas, Flair defeated
Dusty Rhodes for his first
NWA World Heavyweight Championship in a bout with
Lou Thesz as special guest referee. Later that month, the title was returned to Flair, who was reported to have defeated Colón at a house show in
Miami, Florida. , |thumb Flair's first reign as NWA World Heavyweight Champion officially ended in June 1983, when
Harley Race defeated Flair in a
two out of three falls match in the
Kiel Auditorium for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. At
Starrcade '83: A Flare for the Gold in November 1983, Flair defeated Race in a
steel cage match to regain the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. At
Starrcade '84: The Million Dollar Challenge in November 1984, Flair defended the title against Dusty Rhodes in a bout with boxer
Joe Frazier as special guest referee, with the winner of the bout to receive a $1,000,000 purse as well as the title. The match ended when Frazier stopped the match due to a cut on Rhodes's forehead. At
Starrcade '85: The Gathering in November, Flair again defended the NWA World Heavyweight Championship against Rhodes. Rhodes pinned him to win the title, but the result was changed to a disqualification win for Rhodes, and the title returned to Flair in an example of a "
Dusty finish". By 1986, wrestling promoter
Jim Crockett Jr. had consolidated NWA member promotions he owned into one entity, under the banner of the National Wrestling Alliance. Controlling much of the traditional NWA territories in the southeast and Midwestern US, Crockett looked to expand and built his promotion around Flair as champion. Flair's bookings were tightly controlled by Crockett, and a custom championship belt, the "
Big Gold Belt", was created for Flair. Flair lost the NWA World Heavyweight Championship to Rhodes on July 26, 1986, at
The Great American Bash in a
steel cage match. However, Flair regained the title at a house show on August 9, when Rhodes passed out in the
figure four leglock. At
Starrcade '86: The Skywalkers in November, Flair successfully defended the Heavyweight Championship against
Nikita Koloff. Flair lost the NWA World Heavyweight Championship in Detroit to
Ron Garvin on September 25, 1987. Garvin held the title for two months before losing to Flair on November 26, at WCW's first pay-per-view event,
Starrcade '87: Chi-Town Heat, in Chicago. at
The Great American Bash in July 1988|thumb In early 1988,
Sting and Flair fought to a 45-minute time-limit draw at
Clash of the Champions I. At
The Great American Bash in July, Flair defended the NWA World Heavyweight Championship against former Four Horsemen member
Lex Luger by referee stoppage. Flair retained the title when the referee stopped the match due to Luger's excessive bleeding. At
Starrcade '88: True Gritt in December, Flair defeated Luger by pinfall, to retain the title and end their feud. On February 20, 1989, at
Chi-Town Rumble in Chicago,
Ricky Steamboat pinned Flair to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. This prompted a series of rematches, where Steamboat was presented as a "family man" (often accompanied by his wife and son), while Flair opposed him as an immoral, fast-living "ladies man". Following a best-of-three falls match with Steamboat that lasted just short of the 60-minute time limit at ''
Clash of the Champions VI: Ragin' Cajun'' on April 2, Flair regained the title from Steamboat on May 7, at
WrestleWar '89: Music City Showdown in a match that was voted 1989's "
PWI Match of the Year". Following his final match against Steamboat, Flair was attacked by
Terry Funk after he refused to give Funk a title match, starting a feud between the two. On July 23, 1989, Flair defeated Funk at
The Great American Bash, but they continued to feud through the summer and Flair reformed The Four Horsemen, with the surprise addition of long-time rival Sting, to combat Funk's
J-Tex Corporation. At
Halloween Havoc in October 1989, Flair and Sting defeated Funk and
The Great Muta in a
Thunderdome match. The feud culminated in an
"I Quit" match at
Clash of the Champions IX: New York Knockout which Flair won. At
Starrcade '89: Future Shock in December 1989, Sting and Flair entered the Iron Man tournament, with Sting defeating Flair in the finals to earn a title shot. At
Clash of the Champions X: Texas Shootout, Flair kicked Sting out of The Four Horsemen after he refused to waive his shot at the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, resulting in a revived feud between them. Sting was scheduled to face Flair for the title at
WrestleWar '90: Wild Thing in February 1990, but after Sting suffered a knee injury he was replaced with Luger, who Flair defeated by count-out. At
Capital Combat in May 1990, Luger challenged Flair again, but failed to win the title after Flair was disqualified due to interference from Four Horsemen member Barry Windham. On July 7, 1990, at
The Great American Bash, Flair finally lost the NWA World Heavyweight Championship to Sting. Subsequent to this title win, Flair was recognized by WCW as the first
WCW World Heavyweight Champion,he was still also recognized as NWA World Heavyweight Champion. At
WrestleWar '91 in January 1991, Flair and The Four Horsemen defeated Sting,
Brian Pillman and the
Steiner Brothers in a
WarGames match. On March 21, 1991,
Tatsumi Fujinami defeated Flair in a match in Tokyo at
WCW/New Japan Supershow I. While the NWA recognized Fujinami as their new champion, WCW did not because Fujinami had backdropped Flair over the top rope in a violation of WCW rules. On May 19, 1991, Flair defeated Fujinami at
SuperBrawl I in
St. Petersburg, Florida to reclaim the NWA World Heavyweight Championship and retain the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. After his match with Fujinami, Flair began a feud with
El Gigante. On June 23, 1991, Flair and
One Man Gang lost to Gigante and Luger in a
stretcher match that took place at a
house show in the
Omni Coliseum; this marked his final match for World Championship Wrestling in close to two years. In the spring of 1991, Flair had a contract dispute with WCW president
Jim Herd, who wanted him to take a pay cut. Flair had resigned as head booker in February 1990 and Herd wanted to reduce Flair's role in the promotion further, even though Flair was still a top draw. According to Flair, Herd proposed changes in his appearance and ring name (i.e. by shaving his hair, wearing a diamond earring and going by the name
Spartacus) in order to "change with the times". Flair disagreed with the proposals and two weeks before
The Great American Bash, Herd fired him and vacated the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. While Flair had left for the WWF, he was still recognized as the NWA World Heavyweight Champion until September 8, when the title was officially vacated.
All Japan Pro Wrestling (1978–1987) While working for
Jim Crockett Jr.'s
Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling (MACW), Flair began working tours for
All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). On April 27, 1978, Flair challenged for the
NWA United National Championship in a losing effort. Throughout the 1980s, Flair defended the
NWA World Heavyweight Championship in All Japan against the likes of
Genichiro Tenryu,
Riki Choshu,
Jumbo Tsuruta,
Harley Race, and
Kerry Von Erich. On October 21, 1985, Flair wrestled
Rick Martel in a double title match where he defended the NWA World Heavyweight Championship and challenged for the
AWA World Heavyweight Championship, but the match ended in a double countout. As All Japan withdrew from the
National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) in the late 1980s,
World Championship Wrestling (WCW) began a working agreement with
New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW).
New Japan Pro-Wrestling (1989–1991, 1995–1996) In 1989, the working agreement led to a feud between Flair and
Keiji Mutoh, who was wrestling under The Great Muta
gimmick, in the United States for WCW. On March 21, 1991, Flair defended the NWA World Heavyweight Championship and challenged
Tatsumi Fujinami for the
IWGP Heavyweight Championship in a double title match on the
WCW/New Japan Supershow at the
Tokyo Dome. Fujinami beat Flair for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, but later lost the title at WCW's
SuperBrawl I on May 19, 1991, in the United States. In August 1995, while under WCW contract, Flair participated in the
G1 Climax tournament in
New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he beat
Shiro Koshinaka, drew
Masahiro Chono, and lost to Keiji Mutoh. On July 17, 1996, Flair challenged
Shinya Hashimoto for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in a losing effort in NJPW. but Flair claimed otherwise due to a loophole in NWA policy; at the time he first became champion, the NWA required all of the wrestlers that it selected to be world champion to put down a security deposit of $25,000, which, in effect, resulted in the belt being leased to any wrestler who held it. The NWA, in usual cases, would return the deposit and any interest that may have accumulated upon the conclusion of the wrestler's championship reign. They did not do this for Flair before he was terminated by WCW, and since the money was still owed to him by the NWA upon his signing with the WWF, Flair believed that the title belt had become his personal property to do with as he pleased. At the
1992 Royal Rumble, held in the
Knickerbocker Arena in
Albany, New York, Flair won the
Royal Rumble match to claim the vacant WWF Championship. Flair entered as number three in the Rumble match and lasted 60 minutes, last eliminating
Sid Justice with help from Hulk Hogan, who had been eliminated by Justice seconds earlier. In February 1992, Flair faced the
WWF Intercontinental Champion Roddy Piper in a series of inconclusive
title-versus-title matches.
Randy Savage then challenged Flair for the WWF Championship as part of the double main event at
WrestleMania VIII. In the storyline, Flair taunted Savage by claiming that he had a prior relationship with Savage's wife,
Miss Elizabeth. Savage defeated Flair for the title at WrestleMania. On September 15, 1992, Flair defended the WWF Championship against
Genichiro Tenryu at a
Wrestle Association R event in
Yokohama, Japan; the match ended in a draw. Flair teamed with
Razor Ramon to take on Savage and Perfect at
Survivor Series in November 1992. Flair had a verbal agreement with Vince McMahon with the condition that if he was not going to be used in a main event position and had an offer to go elsewhere, he would be released from his contract. He opted to leave WWF when he was going to be moved to a mid-card position and Bill Watts offered to come back to WCW. Flair then fulfilled his remaining house show commitments and took part in the WWF's "Winter Tour '93" of Europe. He made his last appearance with the WWF on February 11, 1993, before returning to WCW.
Super World of Sports (1992) In April 1992, Flair toured Japan with the
Super World of Sports (SWS) promotion as part of an agreement between the WWF and SWS. In his first bout, he teamed with
The Natural Disasters to defeat
Ashura Hara,
Genichiro Tenryu, and
Takashi Ishikawa in a
six-man tag team match. He went on to defeat Tenryu in a singles match, then lost to Tenryu in a
two-out-of-three falls match. Flair challenged
Col. Robert Parker to wrestle one of his men at
Slamboree '94: A Legends' Reunion, which turned out to be Windham, whom Flair defeated, afterwards he quietly turned heel and took
Sherri Martel as his manager. He wrestled
Lord Steven Regal in a five-match series under
Marquess of Queensberry Rules, which aired on
WCW Worldwide between April 30-May 28, which Flair won, with 2 wins, 1 loss, and 2 draws. In June 1994 at
Clash of the Champions XXVII, Flair defeated Sting in a unification match, merging the WCW International World Heavyweight Championship with the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. He also solidified his heel turn after his alliance with Sherri was brought into the open, after she helped him win the match while pretending she had sided with Sting. After becoming the unified WCW champion, Flair feuded with Hulk Hogan upon Hogan's arrival in WCW in June 1994, losing the WCW World Heavyweight Championship to him in July at
Bash at the Beach. Flair continued to feud with Hogan and lost to Hogan in a steel cage retirement match at
Halloween Havoc. Flair took a few months off, before returning to WCW television in January 1995 for an interview at
Clash of the Champions XXX. After attacking Hogan at
Superbrawl V, Flair began appearing as a part-time manager for
Vader, who was in a feud with Hogan, and developed a short-lived angle where he was "possessed", even attacking his old WWF opponent
Randy Savage at the first
Uncensored. He returned to wrestling, explained on-air by having Flair nag Hogan for months until Hogan and Savage both petitioned WCW management to let Flair come back. Upon returning, Flair revived his 1992 feud with Savage, but also got Savage's father
Angelo Poffo involved after he put him in a
figure four leglock at
Slamboree '95: A Legends' Reunion. On April 29, 1995, Flair wrestled
Antonio Inoki in front of 190,000 spectators in
Pyongyang, North Korea at the May Day Stadium in a losing effort under a joint show between
New Japan Pro-Wrestling and
World Championship Wrestling. The event was broadcast on August 4, on
pay-per-view under the title of
Collision in Korea. In fall 1995, Flair began a feud with Arn Anderson, which culminated in a tag match that saw Flair turning on Sting to reform the new Four Horsemen with Flair as the leader, Arn Anderson, Brian Pillman, and Chris Benoit as the members. With the new Four Horsemen, Flair won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship two more times before the nWo invasion storyline began in WCW, with the first one being in December 1995 at
Starrcade '95: World Cup of Wrestling, where Flair defeated Luger and Sting by count-out and then defeated Savage after all three Four Horsemen members ran to the ring and Arn Anderson knocked out Savage with brass knuckles, thus allowing Flair to pin Savage to win the match and the title. Afterwards Savage won the title back on
WCW Monday Nitro after Starcade, but Flair won the next match at
SuperBrawl VI to regain the championship. During the feud, Savage's manager Miss Elizabeth turned against him and became Flair's valet. Together with Woman and Debra McMichael they would escort Flair to his matches until Miss Elizabeth was taken by the nWo in the fall and returned as Savage's valet when he joined the nWo in 1997. Flair lost the WCW World Heavyweight Championship three months later to The Giant. The feud with Savage continued with The New Four Horseman joining the Dungeon of Doom to create an Alliance to end Hulkamania. Together the factions wrestled Hogan and Savage in a triple steel cage, End of Hulkamania match; losing to the reunited Mega Powers. Afterwards, Flair went on to win the WCW US Heavyweight Championship and there were changes in the Four Horseman in 1996, as Brian Pillman left WCW and Steve "Mongo" McMichael became the fourth member.
Feud with the New World Order (1996–1999) Once again as a top
fan favorite, Flair played a major role in the
New World Order (nWo) invasion storyline in late 1996 and throughout 1997. He and the other Horsemen often took the lead in the war against
Scott Hall,
Kevin Nash, and
Hollywood Hulk Hogan, whom Flair immediately challenged for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship at the
Clash of the Champions XXXIII, but won only by disqualification. In September 1996, Flair and Anderson teamed with their bitter rivals,
Sting and Lex Luger, to lose to the nWo (Hogan,
Kevin Nash,
Scott Hall, and an
impostor Sting) in the WarGames match at
Fall Brawl when Luger submitted to the impostor Sting's
Scorpion Deathlock. In October 1996, two developments occurred that affected the Four Horsemen when
Jeff Jarrett came over to WCW from the WWF, and expressed his desire to join the Horsemen as he immediately gained a fan in Ric Flair, much to the chagrin of the other Horsemen. Flair finally let Jarrett join the group in February 1997, but the others did not want him, and in July 1997 was ultimately kicked out of the group by Flair himself, who had enough of the instability Jarrett's presence caused the Horsemen. Flair also feuded with
Roddy Piper,
Syxx, and his old nemesis
Curt Hennig in 1997, after Hennig was offered a spot in The Four Horsemen only to turn on Flair and The Four Horsemen at
Fall Brawl in September 1997, in which Hennig punctuated the act by slamming the cage door onto Flair's head. In April 1998, Flair disappeared from WCW television, due to a lawsuit filed by Eric Bischoff for no-showing a live episode of
Thunder on April 9, 1998, in
Tallahassee, Florida. After the case was settled, Flair made a surprise return on September 14, 1998, to ceremoniously reform the Four Horsemen (along with
Steve McMichael,
Dean Malenko, and
Chris Benoit). Flair feuded with Bischoff for several months afterward. Flair repeatedly raked Eric Bischoff's eyes during this feud. This culminated in a match at
Starrcade between Bischoff and Flair in December 1998, which Bischoff won after interference from Curt Hennig, a former member of the Four Horsemen. The following night in Baltimore on
Nitro, Flair returned and threatened to leave WCW, demanding a match against Bischoff for the presidency of the company. The match was made, and despite the nWo interfering on Bischoff's behalf Flair won and was granted the position of president of WCW. This resulted in a match at
SuperBrawl IX between Flair and Hollywood Hogan for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, which Flair lost after being betrayed by his own son
David Flair.
Final world championship reigns (1999–2001) In spite of his son's betrayal, Flair signed a rematch at
Uncensored on March 14 which was billed as a First Blood barbed wire steel cage Match against Hogan where Flair's presidency and Hogan's WCW World Heavyweight Championship were on the line. Despite being the first to bleed, Flair won the match by pinfall thanks to the bias of the referee
Charles Robinson, who counted Hogan out. As on-air WCW President, Flair began abusing his power much like Bischoff had, favoring villains over fan favorites and even awarding the
WCW United States Heavyweight Championship (which was vacated by
Scott Steiner due to injury) to his son David and resorting to whatever means necessary to keep him as United States Heavyweight Champion. Flair eventually formed a stable of followers which included
Roddy Piper, Arn Anderson and the
Jersey Triad to keep things in order. Flair's reign as president came to an end on the July 19 episode of
Nitro, when he faced and lost to Sting for the position. During the course of the match, Sting had Flair in his Scorpion Death Lock, but with the referee knocked unconscious, no decision could be reached. A returning Eric Bischoff came to the ring and began ordering the timekeeper to ring the bell, which he eventually did, awarding the match and the presidency to Sting (who promptly gave it up upon receiving it). Flair won his last world titles in his career by winning the WCW World Heavyweight Championship twice during 2000, the company's last full year of operation. When WCW was purchased by the WWF in March 2001, Flair was the leader of the villainous group called the
Magnificent Seven. Flair lost the final match of
Nitro to Sting, recreating the second match of
Nitro in 1995. Nevertheless, Flair has repeatedly stated in various interviews how happy he was when WCW finally closed down, although at the same time the fact that many people would lose their jobs saddened him.
World Wrestling Federation / World Wrestling Entertainment (2001–2009) WWF co-owner (2001–2002) in 2002. After an eight-month hiatus from wrestling, Flair made a return to the WWF on November 19, 2001. Flair reappeared on
Raw following the end of the "
WCW/ECW Invasion" that culminated in a "Winner Take All" match at
Survivor Series on November 18 won by the WWF. Flair's new on-screen role was that of the co-owner of the WWF, with the explanation that
Shane and
Stephanie McMahon had sold their stock in the company to a
consortium (namely Flair) prior to purchasing World Championship Wrestling and
Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). Flair's feud with
Vince McMahon led them to a match at the
Royal Rumble on January 20, 2002, in a
Street Fight, where Flair defeated McMahon. The "co-owner" angle culminated in early 2002, when Flair controlled
Raw and McMahon controlled
SmackDown! On the May 13 episode of
Raw, Flair challenged
Hollywood Hulk Hogan to a no disqualification match for the
Undisputed WWE Championship. Flair would later lose the contest before moving onto a rivalry with
Stone Cold Steve Austin. At
Judgment Day on May 19, Flair teamed with
Big Show and lost to Austin in a two-on-one handicap tag team match. On the June 3 episode of
Raw, the feud between Flair and Austin would escalate after Austin defeated Flair in a singles contest. After Austin abruptly left the WWE in June while in a program with Flair, a match was hotshotted between Flair and McMahon for sole ownership of WWE, which Flair lost after interference from
Brock Lesnar on the June 10 edition of
Raw. At
King of the Ring on June 23, Flair defeated
Eddie Guerrero in a singles match after Guerrero and
Chris Benoit would interrupt Flair's speech regarding losing his position as WWE co-owner; afterwards, Guerrero would lock Flair in his own signature figure four leg lock with help from Benoit. Flair's rivalry with Lesnar would continue into the month of July with Lesnar picking up wins over Flair in a singles match on the July 1 episode of
Raw and in a tag team contest on the July 15 episode of
Raw. Flair then became involved in a short-lived rivalry with
Chris Jericho, leading to Flair defeating Jericho at
SummerSlam on August 25. Flair was granted a
World Heavyweight Championship match against
Triple H on the September 2 episode of
Raw, which he lost. Later on that same night, Flair would team with
Rob Van Dam as the duo were successful in defeating the team of Triple H and Jericho. At
Unforgiven on September 22, Flair was unsuccessful in capturing the
WWE Intercontinental Championship in a singles contest against Jericho. Under the WWE banner, Flair toured Japan periodically between 2002 and 2008. He successfully defended the
World Tag Team Championship with
Batista against
The Dudley Boyz twice in February 2004. On the February 7, 2005, episode of
Raw, broadcast from the
Saitama Super Arena in Japan, Flair lost to
Shawn Michaels in a singles match. In February 2008, Flair wrestled
Mr. Kennedy in the
Ariake Coliseum and
William Regal in the
Budokan Hall, both under the stipulation that he would retire if he lost.
Evolution (2002–2005) On September 22 at
Unforgiven,
Triple H defended the
World Heavyweight Championship against
Rob Van Dam. During the match, Flair came down to the ring and grabbed the sledgehammer from Triple H and teased hitting him before hitting Van Dam, allowing Triple H to get the win, turning him heel in the process and accompanied Triple H to the ring as his manager. Shortly after,
Batista moved from
SmackDown! to
Raw and Flair also began accompanying him to the ring while continuing to second Triple H. On June 15, 2003 at
Bad Blood, Flair was able to defeat Shawn Michaels after
Randy Orton struck Michaels with a chair. At the height of Evolution's power, the group controlled all of the male-based championships of
Raw after
Armageddon on December 14. Batista teamed with Flair to win the
World Tag Team Championship from the
Dudley Boyz (
Bubba Ray Dudley and
D-Von Dudley) in a
tag team turmoil match and Triple H regained the World Heavyweight Championship from Goldberg (in a
triple threat match that also involved
Kane), with the help of the other members of Evolution. On January 25, 2004 at the
Royal Rumble, Flair and Batista successfully defended the World Tag Team Championship against the Dudley Boyz in a
tables match, and World Heavyweight Champion Triple H fought Shawn Michaels to no contest in a
Last Man Standing match, thus retaining the championship. Flair and Batista lost the World Tag Team Championship on February 16 edition of
Raw to
Booker T and
Rob Van Dam. At
WrestleMania XX on March 14, Evolution defeated the
Rock 'n' Sock Connection (
The Rock and
Mick Foley) in a 3-on-2 handicap match. On the March 22 episode of
Raw during the
2004 WWE draft lottery, Flair and Batista defeated
Booker T and
Rob Van Dam to win their second and final World Tag Team Championship, but they lost the titles to World Heavyweight Champion
Chris Benoit and
Edge on the April 19 episode of
Raw. At
SummerSlam on August 15, Orton pinned Benoit to become the new World Heavyweight Champion and the youngest World Champion in WWE history to date. On the episode of
Raw the night after SummerSlam, Batista hoisted Orton on to his shoulders in what appeared to be a celebration, but following the
thumbs down from Triple H, the group proceeded to attack Orton. At
Unforgiven on September 12, Flair and Batista lost to Chris Benoit and
William Regal. Later that night, Triple H beat Orton to regain the World Heavyweight Championship, with help from Flair, Batista, and
Jonathan Coachman. Orton's feud with Evolution continued until
Survivor Series on November 14 where Triple H, Batista,
Gene Snitsky, and Edge were defeated by Orton,
Maven, Chris Jericho, and Chris Benoit in a
Survivor Series match for control of
Raw over the following month. In the
Elimination Chamber match at
New Year's Revolution on January 9, 2005, Batista, Orton and Triple H were the last three remaining in the match. Orton eliminated Batista with a RKO and Triple H pinned Orton with Batista's help to win the title. Triple H suggested that Batista not enter the
Royal Rumble match, wanting the group to focus on Triple H retaining the title. At the
Royal Rumble on January 30, Batista declined, entered the Royal Rumble match at number 28 and won. Flair entered the match as the 30th and final entrant, but he was eliminated by Edge. Triple H tried to persuade Batista to challenge the WWE Champion
John "Bradshaw" Layfield of
SmackDown! rather than for his World Heavyweight Championship. This involved Triple H plotting a feud between JBL and Batista, showing JBL badmouthing Batista in an interview and staging an attack on Batista with a limousine designed to look like Layfield's. The scheme was unsuccessful and at the brand contract signing ceremony on the February 21 episode of
Raw, Batista chose to remain on
Raw, infuriating Triple H and thus quitting the faction. Batista defeated Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship at
WrestleMania 21 on April 3. Flair and Triple H also starred in an ad for WrestleMania 21 that parodied the film
Braveheart. After
Vengeance on June 26, Triple H took time off and Flair turned face for the first time since 2002 before going on to win the Intercontinental Championship from
Carlito at
Unforgiven on September 18, and the group was dissolved. Triple H returned at the "Homecoming" episode of
Raw on October 3 where he was to team with Flair in a tag team match against Carlito and
Chris Masters. After winning that match, Triple H betrayed Flair and attacked him with a sledgehammer. Flair retained the Intercontinental Championship against Triple H at
Taboo Tuesday on November 1 in a steel cage match, which was voted as such by the fans. Flair later lost to Triple H in an acclaimed Last Man Standing non-title match at
Survivor Series on November 27, which ended their feud.
Final storylines and first retirement (2005–2008) At the end of 2005, Flair had a feud with Edge (which included Flair successfully defending the Intercontinental Championship against Edge by disqualification at
New Year's Revolution on January 8, 2006) that culminated in a WWE Championship
Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match on the January 16 episode of
Raw, which Flair lost. On the February 20 episode of
Raw, Flair lost the Intercontinental Championship to
Shelton Benjamin, thus ending his reign at 155 days. Flair took some time off in mid-2006 to rest and marry for the third time and he returned in June to work a program with his real-life rival
Mick Foley that played off their legitimate past animosity. Flair defeated Foley at
Vengeance on June 25 in a
two out of three falls match, then at
SummerSlam on August 20 in an
"I quit" match. On the November 13 episode of
Raw, Flair and Piper lost the World Tag Team Championship to
Rated-RKO, due to a disc problem with Piper and had to be flown immediately back to the United States as soon as
Raw was off the air. On November 26 at
Survivor Series, Flair was the sole survivor of a match that featured himself,
Ron Simmons (replacing an injured Piper), Dusty Rhodes and
Sgt. Slaughter versus the Spirit Squad. Flair defeated Carlito in a match on the February 15, 2007 episode of
Raw after which Carlito realized that Flair was right. Flair and Carlito faced off against
Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch in a number one contender's match for the World Tag Team Championship, but were defeated. The two teamed up on the
WrestleMania 23 pre-show on April 1, and defeated the team of
Chavo Guerrero and
Gregory Helms. After weeks of conflict between Flair and Carlito, the team split up when Carlito attacked Flair during a match on the April 30 episode of
Raw. At
Judgment Day on May 20, Flair defeated Carlito with the figure four leglock. On the June 11 episode of
Raw, Flair was drafted to the SmackDown! brand as part of the
2007 WWE draft. He briefly feuded against
Montel Vontavious Porter, unsuccessfully challenging him for the
WWE United States Championship at
Vengeance: Night of Champions on June 24. Flair rejoined forces with Batista to feud with The Great Khali; the alliance was short-lived, however, as Flair was "injured" during a match with Khali on the August 3 episode of
SmackDown!. After a three-month hiatus, Flair returned to WWE programming on the November 26 episode of
Raw to announce "I will never retire". Vince McMahon retaliated by announcing that the next match Flair lost would result in a forced retirement. On March 29, Flair was inducted into the
WWE Hall of Fame as a part of the
class of 2008 by Triple H. The day after on March 30, Flair wrestled at
WrestleMania XXIV in
Orlando, Florida, losing to
Shawn Michaels. The match was lauded by fans and critics and was voted the 2008
Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI)
Match of the Year. Flair's fight to keep his career going garnered him the 2008
PWI "
Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year" award.
Part-time appearances (2008–2009) On the March 31 episode of
Raw, Flair delivered his farewell address. Afterward, Triple H brought out many current and retired superstars to thank Flair for all he had done, including Shawn Michaels, some of the Four Horsemen,
Ricky Steamboat,
Harley Race, and
Chris Jericho, followed by
The Undertaker and then
Vince McMahon. Along with the wrestlers, the fans gave Flair a
standing ovation. This event represented a rare moment in WWE as both the heels and the faces broke
character and came out to the ring together. Flair made his first post retirement appearance on the June 16 episode of
Raw to confront Chris Jericho about his actions during a rivalry with Shawn Michaels. He challenged Jericho to a
fight in the parking lot, rather than an official match, but Jericho was stopped by Triple H. The following year on February 9, 2009, Flair once again confronted Jericho on
Raw. Jericho was attacking Hall of Fame members and Flair demanded he respect them, before punching Jericho. Flair appeared a month later to distract him during a
Money in the Bank Qualifying Match. Jericho then challenged Flair to come out of retirement for
WrestleMania 25 on April 5; instead Flair managed
Roddy Piper,
Jimmy Snuka and
Ricky Steamboat in a three-on-one handicap match at WrestleMania in a losing effort. On May 17, Flair returned during the
Judgment Day pay-per-view, coming to the aid of Batista, who was being attacked by
The Legacy (Randy Orton,
Cody Rhodes and
Ted DiBiase). On the June 1 episode of
Raw, Flair challenged Orton in a parking lot brawl match, and after interference from the rest of The Legacy, the fight ended with Flair trapped inside a steel cage and punted by Orton.
Ring of Honor and the Hulkamania Tour (2009) in 2009, Flair vs.
Hulk Hogan Flair signed with
Ring of Honor (ROH) and appeared at the ''Stylin' And Profilin''' event in March 2009, clearing the ring after an
ROH World Championship match ended with a run-in. He soon served as the company's ambassador, in an on-screen authority role, and appeared on the television show
Ring of Honor Wrestling in May to cement his role. After a number one contender's match ended in a time-limit draw, and the following week a double count out, Flair announced ''Ring of Honor Wrestling's'' first ROH World Title match as a four-way contest. On November 21, 2009, Flair returned to the ring as a villain on the "
Hulkamania: Let The Battle Begin" tour of Australia, losing to Hulk Hogan in the main event of the first show by brass knuckles. Hogan defeated Flair again on November 24 in Perth, Australia after both men bled heavily.
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2010–2012) Debut and Fortune (2010) On the January 4, 2010, episode of
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling's (TNA)
Impact!, Flair made his debut appearance for the company arriving via limo and later observing the main event between
A.J. Styles and longtime rival
Kurt Angle. It was later reported that Flair had signed a one-year deal with the company. In the past, Flair had openly stated that he was loyal to the McMahons and wanted to end his career in WWE, however he had not had contact from WWE since June 2009 and decided to sign with TNA after waiting for the call from WWE for six months. On January 17 at
Genesis, Flair helped Styles cheat to pin Angle and retain the
TNA World Heavyweight Championship. In addition to Styles, Flair began informally managing
Beer Money, Inc. (
Robert Roode and
James Storm) and
Desmond Wolfe as a loose alliance. On the March 8 episode of
Impact!, Hulk Hogan and Abyss defeated Flair and Styles when Abyss pinned Styles. Afterwards, the returning
Jeff Hardy saved Abyss and Hogan from a beatdown at the hands of Flair, Styles and Beer Money, Inc. On the April 26 episode of
Impact!, Flair was defeated by Abyss in a match where Flair's and Hogan's WWE Hall of Fame rings were at stake, and as a result Flair lost possession of his ring to Hogan. The following week, Hogan gave the ring to
Jay Lethal, who returned it to Flair out of respect. This, however, was not enough for Flair, who attacked Lethal along with the members of Team Flair. After Styles dropped the TNA World Heavyweight Championship to Rob Van Dam, then failed to regain it in a rematch and later was pinned by Jay Lethal, Flair adopted
Kazarian as his newest protégé, seemingly replacing Styles as his number one wrestler. On the June 17 episode of
Impact!, Flair announced that he would reform the Four Horsemen under the new name , a group consisting of A.J. Styles, Kazarian, Robert Roode, and James Storm. Flair made a return to the ring on July 11 at
Victory Road, losing to Jay Lethal. On the August 5 episode of
Impact!, Flair faced Lethal in a rematch, this time contested under Street Fight rules, with the members of banned from ringside; Flair managed to win the match after an interference from
Douglas Williams. The following week, Williams and
Matt Morgan were added to . In the weeks leading to
Bound for Glory on October 10, Flair's stable's name was tweaked to Fortune to represent the expansion in the number of members in the group. On the October 7 episode of
Impact!, Flair was defeated by Mick Foley in a Last Man Standing match.
Immortal and second retirement (2010–2012) in
London, England on the TNA Maximum Impact! Tour, in January 2011. On the October 14 episode of
Impact!, Fortune formed an alliance with Hulk Hogan's and Eric Bischoff's new stable,
Immortal. On the November 18 episode of
Impact!, Flair returned to the ring, competing in a match where he faced Matt Morgan, who had been kicked out of Fortune the previous month; Morgan won the match after Douglas Williams turned on the rest of Fortune, when they interfered in the match. On January 25, 2011, it was reported that Flair had pulled out of TNA's
Maximum Wooo! tour of Europe mid–tour after monetary disputes. After missing a show in
Berlin, Germany, Flair returned to the tour on January 27 in
Glasgow, Scotland, reportedly apologizing to the locker room prior to the show. On January 29, Flair wrestled his only match of the tour, defeating
Douglas Williams in London,
tearing his rotator cuff in the process making it his last singles win. During Flair's time away from TNA, Fortune turned on Immortal. Flair returned at the February 14 tapings of the February 17 episode of
Impact!, turning on Fortune during a match between A.J. Styles and
Matt Hardy and jumping to Immortal. On the March 10 episode of
Impact!, Flair defeated Styles and Hardy in a three–way street fight, contested as more of a two–on–one handicap match. On April 17 at
Lockdown, Immortal, represented by Flair, Abyss,
Bully Ray and Matt Hardy, was defeated by Fortune members James Storm, Kazarian and Robert Roode and
Christopher Daniels, who replaced an injured A.J. Styles, in a Lethal Lockdown match, when Flair tapped out to Roode. The match was used to write Flair off television, as the following week he was scheduled to undergo surgery for his torn rotator cuff; however, Flair ultimately chose not to have the surgery as it would have required six months of rehab. Flair returned to television in a non–wrestling role on the May 12 episode of
Impact Wrestling. Flair did not appear again for three months, until making his return on August 9 at the tapings of the August 18 episode of
Impact Wrestling, confronting old rival Sting and challenging him to one more match. In exchange for Sting agreeing to put his career on the line, Flair promised to deliver him his match with Hogan if he was victorious. The match, which Flair lost, took place on the September 15 episode of
Impact Wrestling. The match with Sting would be the last of his career to date. During the match, Flair tore his left triceps on a
superplex spot, sidelining him indefinitely from in-ring action. At
Bound for Glory on October 16, Flair appeared in Hogan's corner in his match against Sting. Flair continued to make appearances for TNA until April 2012. In April 2012, Flair tried to have his TNA contract terminated, which led to TNA filing a
lawsuit against WWE for contract tampering and eventually firing Flair on May 11. Having been inactive since his September 2011 injury, Flair announced in a December 3, 2012, interview that he would never wrestle again, owing chiefly to an on-air heart attack suffered by age peer
Jerry Lawler following a
Raw match three months earlier.
Return to WWE (2012–2021) On March 31, 2012, while still contracted to TNA as a part of a deal with WWE which allowed Christian Cage to appear at
Slammiversary 10, Flair became the first person to be inducted into the
WWE Hall of Fame twice, the second time as part of the
class of 2012 with
The Four Horsemen. On December 17, 2012, Flair returned to WWE as a non-wrestling personality on the annual
Slammy Awards show to present the Superstar of the Year award to
John Cena, who in turn gave the award to Flair. Flair's return was interrupted by
CM Punk and
Paul Heyman, escalating into a confrontation that ended with him locking Heyman in the figure-four leglock. After clearing the ring, Flair was assaulted by
The Shield (
Dean Ambrose,
Roman Reigns, and
Seth Rollins), until
Ryback and
Team Hell No (
Kane and
Daniel Bryan) helped Flair fend off the group. Flair appeared on the main roster sporadically throughout 2013, as
The Miz's mentor. He also occasionally appeared on
NXT in 2013 and 2014, accompanying his daughter
Charlotte to the ring. to the ring at
WrestleMania 32 Flair appeared on April 28, 2014, episode of
Raw, alongside the reunited
Evolution (minus Flair) and The Shield; Flair showed his endorsement for The Shield, Evolution's opponents at
Extreme Rules, effectively turning his back on his old teammates. At
Battleground,
John Cena symbolically handed over his
World Heavyweight Championship belt to Flair, telling him to "take it" while promoting his match. On the post-
SummerSlam Raw in August 2015, Flair interrupted
Jon Stewart, who had saved Flair's 16 world title record by preventing Cena's victory the previous night, telling him that the record would be broken eventually and he would rather it be by someone who he respects. Flair began making more frequent appearances with Charlotte after she won the
Divas Championship. In January 2016, Flair and Charlotte began displaying
villainous traits, with Flair often getting involved in Charlotte's Divas Championship and later
WWE Women's Championship defenses, thus turning heel for the first time since 2005 in WWE. This lasted until the May 23 episode of
Raw when Charlotte turned on him. On the November 28 episode of
Raw, Flair returned to congratulate the new Raw Women's Champion
Sasha Banks, who had defeated Charlotte to win the title, thus turning face once again. Flair made a surprise appearance during the November 14, 2017, episode of
SmackDown to congratulate his daughter Charlotte Flair, who won the
SmackDown Women's Championship. They shared an emotional moment on the ramp and did his iconic strut. On the February 25, 2019, episode of
Raw, WWE celebrated Flair's 70th birthday and during the closing moments, Flair was attacked by
Batista. The actual "attack" was never seen, only Flair being dragged by Batista. At
WrestleMania 35, Flair assisted
Triple H in defeating Batista, to keep his in-ring career going. Flair appeared on the July 22
Raw Reunion episode and raised a toast alongside Triple H,
Hulk Hogan,
"Stone Cold" Steve Austin, and various other fellow wrestlers of his era. In June 2020, Flair came back to WWE programming as a heel again, managing
Randy Orton for a few weeks until the August 10 episode of
Raw when Orton performed a punt kick on Flair's head. On November 22, 2020, he made an appearance at
Survivor Series during
The Undertaker's retirement ceremony. On the January 4, 2021, episode of
Raw, Flair started a storyline with
Lacey Evans, when during a match against
Women's Tag Team Champions Charlotte Flair and
Asuka, Evans flirted with Flair. During the following weeks, Flair managed Evans, usually distracting his daughter Charlotte, including a participation in the Women's
Royal Rumble. On the February 15 episode of
Raw, Evans' real-life pregnancy was announced and incorporated into a storyline with Flair impregnating Lacey. Evans was scheduled to face
Asuka for
Raw Women's Championship at
Elimination Chamber but the match was
canceled due to her pregnancy and the storyline with Flair was canceled. On August 2, 2021, it was reported by Wrestling Inc. that Flair had asked for and was granted his release from WWE. WWE confirmed his release the following day and considered it effective as of August 3.
Late career (2021–present) "Ric Flair's Last Match" (2021–2023) On August 14, 2021, at
Triplemanía XXIX, Flair made his
Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA) debut by accompanying Charlotte's fiancé
Andrade "El Ídolo" to ringside during his match against
AAA Mega Champion Kenny Omega. Flair would later get involved in the match by chopping Omega and applying the Figure Four leglock to Omega's second
Konnan. On August 29, 2021, Flair made his return to the NWA at
NWA 73. It was his first NWA appearance since 2008 when he was inducted into the
NWA Hall of Fame. At NWA 73, Flair thanked the NWA and WWE for several memorable moments and noted the importance of having several companies in the industry. On May 16, 2022, it was announced that Flair would wrestle his final match on July 31 in Nashville, called ''Ric Flair's Last Match'', finally retiring after nearly five decades in the ring. On July 18, it was announced that Flair would team with his son-in-law Andrade El Ídolo against Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal. As part of the promo setting up the match, Lethal attacked Flair over being left out of the match card. Jarrett initially tried to help Flair, but attacked him after he rebuffed him and used expletives against his family. Flair and Andrade would go on to win the match. Flair later confirmed that he had passed out twice during the Last Match and regretted announcing that it would be his final match. A few days later, he accompanied Andrade during his match against
Carlito at the
49th WWC Anniversary show held on August 6, 2022. Flair attempted to interfere before poking
Primo Colón when he tried to stop him, causing
Carlos Colón to attack him and forcing him to flee. Andrade would go on to lose the match. During the celebrations for the 50th anniversary of his debut in professional wrestling on September 26, 2022, Flair announced that he would never retire. In January 2023 however he stated that he did not want to wrestle again aside from wanting to redo the Last Match. In January 2025, Flair stated that he would never return to the ring. Both men previously wrestled in the final episode of
WCW Monday Nitro on March 26, 2001. On November 2, 2023, it was announced that Flair had signed a multi-year deal with AEW. On November 18, 2023, he made his AEW pay-per-view debut at
Full Gear, accompanying Sting,
Darby Allin and
Adam Copeland to the ring, and delivering chops and a low blow to
Christian Cage. On the January 6, 2024
AEW Collision Flair accompanied Sting and Allin to the ring, and later performed a promo with Sting later in the night. On January 10, 2024, Flair once again accompanied Sting and Allin to the ring during their match against
Powerhouse Hobbs and
Konosuke Takeshita, in which he once again delivered chops, this time inside an AEW ring for the first time. On February 21, Flair would once again appear on
Dynamite claiming he was unhappy with his involvement with Sting's retirement, and wanted to play a bigger role; he then entered
The Young Bucks office. The following week on February 28, during Sting's final Dynamite appearance, he made his iconic entrance from the rafters, with Flair delivering punches and chops to The Young Bucks. On March 3, 2024, Flair accompanied Sting and Allin to the ring at the
Revolution pay-per-view, in the
Greensboro Coliseum, the same venue in which the pair faced each other for the
NWA World Heavyweight Championship at
Clash of the Champions I in March 1988. During the match Flair received superkicks from The Young Bucks. On July 12, 2024, it was reported by
Dave Meltzer in the
Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Flair had parted ways with AEW. However, Meltzer later confirmed in November 2025 that Flair remains under AEW employment. On May 14, 2025 at
Collision: Beach Break, Flair returned to AEW as part of the tribute segment for
Steve McMichael. On November 8, 2025, it was revealed that Flair would return to AEW on November 12, 2025 for the
2025 Blood and Guts special. Though he would not appear on the televised broadcast, Flair was confirmed to have appeared at the event before its televised broadcast, but reported left early due to the great deal of pain he was in from a recent
rotator cuff injury. which was confirmed by Flair as well. == Legacy ==