Conrad Thompson believes that fans who have been critical of Ric Flair's return to the ring should try to step into the legend's shoes and look at it from his perspective.
Thompson is the promoter behind the Ric Flair's Last Match event, which will be held in conjunction with Starrcast V on July 31. On Sunday, the WWE Hall of Famer will wrestle in his first match since 2011. His decision to lace up his boots again has been the source of plenty of criticism in the wrestling world, as fans have questioned Flair's motives.
Speaking on a media call prior to the event, Thompson encouraged doubters to approach the show from a different angle. He noted that Flair has every right to return to the ring because he didn't get to properly retire. He then described how Flair has come out on the other side of a dark period of his life, so he deserves to conclude his career on his terms.
"I know a lot of wrestling fans, when they first saw this announcement, they said to themselves, ‘Why is Ric Flair doing this?’ I would encourage everyone who is listening to this or reading a recap perhaps, to really ask yourself, try to look at it from a different perspective. Not necessarily what you want to see, not necessarily what you think what should be done, but see it from Ric’s perspective. Ric Flair has entertained us for nearly 50 years in professional wrestling. If this is important to him and he wants to do it one last time, why would we discourage that? Why would we think that we know better than him? This is about h wanting to feel like Ric Flair, ‘The Nature Boy’, one last time. When that whole 2008 retirement happened, that wasn’t his idea. He was dictated to. That was created in a creative meeting, and they said, ‘Hey, you’re having your last match,’ and by the way, it was fabulous. It was ten out of ten. But he wasn’t necessarily ready to do that, which is why he wrestled again. But at this point, he’s been gone for so long, I think everybody understands he’s not gonna wrestle again. This really is it. It if he wants to feel like Ric Flair ‘The Nature Boy’ one last time, having lost his son nearly ten years ago and as you saw in episode one, he said as soon as that happened, he walked across the street to the bar, and he didn’t quit drinking for five years. He nearly lost his life because he was self-medicating, [he] wasn’t taking care of himself. But he’s worked himself back, and Ric Flair is in a better place mentally, emotionally, physically, financially, than I’ve ever known him right now," Thompson said.
Thompson emphasized that this final match isn't about the money for Flair. Instead, he wants to perform in front of a crowd that has paid to see him one last time. Thompson went on to make it clear that Flair has been training hard ahead of the bout, so anything that could have gone wrong likely would have happened throughout this process.
"This is not a cash grab for Ric Flair. This is not, ‘Ric Flair needs a payday.’ This is about Ric Flair wants the glory and the rush of being in front of a crowd that paid to come see him one last time. Who are we to say that he can’t do that? I understand there are naysayers who have concerns about his health. But they’re not his doctor. His doctor has cleared him for it, and his trainer has told him that he’s ready. I just wanna remind everybody that this, when he steps through the ropes this Sunday night, it won’t be the first time he’s stepped through the ropes. It will be the first time you’ve seen him step through the ropes, but he’s been training almost every other day for months. So if there was a concern about something that could happen with Ric medically, it would have already happened in training, candidly, because he’s already done it. He’s been put through the paces, he’s pushed himself. This is not, ‘He wants to get out there and chop and strut and ‘Woo.’ He wants to go out there and steal the show, and he’s gonna have his work cut out for him following guys from AAA and New Japan and MLW and IMPACT Wrestling and all of these fabulous wrestlers who are here and in the prime of their career. He feels incredible pressure to deliver. Now luckily, his tag team partner is one of the best wrestlers in the world today, no matter what anybody says, and they’re gonna put on one hell of a show this Sunday night," he said.
Thompson concluded by saying, "I would encourage you, if you’ve been negative and you weren’t sure about this, and you didn’t think you liked it and you don’t think he should be doing it, I want you to ask yourself, what about from Ric’s perspective? Can I put myself in his shoes and see it from his perspective? When I see it that way, does it change my opinion?' Here’s a spoiler, it’s not about you. Not everything in life is about you. You get to decide if you want to watch it or not, but Ric Flair gets to decide what happens in his life. If he wants to wrestle one last time, and his doctor clears him, and his trainer says he’s okay, and his son-in-law’s got his back, Andrade’s gonna be there to take care of him, and I am ready for what happens Sunday night. It’s gonna be a dangerous affair in that main event, but it will probably be dangerous for Jeff Jarrett, not so much Ric Flair."
Fans can check out the full card for Ric Flair’s Last Match at this link. We will have full coverage of the event on Sunday, July 31.
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