Ric Flair made his most recent WWE appearance at the 2023 Hall of Fame ceremony where he inducted The Great Muta.
The two men battled multiple times in the ring and a great deal of respect exists between the pair.
However, Flair’s speech reportedly didn’t go down too well backstage and was criticised online. Flair came under fire for rambling, with many fans commenting that he spent more time talking about his own exploits and time in Japan than Muta.
This was followed by a report that claimed Flair went off script during the speech, only returning to what had been planned and approved right at the end.
Speaking on his To Be The Man podcast, Flair has now responded to the criticism and the notion that WWE was unhappy. The Nature Boy said he was doing his best to get over how big a star Muta was, claiming that most of the people in attendance had no idea who he was.
“I don’t know what they didn’t like about it. You have to remember that 99% of the people in attendance in that building don’t even know who Muta is. Does it make sense? They haven’t performed [against him], well the wrestling people do but I’m saying the audience. So I just, anytime you compare someone to Ricky Steamboat, and Shawn Michaels, I don’t see how anyone could complain about that. Because he was that good. Or say he was the first guy to do the Moonsault on TV, which you brought to my attention.
What they didn’t like, I guess, as I mentioned, was the fact that I’ve been there 64 times, and all the guys that beat me, because I couldn’t do anything about it. I don’t know what they’re unhappy about. So I didn’t hear it from anybody in the WWE, but that’s not unusual.”
Ric Flair Claims Charlotte Flair Is The Best Performer In WWE
During the podcast, the 16-time World Champion also heaped praise on his daughter and Rhea Ripley for their match at WrestleMania 39. Flair stated that following her performance, Charlotte Flair is the best performer in WWE today.
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