Sixteen-time World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair has given his thoughts on Paul Wight making the jump from WWE to AEW.
On February 24, 2021, it was announced by All Elite Wrestling that they had signed former WWE Champion Paul ‘Big Show’ Wight to commentate alongside Tony Schiavone on their upcoming AEW Dark: Elevation YouTube show.
The switch came following a breakdown in negotiations between Paul Wight and WWE when the parties couldn’t agree on financial terms to keep the giant a part of the Stamford group, with the colossus having made his displeasure clear during his final appearance for the company on the January 4, 2021, Monday Night Raw: Legends Night.
Now, ‘The Nature Boy’ Ric Flair has joined Busted Open Radio in order to discuss his old rival joining WWE’s opposition and how he never saw it coming:
“I didn’t see it coming, and I’m sure they [AEW] must have made him a spectacular deal over there. Do I wish he would stay with us personally? Yes. At the same time, he has earned my respect, and I think he has earned the respect of everybody and should be able to make whatever choice he wants.
I was just with him, and I did not see it happening. He did not mention a word to me, and I was with him, what two or three weeks ago, whenever they had the Legends Reunion. I wish him well, and he and I would be friends no matter where he is and what he does.”
Ric Flair and Paul Wight have a history that dates back to the leviathan’s days in WCW and on the promotion’s March 26, 1996, edition of Monday Nitro they clashed in a titanic battle over the WCW World Heavyweight Championship.
Paul Wight will make his AEW debut on the March 3 episode of Dynamite before making the transition to the voice of the group’s YouTube show.
Credit for the interview: Busted Open Radio
h/t for the transcription: Wrestling Inc.