Ric Flair explains why he is a 21-time world champion
“The Nature Boy” won the world title more than 16 times
The Week in Wrestling is published every week and provides beneath the surface coverage of the business of pro wrestling.
Contents for The Week in Wrestling:
Ric Flair on John Cena, title reigns, Jim Ross, and Steve “Mongo” McMichael
An inside look at the past week in wrestling
Jesse Ventura’s call on Saturday Night’s Main Event brought back fond memories
Tweet of the Week
For Ric Flair, the number is 21
John Cena won the world title for the seventeenth time at WrestleMania 41. But he still has a way to go before he catches Ric Flair.
WWE recognizes Flair as a 16-time world champion. But the wrestling legend explained that he won the world title on 21 different occasions.
“They don’t recognize all the title wins,” said Flair. “That’s why there are two different numbers.”
Flair, who won his first world title in the fall of 1981, wrestled in an altogether different era. WWE does not recognize Flair dropping–or regaining–the NWA World Heavyweight Championship from Jack Veneno in Santo Domingo in ’82, for instance, or the title change with Harley Race in New Zealand from ’84. It was not uncommon for the belt to change hands in non-televised matches, and that leads to the bulk of the controversy surrounding the exact number of times Flair was champ.
“When you add it all up, that’s the number,” said Flair. “I’m a 21-time world champion.”
Cena is now in his seventeenth–and final–title reign. Surprisingly, he is going out as a heel, a role that Flair mastered. Flair is delighted to see Cena finally embracing his dark side as a villain, and he is always rooting for Cena to succeed.
“I love John, and I couldn’t be happier for him,” said Flair. “He’s special, one of the best ever. I always want what’s best for him.”
After getting called up to the main roster in 2002, Cena immediately stood out. Flair considers him to be part of a select group of stars with a certain extraordinary quality to their work.
“You could tell he had it right away,” said Flair. “We saw it when Ashley [Charlotte Flair] and The Four Horsewomen–Sasha [Banks, who is now Mercedes Moné], Bayley, and Becky [Lynch]–all debuted. That was an elite group of four, and you could tell right away. We saw it with The Shield with Roman [Reigns], Seth [Rollins], and [Jon] Moxley [who was Dean Ambrose in WWE]. They all stood out right away, too. That’s rare. You don’t see that very often.”
At 76, Flair is still grateful to remain involved in the pro wrestling business. He is keeping busy on the business front, even introducing a new series of products–Flair Spirits–this summer.
“It’s coming along real fast,” said Flair. “The launch will be soon, and people are going to love it.”
A week-and-a-half ago, Flair returned to AEW television for a tribute to Steve “Mongo” McMichael. The two were partners together in The Four Horsemen, and they stayed close until McMichael’s passing last month after a heroic battle against ALS.
Dripping with charisma, Flair noted that McMichael was born to be a Chicago Bear–which is the team he won the Super Bowl with in 1985–as well as a member of the Horsemen.
“He was definitely a Horseman–by god, was he ever,” said Flair. “We clicked with one another right away, and we never lost touch. It’s hard to express how great a man he was.
“When I found out he was sick, I was in shock. ALS is a terrible, terrible disease. He’s in a better place now.”
Another friend of Flair’s in a difficult spot is Jim Ross. The legendary announcer is battling colon cancer, and Flair is proud to stand in his corner.
“Jim is family to me,” said Flair. “I’ve known him since 1980. I introduced him to his wife Jan, who was such a lovely person, beautiful inside and out, and she really loved him. Jim means the world to me.
“Guys like Bobby Heenan, Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, and Gene Okerlund, that’s the Mount Rushmore of their profession. And Jim is a category all to himself. That’s the voice of wrestling.”
This past week…
Cody Rhodes, who just launched his new What Do You Wanna Talk About podcast, returned to WWE this past weekend just before Saturday Night’s Main Event went off the air. He’ll be on SmackDown this Friday, building toward a tag bout at Money in the Bank with Jey Uso against John Cena and Logan Paul.
Paul Heyman’s new alliance continues to be the most consistently compelling entity on WWE programming. This week alone, we were given a proper explanation of why Bronson Reed joined the faction…
… saw Rollins qualify for Money in the Bank…
… and were treated to a surprise attack from CM Punk.1
Hangman Page, Mercedes Moné, Jamie Hayter, and Will Ospreay were the stars of Double or Nothing this past Sunday. If you enjoy Anarchy in the Arena, then that was also everything you could have asked for. And though I believe Moné will defeat Toni Storm for the women’s world title at All In2, I am still very hesitant to declare that Hangman Page will beat Jon Moxley for the belt.3
Yes, that is Trick Williams with the TNA title. My suggestion? Keep Joe Hendry as far away as possible from TNA, and let him ride his wave of momentum in WWE.
Jesse Ventura became a star on commentary for a reason–and we got a taste of it on Saturday night
Jesse “The Body” Ventura’s success as a broadcaster was not a fluke.
Nor was it a mistake.
It was all due to the incredible charm and vibrant personality of pro wrestling’s first-ever great heel announcer.
“Vince [McMahon] deserves a little credit for that,” Ventura told me in 2022. “I know some people will be shocked to hear me say that, but he does. When I had the health problem and couldn’t wrestle, Vince came up with the idea of putting me on the mike. He wanted to break down another barrier. At that time, Vince was breaking down all the barriers, and there had never been a heel or bad guy on the mike.
“I was out of commission, but Vince doesn’t want you not working, no matter what ails you. So he came up with the idea and asked if I could do color commentating, and I said sure. He deserves the credit for thinking it up–and I’ve always given the man credit, he’s the P.T. Barnum of this generation.”
It shouldn’t surprise anyone that Ventura brought his unique blend of excitement–and yes, even controversy–to Saturday Night’s Main Event this past weekend. Ventura joined Michael Cole and Pat McAfee on headset for the Drew McIntyre-Damian Priest cage match, which Priest won by walking out the cage door after he knocked out McIntyre.
It was the wrong call, even if the storyline had built to someone “walking” away from the match. Priest could have walked out of the cage after pinning McIntyre. He could have walked away after climbing over the cage. But walking out the door was the weakest finish to the match, and Ventura instantly lit into the ridiculousness of it.
That is the essence of Ventura. He calls it like he sees it, regardless of what the company line may be. That is how Ventura became a legend at the broadcast table, and he dusted off some of that magic this past Saturday.
As Cole and McAfee struggled to defend the merit of the finish (and yes, it would have been a lot more realistic had at least one of them agreed with him), Ventura refused to budge. Modern-day wrestling fans got a taste of what we used to enjoy so often, and that was Jesse Ventura saying exactly what we were thinking.
If you enjoyed Ventura on Saturday, let me recommend the 1989 Survivor Series–specifically the match where Hulk Hogan’s team squares off against “The Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase’s team. It is vintage Ventura, making his critiques from this past Saturday’s look like child’s play.
Tweet of the Week
In the More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same department, WWE is running a show directly against AEW’s All in pay-per-view.
I still don’t think Punk will be on the Night of Champions card next month in Saudi Arabia. There is plenty of time for Bronson Reed to Tsunami him out of commission.
I’d love to see Hayter pick up even more momentum and be the one to dethrone Moné, as well as give her that first singles loss.
We’ll get a better idea when we know the main event. But if it’s Kazuchika Okada-Kenny Omega, then I think Moxley’s reign with the title will continue.