The 1989 rivalry between Ric Flair and Ricky Steamboat is still revered by fans despite taking place more than three decades ago. For many the storyline provides the blueprint for how a three-match series should play out, and demonstrates the pinnacle of professional wrestling.
In total during their careers, Flair and Steamboat wrestled each other more than 300 times, but it’s the bouts at Chicago’s Chi-Town Rumble, Clash of the Champions VI and WrestleWar: Music City Showdown that stand above all others.
Ric Flair Compares Modern Rivalry To One Of His Own
Although Ric may have hung up his boots, the Flair name in wrestling lives on through his daughter Charlotte who is the most decorated female star in WWE history. During her career to date, Charlotte Flair has been involved in a number of big-time rivalries of her own, notably against the likes of Ronda Rousey, Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks.
Speaking on a recent of his To Be The Man podcast, Ric Flair compared his daughter and Banks to himself and Steamboat. The WWE Hall of Famer added that he would like to see The Boss return to the ring.
“[Sasha Banks is] Still young. I hope that she gets back into business. I mean, she has plenty of time but, you know, to me, I keep telling [people] she’s Ricky Steamboat and Ashley is me, that doesn’t get any better when the two of them work. There’s not a better female match ever, anywhere, anytime. I don’t have a problem saying this. They are the two premier female wrestlers that I’ve ever seen in my entire life.”
After Ric Flair wrestled his ‘last’ match in July, Ricky Steamboat recently returned to the ring for the first time in a decade. With regard to ‘The Dragon’s’ comeback, Flair said he was happy to see him back in action, calling him the best babyface in history.
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